* WORLD REFUGEE DAY * (pics!)

20 JUNE 2007

CIVNET (Civic Education Network Trust)

Church/NGO Civic Education Project)

ZIMBABWE

Introduction

CIVNET is a network of five civil society organisations that have an interest in civic education. The network has carried out civic education and democracy building work since 1996. It has built a strong network of commited civic activists and practitioners all over Zimbabwe. The networks' intervention has been carried through many programmes such as voter education, civil education, community participation, material development, publication and distribution. CIVNET evolved from The Church/NGO CIVIC Education Project that was established in March 1994 as a civil society initiative to address the problem of voter apathy. The country's relative nascent democratic state systemmakes imperative the need to help people understand how the system is supposed to work and how they can make positive, informed and meaningful contributions to the democratic process. Members of the network are Africa Community Publishing and Development Trust (ACPDT), Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe (CCJP), Legal Resources Foundatioin (LRF), Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) and Edwina Spicer Productions (ESP). Although the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) and Zimbabwe Human Rights Organisation (ZimRights) are not active at board and management level they are very active at provincial and grassroots level.

The main problem with regard to accessing one's rights in Zimbabwe is not the lack of rights knowledge, but the virtual absence of functioning remedial and facilitative mechanisms. CIVNET narrows that gap.

CIVNET'S VISION

To be the catalyst for citizen participation in democracy and development in Zimbabwe.

MISSION

To promote and provide participatory civic education by cooperating, engaging and networking with government and other Non-Governmental structures in Zimbabwe.

VALUES

Non-partisanship, Non-discriminatory, Accountability, Commitment to the cause, Participatory in nature, Upholding professionalism, Transparency and Honesty.

The objectives of the organization are:

•  To identify existing materials which can be used or adapted for civic education and to produce materials on the functions of government, human rights and democracy and to translate them into local languages.

•  To train facilitators in the use of the materials

•  To distribute the materials as widely as possible.

•  To organize workshops at which the materials will be used.

•  To encourage critical consciousness and the participation of citizens, especially minority and disadvantaged groups, in economic, social and developmental issues, and accountability at all levels

•  To educate people about their rights and obligation as citizens and how to seek redress through lawful means.

•  To encourage full participation in the democratic process so as to ensure good governance.

Programmes & Activities

•  Education & awareness-raising

•  Voter education

•  Civic education, political, social and economic rights: focus: community participation, citizenship, income generation

•  Publications, training materials

2. What methods and activities are used to achieve the objectives?

Awareness raising workshops, information dissemination, legal assistance through partners, facilitation of liaison with Ministries, voter education

3. What are the organization's specific plans for 2003 and its general plans for the next 3 years?

When the network was launched it's mandate was to exist for a period of four years ending in 2000. However, the fact that the situation in Zimbabwe deteriorated contrary to the hopes of the network, the need for the network and its activities remain a high priority. The network is poised to continue to function for the next few years. 2003 - CIVNET will continue with its public participation drive, and extend its outreach and training of trainers. Generally, depending on the situation CIVNET will seek to establish provincial offices to carry out the activities on an ongoing basis and promoting a culture of peace. CIVNET's activities beyond 2003 will therefore be determined by the character of the situation in Zimbabwe then. Activities involving voter education to remove voter apathy will be intensified in 2004 in preparation for the 2005 general elewctions.

4. What is the structure and size of the organization?

Members:

•  Africa Community Publishing and Development Trust (ACPDT)

•  Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP)

•  Legal Resources Foundation (LRF)

•  Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC)

•  Zimbabwe Human Rights Organization (ZimRights)

Co-opted:

•  Edwina Spicer Productions (ESP)

•  Women's Action Group (WAG)

Offices:

CIVNET has offices in Harare and Bulawayo

Staff:

Director, Bulawayo Coordinator, support staff(5) & volunteers

NATIONAL COORDINATOR, 2 REGIONAL COORDINATORS (NORTH (4 PROVINCES) AND SOUTH (4 PROVINCES), FINANCE AND ADMIN OFFICER, 2 ADMIN ASSISTANTS (1 BULAWAYO AND 1 HARARE) 2 OFFICE ORDERLIES AND VOLUNTEERS (ABOUT 500)

CIVNET has started recruiting provincial project assistants (8)

5. Does the organisation have a clear institutional and organisational framework?

Yes, CIVNET is a registered Trust,

6. Does the organization have a sustainable base?

Yes, the quality and level of its capacity building initiatives are widely known; their skills are often called upon by the larger networks like the NCA. CIVNET draws from its membership pool, skill, presence and profile.

