CID News

An eight-person Parliamentary Staff delegation visited the French Assemblée Nationale and Sénat from September 17 to 24, 2006 under the auspices of SUNY/CID’s USAID-funded Parliament Support Project. The visit was aimed at exploring many of the facets of the French Parliament’s day-to-day operations including the work of committees, methods and tools used for gathering documentary evidence, communication/coordination modalities between parliamentary committees, and the selective exercise of executive oversight. The Moroccan participants had ample oppor tunities to exchange ideas and discuss best practices with their French counterparts, while reflecting upon ways to improve their own practices and procedures. Following their return to Morocco the study tour participants have already begun to develop a concrete and prioritized plan of action for improving their own legislative processes. [Top of the page]

General Secretariat of the Jordanian Lower House of Parliament Visits Dutch Parliament

In February 2007, a delegation from the General Secretariat of the Jordanian Lower House of Parliament visited the Dutch Parliament under the auspice of USAID-funded SUNY-implemented Legislative Strengthening Program in Jordan. Jordanian delegation was led by the Secretary General of the Lower House of Parliament and included a number of department directors. The objective of this visit was to examine how Secretariats of both the House and the Senate of the Dutch Parliament serve their members as well as external stakeholders. The visit included meetings with Secretary Generals of both houses, briefings by the Information, Committee, and Transcript Departments at the Dutch Parliament, among others. [Top of the page]

SUNY Wins Student Education Award; Dual-degree undergraduate program links 9 Turkish, 10 New York campuses

Washington - The largest U.S. university system has won an award for cooperating with Turkey in the undergraduate education of Turkish students, and their dual-degree program is being cited as a model for international cooperation in education.

“The dual-diploma program is the most effective kind of globalization in which we can engage,” State University of New York (SUNY) Associate Vice Chancellor Robert Gosende told USINFO. “It is one of the most intimate ways for universities to work together. We elaborate a joint curriculum together, teach together and certify our teaching with the issuance of dual diplomas,” said Gosende, who is also the head of the Office of International Programs at SUNY and holds the rank of ambassador for his work as special envoy for Somalia for former President Clinton.

The Institute of International Education announced January 24 that SUNY is the first winner of the Andrew Heiskell Award for Innovation in International Education, a new International Exchange Partnerships award, for its program with the Turkish Council of Higher Education (YOK). Turkish students in the program receive two undergraduate diplomas, one Turkish and one from SUNY, after dividing their four years of study between a Turkish campus and a partner SUNY campus.

“We have come to believe that, through this program, we can provide to students a much better education than we could if students came directly to our university for all four years or if students stayed in their home country for all four years. As a result, students have much greater employment opportunities upon graduation,” Gosende said.

“Turkey is one of our country's oldest partners in NATO,” Gosende said. “It is a country with which we have had particularly warm and friendly relations for the past 60 years. This exciting new program, which is enabling hundreds of Turkish students to spend half of their undergraduate careers studying at campuses within our system, will be most important in assisting Turkey and the U.S. to continue and expand this warm and friendly relationship into the future.”

"SUNY's dual diploma program with Turkey has become a model for how we wish to work with other countries in our effort to globalize our campuses," SUNY Chancellor John Ryan said when the award was announced. SUNY and the YOK set out to create joint degrees at the undergraduate level in 2000. Such programs until now have been unusual “because it is harder to articulate degree requirements across national systems than at the master's level, and because students are younger and may require more support services,” according to a program overview written by Gosende.

The program has grown from 33 students in 2003 to more than 1,500 students in 24 programs in 2006. Nine Turkish and 10 SUNY campuses are participating.

Both the SUNY and the YOK systems are large. SUNY has 64 campuses and 418,000 students, while YOK plans, coordinates and supervises a system of 77 universities with almost 400,000 students on campuses and an additional 200,000 students engaged in distance learning. Turkey has many more students taking national university entrance exams than it has places in its higher education system. The joint-degree program ultimately increases the number of Turkish students admitted to Turkish universities by providing additional places for qualified students. Both systems also benefit from the faculty exchanges that are built into the programs.

SUNY now is working on programs that will enable U.S. students to study in Turkey, according to Gosende, who added, “but even among those [New York State] students who never go to Turkey, their undergraduate experience is greatly enhanced by studying and living side-by-side with their Turkish peers. This program contributes to their knowledge of the Muslim world, a part of the world which is often not well-understood among U.S. university students, and strengthens the university’s ability to foster a sense of global citizenry among its students.”

SUNY currently is developing dual-diploma programs with universities in Russia, Poland, Mexico and Brazil, according to Gosende. A three-year U.S. State Department grant of $125,000 helped pay for the initial travel needs of faculty and administrators involved in establishing the SUNY-YOK program, and the department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs also provided $250,000 in scholarship funds in September 2002. The scholarships are administered by Turkey’s Fulbright Commission, according to the program's Web site. [Top of the page]

Kennedy Chokuda, SUNY/CID International Fellow in 2005, has been appointed to the position of Deputy Clerk in the Parliament of Zimbabwe. While in Albany, Mr. Chokuda served as a staff member in the New York State Senate, worked with his academic mentor Dr. Rob Compton of SUNY/Oneonta, and studied at the Rockefeller College. [Top of the page]

SUNY/ARD Haiti Participates in Strategic Planning Workshop with Haitian Parliament

In coordination with the Haitian Parliament’s Bicameral Commission for Support to Parliament, the USAID-funded Projet d’appui au Parlement Haïtien (PAPH) participated in a three-day workshop for Parliamentarians and staff to discuss and refine their goals for the future of the Haitian Parliament. The workshop took place from December 19 to 21, 2006 in Port-au-Prince. The Haitian Parliament drafted a strategic plan for its own development and to coordinate international assistance. Through this workshop, the PAPH Project formally deepened its efforts to build upon and contribute to the Parliament’s own vision of its institutional needs. More than 45 members of parliament, staff, and government representatives took part in the event. [Top of the page]

SUNY/Afghanistan Supports Legal Research Unit to Improve Decree Review and Ratification Process

Since March 2006, SUNY/CID’s USAID-funded Afghanistan Parliamentary Assistance Project (APAP) has provided equipment and staff training to the lower house’s (Wolesi Jirga) Legislative Research Unit (LRU). At the outset, the LRU had no space to operate and little experience in providing research services to it parliamentary clients. According to the LRU’s Director, Mr. Hekmatullah Fushanji, “It was very difficult, if not impossible, for us to function. SUNY/APAP came to our assistance and today we are able to showcase a fully functional unit that clearly impacts the Wolesi Jirga’s law making process”.

