An Internal NCA assessment of IPS/SAN organizations in Southern Africa, Final Report

Background:
The focus of this assessment will relate to the indigenous peoples program in the NCA Southern Africa program between 2005 and 2009. A representative selection of partners and programs has been assessed. Both the projects funded by general Norad support and Norad 100% are evaluated. The evaluation will provide a fundament for the development of new regional strategies, based on the new strategic directions at global level in NCA for the strategic period of 2011-2015. Further, the assessment will document the achievements of NCA in collaboration with its partners, through the analysis of achievements and constraints or challenges experienced through the implementation of the program in the region.

Purpose/ Objective:
The specific objectives of the evaluation are as following:

• To assess the effectiveness in achieving the specific objectives stipulated in the Regional Indigenous Peoples five year plan 2005-2009, including the revised plan from 2007, and the relevance of the portfolio’s focus, as compared to the challenges and issues facing IP in the region today

• To assess whether NCA and partner’s ways of implementing Indigenous Peoples interventions are sustainable and relevant.

• To identify constraints and challenges in partners’ IPs programs that NCA is funding (SWOT), including their governance structures.

• To document intended as well as unintended effects.

• To provide some initial guidance and recommendations for how IP issues should be addressed by NCA in the coming five year plan 2011-2015, when IP programs must be integrated into the new programmatic priorities

Methodology:
The findings have been collected through questionnaires answered by the partners, NCA annual reports and partner reports, and interviews conducted by the assessment team.

Key Findings:
The assessment shows that NCA’s involvement for more than two decades has been vital and indeed has made a difference to the situation for the San in the region, but that it might be time to do some more investment in advocacy for San rights, to make positive change more rooted and sustainable.
NCA has been one of two core funders and partners to the 3 main San-organizations in Southern Africa. E.g., through the support to KFO (Kuru Family of Organizations) 25000 San (between 40 and 50% of the San in Botswana), has been reached with funding and positive change created. “Without the NCA support we would have been dead” said the head of one of the San-organizations.
NCA is the only Norwegian development NGO which has been working and still is working with San in the Region. The way forward is to build on the foundation and strengthen what has been accumulated during several years – and, together with San, - “fight” for the needed economical justice and self-sufficiency. Advocacy and long-term development has to go hand in hand.

Recommendations:

• NCA should continue working with IP and IP-organizations in Southern Africa. NCA should have IP as a prioritized rights holder group in its advocacy- and development engagement specifically within the areas of Economic Justice and Climate Justice.

• Cooperation between the relevant NCA-offices in Africa regarding support to IP should be further strengthened. Furthermore, together with the San of Southern Africa, Batwa of Great lakes, Hadzabe of Eastern-Africa and other IPs, NCA should help build and develop active functioning networks between the IPs and their organizations.

• An African position as a “Continental IP Resource Person” within NCA should be developed.

• A conference, where the NCA IP-partners are invited and plans/strategies for “the way forward” discussed, should be arranged. Economic- (Livelihood & trade) and Climate-Justice (adaptation & mitigation) for the next 5 years, should be the main issues.

• Capacity building is a key word in all IP-work. NCA’s cooperation and support to IP in Africa has to be developed in close cooperation with the partners and support organizations (IPACC, WIMSA, KFO & Ditshwanelo).

• IPACC and WIMSA should be NCA’s two core partners regarding advocacy on indigenous peoples issues in the region. They should function as resources on a continental and regional level. KFO as a national development organization needs to be further drawn into and linked to the regional network, and their work on livelihood (Economic Justice) should be strengthened.