7. What financial, human and material resources does the organization have at its disposal?

A committed staff complement, good reputation, wide reach, highly active and involved membership, office equipment (4 computers, 3 printers), project vehicles (4)

8. Where does the organization get its funding from?

International donors primarily.

9. Is the organization part of formal and/or informal networks?

Yes, NCA, Crisis,Coalition Zimbabwe, Food (FOSENET) Aid NGO Alliance. The benefits to the sector plan - see NCA

ZESN, CWGH, CASEP, ZPP

10. Is the work of the organization embedded in the local community?

Yes, its focus and activities are all community based. The rootedness of the organization extends to its methodology and practice. CIVNET's entry point to villages and communities is through existing structures. These structures are engaged and skills and capacity transferred. These local organizations in turn spread the process throughout the village or community. CIVNET continues to play a supportive role to these local structures in terms of upgrading training, follow-up of issues, and generally acting in support of the local facilitators. The organizations targets include burial societies, churches, chiefs etc. It has provincial teams of volunteer civil educators based in the grassroots and district facilitators and their training is carried down all the way to ward level.

At every local workshop, participants would include: the Chief, local government representative, local police representative etc. The structure of training focuses on the issues prevalent in the particular community and it is from this basis that rights are explained- in the context of people's lives.

When CIVNET leaves after a workshop, a firm presence remains behind, in the form of the local facilitators and local organizations, thereby ensuring a spread of ownership of the organization to the target community. CIVNET does not only provide a service, it also facilitates and encourages local participation in the organization. The community itself draws up materials through a facilitative process. Facilitators are based in the communities.

CIVNET also uses popular means of education, locally produced visual materials, local language, local examples and case studies.

11. Does the organization have the ability to support smaller community based organizations through capacity building?

Yes, CIVNET is currently building local CBO capacity, in terms of democracy building. Not only does CIVNET assist in training grassroots based organization and association, they constantly follow-up and maintain a constant contact with these partners. The individual member organizations that make up CIVNET, certainly have the capacity to do so as well.

12. Does the organization have the potential to carry out advocacy and lobby activities at the local and/or national level?

CIVNET is well placed to carry out lobby and advocacy initiatives both at the national level as well as the local level. Especially since they can be said to have a constituency. However, this function is not CIVNET's Core business, the core business is education and lobbying is mostly done for creating an environment conducive for education.

13. Is the political and socioeconomic environment conducive for achieving the organization's objectives?

The current environment does constrain the impact and reach of the network's work. However, since the work of the network is focused on challenging apathy and promoting public participation, the current environment gives the network more work to do. The negative factor of the current situation is the state repression. CIVENT as most other organizations could be targeted and prevented from carrying out its mandate. As CIVNET has been operating for some time now, the authorities ask fewer questions of them than they do of others; they have a track record and a clear reputation and identity.

14. What are the needs of the organization in terms of capacity building?

Creative training methodologies skills for transformation, mobilization skills and techniques, organizational strengthening and institutional building, requisite resources for the growing organisation (e.g. office space, office equipment, etc.)

15. What is the added value of the organization in the human rights and/or peace building landscape?

Its focus is on popular public participation and ownership of issues of governance, it uses creative methodologies to achieve this end. CIVNET challenges not only issues of governance but more fundamentally, issues of apathy and disinterest on the part of the electorate.

16. How could the organization be part of the human rights and peace building sector plan?

As a resource to other organizations and as a partner in terms of the sector plan.

And what are the assumptions and risks from that perspective?

•  that CIVNET continues to have the capacity to contribute in the area of their core business which is Civic education

•  that CIVNET may be misunderstood as espousing opposition politics

•  that different priorities at certain points in time may make it difficult to cooperate with other organisations

17. Is CIVNET undergoing any change?

CIVNET is growing. It has moved from being a project to becoming an organisation. The IDASA Organisation Development Programme is helping sharpen staff skills. But CIVNET will need to continually review systems, etc. not only to keep with changing situations but also to remain relevant to the people.

Address: 165A Fife Avenue, Harare, Zimbabwe

Tel/fax: +263 4 731 170

E-mail:

Contact person: Mr Wellington Mbofana