The project has provided basic research, bill drafting and internet skills enabling the LRU staff members to conduct basic and advanced research on many of the Executive Decrees pending at the National Assembly Committee level. According to Director Fushanji, “With the Project’s assistance we have developed a Legislative Review Tracking System that allows us to produce revised bill drafts that capture amendments sequentially, making it easier for Committee members to review their work and quickly move forward.” [Top of the page]

SUNY/CID Senior Associate Participates in Conference on Genocide at Cardozo Law School in New York City

Dr. Mark Baskin participated in a conference, “Denying Genocide: Law, Identity & Historical Memory in the Face of Mass Atrocity” at Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School’s Program on the Holocaust and Human Rights Studies on December 4, 2006. The conference addressed the dilemma that although it has become axiomatic for societies that are emerging from mass atrocities to acknowledge the “truth” of what has happened through trials, truth commissions and other methods, many societies actually have gone to great lengths to deny that the atrocities have taken place. Such denial has been central in the Armenian genocide, the Holocaust, Rwanda, Sudan and the Balkans. There were panels on defining denial, comparing cases of denial, the relationship between free speech and denial, and denial, history and education.

From his long experience with the United Nations during the Wars of Yugoslav Succession in working with organizations of families of missing people and in cooperating with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in exhuming mass graves, Dr. Baskin suggested that denial was essential to genocide. He discussed ‘war crimes denial’ in which leaderships and ordinary people focus on the crimes against their own people while denying that their people could ever commit war crimes. He pointed to the local character of genocides that occur in particular places, and how the ‘international community’ contributes to denial both by their failure to intervene and by their equal treatment of all parties – victims and aggressors – in these wars.

Dr. Baskin is Senior Associate for Academic Affairs and Research at SUNY CID and Research Professor of Political Science at Rockefeller College at the University at Albany. [Top of the page]

SUNY/Malawi Participates in Training Workshop for National Assembly Committee Clerks and Committee Chairs

Malawi’s National Assembly, with assistance from the SUNY Malawi Project office, held a one-day Training Workshop November 29, 2006. The Speaker of Parliament opened the workshop which was attended by all Chairpersons of Parliamentary Committees and Committee Clerks. The SUNY-Malawi Chief-of-Party, Dye Mawindo and DCOP, Sylvester Masamvu made presentations on the Role of Committee Clerks in Committee work, the Role of Committee Chairs in the Committee work; and Management of Committee Meetings. The Parliamentarians and staff were pleased with the content and outcome of the workshop, including the Honorable Lijenda, who suggested in the future, similar training sessions take place as soon as possible after general elections or appointment of Chairpersons. [Top of the page]

ALBANY — SUNY/CID was awarded a $6.8 million contract from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to support the re-establishment of a functioning legislature in the Republic of Haiti. “The goal of the three-year project is to help the Haitian Parliament, which has not been in session for the past 2 ½ years, to develop its legislative capacity and address critical issues such as the need for political inclusiveness, negotiation and power-sharing,” said James Ketterer, director of SUNY/CID. “The project also seeks to promote democracy by strengthening Haiti’s independent media.” Haiti’s democratically elected Parliament, composed of a 30-seat Senate and a 99-member Chamber of Deputies, took office in June 2006. [Top of the page]

On October 6, 2006 Director James P. Ketterer announced that SUNY/CID will continue its work in Bolivia under a contract to Chemonics International, Inc. The objective of the Support to Democratic Systems and Governance in a Changing Environment in Bolivia Project, which is funded by the US Agency for International Development, is to foster the creation and improvement of conditions for Bolivian democracy to adopt and maximize its use of inclusive and transparent mechanisms that are vital for democratic systems of governance. “With this project, SUNY/CID will continue its longstanding work with the National Congress of Bolivia and potentially with the deliberative bodies at the sub-national level,” Ketterer noted. Additionally, SUNY/CID will also contribute to the project’s work with civil society so that it can effectively monitor political processes and to lead and support pluralistic debate. SUNY/CID has been working in Bolivia since 1992. [Top of the page]

On October 1, 2005, SUNY/CID embarked upon a four-year program to help strengthen the Parliament of Tanzania as a follow-on to the work that it began with the Parliament in 2003.

The project fosters greater cooperation among intergovernmental agencies, effective participation of Members of Parliament in the formulation of the national budget, and greater involvement with their constituencies at home.

In Tanzania, this approach has proved to be so successful that it has paved the way for further activities to be undertaken with additional resources. SUNY/CID is pleased to announce that an expansion of parliamentary activities through our existing project is to be funded by the Millennium Challenge Account Threshold Program. New and exciting activities will include a range of technical initiatives that will serve to further strengthen Tanzania’s legislature, and the nation, with particular attention paid on efforts to prevent and crackdown on corruption in the country.

