Partnering can be challenging, particularly when the goals are huge and diverse, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed by world leaders in 2015. Implementation of these goals requires a collective effort by governments, research institutions, the private sector and civil society organisations. The SDGs are designed to address poverty, hunger, food security, sustainable agriculture, education, gender equality and much more.
Pooled knowledge
For this reason, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked a variety of organisations to pool their knowledge and rich practical experience to identify and share the elements of effective partnering. The organisations asked to provide their expertise include the PrC, together with the Partnership Brokers Association, Partnerships in Practice, The Partnering Initiative and the Collective Leadership Institute
This collective endeavour is called the PEP facility: Promoting Effective Partnering. It has led to the development of the PEP website, where practitioners from all over the world can find free resources to improve their partnering efforts and bring about transformational results. The assistance comes in the form of a series of guiding questions, recommended practices, and key performance indicators.
The website offers advice on how to include and collaborate with a wide variety of stakeholders for maximum collaboration and communication, advice on governance, resourcing, and strategies.
Celebrate – and listen
PrC’s Academic Director Professor Rob van Tulder and Managing Director Marieke de Wal were present at the High Level Meeting of the GPEDC in Nairobi, Kenya at the end of November to officially launch the new website. During the opening session of the meeting in Nairobi to amplify the positive impact of development co-operation, Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen stressed that effective partnerships require the celebration of successes, and the ability to listen carefully to each other.
17 factors for effective partnering
This was acknowledged in the panel discussion in which RSM’sProf. Rob van Tulder presented the PEP website. “We see lots of partnerships these days,” said Professor van Tulder, “and many people are talking about partnerships, co-creation, collective action, and so on – but there is a very mixed record on performance and results. How can we raise the bar? Within PEP, we have identified 17 factors for effective partnering for the SDGs. Each factor is summarized in a series of guiding questions, recommended practices, and key performance indicators. These factors are not meant to be prescriptive and we do definitely not believe in a one-size-fits-all solution to partnering. Rather, we invite partners to question our approaches as well as their own.”
The website was well received. Arjan Schuthof, senior policy advisor at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stressed that partnering is a tough job. “It is vital to connect with people who, through hard practice, have won hard lessons.”
The next step for PEP will be to activate a vibrant platform offering opportunities to learn from the experience of peers and to seek support when things are not going according to plan.
