Promoting Local Demand and Supply of Learning Using a Market Approach (Together for Development- T4D)

From inception till date, AGGEM Cameroon has been actively engage in action research on promoting local governance and self-help development with the framework of a project titled “Together for Development (T4D)”

The Demand and Supply of Learning Using a Market Approach” is an innovative approach to promoting sustainable local capacity development. AGGEM through this initiative the ‘demand’ and ‘supply’ entail mutual exchange and sharing of skills, knowledge and experiences for self-reliant development without use of money. This project is seeks to enhance the valuing of the rich capacity acquired over years of international cooperation and therefore contributing to reduce the cycle of dependence of local development actors to external support. 

The success of this initiative has been the development of sustained formal and informal “demand” and “supply” learning links established amongst participating individuals, groups of local NGOs, Community Based Groups, local councils and the media in two pilot regions where this project was initiated. In essence participants (individuals and institutions), through a process of mutual coaching, mentoring, assist each other go through the process of building their capacities in a friendly atmosphere. This has enable areas where resources are not available local to addressed been outsources through soliciting for assistance from partners like Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), The European Union, The Commonwealth Foundation and One World Trust (OWT) and CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation)

This approach of capacity development has been referred to as innovative by many partners as individuals and institutions are currently mutually developing their capacities without having to mobilize huge external resources (human and financial) as was the case before now. Some areas where participating individuals and institutions have mutually “demand” and “supplied” learning for capacity development include;

- promotion national volunteering,

- capitalization of results and best practices,

- advocacy and lobbying,

- fundraising,

- monitoring and evaluation,

- project proposal development,

- skills on advocacy on issues affecting communities at the grass root levels,

- networking, communication, and partnership development

- gender sensitive development,

- reporting,

- development oriented journalism, and

- use of ICT tools in communication

This project is still at its embryonic stage and AGGEM is continuing to facilitate this process with anticipation that development actors see value in the approach and adopt it nationwide.