AFRICA FACILITATION CONFERENCE 2016 HOW WILL WE CREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATORY GROWTH IN AFRICA AND BEYOND? Tangaza University College NAIROBI, KENYA October 21-22, 2016 Facilitation can simply mean enabling or making connections easier. The art or science of enabling is as old as creation and has an especially rich tradition on the African continent. Facilitation can create and promote mutual interest and discussions that lead to last and sustainable understanding and relationships. The more divergent, unequal or at odds the interested parties, the more facilitation can help to create a win-win outcome instead of ongoing dissatisfaction or conflict. Good facilitation ensures fair process, widely sourced inputs, distributed outcomes and interactional justice. In fast moving, diverse and dynamic situations, structured facilitated processes allow very diverse people and teams to quickly achieve important far reaching goals, as well as capitalise on change and uncertainty. Minority and creative voices are protected and facilitation generates powerful inclusive outcomes that more people accept and champion. For centuries people have been working on improving facilitation to make it easier for many to relate and achieve more with greater mutuality. With this milestone conference, International Association of Facilitators - Kenya Chapter together with its partners Chemchemi ya Ukweli and Tangaza University College, aims to show how the power of facilitation can be used to significantly improve societal and organisational outcomes and performance. Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 1
We will explore together the following THEME: HOW WILL WE CREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATORY GROWTH IN AFRICA AND BEYOND? Africa s economy is growing fast yet what is the price for it? Looking at the growing gap between rich and poor that is causing frictions in the society we face new challenges and questions. How will we influence a transition from a global economic system driven by consumption, to one driven by the creation of wellbeing and equity? How will natural resource extraction and exploitation support inclusive, accountable and broad-based development? How will we better integrate human dignity, values and spirituality into development policy and practice? How is the shift from occasionally corporate social responsibility to sustainable and socially responsible business practices impacting on business and development outcomes? What social and political coalitions are needed for equitable growth and poverty reduction? Facilitation can enable inclusive conversations around such complex or difficult problems by bringing the many divergent and alternative views to acceptable and workable solutions. Bring your open questions to the conference and lets us all be surprised by the collective wisdom and common sense that unfolds when true participation can take place! The PURPOSE of the conference is to Promote professional facilitation to have inclusive dialogues in the private, public and government sectors in Africa and beyond Host safe spaces for open conversations to participatory growth Engage practicing facilitators in new participatory methodologies/tools Share best-practices of renowned Facilitators especially in Africa Introduce Facilitation to interested future practitioners Give participants an experience/taste of the power of facilitation and how and when it can be used Offer opportunities of networking among facilitators and clients Generate and share the academic research on how and why good facilitation processes achieve greater success Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 2
The NEED is big to Call in the participatory human leadership in all of us Create high performance teams of very diverse people Improve honest teamwork and find quick decisions Use the knowhow, experience and passion of employees Increase efficiency and professionalise the work place Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 (SDG) Cultivate healthy cooperation between governments, private sector and citizens Reduce violent conflicts and promote peaceful co-existence Offer healing and deeper listening Promote creativity and nurture talent Challenge systems and ideologies Break barriers and demolish unnecessary labels and stereotypes Simply have fun WHY are we offering this conference? Facilitation is big in Africa but not well recognized as it is in other continents African facilitators have a unique experience and perspective to offer Development goals need to be sustainable and culturally adapted The multiple roots of conflict in Africa need holistic and joint solutions Livelihood and wealth creation activities need support in Africa Africa s engagement in the globalisation demands to serve Africa s needs Africa needs excellent governance Africa needs to includes more youth in professional mainstream employment WHEN? October 21 st - 22 nd, 2016 WHERE? Tangaza University College Nairobi, Kenya Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 3
WHO is invited to this conference? International and national practicing and future Facilitators and Consultants Local, national and international Government employees and representatives Private Sector Civil Society and Communities Academia Philanthropists Curious people and sceptics The Conference Fee will vary according to likely income levels. For all these reasons, you can t afford to miss this opportunity How can YOU contribute? Contribute to funding the event Sponsor and support people (with special need) to participate Advertise your institution/organisation/company at the exhibition Share best-practices of facilitation and its impact (as a facilitator or a client) Present your facilitation products and tools at the exhibition Host a session for participants to experience a new participatory facilitation methodology Support the Organizing Secretariat through offering administrative, IT, PR, advertising or material resources and time Lobby your government and private sector to participate Champion and promote the idea and involve many others Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 4
What do we OFFER to sponsors? Space for your logo on the invitation, programme flyer, conference documentation Presentation of your logo and name on welcome banners Your logo on conference material (notepad, pen etc.) Linking your company/organisation in the announcement on the IAF webpage Names and references on social media (Advertising space will depend on the level of support offered) WE CAN DO THINGS BETTER IF WE USE EFFECTIVE FACILITATION SKILLS AND TOOLS! DON T MISS: COME LET US GROW TOGETHER! The programme details will be shared with you in due course. CONTACT DETAILS: Chemchemi Ya Ukweli (Secretariat) Email: FacilitationConference2016@chemichemi.org Phone: +254 (20) 259 27 85 http://www.chemichemi.org Address: New Waumini House, 1 st floor, Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya P.O. Box 14370, 00800 Nairobi International Association of Facilitators http://www.iaf-world.org/ rep.africa@iaf-world.org Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 5
Who are WE? In Kenya during the 1990 s, there was a general increase of violent confrontations nation-wide emanating from attempts at constitutional reforms, growing tensions around multi-party democracy, poor governance practices at national level, and lack of public safety. Chemchemi Ya Ukweli (CYU) Kiswahili for Wellspring of Truth Trust is an interfaith movement that was founded in 1997 by a group of religious leaders concerned about this growing culture of violence in Kenya. Its founding fathers, who were rooted in the ideas of Catholic Social Teaching, introduced the concept of active non-violence as an alternative means in the struggle for peace and justice in that country. This process was supported by several international partners, among them Misereor, the overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Germany. Since that time, CYU has succeeded in creating awareness broadly on various forms of injustice in Kenya and has managed to mobilize people to demand their rights through peaceful actions. Since inception, CYU has also changed from its original roots within the Catholic Church to a more inclusive movement, which has put a strong emphasis on its interfaith nature, thereby reaching out to other Christian denominations, Muslims, Baha is and Hindus. During the same time, its strategies also expanded to include civic education and community policing. The International Association of Facilitators (IAF) is a participatory organisation with members in more than 65 countries. As a professional association, we set internationally accepted industry standards, provide accreditation, support a community of practice, advocate and educate on the power of facilitation and embrace the diversity of facilitators. If we were to use just one sentence to describe what the IAF does and stands for, it would be "enabling powerful change". Every meeting or process that is facilitated has an impact on the individuals and the groups of which they are a part. Good facilitation can change the way people think and act, and ultimately support them to positively change the world around them. IAF is a global association for process facilitators, representing facilitators from different sectors, such as development, government and the private sector. The Association was founded in 1994 and currently has more than 1,500 members worldwide and 33 local chapters from all five continents of the world. A chapter is a community of facilitators who organize activities together in line with the core mandate of IAF that is promoting the power of facilitation worldwide. Currently, there are 36 IAF members in Africa and one chapters (in Kenya). There are also members in Cameroon, South Africa, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Mozambique and Uganda. Proposal - Facilitation Conference Africa 2016 6