PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
MARCH 2013
M ARCH H IGHLIGHTS JABAT Grantees Learn Skills to Better Engage Policy Makers and Represent their Constituencies
What is JABAT? The JABAT Initiative aims to improve representation in Indonesia by helping DPR members to develop the means to understand the needs of the communities they represent, and see that these needs are translated into practical, well-informed policy decisions. The program works “top-down” by assisting selected DPR members to get to know their constituents and make their recess visits more effective. It also works “bottom-up” by partnering with CSOs to raise DPR Members’ awareness of pressing policy issues in their electoral district.
In April, ProRep will be signing new grants with four CSOs who will be conducting programs under the JABAT Initiative. (See more on JABAT in the box to the left.) Steering the many moving parts of project implementation can be a tough challenge, requiring hard work, smooth team collaboration, and most importantly, a common understanding of the project scope, objectives and expected results. To help develop this critical “common understanding” of the new partners, ProRep held a five-day workshop in late March to ensure that the JABAT grants programs could get off to a running start. The participants included sixteen CSO representatives, from the four JABAT grantees as well as an additional organization within one of the grantee’s network. The workshop brought together expertise from three different organizations— tRaiPse shared techniques for CSOs to expand their membership and/or constituencies and better respond to their interests; KARSA exposed participants to methods for more effective engagement with policy makers, and Kemitraan, ProRep’s principal implementing partner for JABAT, shared lessons learned from working with DPR members on three rounds of recess visits.
The sessions were very interactive and maximized opportunities for shared learning among participants. One was opened by asking participants to share what they had achieved so far in terms of representation. Another session on “getting to know parliament” was initiated with a pop quiz to test knowledge of the DPR. Pak Alvin Lie, former DPR member and ProRep Parliamentary Specialist, explained to the participants that for their policy recommendations to be Participants’ Thoughts... acknowledged by the DPR as an institution and form part of the legislative process, they must go through the working bodies of the House, i.e. the “This makes us realize what is really the mandate of our related commissions. He strongly encouraged, therefore, for the CSOs to organization. The spirit brought engage the commissions, in addition to their representative. A participant from Lafal, a public education organization in the JABAT grantee, Aksara’s, network, explains the usage off the “power cube” to conduct stakeholders analysis.
Kemitraan’s Constituent Relations Liaisons (CRLs) shared their experiences working closely with the first group of six JABAT DPR members and their staff to engage a broad group of constituents in their visits back to their electoral district each quarter. As the direct recess visit assistance to these members tapers off, the grant activities will ramp up and link in with them to continue to support the members to improve the way they represent their constituents.
by this section is clear, that we should not be trapped by our own wish. We should listen to what our constituents need. I will bring this message to my management when we review the vision and mission of our organization later, and will adapt it into our organizational changes.” - La Ode Salam of Indonesia Budget Center (IBC) “It helps me see advocacy in a wider context, that we should involve policy makers and other stakeholders.” - Gesti of Cakrawala Timur
For more information visit www.prorep.or.id or contact us at prorep@prorep.or.id. Program Representasi (ProRep) is implemented by Chemonics International in partnership with the Urban Institute, Social Impact and Kemitraan. This newsletter is made possible by the support of the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID.) The contents of this newsletter are the sole responsibility of Chemonics International and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
MARCH 2013
M ARCH H IGHLIGHTS
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HAPSARI Makes Headway with National Level Legislators to Address Women’s Rights HAPSARI delivers “heavy” messages in a “light” way by using dramatic performances as part of their advocacy toolbox. Here, four traditional Javanese characters relay messages about women’s economic rights during the National Dialogue Forum in Jakarta on March 30.
Two decades ago the Association of Indonesian Women Unions (HAPSARI) was just a small organization in Deli Serdang, North Sumatera. But 23 years later, HAPSARI has developed into a large association thanks to its tireless efforts and effective programs to promote a just and prosperous society respecting equally the rights of both women and men.
