The SEEP Network has partnered with Pollen Group to offer an introductory course on inclusive market systems development (MSD) in thin markets, in contexts such as post-conflict, environment related emergencies, and highly underdeveloped markets with limited or distorted private sector engagement. The training will strengthen practitioner application of systems-thinking and facilitative approaches to program design and implementation. The outcome of this course is a more comprehensive understanding of how to instigate systemic change in thin markets, leading to larger and more sustainable impact.
Throughout the training, participants will engage with a fictional case study based on the experiences of SEEP members implementing MSD programs in thin markets. This case will help practitioners to identify vulnerable groups, analyze thin market constraints, develop intervention strategies that are inclusive of vulnerable groups, identify leverage points for systemic change, and design partner engagement strategies that spur behavior change among public and private market actors.
This training is aimed at mid to senior level managers of market systems programs that may have some familiarity with the approach but have not experienced an in-depth training on market systems, M4P, or facilitation. The training will cover 6 main topics:
- The foundational concepts of market systems development;
- Frameworks to shape inclusive strategy and intervention design;
- How programs can engage in thin market contexts and, within these contexts, target vulnerable or marginalized groups as beneficiaries of systemic change interventions;
- Tools and tactics on how to engage market actors while promoting ownership and sustainability;
- M&E for systemic change;
- Organizational processes for more flexible and adaptive programming.
Audience
This training is aimed at mid to senior level managers of market systems programs that may have some familiarity with the approach but have not experienced an in-depth training on market systems, M4P, or facilitation.
Participants will gain:
- Strengthened understanding of complex systems, systems-theory, and its application to analyzing problems;
- Increased knowledge of market systems facilitation tools and frameworks to strengthen the design of project intervention strategies;
- Strengthened capacity on the use of facilitative tactics during project activities, including strengthening formal and informal feedback loops to inform learning and planning;
- An understanding of thin markets versus thick markets, and how to engage marginalized and vulnerable populations.
Meet the Trainers:
- Raksha Vasudevan joined Pollen Group Consulting after two years working in the humanitarian sector in west Africa, Europe and the Middle East. As a market development Strategist, she has undertaken market analyses of the livestock sector in northern Kenya and access to digital financial services in West Africa. Previously, Raksha worked with a management consulting firm in Canada and a microfinance NGO in south Asia. Raksha holds a Master’s in Development Studies and a Bachelor’s in Commerce.
- Christine Livet is a Senior Strategist with Pollen Group Consulting, with extensive experience working with market systems and facilitative programs in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. She specializes in organizational change management, developing performance management systems, and training/mentoring of field staff in market systems and facilitation. Prior to working with Pollen Group (as well as formerly under Engineers Without Borders Canada), Christine worked in the dairy sector in Nepal and with the Canadian donor agency supporting the design of economic growth policies and strategies. She studied international development and economics at the University of Ottawa.
The format of the event is interactive with roundtable discussions and case studies from leading healthcare CIOs, as well as healthcare entrepreneurs and government functionaries, all sharing their experiences on what works and what does not.
Who should attend?
The Ethiopian Christian culture dates back to the emergence of Christianity and continues vibrantly today. This long tradition makes Ethiopia a unique place to visit and study. Our seminar focuses on Ethiopian Christianity and its connections with the Eastern Mediterranean in Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The theme includes the early reception of Christianity in Ethiopia, the emergence of a Christian state, and the development of the distinct Ethiopian Church. We explore the relations between Ethiopia and the Roman Empire, Persia, Egypt and Palestine up to the Crusades, and discuss distinct Ethiopian traditions in connection with Judaism and Islam. We will visit the late antique city of Aksum and the world-famous rock-hewn churches in Lalibela, as well as number of ancient monasteries, participate at a pilgrimage and meet with students and professors at two Ethiopian universities.
The seminar gives an exceptional opportunity to get to know Ethiopian Christianity which is an often neglected field of study in Nordic universities, despite the fact that several important early Jewish and Christian texts are only preserved in Ge’ez, the ancient Ethiopian language. We pay special attention to the diverse cultural manifestations of religion, including archaeology, art history, architecture, music and literature, theology and Church practices, general history, trade and international relations. The participants are invited to study texts in their traditional contexts and as part of the wider material culture.
Our seminar is the second of a number of Nordic PhD-seminars arranged by the Nordic Network for the Study of Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the First Millennium (NNJCI), a network of PhD students and faculty from Nordic academic institutions. For more, see http://nnjci.mf.no/.
Structure of the seminar
The duration of the seminar will be two weeks. The program covers several major sites in Ethiopia. In addition to excursions, there will be lectures given by experts on various topics. Each participant is also required to prepare a short presentation (ca. 20 minutes) on a related topic based on reading of relevant materials (see the list of reading below). The student may present either his/her own PhD project or a paper on a theme connected to the program.
Practical information
Participants: The number of participants is restricted to 12 students (and three teachers). The seminar is for PhD-students, but it will also be open for advanced master’s students and postdoctoral researchers if the available places are not filled by PhD-students.
Cost: The cost for the course is 9.000:- SEK excl. international air fare. This includes all domestic transport, half-board accommodation, all entrances, guide, lectures, materials. Travel to Ethiopia must be with Ethiopian Airlines in order to have substantial reduction in domestic fares. The flights from Stockholm to Addis Abeba should not be more than 5000 SEK if booked early. All participants are themselves responsible for booking the international flights (including their way to Stockholm.)
