|
ChorlavI GROUP
MINK’A DE CHORLAVI FUND
|
||
|
The Chorlaví Group calls public and private organizations interested in the rural problems of Latin America, to participate in the Mink'a de Chorlaví Fund 2006 Contest. The subject of the contest is: “International migration and development of poor rural territories in Latin America and the Caribbean”. In this contest, the Fund will allocate an estimated sum of US$ 175,000 which will be distributed between 10 and 12 projects. Please visit www.grupochorlavi.org or write to rimisp@rimisp.org for further information.
|
||
CHORLAVI GROUP1. The Chorlavi Group is a network seeking to stimulate and facilitate decentralized social learning processes aimed at improving the quality and effectiveness of the initiatives aimed at transforming rural societies in Latin America and the Caribbean, within the scope of a well-defined and specific topic of the sustainable rural development agenda. The Chorlavi Group is an initiative supported by the International Cooperation Church Organization (ICCO) from the Netherlands and the International Development Research Center (IDRC) from Canada. Rimisp is the Executive Secretariat of the Chorlavi Group. 2. The Group’s work is organized in “Social Learning Projects” [1], consisting of a set of systematization, critical reflection, dialogue, communication and documentation activities, among others, which, through a systematic, analytical and comprehensive process shall focus in a concrete issue, and within it, on educational issues and objectives The 2006 social learning project is called “International migration and development of poor rural territories in Latin America and the Caribbean”, and it involves several tenths of organizations, groups, networks and individuals from numerous countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. MINK’A DE CHORLAVI FUND3. The Mink'a de Chorlaví Fund is an annual contest from the Chorlavi Group aimed at financing systematization or applied research projects. These projects are an important part of a social learning project of the Chorlavi Group. DEFINITIONS4. The following definitions are useful for the 2006 Contest: a) Systematization: A critical reflection and ordering process from one or more development experiences around a pre-defined query or concern, with the participation of local actors and geared at the development of learned lessons which allow to enhance the agents’ own initiatives and contribute to a broader knowledge body b) Poor and marginalized rural territories: These are geographic spaces characterized by the fragility of their ecosystems and socioeconomic environment or context which hinder intensive agriculture and restrict the possibilities of rural non-farming activities, which are normally limited in terms of productive infrastructure, i.e. roads, electrification, telecommunications, water and irrigation. c) International migration: This is the geographic displacement of individuals or groups to live temporarily or permanently outside of the country of origin. f) Remittances: The remittances are transfers of wages or accumulated wealth from the migrants to their country of origin. g) Individual and collective remittances: Individual remittances are those transferred by the migrants to their families in their place of origin. Collective remittances are those resources raised and donated by migrant associations or groups to finance small scale infrastructure or invest in productive, commercial, and recreational activities, etc. in their places of origin, sometimes through agreements with local governments or regional private or social organizations. h) Immigrant associations: These are migrants’ organizations in the country of destination which sometimes raise funds which are then donated for the improvement of the countries of origin. i) Social networks (within the context of international migration): These are a series of links between family relations and friends or people of the same origin, which connect the migrants, former migrants and non-migrants in the countries of origin and destination. These networks provide support for migrants in the places of destination and/or improve the flow and quality of information, thus stimulating technological innovations and the development of human and/or economic capital in the territories of origin. As such, even though remittances are important, we are interested in several flows and not only financial ones. What type of experiences should be sYstematized?5. Experiences that meet at least the three following characteristics should be systematized: a) Cases of international migration originating in poor and marginalized Latin America and Caribbean territories. b) Cases which have a sufficiently long history or duration to allow an appreciation of their characteristics, results, effects, costs and benefits within the territory of origin. c) Cases where concrete initiatives of collective and/or public political action and/or private endeavors have had an impact on the effects and results of migration in the territory of origin. QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED BY PROJECTS PARTICIPATING IN THE 2006 CONTEST6. During the 70s and 80s migration studies tended to characterize it as a process that needed to be stopped in order to avoid its negative effects on the development of the migrants’ areas of origin, such as the loss of labor and capital, the "brain drain", the aging of the population and the negative effects on the women from the place of origin. 7. However, in recent years research on rural territorial dynamics has identified certain opportunities which migration provides to develop the areas of origin. The issue is not only about the effect of the remittances on the receiving poor households. Special interest has been given to the benefits derived from the development of human capital, the “nostalgic trade”[2], tourism, information flows, improvement of telecommunications and transport, the establishment of support and trade networks, and the formation of immigrants’ associations which act as local development agents. 8. The Chorlavi Group is interested in knowing how and under what conditions the international migration can become an important means for overcoming the problems of poverty and economic and non-economic development in the poor and traditionally marginalized rural territories of Latin America and the Caribbean. 9. It is within this frame that the Mink’a de Chorlavi Fund, through this contest, trusts that the systematizations will help to address the following principal question: How and under what conditions international migration can contribute to the development of poor and traditionally marginalized rural territories of Latin America and the Caribbean?[3] 10. This central question can be taken on by the projects participating in the Contest, through more specific questions, such as[4]: a) What are the characteristics of the population that emigrates and the territory of origin? b) Which are the economic, social, political, human, and cultural costs and benefits of the migration in the territory of origin? How are such costs and benefits manifested in the families of the territory of origin? c) How are the costs and benefits of the migration distributed within the community? For example, are such costs and benefits equally distributed between men and women? Have greater degrees of inclusion been achieved, or on the contrary, have the degrees of inequality increased between the various social groups within the territory of origin? d) What concrete collective action experiences and/or public policies and/or private endeavors have mitigated the costs of migration and/or have provided benefits towards the development of the territory of origin from migration? e) How and under which conditions have these experiences achieved their objectives? For example, what institutional, formal and informal agreements have facilitated the investment and motivated the productive activity based on the use of individual and collective remittances? What arrangements have allowed for the generation of, not only private but also public benefits, as a consequence of the migration? And/or, what institutional arrangements have facilitated collective participation in the management of the benefits of migration? Is there a relationship between the gender of the migrant and the building of institutions which allow for the development of the territory of origin? EXPECTED RESULTS FROM THE 2006 CONTEST12. The entities participating in the Contest whose projects are finally selected will have to participate in the complete cycle of the social learning project of the Chorlavi Group. This cycle includes three main stages: a) Carrying out the systematizations which win the contest, including a coordination workshop where those responsible for each winning project should participate and where agreements are adopted so that all the winning projects develop a coherent and articulated whole geared at the development of a social learning project b) The comparative analysis of project results aiming at drawing generally valid conclusions, lessons and recommendations. c) A process of strategic communication of the entire social learning cycle’s results. 13. The final reports of the winning projects will constitute the main input for a comparative analysis, which together with a consultation and discussion process (through an e-Conference), should produce a synthesis document which answers the main question asked in paragraph 9 of this Call. DEADLINES14. The deadlines for the stages of the Contest are:
MINK’A DE CHORLAVI FUND REGULATIONS15. This contest is ruled by the Mink’a de Chorlaví Fund Regulations. It is essential for interested applicants to the Contest to know in advance and analyze these Regulations in detail. This document contains information on:
(a) The
characteristics of the organizations that may submit proposals to the
contest. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION16. The Regulation, as well as other information of interest, is available online at www.grupochorlavi.org, or can be requested at:
Fondo Mink'a de
Chorlaví 17. All of the official information related to this contest will be published at www.grupochorlavi.org. All interested parties are encouraged to regularly visit this web site to get timely and relevant information relating to their participation or proposal.
[1]
For further information, please visit “Social
Learning Projects” at
www.grupochorlavi.org.
|