UN Joint Programme
on
Local Governance and Service Delivery

"Civic Education & Mass Media Campaign Project"

January 18, 2010

Under the UN's reconstruction strategy for Somaliland, the Joint Programme for Local Governance and Decentralized Service Delivery (JPLG) has since 2008 been providing strategic, technical and financial support to the Ministry of Interior in its efforts to establish a more effective and decentralised system of district administration. Pooling a wealth of expertise and resources from a number of UN agencies (i.e. UNICEF, UN-Habitat, UNDP, UNCDF, and ILO) as well as that of independent local experts and Somaliland authorities, the overall objective of the initiative is to ensure that local governance contributes to peace and equitable priority service delivery in target districts of Somaliland.

The Civic Education & Mass Media Campaign Project (CEMMCP), which is being implemented by the Academy for Peace & Development, is a major component of the JPLG process and aims to reach a total of 50,000 beneficiaries across 6 districts, whose awareness level on their rights and civic responsibilities concerning their respective district councils will be improved. As such, the project encourages citizens in target districts to participate in the decision-making processes at the district level in order to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the way services are delivered in Somaliland various districts. The aim is to improve the relationship and trust between target communities and their respective district councils in the delivery of basic services as well as in meeting other local development needs.

The project operates through and makes effective use of a diverse range of engaging outlets such as the production and dissemination of audiovisual, audio, multimedia and print materials that are appropriate and relevant to the country's social, cultural and religious context in relation to content development and methods of delivery. Parallel to the production and dissemination of mass media products, the project also focuses on training and provision of other equally engaging outreach services such as community theatre and travelling video screenings for greater geographical coverage.

The project collaborates closely with Somaliland Ministry of Interior as well as other important JPLG partners in drawing on and adding value to relevant parallel initiatives in ensuring the overall effective implementation of the JPLG framework.

As CEMMCP's implementation phase in the districts of Borama and Berbera draws to a close, the Academy has initiated the project's inception phase in the districts of Odweyne, Sheikh, Burao and Hargeisa. Following preliminary fieldwork to assess the prevailing situation in target districts, two stakeholders' validation workshops were held together for Odweyne and Sheikh Districts on the one hand and Burao on the other. A third stakeholders' validation workshop is planned for the beginning of February for the district of Hargeisa.

Contact Details
The Academy for Peace and Development
Gol Janno, Hargeysa, MJ, Somaliland

Contact Person
Hanad Sahardid,
Email: hanad@apd-somaliland.org
Tel: 252-2-520304
Fax: 252-2-520305

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