The focus of FIT’s work is to address people’s vulnerabilities in whichever form they exist—be it poverty, the lack of human rights or lack of access to markets. Capacity building contributes by reducing these vulnerabilities; when people have knowledge, skills and the ability to work through strong organizations and institutions they become empowered to direct their own development and change lives.
For over 30 years, FIT has worked with our overseas partners to build the institutional frameworks, public policies, and organizational and individual capacities needed to enable people to participate in the development process and bring about real change. Our projects address the programming, management and strategic capacity building needs of individual organizations and institutions. With these partners, we have created opportunities to share new knowledge and skills to promote broader connections—with local communities, civil society, government institutions, the private sector and the international community. By developing capacities with our partners, we work to remove the barriers—conceptual or systemic—between people and their abilities to envision and create change.
Small and Medium Enterprise Development in Upper Egypt (SMEDUP)
This project, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Egyptian Social Fund for Development (SFD), institutionalized a system for provision of credit and non-financial services to micro-, small- and medium-sized (SME) business owners in Egypt. At the core of the project was the development and strengthening of institutional capacities of Egyptian organizations - El Mobadara, a national-level support organization; and three Regional Enterprise Development Centres (REDECs) – dedicated to servicing the needs of small entrepreneurs to assist the Government of Egypt achieve its job creation objectives. Capacity building support included the development of these organizations with effective strategic management capabilities, administrative and financial management systems, governance structures, monitoring and evaluation systems and networking capabilities. Long after the completion of the project, these four organizations continue to work as dynamic development actors in Egypt serving the needs of over 15,000 people annually.
Program to Promote Collaboration between Government and Non-Governmental Organizations – Asia
As a follow-up to the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), FIT worked with local governmental and non-governmental organizations in nine Asian countries to design and hold a series of national level workshops. The aim of this process was to bring together stakeholders from all sectors—public, non-governmental and private—in order to explore their roles, responsibilities and strategies for achieving national goals within the framework of the ICPD Program of Action. The project was supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), which also played an active role in the design and planning of the workshops through its national offices.
These workshops used the Future Search Conference methodology, designed to facilitate the sharing of diverse perspectives and assist participants from different backgrounds, experience and sectors establish common ground and understanding of the issue. In each country where workshops were held—Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Thailand, Philippines, Viet Nam and Papua New Guinea—a National Plan of Action was completed, which included commitments from all participants to undertake specific actions in the areas of policy and programming in order to achieve national population and development goals.
Capacity Development Project - Bangladesh
FIT and its partner, PRIP Trust, worked together to enhance and strengthen its programs, particularly in the areas of training, institutional development, management information systems and financial information systems. As a result of the project, PRIP was able to strengthen its effectiveness as a capacity development organization, assisting a growing number of Bangladeshi organizations realize increased impact in their work. This project established a solid foundation for the continued development of PRIP as a supporter of the civil society sector in Bangladesh.
Agriculture Sector Policy and Planning – Uganda
FIT designed and delivered training in Agricultural Policy and Planning for the Agricultural Secretariat (AGSEC) of the Bank of Uganda, in cooperation with Makerere University. Through a series of workshops delivered over the course of two years, senior AGSEC staff gained important skills to enable improved analysis of the economic situation in Uganda, knowledge of the role of agriculture within the economy and ability to address institutional and structural constraints faced by planners.
Participatory Development Program - Egypt
The Participatory Development Program (PDP) was launched by CIDA to provide a mechanism to assist civil society organ-izations to strengthen their capacities in order to become even more effective development partners in Egypt. PDP supports civil society organizations to create plans that set priorities and goals for capacity development, and assists these partners to access the training and technical assistance they need to realize their capacity development plans. This support emphasizes skills needed to promote participation; apply rights-based programming approaches; address gender equality and child rights issues; and engage in effective partnership with government to address shared development priorities.
Community Education Technical Assistance Project - Egypt
FIT, in collaboration with the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UofT) and the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University, worked with both the Egyptian Ministry of Education (MOE) and UNICEF to institutionalize education innovation in Egypt. FIT provided capacity development support to officials within the MOE to increase commitment to community participation through parent councils and, as a result, the government of Egypt passed new legislation for parent council and NGO participation in schools. As well, FIT designed and delivered training and technical assistance to help MOE officials plan for, support and monitor implementation of innovative approaches in the classroom.
Anhui Management Development Centre (AMDC) – China
The Anhui Management Development Centre (AMDC) was created to serve as the focal point for a province-wide network for industrial management training in Anhui. FIT provided institutional development support to AMDC from the outset, and played a lead role in the training and development of AMDC faculty and staff in areas such as organizational development, education and skills training, accounting, production management, international trade and investment, and financial management. As a result of the project, AMDC developed into a vibrant service organization providing management training and consulting services to over 20,000 industries in Anhui Province. The establishment of the Centre enabled FIT and AMDC to forge a solid and long-lasting relationship which continues to this day.
Rural Poor Program – Bangladesh
The goal of Bangladesh’s Rural Poor Program was to support sustainable livelihoods among landless men and women. As part of this effort, FIT set up a resident technical assistance team to work with the Bangladesh Rural Development Board (BRDB) to strengthen its capacity to promote the formation of rural cooperatives and provide practical skills training for co-op leaders and members. This team provided training and coaching to BRDB staff to increase their ability to mobilize communities, use bottom-up planning approaches, and support entrepreneurial and skill development for income-generating activities in rural communities.
Public Enterprise Management Training – Global – 15 Countries
Fifteen management training institutions in Africa and Asia came together in this initiative to develop and field test a Public Sector Management Training Program. FIT trainers and curriculum development experts worked with their local colleagues to develop a ten-day course that examined the relationship between government and public enterprises, and provided effective techniques for planning, managing, and monitoring enterprise performance. The materials developed through the project were compiled into a training manual and incorporated into an hour-long video: “Perspectives in Public Enterprise Management.”
Capacity Strengthening for the Graduate School of Management – Romania
FIT, in partnership with the Graduate School of Management (GSM), addressed the need to develop skilled managers in Romania by institutionalizing a post- graduate management program within the Academy of Economic Studies— Bucharest. Assistance was provided to the School in the development of its internal management systems, and development of strategic and business plans aimed at charting a feasible course toward long-term sustainability. During the final year of the project, efforts were concentrated on consolidating and strengthening project achievements with a special focus on institutional issues such as governance and organizational effectiveness.
Training of Trainers – Kenya
This project served to strengthen training capacities among a wide range of Kenyan government institutions including the Kenya Institute of Education, the Kenya External Trade Authority, the Kenya Institute of Management and the Kenya Ministry of Health. With its partners, FIT designed and delivered training of trainers in areas such as: conducting training needs assessments; defining goals and designing programs to achieve training objectives; training administration; delivery methods; and training evaluation. The project resulted in the development of capacities within the participating institutions to design and develop high-quality training solutions through the creation of specialized training units and training resource centres.
NGO Capacity Building Program - Palestine
This partnership between the Continuing Education Department of BirZeit University, Bisan Center for Research and Development and Shu’un al Mara Women’s Affairs Centre was established to design and deliver training to Palestinian NGOs. By the close of the Program, the organizations had succeeded in designing and delivering an accredited Diploma Program in NGO Management. FIT also assisted the partners to build their capacities to provide organizational development services to NGOs, fostering critical self-assessment of their work and supporting their application of new approaches with a view to strengthening their capacities as change agents.