Italy: Agorà, a new project to improve NGO delivery

The most urgent problems that cooperation and development face are as much about where to find funds as they are about what to do with the money. Asvi ? the Italian agency for the development of the not for profit sector ? is aware of these problems and has signed an agreement of understanding with the Politecnic University in Milan and the Occam, a UN agency that deals with information technology. The agreement has given life to a project called Agorà, a watchdog for the analysis and promotion of good practices in international cooperation. The project is a response to the need for new tools to bridge the gap between project design and its application on the field. ?Partnership logic is not enough? says Asvi?s president, Marco Crescenzi. ?Specific obstacles must be targeted, such as the discrepancy between project deadlines and the amount of time actually needed for participation with the local communities to take place.?

The strength of the project lies in the attention that is paid to the self evaluation of cooperative intervention; further, thanks to the collaboration with the Politecnic in Milan, Agorà aims to intervene in the training process of development workers. ?We want to promote the value and language of cooperation.? Says Emanuela Colombo, who is the delegate to the Chancellor in charge of international cooperation. Italian Ngo?s have already shown interest in the project. ? We want to offer Ngo?s with a new arena? concludes Mr. Crescenzi ? to keep up with development?s rapidly changing scenario.?

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