Alliance Online - December 2006

Citizen participation crucial to future of Ibero-American civil societies

Ricardo Reynoso López and Fernando Rossetti

EVENT VIII Ibero-American Third Sector Conference
Date 16-18 October
Venue Mexico City, Mexico
Organizer CEMEFI
Theme Responsibility, Legality and Generosity

The three-day Ibero-American Third Sector Conference in October brought together over 600 participants from Spain, Portugal and 18 Latin American countries to discuss the challenges confronting civil society in these countries. Representatives from the three sectors considered the problems that the countries of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America have in common and underlined the vital importance of citizen participation in furnishing solutions to these problems.

Mexican President Vicente Fox, who opened the meeting and whose government has recently approved new legislation regulating the sector, stressed that ‘it is no longer possible to conceive a modern democracy without an active and robust civil society’. However, he also pointed out, as did many other speakers, the ‘need for transparency and accountability’ to strengthen civil society and its initiatives.

The conference reviewed a very comprehensive range of approaches to overcoming social and economic challenges in the region. In some countries, such as Mexico, Colombia and Brazil, the third sector has been successful in achieving legal landmarks and practical results that indicate significant progress. In other countries – for example, Venezuela, where new laws impose restrictions on the organization of civil society, and Ecuador, where election processes are not fully trusted – political instability means that the emphasis is on striving for basic civil and political rights.

Throughout the event, a number of specific lines of action were emphasized as the basis for a new agenda for civil society in the Ibero-American region. These included continuing to promote responsible citizenship and participation; promoting corporate social responsibility in order to tap the potential resources it represents; strengthening processes of local, self-guided development as a means of overcoming poverty and reducing inequality; promoting the tradition of, and respect for, legality and thereby strengthening the rule of law; and increasing the presence of civil society organizations in the design, implementation and evaluation of public policies, as well as in the design of mechanisms for monitoring government actions.

A number of speakers talked of the growing importance and maturity of the sector. CEMEFI’s founder, Manual Arango, highlighted the significance of this year's Nobel Peace Prize being granted for the first time to a third sector pioneer, Muhammad Yunus. Hugo Barreto, Roberto Marinho Foundation’s General Secretary and Chairman of the Board of Governance of GIFE (Brazil), observed a closer alignment and greater cooperation between non-profits and business, to the general benefit. Companies are lending their planning and management skills to social organizations, he said, while the growing awareness among companies of social practices has favoured a more responsible management of business.

Jacqueline Butcher de Rivas reported that CEMEFI is working with a number of entities to develop proposals for improving the regulatory framework for civil society in Mexico. The third sector, she concluded, has contributed a great deal, and has more to offer, but to do so it is important to create strategic alliances with both the state and the market.

Finally, Mexico’s president-elect, Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, acknowledged the work of Ibero-American civil society organizations, and concluding that their creation of solidarity and their willingness to cooperate have been fundamental in advancing the construction of prosperous, equitable and democratic societies.

The event concluded with the designation of Guayaquil, Ecuador as the location for the next Ibero-American Third Sector Conference, to be organized by the Ecuadorian Centre for Social Responsibility (Centro Ecuatoriano de Responsabilidad Social) and the Esquel Foundation.

Ricardo Reynoso López is Communications Coordinator at CEMEFI, Mexico. Email ricardo@cemefi.org
Fernando Rossetti is Secretary General of GIFE, Brazil. Email rossetti@gife.org.br

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