Under its current grant program with ProRep, which will end in April, HAPSARI is promoting the economic rights of women by monitoring the implementation of the state microfinance program called Kredit Usaha Rakyat or KUR. Their strategy for effecting change has been to gather evidence on the economic status of women and how the lending program is being implemented. They also expanded their membership and trained women cadres in these issues, so that a major impulse to the advocacy efforts will emanate from the grassroots level. Lastly, they have built bridges of collaboration with local government officials, national and sub-national parliaments and other organizations in the network to advance equal rights for men and women. In this program they specifically targeted the areas of Tanah Karo, Deli Serdang, Serdang Bedagai and Labuhan Batu in North Sumatera; Kulonprogo and Bantul in Yogyakarta, Pekalongan in Central Java, Kutai in East Kalimantan and Poso in Central Sulawesi. As one of the final activities under the program with ProRep, HAPSARI organized a National Dialogue Forum in Jakarta on March 30. The forum was attended by five DPR members, one DPD member, one DPRD member and one official from the National Commission for Women. Various members of HAPSARI were present, not just from the leadership. This was an opportunity for an “ordinary citizen” to make direct connections with policy makers to improve the economic status of women. The topic of the forum was “Ending Women’s Poverty” and resulted in the commitment of the policy makers to support these Informal discussions between the members of issues. The event was considered by all to be a huge success. “What was done by HAPSARI is incredible, I have never imagined any women-based organizations like them before,” said Ibnu Munzir, the Deputy Chair of the Golkar Party, at the House of Representatives or DPR. The other members of the parliament attending the forum also praised HAPSARI. Ms. Darmayanti Lubis, a DPD member from North Sumatera electoral area, even promised to link HAPSARI with the district and provincial government to get financial assistance and other support. ”I am ready to meet with HAPSARI in North Sumatra to [help] develop the economic and political agenda [of HAPSARI]”. While HAPSARI is heartened by the response, they know it is only the beginning and much more work needs to be done to achieve concrete results.
HAPSARI and parliamentarians also happened during the National Dialogue Forum
PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
MARCH 2013
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Women Research Institute Works to Mainstream Feminist Research Realizing the unique and valuable perspective that can be gained through conducting feminist research, the Women Research Institute (WRI) held a workshop entitled “Deepening Feminist Methodology and Gender Analysis Understanding" in Jakarta on March 1314.
Participants of the workshop organized by Women Research Institute (WRI) in Jakarta on March 13-14.
WRI is an independent research institute that uses feminist methodology and analysis to place women and men in a fair and equal position in the social, political, economic, and cultural realms. ProRep is currently supporting WRI to carry out research to identify what impediments exist to women’s political participation. WRI expects to use these research findings to push for changes in discourse, behavior and policies so that they are based on justice and equality for both women and men. A key goal for the research institution is to mainstream feminist research methodologies. Feminist research is research done by, for, and about women and techniques used in feminist research are concerned with presenting women's perspectives. It has been found that feminist research can provide new knowledge grounded in the realities of women's experiences and help to challenge gender inequalities present in society. The two-day workshop was attended by 13 researchers from WRI and the other research institutions wanting to learn how to improve gender analysis in their research. The resource persons involved in the training all held PhDs in various fields and came from SMERU Research Institute, and the School of Political Science and the School of Women Studies of the University of Indonesia. Salbiyah from budget advocacy organization Seknas FITRA, had this to say about the workshop - "I am looking forward to the training to get some practical tips to undertake gender analysis in my work". A researcher shares her notes from the workshop with fellow participants.
During the workshop, the participants studied and discussed feminist theory, research methodologies, politics and feminist perspective, research management, and research design. The workshop ended with participants conducting group work to develop a research design utilizing feminist research methodologies. Each cluster then presented their results to the wider group. The workshop was designed to build the capacity of researchers on feminist theory and feminist research methods, and it was also a forum for the researchers to exchange ideas and network with fellow feminist researchers. WRI plans to continue to develop the capabilities of its researchers based in Jakarta and beyond, and will conduct a second round of training next month.
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YSKK Pushes Policy Makers to Take a Closer Look at How the School Operational Fund (BOS) Program is Being Managed (Below top) MP Dedy Gumelar addresses the audience of the public discussion on how to improve the management of the school operational fund. (Below bottom) MP Gumelar discusses the issue with a CSO representative.