The Millennium Challenge Account links greater contributions from developed nations to greater responsibility from developing nations. Development assistance may be provided to those countries that rule justly, invest in their people, and encourage economic freedom. The people of Tanzania should be proud that their country is one of the first countries in the world to share in this program. [Top of the page]

Dr. Mark Baskin, SUNY/CID Senior Associate overseeing academic and research programs, has been named Research Professor by the Department of Political Science at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany. In addition to his work at SUNY/CID, Dr. Baskin teaches graduate and undergraduate on comparative politics and international security at the University at Albany and is involved in a wide array of scholarly activities. [Top of the page]

Jordanian Parliament’s newly established Civil Society Organization (CSO) Unit

On July 22, 2006, SUNY/Jordan held a one day retreat for the Jordanian Parliament’s newly established Civil Society Organization (CSO) Unit. The mission of this new unit is to establish better relationships between the Jordanian Parliament and CSOs, and to strengthen collaboration between the two stakeholders in addressing public policy issues. The event brought together members of the CSO Unit, including the Unit’s Director, Dr. Khalid Abu-Rabie, and representatives from Jordanian CSOs. The retreat served to discuss the mission and objectives of the CSO Unit; to jump start the CSO Unit’s activities and established initial contact between the CSO Unit and CSO representatives. [Top of the page]

Dr. Helen Desfosses, Interim Dean at the Nelson A. Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at SUNY Albany, gave the keynote address to members of both houses of Parliament of Morocco and civil society representatives on June 20, 2006 in Rabat, Morocco. Dean Desfosses participated in the roundtable on how to strengthen the Moroccan legislature’s capacity in initiating and executing fact-finding committees and organizing public hearings, along with several other distinguished speakers, including Dr. Abdelmoughit Benmessaoud Tridano, a consultant for the Moroccan fact finding committee, Driss Lachgar, member of the Moroccan Chamber of Representatives and Rahou Haila, a member of the Moroccan Chamber of Counselors. This event provided a forum for experts in this field to share their professional experiences from the American, Moroccan and French perspectives, and a question and answer session followed.

Dr. Desfosses remarks on fact-finding committees and public hearings were well received by the audience and fellow panelists as she drew from her experiences as president of the Albany City Legislature and the Albany City Council. She emphasized the importance of investigation and oversight by standing committees which provided invaluable fact-finding, consensus-building and policy-recommending assistance to the legislative process. From Dean Desfosses’ city council experience, she stated that public hearings were the essence of democracy and that they are an essential arena for citizen groups to be heard. Points emphasized in her presentation were; rationale, challenges, process and procedure, and the impacts within an American context. [Top of the page]

On September 5-7, A SUNY/CID delegation was in Washington, DC to meet with visiting delegations from the parliaments of Kenya and Afghanistan. The MPs were in Washington under the auspices of the House Democracy Assistance Commission (HDAC) of the US House of Representatives. The SUNY delegation was led by Ambassador Robert R. Gosende, Associate Vice Chancellor for International programs, and included CID Director James Ketterer, Chief of Staff James Utermark, and Senior Associate Jesse Biddle. In addition to the HDAC meetings, the SUNY delegation also met with officials from USAID, the State Department, AMIDEAST, the US-Ukraine Foundation, and congressional offices.

In July 2006, SUNY/Jordan held a three-day seminar entitled, “Taking Parliament to the People: Parliament and Media Relations,” at the Dead Sea. In its effort to increase public participation in the legislative process in Jordan, SUNY/Jordan organized the seminar to help foster more effective working relationships and understanding between members of Parliament and their media counterparts, both print and broadcast. The objective of the event was for Parliamentarians and media representatives to identify and discuss ways to work together in improving coverage of legislative affairs and to learn new skills for building a more positive public image of the Parliament.

More than fifty Jordanian Parliamentarians and media representatives participated in this three-day event, facilitated by Dr. Helen Desfosses, an experienced politician and SUNY/Albany professor, and Dr. Ghalib Shatnawi, Jordanian media expert and professor of political communications from Yarmouk University. The Deputy Speaker of the Jordanian Parliament, Dr. Nayef Al Fayez, in his closing remarks proclaimed the seminar a success and expressed his wishes that similar events take place in the near future. [Top of the page]

Former CID Intern, Leanne Spaulding, is currently serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand. She is working and living in the northeastern province of Udon Thani and is working on projects related to women’s health, gender issues, and HIV/AIDS education. Leanne is a graduate of the University at Albany and a former employee of the New York State Department of Health.

After successful completion of the 2006 SUNY/CID International Fellowship, Henry Ndlovu has returned to his post as Clerk of Committees with the Zimbabwean Parliament. Mr. Ndlovu’s six-month program began last December in Pretoria, South Africa where he joined a group of SUNY/Oneonta students participating in an overseas summer course led by Henry’s academic mentor Prof. Rob Compton. Upon arrival in the United States in January, he began serving a six-month assignment on the staff of NYS Sen. Dale M. Volker (R,C,I-Depew). During the spring semester, Henry completed a course in policy implementation at Rockefeller College, a two-week intensive bill drafting course held in Washington, DC by the Public Law Center of Tulane University, and an individualized course covering NYS government and strategic planning organized by Prof. Compton. Henry’s individualized program also included experiential learning opportunities such as participation in an international development conference held at Old Dominion University in Norfolk,VA in March, and continued involvement with SUNY/Oneonta undergraduate students as an advisor to a class assigned with representing Zimbabwe at a Model UN session held in NYC in April 2006. [Top of the page]

Two former CID interns, David Miljoner and Liam Fitzsimmons, have accepted legislative positions. David has been accepted into the New York State Senate Fellows Program and will serve in the Senate from September 2006 to July 2007. He previously was the CID Arthur Sist Fellow in International Development and in that capacity was a Congressional Fellow in the Peruvian Congress. He received his BA and MA from the University at Albany.

Liam has accepted a job in Washington with Congressman Maurice Hinchey of New York. In addition to being a CID intern, he also worked at the SUNY Office of International Programs, was a State Department intern in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, and coordinated activities for the Albany chapter of Americans for Informed Democracy. He received his BA from the University at Albany. [Top of the page]

On June 15, 2006 Julia Demichelis, SUNY/CID’s chief-of-party on the USAID-funded Strengthening Parliamentary Processes project in Morocco, was honored by the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture and Allied Arts, Department of Planning Public Policy and Management (PPPM) & PPPM Advisory Council as the department’s Distinguished Alumna of 2006. The University recognized that since graduating with a Master of Urban Planning in 1991, Ms. Demichelis has applied her planning skills to create community reconciliation and reconstruction mechanisms within conflict and post-conflict societies around the world, including Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Yugoslav Successor States, Albania, Cote d’Ivoire, Burundi and most recently, Iraq. For 15 years, Julia’s work has focused on rebuilding physical structures, strengthening public services, improving governance infrastructure at the community and state levels, and mitigating recurrences of conflicts or natural disasters.

