Mayen, 28. März 2019. By invitation of the University of Applied Sciences for Public Administration, the Municipal Academy and the Rhineland-Palatinate Association of Towns and Municipalities, a delegation from RALGA and LGI is currently in Mayen. This is the third reciprocal working visit to the respective partner institutions within the project 'Local Governance Exchange – Rhineland-Palatinate-Rwanda'. This time the two sides are tackling the concrete implementation of jointly planned projects.
At the beginning of the mission the two groups focused on the management of their partnership and the basic principles of their cooperation. After just over a year's experience these have already proved a success. During this time, what began as professional exchange has since led to the formation of personal links – a key element for successfully implementing the planned projects. In the partnership between the University of Applied Sciences, the Municipal Academy and LGI, these projects focus on three things: training trainers for Rwandan district staff; integrating the SDGs into curricula at the University of Applied Sciences and the Municipal Academy, and thus maximising the breadth of knowledge on sustainable development in local authorities in Rhineland-Palatinate.
The partnership between the two local government associations is focusing on digitalising administrative processes, and the two sides plan to establish a digital information platform for staff of Rwandan districts. Implementation of these practically-oriented projects, which will benefit both sides, was subsequently discussed at a workshop with the Service Agency Communities in One World and the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of the Interior and for Sports. This enabled the two sides to obtain advice on funding opportunities, and discuss a realistic time frame.
At the end of the mission the two partnerships will document their resolutions in a joint plan of activities. This will enable them to plan their next steps – such as temporary placements for teaching staff in the respective partner institutions.
The two institutional partnerships in the 'Local Governance Exchange Rhineland-Palatinate – Rwanda' project demonstrate impressively how practical projects are developed in local governance training and at association level. These projects can enable both sides to improve local development in tangible ways. Participants are highly satisfied with the way the mission is going. According to them, the mission has once again demonstrated how – despite some differences in country-specific circumstances – face-to-face dialogue can develop the joint understanding of cooperation and concrete project activities.