Although the school operational fund (BOS) program has been in place for almost eight years, ProRep’s partner Yayasan Satu Karya Karsa (YSKK) has identified some serious issues with the utilization and distribution of these state resources. They have found that often funds are not managed or utilized as stipulated in regulation. In a call for action, YSKK organized a public discussion on the role of community supervision in the implementation of BOS in Surakarta, Central Java, on March 13. The coordinator of the division of Monitoring of Public Services at the Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW), Febri Hendri AA, stated that up to now there has been no audit conducted by the Supreme Audit Board (BPK) on the use of this fund. “But I am sure the irregularities are serious,” he said. Member of Commission X of House of Representatives, Dedy Gumelar, who attended the discussion, noted that the problem was linked to the weak monitoring of the use of the funds and the intervention of local politicians or government who allegedly used some of the funds to finance their political activities. Dedy declared to the participants of the forum, his commitment to support CSO efforts to promote public participation of national budget monitoring, especially related to use of public funds for education.
At the end of discussion, the NGO network on education met to plan their next steps. They agreed to continue the effort, especially to promote a public monitoring mechanism for the amendment of the education law. A week later, the YSKK team went to Dedy’s office at the National Parliament Building to submit the discussion result and share the NGO network’s plan. Dedy reemphasized his commitment to support the plan. YSKK’s advocacy efforts have already made a difference. In Solo, Central Java, the BOS Manager from the local education office has ordered that each school appoint a responsible party to receive and register all complaints related to the BOS program. YSKK has also created an e-magazine called “Watch BOS” which can be accessed here—http://www.yskk.org/?p=1385 .
LPEM Researchers Hold Interviews with Members of the House of Representatives
Bobby Adhityo Rizaldi, a member of Commission VII on Energy, Mineral Resources and Environment from the Golkar Party was interviewed by researchers from LPEM on March 27. LPEM researchers also interviewed other members of the House of Representatives (DPR) and members of local parliaments as part of their research on the impact of forestry extraction in relation to laws on fiscal balance, forestry and regional government.
PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
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Paramadina Studies Public Policy in New Zealand and Strengthens Ties to Research Institutions Abroad On the sixth month of its 18month grant with ProRep to conduct research on the topic of performance-based budgeting, the Paramadina Public Policy Institute (PPPI) sent five of its key personnel to Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, to attend a workshop on professional development in public policy from March 25 through March 28. The workshop was exclusively designed to enrich knowledge of the senior researchers in public policy so that they can produce high quality research and analysis.
Researchers from Paramadina Public Policy Institute (PPPI) pose for a picture with the management of Victoria University, New Zealand during a trip to the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS) .
During the first three days of training, PPPI’s researchers explored the processes of policy development, citizen participation, and budgeting. They also analyzed how performance-based budgeting is implemented in New Zealand. Each topic was delivered by an expert from the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS) in an interactive class session. The discussion included the principles of each topic, comparison of best practices, and implementation experiences in New Zealand. The workshop also discussed a case study on budget development and execution in a government ministry as well as the relevance of New Zealand budget concepts and processes to Indonesia. Dr. David Bromell, a senior associate at the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS), explains how public policy is developed in New Zealand.
On the last day of the program the researchers visited the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies (IGPS) to hold a discussion with the School of Government, IGPS and Victoria University on future cooperation and exchanges. Victoria University, which has an excellent reputation in public policy studies, signed a cooperation agreement with Paramadina in 2010. The workshop at Victoria University was facilitated by ProRep under PPPI’s grant which funds an in-depth research project as well as key activities to build the capacity of the organization to produce high quality research over the long run. Throughout the life of the project, research grantees receive not only financial support but also technical assistance from ProRep and U.S.-based think tank, the Urban Institute (UI).
PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
MARCH 2013
P RO R EP W ORKSHOPS I N P ICTURES
ProRep has found that trainings are much more effective when a rigorous learning environment is combined with techniques to make the sessions interesting and joyful for the participants. This type of environment maximizes participation and input from trainees and fosters the exchange of ideas among them. In addition, recording the training sessions in graphic form (pictured to the left) also enhances understanding of the concepts and helps participants retain the new knowledge. These images show how participants learn skills to improve representation‌
the ProRep way!
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PROGRAM REPRESENTASI (PROREP) MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
W HAT ’ S C OMING I N A PRIL ?
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Seven CSO grantees close out programs. Seven membership and constituent-based civil society organizations (CSOs) who made up the first batch of ProRep grantees will close out their programs in April. The seven grantees, which carried out various advocacy programs to promote effective representation in line with the main goal of ProRep, are Seknas FITRA, Circle Indonesia, ASPPUK, Lakpesdam, Aisyiyah, Prakarsa and YSKK.
Remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) training. Research partner LPEM FEUI will send staff who are conducting research on forestry extraction and its impacts on the economy, environment and finance to attend a training on remote sensing and GIS conducted by the Center of Research for Applied Geography of the University of Indonesia from April 3 - 11.
Third Budget Oversight Workshop with DPRDs. For the third time in three months, ProRep will facilitate the public accounts committee (BAKN) of the House of Representatives (DPR) to conduct a Budget Oversight Workshop with Provincial DPRDs of South Sulawesi and other areas on April 8-9. Like the previous regional workshops in Surabaya, East Java, and Palembang, South Sumatera, the objective of the Makassar workshop is to share the importance of the budget oversight function at the DPRD level and encourage the members of piloted DPRDs to perform a budget oversight function.
CSO grantee Inprosula holds workshop on food security monitoring. Inprosula is having a workshop on April 13-14 with Farmer Groups Associations from Krawang (West Java) and Magelang (Central Java) to design a food security monitoring program.
JABAT Initiative. In coordination with Kemitraan, ProRep will facilitate the recess visit of 17 MPs this April. For five MPs this will be their fourth and last recess visit facilitated by ProRep, however the CSOs implementing JABAT grants will provide continuity in those areas. For twelve MPs this visit will be their first with JABAT and for this ProRep will conduct a kick-off session on April 12 to give a full orientation to the MP’s expert staff and assigned Constituent Relations Liaisons (CRLs). Also in April ProRep will sign grant agreements with four organizations implementing JABAT programs—Prakarsa, Aksara, Cakrawala Timur and the Indonesian Budget Center. These four organizations will be conducting their program preparation meetings within the first month of implementation.
National Public Opinion Survey. To measure the effectiveness of representation of members of parliament (MP), Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) will conduct a national survey over two-weeks in April. In parallel, CSIS researchers are closely observing how nine MPs from the Jakarta electoral area interact with their constituents.
Self-assessment activity for grantees. To help grantees to monitor their development as organizations, provide them with a tool they can use to continually assess their knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP), and to help them readjust their organizational capacity building strategies as necessary, ProRep will facilitate self-assessments for a selected grantees in April.
Training for DPD on management of constituency offices. Recent law mandated that the DPD establish regional offices in all 33 provinces of Indonesia to facilitate closer relations between DPD Members and their constituents. Offices are beginning to open up and staff is being appointed to assist with constituent relations, but this is still a very new concept to many. ProRep has been requested by the DPD to provide technical assistance in this area.
WRI holds 2nd round of workshop on feminist research. To deepen the understanding of feminist research methodologies, Women Research Institute (WRI) will hold a second round of training in April. Although the workshop is mainly designed for WRI researchers, participants from other research institutions will also be welcome to participate. WRI held the first round of their feminist research workshop in March.
CSO grantee Pergerakan holds multi stakeholder forum. They will conduct a multi stakeholder forum on April 25 to share their findings on the implementation of the government decree on budget allocation for fisherfolks wellfare to MPs from Commission IV, journalists, academicians, and other CSOs.
Program Representasi (ProRep) is a three to five year project on democracy and governance supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Its aim is to improve representation in Indonesia by increasing the inclusiveness and effectiveness of groups and institutions that seek to express people’s interests to government and by increasing the transparency and effectiveness of legislative processes.