As SUNY/CID’s project director in Iraq last year, Ms. Demichelis headed a team that assisted the transitional Iraqi parliament to establish its internal rules and post- election institutional structure; draft the constitution and other key pieces of legislation; create modern human resources policies; and, develop other essential tools of governance, including public and media relations. Working at the national level for the past five years, she ‘raises the ceiling’ that governments give to communities to rebuild themselves. Julia is currently directing SUNY/CID’s program with the Moroccan Parliament, focusing on the interior and finance committees and helping build positive and productive relationships between the Parliament and civil society. [Top of the page]

Phase I of the “In a Democracy, Your Decision Counts!” Campaign Completed in Bolivia

“In a Democracy, Your Decision Counts!” This is the slogan of the mass media campaign that is being carried out by SUNY/Bolivia under its USAID-funded Program to Support Effective Citizens and Representation (PACER). Elections for national and regional offices took place in December 2005, and elections for Members of a Constituent Assembly are scheduled for July 2006. After 24 years of democratic rule, this is the first time that a civic education campaign of this type has been carried out.

“The campaign focuses on the primary elements of representative democracy, especially the relationship between constituents and their representatives. It also emphasises that in a democracy, there must be respect for both minorities and majorities,” noted Soraya Luján, the SUNY/Bolivia staff member who is coordinating many of the campaign’s activities. Thus far, the campaign has used television, radio, billboards and printed media to reach approximately 2 million people throughout all regions of Bolivia. (Click to hear the radio jingle in Spanish). SUNY/Bolivia is preparing to launch Phase II of the campaign in June 2006. The new civic education materials will emphasize the importance of citizens participating in two watershed events in Bolivian history; the election of representatives who will draft a new constitution, and then debate a proposal to decentralize the government.
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Educational billboards were place in high-traffic intersections throughout Bolivia.

Jessica Phelan Wins Second Arthur J. Sist Development Fellowship in International Development to Work with the Jordanian Parliament

A PhD student in political science at the University at Albany is the recipient of the second Arthur J. Sist Fellowship in International Development. Jessica Phelan is focusing her studies on legislative development. She will travel to Amman, Jordan and work with the Jordanian Parliament for the duration of the fellowship. She will be based in SUNY’s office in Jordan, where the Center for International Development established a two-year legislative strengthening program to work with members and staff of the Jordanian parliament to strengthen its effectiveness, transparency, accountability, responsiveness and public outreach. Ms. Phelan has worked as an intern at SUNY/CID, at the State Legislative Leaders Foundation, and at the New York State Assembly. She also received assistance on this project from the Jean Polletti Memorial Scholarship from Rockefeller College at the University at Albany.

Dr. Arthur J. Sist retired from SUNY/CID in 2005 after a distinguished career that spanned 35 years in developing countries promoting the consolidation of democracy through teaching democratic theory and through directing programs for strengthening legislative and judicial systems in Latin America and Africa. Last year’s Sist Fellow, David Miljoner, worked in the Citizen Participation Office of the Peruvian Congress on representation mechanisms that range from public hearings to departmental citizen interest forums. [Top of the page]

SUNY/Tanzania Organizes Concurrent Briefing Sessions for Four Parliamentary Committees

SUNY/Tanzania organized a series of briefing sessions for Members of Parliament (MPs) and Parliamentary staffers on May 26, 28, and 31, 2006. The briefing sessions involving the Public Accounts, Social Services, Finance & Economic Affairs, and Natural Resource Management & Environment Committees ran concurrently in three separate locations in Dar es Salaam. Over 70 Parliamentarians and 8 Parliamentary staffers received briefings from ten local organizations and institutions. With 323 MPs in the national legislature, providing targeted support to four Committees each year of the Program will be a key entry point towards helping to strengthen the Parliament.

The briefing sessions were developed with Parliamentary staffers who work within the Parliamentary Committees along with the Committee Chair and Vice Chairpersons and were designed to meet the specific informational needs identified within the Committees. Topics were diverse and included an overview of the education reforms for the Social Services Committee, auditing skills for the benefit of the Public Accounts Committee, challenges to implementing the environmental policy and legislation for the Natural Resource Management & Environment Committee and an overview of the Tanzanian Governance Notice Board and integration of gender budgeting principles for the Finance & Economic Affairs Committee. In addition, all of the target committees attended sessions about Tanzania’s public financial management including issues associated with the budget cycle and public expenditure management. Presenters were drawn from Tanzanian civil society, research organizations, academia and government institutions. The sessions were intentionally timed to take place just prior to the 2006 Parliamentary Budget Session which begins in early June 2006. This is the time each year when the legislators are required to scrutinize Tanzania’s National Budget estimates. As the Session draws near and their workloads increase, MPs agreed that these briefing sessions offered a much needed opportunity to participate in an informed dialogue with their fellow Committee members and outside resource persons on issues that would need to be considered and reflected in the impending Budget discussions. [Top of the page]

SUNY/CID is pleased to announce its class of interns for the summer of 2006. The interns are:

Danielle Israelov –Undergraduate student at the University at Albany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy.

Morgan Nighan – Undergraduate student at University at Albany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy.

