EU-CORD is developing the In-Country Forums as locally led expressions of the network to facilitate collaboration, learning, and development among members and their partners in different countries.
Members also emphasise that it is up to the In-Country Forums to define their success and development steps. EU-CORD’s Secretariat wants to find a way to support these groups without taking on a strong leadership or coordinating role, to ensure that local leadership is central to the forums’ functioning.
To that end, Adrian Hawthorn has agreed to support the In-Country Forums by providing bilateral meetings with the convenors to share experiences and challenges. He will bring all the leaders together twice a year to build relationships and share learning.
In November, EU-CORD will host its Annual Global In-Country Forum Meeting, inviting everyone engaged in a forum to attend.
We’ve also integrated into our 2023 workplan most of the capacity-building and information requests raised by In-Country Forum members during our review session last year. This includes an update of our DG INTPA/NEAR grant application workshop, which will run in Nairobi in September and is open to all EU-CORD members and their partners working in the region.
Finally, members of the In-Country Forums will receive a newsletter 3x a year that will keep them updated on specific events and news that might interest them.
We hope that the In-Country Forums can build strong networks built on EU-CORD’s values of relationship, servanthood and compassion and that through them, we build stronger, more equitable partnerships and locally-rooted responses.
