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Global Mechanism: Communication, Media, Social and Behaviour Change?

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Global Mechanism: Communication, Media, Social and Behaviour Change?

Hi and best wishes. Just a quick note to let you know that I have agreed to work with UNICEF, through Rafael Obregon and the C4D team, in order to help advance the possibility of an overall global mechansim for the communication and media for development, social and behaviour change field of work. There are two major milestones (a) draft an options paper and (b) convene a stakeholders process and meeting. More details follow. But in essence I would love to get your analysis and ideas.

Contributing your analysis and ideas

There are two ways to do this. Can I ask you to please consider and do both!

  1. Let me know a good time to chat by phone/skype, etc. I will be in Europe the next 2 weeks so time zones will be much easier.
  2. Just reply to this email with your analysis, thoughts and ideas. 

Background

This initiative follows an initial meeting, convened by UNICEF with a few partners earlier this year. The global development tapestry has seen the growth of a series of such mechanisms seeking to advance particular fields of work. For example, WASH for All; the Global Partnership for Education and, the Global Partnership on Violence Against Children, amongst others.

As we have reviewed these mechanisms it is clear that there are a range of differing goals and roles including: raising technical standards; advocating value and impact; engaging in policy debates and dialogue; coordinating action; accrediting data; expanding funding levels; and, acting as a legitimate global point of contact for policymakers, funders and other major global players in development.

Themes

There will be 4 major themes to our conversation:

* In your assessment would such a mechanism bring added value to communication and media (for) development, social and behavioural change? If you answer yes, then ?
* What overall goals and themes would you propose as the focus of such a mechanism.
* What strategic approach should such a mechanism take to work towards those goals
* If your answer to Q1 is ?no?, what is the basis for that judgement?

Clarification

One quick clarification concerning this process. There is no intention at all to replace any of the present global processes that are active on communication and media development, social and behaviour change within the Development community. The question is whether there is something missing, an important missing piece, that would help everyone.

Thanks for considering. Would be excellent to get everyone's input.

Warren

Comments

Submitted by Warren Feek on Wed, 11/09/2016 - 02:29 Permalink

Hi folks. Just a quick note to let you know we have started an online Group for the "mechanism" dialogue. If you wish to join this discussion can I suggest you join this Group. Alternatively just drop me a note and I will make sure that you are part of the process. Thanks. 

As Rafael and myself are both travelling to events being held in London and Geneva these two weeks we have taken the opportunity to gather some folks together to discuss. But there will be much broader consultation. A note will go out soon to the full The CI network. And we look forward to your valued contributions through either this confidential Partners Group, an individual phone discussion or the specific mechanism group.

Many thanks for engaging. This is a topic talked about a lot! So we thought we would give it a considered and thoughtful "crack"!

Warren

Submitted by sue.goldstein on Mon, 11/28/2016 - 07:33 Permalink

Soul City Institute’s position on international body for social change and development communication.

SCI has been in the social change arena for 20 years and although the field has moved through the health education, behavior change, social change continuum it seems in the past few years to have moved backwards to “demand creation”. This has spurred on by a renewed focus on biomedical interventions and a move away from structural and developmental interventions. Social and behavior change organisations have been reduced to instruments that create demand for biomedical interventions. There is no acknowledgement that development is a process and needs structural change such as change in gender power relations,  (tackling the issues that keep women disempowered) , social justice and policies such as alcohol policy and access to services.

At the same time there has been an influx of international agencies and NGO’s into Southern Africa and elbowing out locally based interventions. “Evidence based” interventions is used as an excuse not to support locally grown interventions when funding to build the evidence of locally based interventions is shrinking

SCI would welcome an international body which addresses these issues and collects the gaps in the evidence that show the difference the structural interventions can make. The encouragement of locally implemented and long term strategies with long term funded studies to produce the evidence is a key issue to be address.

Sue Goldstein

Soul City Institute for Social Justice