They will be engaged in a variety of research projects and applied development work. SUNY students interested in becoming a SUNY/CID intern please contact Dr. Mark Baskin at mark.baskin@cid.suny.edu. [Top of the page]

From May 22 to 24, 2006 SUNY/Jordan organized a three-day workshop entitled “Constructive Engagement: Introduction to Parliamentary Advocacy Skills Training for Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).” This workshop was part of SUNY/CID’s Legislative Strengthening Program (LSP) in Jordan effort to widen the public space for voicing concerns on important policy issues in Jordan. The training enabled CSOs to gain basic advocacy knowledge, skills, and behaviors in order to improve the capacity of select Jordanian CSOs to advocate to the Jordanian Parliament.

“Advocacy is a relatively new concept in Jordan,” said LSP’s Director Mark K. Leverson. “CSOs have been saying they need to have the hard skills in order not to just make noise, but to make deals, with their elected Members of Parliament.”

A dozen public policy-related CSOs were invited to attend in order to work on their skills in approaching and having meaningful exchanges with Parliament. Honorable Basem Haddadin, a member of the Jordanian Parliament, addressed the group with an outline of the entire legislative process, with a view to where CSOs can effectively enter the discussion with their issues. Trainers at the workshop included former US State Senator Fred C. Whiting from South Dakota, who spent many years as the “target” of advocacy campaigns and had a revealing perspective to share, and LSP Staffer Ms. Lama Khries. The training included presentations on comparative experiences at advocacy and on the techniques of effective advocacy and coalition building; a mock advocacy session with role playing, and a visit to the parliament. [Top of the page]

From May 15-18, 2006, SUNY/ Zimbabwe participated in a four-day induction workshop for new Zimbabwean senators. The Zimbabwean Senate existed from 1980-1989 and was reinstituted in 2005. Funded by the United National Development Programme, the overall objective of the workshop was to provide senators a forum to contribute to strategies for making the Senate effective in the discharge of its legislative functions. Some of the key sessions included the following:

- The role and functions of Parliament, especially with the introduction of a bicameral system
- Overview of parliamentary reforms
- Business of the House
- The budget process
- The committee system
- Experiences with Parliamentary Constituency Information Centers

SUNY/CID-Zimbabwe led discussions on the budget process and also shared information and experiences about the committee system.
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As part of an effort to expand SUNY' s relationships with universities and other institutions in the Arab world, a SUNY delegation visited the Kingdom of Jordan from May 14 to 19, 2006. Working in coordination with SUNY/CID's Legislative Strengthening Program in Amman, Ambassador Robert Gosende, SUNY Associate Vice Chancellor for International Programs, and SUNY/CID Director James Ketterer met with representatives from Yarmouk University, the University of Jordan, Mu'ta University, the King's Academy, United Nations University, and various officials from the Government of Jordan and the US Embassy in Amman. The delegation's mission was to explore ways in which to increase the level of student and faculty exchange between Jordanian institutions and SUNY campuses. [Top of the page]

SUNY Delegation Visits Tunisia

From May 8 to 14, 2006, a delegation from SUNY visited Tunisia as part of a US State Department University Linkages program. SUNY/CID Director James Ketterer joined Dr. Lora Lunt and Dr. Edwin Portugal of SUNY Potsdam in meetings with SUNY's partner institution under the three-year grant, l'Institut Superieur de Gestion (ISG) in Tunis. The grant began in 2003 and supported seven Tunisian professors and graduate students in a year-long stay on the Potsdam campus, where they carried out research in business and economics, taught undergraduate courses, participated in seminars focused on teaching skills, and gave public outreach lectures about the Arab world. The grant also supported an exchange of US and Tunisian researchers and the purchase of technology designed to enable Tunisian and American students to participate in common seminars and research projects. While in Tunis, the SUNY delegation worked on research presentations with ISG students, met with project participants, and participated in a day-long final symposium. [Top of the page]

The State University of New York's Center for International Development held its second public policy dialogue on "The Role of Parliament in Alleviating Poverty in Jordan" on April 27, 2006 in Amman, Jordan. The event allowed over sixty participants from both houses of parliament, senior legislative staff, government ministries, academic institutions, civil society organizations (CSOs) and the mass media to discuss poverty in Jordanian society. One third of the participants were women. The dialogue focused attention of opinion leaders and law makers on the many dimensions of poverty, different approaches to alleviating poverty, and the roles played by different actors in developing sound economic policies that would reduce the burdens of poverty throughout Jordanian society. Speakers at the forum included Senator Salwa al-Masri, MP Mohamed Arslan, Professors Mohamed Masalha and Walid Shawaqfeh, and CSO representative Samer Kawar. Their speeches ranged from such topics as "Poverty in Jordan - The Role of Parliament in Alleviating Poverty: National, Regional and International Issues - a Parliamentarian's Perspective," and "From the Ground Up: Grassroots Actions toward Parliament in Fighting Poverty, a CSO Perspective," to "Parliament and its Budgetary Responsibilities: A View from Under the Dome." Following the presentations, participants gathered in small discussion groups to explore such facets of this important public policy as: Housing for the Poor; Wages, and Minimum Wage; Safety Nets - Subsidizing Poverty and Burdens on the Budget; Employment, Jobs, Foreign Workers; Enhancing Women's Participation/Gender Concerns; Corruption vis-à-vis Poverty; and Fair Distribution of Wealth/Revenues. These policy dialogues represent one element in SUNY Jordan's effort to increase public participation in the legislative process and to widen the public space for contributing to the dialogue over public policy in Jordan. The first dialogue on February 19, 2006 addressed the policy of privatization in Jordan (see article below). [Top of the page]

SUNY Tanzania Organizes 2nd Civil Society Organization (CSO) Exhibition at Parliament

The Parliament of the United Republic of Tanzania meets in the administrative capital, Dodoma for times a year and Dodoma is over 6 hours drive away from the commercial capital, Dar es Salaam. Therefore it was really important to ensure as wide a geographic representation as possible to reflect the size of the country. These citizen groups in attendance at the Exhibition, similar to what we know as NGOs in the US, represented a variety of issues including: rural development, environment, human rights, good governance, gender, youth, HIV/Aids and education. The 2-day Exhibition was preceded by a meeting day specifically designed for CSOs to discuss their collective agenda and to ensure that specific policy and legislative platforms to initiate dialogue with their elected leaders, were developed in advance. To maximize access to Parliamentarians, the Exhibition itself was held within the Parliamentary grounds while Members of Parliament were debating draft legislation. Each CSO was provided with a stall to display the work of its organization and conveyed its messages through a variety of media, including informal presentations, policy briefs and memoranda, research reports, videos and poster displays. The event was also covered by the local press media and live commentary from the Exhibition was broadcast in Swahili on the local television and radio stations.