Reading list: All participants should prepare for the seminar by reading approximately 300 pages. The reading list will be distributed before September 1st.
Credits: The seminar equals 5 ECTS, but participants are themselves responsible for having these credits accepted by their doctoral program.
Organizers: Lund University (Samuel Rubenson, Mengistu Gobezie) and University of Helsinki (Outi Lehtipuu, Anna-Liisa Tolonen, in co-operation with the Finnish Institute in the Middle East).
Information: Follow our facebook-page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/1625904417675426/) or contact Samuel Rubenson (Samuel.Rubenson@teol.lu.se) or Outi Lehtipu (outi.lehtipuu@helsinki.fi).
Application
Applications should be sent to Outi Lehtipu (outi.lehtipuu@helsinki.fi) before April 15th 2016.
Accepted applicants will be informed by May 10th, and be asked to pay a deposit of 4500 SEK by June 1st.
Click here for the application form.
The Africa Energy Indaba Conference will discuss, debate and seek solutions to enable adequate energy generation across the continent.
THE CONFERENCE WILL PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY TO:
- debate policy
- review industrial progress and market trends
- discuss the efficiency of various public support mechanisms and public-private partnerships across the continent
- review new data and the latest technological trends globally
Delegates in the early stages of their careers will have an unprecedented opportunity to develop their knowledge and understanding of the energy sector and to lay the foundations for their role as “Future Energy Leaders”.
WHY SHOULD YOU ATTEND?
- Update your knowledge on the current trends within energy across the African continent with input from global authorities
- Explore future trends to position your business as effectively as possible
- Explore the growing interest in ‘green’ and sustainability issues in the context of developing countries. New opportunities will emerge and new careers will be created
- Understand the research needed to transform the primary energy related industries of oil, gas and coal so these abundant resources can continue to be exploited responsibly
- Discover examples and best practices from other industries
- Find out how government and business leaders plan to address the energy demand
- Share ideas and network with business associates in a rewarding, off-the-record setting
- Understand how the new energy landscape is creating new opportunities to address our continent’s challenges, improve the way we work, impact training and development and attract new talent and technology to Africa.
Delegates, drawn from all continents, represent an unrivalled combination of industry experts, project developers, financiers, energy users, government officials and manufacturers.
NETWORK WITH PERSONALITIES IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
- Government & Municipality
- Project Developers/Consultants/Analysts
- Environmental Engineering
- Equipment & Technology Solutions
- Banks/Investors/Insurance
- Automotive & Transport
- Green Energy
- Commodity Traders / Agents & Brokers
- Associations & Press
REGISTER TO ATTEND THE AFRICA ENERGY INDABA 2017 AND BENEFIT FROM:
- Networking amongst more than 600 senior level energy sector experts and decision-makers planning and developing the 21st century energy requirements for Africa.
- Hearing from more than 160 expert speakers discussing the latest and best industry practice.
- Visiting over 100 leading energy suppliers showcasing the latest technologies, equipment and services.
- Reviewing policy and regulation, industry progress and changing market trends.
The conference brings together the brightest and most innovative minds that are shaping the way we generate energy. Delegates and VIPs flock to the conference to learn about the latest developments, innovations and investment opportunities.
Year on year, the event provides our partners with access to over 600 African energy utility and IPP decision makers, who traditionally are difficult to reach. And most importantly, the show allows them to meet real buyers.
The major goal of this Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop is to create a large pool of experts in the area of gender-responsive economic policy management. This pool of experts will be equipped to act as trainers for the two-week course on gender-responsive economic policy management organized for middle and senior African policymakers and which takes place on an annual basis at IDEP’s headquarters in Dakar, Senegal. Successful applicants may also be considered to be included in IDEP’s roster of gender experts.
The course aims at providing training on agricultural policy with a view to strengthening and/or renewing the knowledge and capacity of African policy makers, including senior managers, negotiators, advisors, planners and analysts, to meet the core challenges of growing the agricultural sector as a central engine of national economic development and social policy. In doing so, the course will expose participants not only to the current state of knowledge and the comparative lessons which are available to Africa, but also some of the best practices that serve as pertinent examples of how an integrated and comprehensive agricultural policy regime has been used to promote economic transformation and social well-being.
The course will serve the policy concerns which most African governments share of, among other things, improving agricultural output and productivity, nurturing the linkages between agriculture and other economic sectors, increasing national food security, combating poverty, expanding employment, promoting environmental sustainability, and enhancing sustainable rural livelihoods, including gender equality. These are concerns that have also been embraced by the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), and NEPAD.
Young African practitioners will have the unique opportunity to learn from world renowned international experts in Aikido, embodied leadership, somatic education, and conflict resolution. In addition, the summit will bring respected East African traditional elders to share their wisdom and ancient traditions in resolving conflict. Together, these two facets of the workshop will provide African young adults, as well as their non-African peers, a rich perspective on the wealth of the ancient traditions of African nations, while they also benefit from the global perspective of non-African teachers. International experts and African elders will share their knowledge and practices with one another, providing a unique stage that places African tools and approaches to leadership and conflict resolution on par with Western and Asian practice and perspectives. The workshops will serve as an unprecedented cultural exchange and collaboration for peace.