The first-ever Exhibition took place in July 2004. Both Exhibitions were organized by SUNY Tanzania and jointly supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID). The 2006 event saw some 68+ CSOs represented and in excess of 250 Members of Parliament together with their support staff toured the Exhibition.

With a look ahead to the sustainability of future events of its kind, this year SUNY Tanzania partnered with the Foundation for Civil Society, a local organization which provides grants and other capacity building support to CSOs to encourage them to participate in the democratic process. It is our hope that the Foundation will take the lead and support future, locally-owned Exhibitions, thus ensuring sustainability of the initiatives that the Program team seeks to promote in terms of increased citizen access to Parliament.

The relationship between Parliament and Civil Society is still in its infancy. Challenges to Tanzania's development show no sign of abating and with a newly inaugurated President elected on the platform of "new vigor, new zeal and new speed," there is no better time for these two groups to join together, one with technical knowledge and expertise related to these challenges and the other with the power to translate that knowledge into action. [Top of the page]

SUNY Center for International Development Wins $2.9M Contract to Support Democratization of African Nation Project to Help the National Assembly of Malawi Pursue Executive Oversight Role

The $2.9 million contract, designed to support an agreement by the Government of Malawi, USAID and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. government corporation, will fund the two-year project. The goal is to strengthen Malawi's system of checks and balances by helping the National Assembly fulfill its constitutional mandate to scrutinize the use of public funds and conduct oversight of the executive branch. SUNY CID is on a list of just five organizations nationwide that are able to compete for $100 million in USAID projects to improve the capacity and performance of foreign legislatures. To date, SUNY CID has been awarded nine projects totaling $32.3 million under the USAID International Legislative Strengthening Technical Assistance Indefinite Quantity Contract (IQC) announced in May 2004.

"SUNY CID draws upon the State University's vast intellectual and technical resources and serves as a key component of the University's overall commitment to excellence in international education, cross-cultural exchange, and sustainable development," Ryan said. "At the same time, CID creates expanded global opportunities for SUNY students and faculty to work in partnership with other great universities around the globe. This latest award is another example of SUNY fulfilling its public service mission."

One of the most densely populated countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, Malawi has been a multi-party democracy since 1994. Its current government was democratically elected in May 2004. SUNY CID is a university-wide institution that designs and implements international technical assistance projects, conducts policy-oriented research, and contributes to both the theory and practice of international development. Through its in-country development projects, SUNY CID works to enhance the capacity of developing nations to meet critical challenges.

The SUNY CID staff, based in the Malawi capital of Lilongwe, is collaborating with the University at Albany's Center for Legislative Development (CLD) to implement the MCC project. Established in 1970 as part of the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, CLD has worked throughout the world to help make legislatures effective governing institutions.

"CID has earned a worldwide reputation working in partnership with government institutions and universities around the world and this project adds to its impressive portfolio," said James Ketterer, director of SUNY CID. Since 1986, the SUNY CID has implemented more than $142 million in international development projects on five continents in the areas of democratization, economic development, and environmental policy. SUNY CID is currently working on major projects in Afghanistan, Bolivia, Jordan, Kenya, Morocco, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

SUNY CID is among the world's most active university centers in international development, with implementation and research activities funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations Development Program, the U.S. Information Agency, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the Andrew W. Mellon, Tinker, Ford, and Soros Foundations. For more information see www.cid.suny.edu.

Launched by President Bush in 2004, the Millenium Challenge Corporation is a U.S. Government corporation that provides development assistance to some of the poorest countries in the world. MCC recognizes sound policies and good governance as critical to poverty reduction and economic growth in developing countries.

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States educating more than 414,000 students in 6,688 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses. To learn how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu. [Top of the page]

SUNY Tanzania Organizes Second Civil Society Organization (CSO) Exhibition at Parliament

The State University of New York's/Center for International Development Parliamentary Strengthening Program in Tanzania brought together indigenous Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) from all over the country to place their lobbying and advocacy agendas in front of their elected Members of Parliament. The 2006 event saw some 68+ CSOs represented and in excess of 250 Members of Parliament. The citizen groups in attendance at the Exhibition, similar to what we know as NGOs in the US, represented a variety of issues including: rural development, environment, human rights, good governance, gender, youth, HIV/Aids and education. With a look ahead to the sustainability of future events of its kind, this year SUNY Tanzania partnered with the Foundation for Civil Society, a local organization which provides grants and other capacity building support to CSOs to encourage them to participate in the democratic process. (4/19/2006) [Top of the page]

CID hosted Ambassador James Foley, currently Diplomat-in-Residence at SUNY Fredonia. While in Albany, Ambassador Foley met with SUNY Chancellor John Ryan, faculty and students at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany, CID's interns and staff, and gave a public presentation on "Transformational Diplomacy and the Future of the Foreign Service." Ambassador Foley previously served as deputy spokesman for the State Department, served in the Philippines, Algeria, NATO, the US Senate, the US Mission to the UN in Geneva, and as US Ambassador to Haiti. He is an alumnus of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts Unversity and of SUNY Fredonia. [Top of the page]

SUNY/CID’s field office in Jordan, implementer of the large Legislative Strengthening Program funded by USAID, officially opened its new office doors. Welcoming some 150 friends, colleagues, civil society organizations, Members of Parliament, the Secretary General of Parliament, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, other USAID implementers, the USAID Deputy Director and Democracy/Governance Team Leaders and staff, vendors, subcontractors, private sector colleagues, and other contacts to the event, the SUNY/Jordan staff spent the evening showing off the new offices, describing the program, and handing out new publications. The 2 to 3-year project is now in its seventh month of implementation, realizing successes in training, technical assistance, needs assessments, a study trip to Lebanon, and procurement activities. The project is fully staffed up now and looking forward to developing its second year Workplan of activities in the coming months. Reception to the team’s work has been very positive, with high attendance at training sessions, public policy dialogues, consultative roundtables, and conferences. [Top of the page]

Several representatives of SUNY/CID participated in a course at the United Nations University-International Leadership Institute (UNU-ILI) on "The Role of Members of Parliament in Democratic Governance," held in Amman, Jordan 12-17 March 2006. The course was co-sponsored by the SUNY/Jordan Legislative Strengthening Program with support from USAID, the SUNY/CID Home Office, and the SUNY/CID parliamentary support program in Morocco (also supported by USAID). The course included members of parliament (MPs) from around the Arab world, Africa, North America and Europe as well as representatives from NGOs, think tanks, the media and universities. SUNY/Morocco supported a delegation from the Moroccan Parliament and many Jordanian MPs particpated. Speakers at the course included H.E. Sabri Rbeihat, the Jordanian Minister of Political Development and Parliamentary Affairs; H.E. Abdelelah Al-Khatib, Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs; and, H.E. Finn Martin Vallersenes, Member of Parliament of Norway. Senator John Sheffer (ret.), Senior Fellow of the University at Buffalo's Institute for Local Governance and Regional Growth, gave a presentation on the role of leadership in democratic parliaments. SUNY/CID Director James Ketterer gave a presentation on how the Arab world and the West can work in partnership on parliamentary reform programs. [Top of the page]

SUNY/Jordan's Deputy Chief of Party Peg Clement joined a three-person panel held at and organized by the Australian Embassy in Amman, Jordan on the occasion of International Women's Day March 8 2006. Her presentation, "Women in High Places: The Quota System in Parliament," reviewed both sides of the issue of employing quotas to ensure that women win at least some representation in nationally elected bodies. Ms. Clement brought in statistics from a wide range of countries, emphasizing that participation among legislatures in the Arab world - particularly Iraq, Tunisia, Jordan, and Morocco - is steadily climbing, and represents the fastest growth next to the Nordic countries worldwide. The panel, organized by Australian Ambassador and Mrs. Peacock, also included Her Excellency Asma Khader, Jordanian lawyer and former Minister, and Dr. Jaime Lovell, Australian Research Officer and archeologist for the Council for British Research in the Levant. [Top of the page]

The panel for International Women's Day demonstrated how SUNY/Jordan takes the opportunity to raise important public issues in all aspects of its work. In addition, it represented one of many steps being taken in an integrated gender strategy articulated by project planners of incorporating human issues - men's and women's - into every facet of the project.

Democratization of African Nation Project to Help the National Assembly of Malawi Pursue Executive Oversight Role

ALBANY - Chancellor John R. Ryan today announced The State University of New York Center for International Development (SUNY CID) was awarded a $2.9 million contract from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to work with the National Assembly of Malawi to support democratization in the African nation. The $2.9 million contract, designed to support an agreement by the Government of Malawi, USAID and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. government corporation, will fund the two-year project. The goal is to strengthen Malawi's system of checks and balances by helping the National Assembly fulfill its constitutional mandate to scrutinize the use of public funds and conduct oversight of the executive branch. [Top of the page]

SUNY/CID Director James Ketterer participated in the UNESCO International Forum on the Social Science-Policy Nexus, held in Argentina from February 20 to 24, 2006. The forum brought together scholars and policymakers from across the globe. Ketterer participated in a panel on "The Cognitive Complexity of Decision Making," giving a presentation on "Perspectives on Applications in International Relations: Theory and Practice in Democracy Promotion." [Top of the page]

The State University of New York in Jordan's Legislative Strengthening Program (LSP) hosted 60 participants at its first Public Policy Dialogue at the Intercontinental Hotel in Amman, Jordan on February 20, 2006. The dialogue had as its theme the hot-button issue "Privatization in Jordan: Retrospectives and Perspectives." Its goal was to provide a forum in which the business and civil society communities had the opportunity to discuss privatization initiatives in Jordan openly with Members of Parliament.

The panel was composed of three distinguished speakers: Professor Abdellatif Arabiet, head of the Islamic Action Front and Member of the Jordanian Parliament, Mrs. Dina Dabbas, working with the Executive Commission of Privatization, and Professor Bashir Al Zu'bi, Economics Professor at the University of Jordan kicked off the dialogue with provocative and informative presentations. They touched on such controversial issues as transparency in the use of privatization initiatives' monetary gains; whether foreign interests should be served; use of these proceeds - whether for strengthening the infrastructure of the privatized companies with a view towards increased efficiencies; and the need for continual monitoring of the process.

The lively discussion that followed brought in MPs from both the lower and upper houses of parliament, university professors, reporters, academics from institutes, members of commissions and councils, activists from women's NGOs, staff from Chamber of Commerce and consultants from the UNDP. Participants explored in further detail the economic, political, media, and social ramifications of Jordan's privatization law, in effect since 2000.

This first LSP Public Policy Dialogue succeeded in striking a chord among key groups in Jordanian society. UNDP Consultant Dr. Abdullah Zu'bi remarked that the dialogue was "great…it opened up a lot of old wounds again, but that is good in itself." Former Secretary General of the Jordanian Parliament Dr. Mohammed Masalha (moderator of the panel) added that "there were pros to privatization and there were also cons, but that is life." President of the Arab Center for Democracy and Peace Studies Mr. Fakhry Abu Shakra observed that the event "was very well done- in fact; it was the best organized event I have been to in a long, long time."

In July, 2005, SUNY/CID established a two-year legislative strengthening program, under a $7.2 million contract from USAID, to assist the Jordanian Parliament. SUNY professionals are working closely with Jordanian MPs and staffers to strengthen the effectiveness, transparency, accountability, and responsiveness of the legislative process in Jordan. The project also aims to increase public outreach by the Jordanian parliament.
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Former NYS Senate official brings extensive experience in government and management

ALBANY —The State University of New York’s Center for International Development (SUNY CID), a university-wide institution that works to enhance the capacity of developing nations to meet critical challenges, has named a new deputy to help manage a global operation with $29 million in projects awarded over the past two years.

“Jim Utermark brings years of hands-on experience in both the legislative and executive branches of New York state government and has worked closely with SUNY campuses and with SUNY CID on a number of different projects. We are lucky to have him coming on board,” said Director James Ketterer.

James Utermark, new principal deputy director and chief of staff, will manage the operations side of the Albany-based SUNY CID institution that was awarded $29.1 million for projects in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and Latin America since 2004. He will focus on staffing, budgets, administration, policies and procedures.

Utermark was director of student programs for the New York State Senate. He collaborated with SUNY CID to launch the International Senate Fellow program in which Kennedy Chokuda, a staff member of the Parliament of Zimbabwe, spent six months working in the office of Senator George Maziarz in 2005. Another senate fellow from Zimbabwe arrived this month. The successful program is one of several SUNY CID projects that link New York’s governmental institutions and SUNY campuses to benefit the world community.

With a degree in political science from the University at Albany, Utermark began his public service career in 1989 as a graduate fellow with the New York State Senate. Following his work in the Legislature, he served as the assistant to the commissioner of transportation before moving to the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform. He also worked as a senior project manager for a major multi-discipline engineering consulting firm, the Louis Berger Group Inc., before returning to the New York State Senate in 2003.

Located in Albany, N. Y., the state’s capital, SUNY CID draws upon the State University’s vast intellectual and technical resources and serves as a key component of the University’s overall commitment to excellence in international education, cross-cultural exchange, and sustainable development. The Center’s approach is international and interdisciplinary, working as part of a global community of scholars, technical experts, government officials, and community leaders.

Since 1986, the Center has implemented more than $130 million in international development projects on five continents in the areas of democratization, economic development, and environmental policy. SUNY CID is one of only five organizations nationwide that are able to compete for $100 million in USAID projects to improve the capacity and performance of foreign legislatures under the Deliberative Bodies Indefinite Quantity Contract (IQC) announced in May 2004.

The Center is among the world’s most active university centers in international development, with implementation and research activities funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations Development Program, the U.S. Information Agency, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and several private grant-making foundations. For more information see www.cid.suny.edu. [Top of the page]

SUNY Center for International Development Names Second International Senate Fellow

Zimbabwe Parliament official to translate NYS legislature experience into reform at home

ALBANY — The State University of New York’s Center for International Development (SUNY CID) has named its second International Senate Fellow — Henry Ndlovu, the Clerk of Committees in the Parliament of Zimbabwe.

Ndlovu, who arrived in Albany on January 3, will spend six months working in the office of Senator Dale M. Volker (59th Senate District), in coordination with the Senate Student Programs Office. “Mr. Ndlovu anticipates that his International Senate Fellow experience will help him to develop skills and knowledge of democracy and governance issues that he can share with his colleagues in Zimbabwe to further government reforms initiated in 1999,” said James Ketterer, director of SUNY CID.

Ndlovu joined the Parliament of Zimbabwe in 1999 as it was implementing reforms to establish an effective committee system, strengthen the capacity of committees in legislative scrutiny and oversight functions, encourage public participation and allow unfettered media access to committee business.

Ndlovu’s fellowship includes a mentoring element with Robert Compton, assistant professor of Political Science at the College at Oneonta. Also, Ndlovu will study legislative administration with Robert Nakamura, professor of political science at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy and director of the Center for Legislative Development (CLD) at the University at Albany.

SUNY CID launched the International Senate Fellow program in 2005 with Kennedy Chokuda, a staff member of the Parliament of Zimbabwe, who spent six months working in the office of Senator George Maziarz (62nd Senate District). Chokuda’s successful experience as the first International Senate Fellow illustrates how SUNY CID projects can link with New York’s governmental institutions and SUNY campuses.

Located in Albany, N.Y., SUNY CID draws upon the State University’s vast intellectual and technical resources and serves as a key component of the University’s overall commitment to excellence in international education, cross-cultural exchange, and sustainable development. The Center’s approach is international and interdisciplinary, working as part of a global community of scholars, technical experts, government officials, and community leaders.

Since 1986, the Center has implemented more than $130 million in international development projects on five continents in the areas of democratization, economic development, and environmental policy. SUNY CID is one of only five organizations nationwide that are able to compete for $100 million in U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) projects to improve the capacity and performance of foreign legislatures under the Deliberative Bodies Indefinite Quantity Contract (IQC) announced in May 2004.

The Center is among the world’s most active university centers in international development, with implementation and research activities funded by the USAID, the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations Development Program, the U.S. Information Agency, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and several private grant-making foundations. For more information see www.cid.suny.edu. [Top of the page]


Conference held by the Malawi National Assembly for Committee Chairs and Clerks.	SUNY/Malawi Project COP, Mr. Dye Mawindo delivering a presentation on the Role of Committee Chairs in Committee work.	SUNY/Malawi Project DCOP, Mr. Sylvester Masamvu delivering a presentation on the Role of Committee Clerks in Committee work.


“Presentation of Certificate” – SUNY/CID Chief of Staff Jim Utermark presents Henry Ndlovu with his certificate of completion. (July 6, 2006)	“Washington Monument” – Henry Ndlovu and SUNY/Oneonta Prof. Rob Compton at the Washington Monument in June 2006.


CSOs under the Dome of Parliament, a visit sponsored by the new CSO Unit		Several CSO members rehearse a mock policy advocacy session during the training