Memorandum submitted by VSO

 

1. Introduction

 

1.1 VSO has been working in China for over 26 years. To date our work has involved placing over 2000 volunteers to exchange skills and experience and build the capacity of Chinese organizations. Since 2003 VSO China has increasingly focused on HIV and AIDS, basic education (BE) and supporting the development of grass-roots NGOs and national volunteering initiatives. There are currently over 40 international VSO volunteers working in China placed with a range of Chinese NGOs, educational institutions and authorities, health bureaus and Centres for Disease Control mainly in the western provinces of Yunnan, Gansu, Shaanxi and Sichuan. Our contribution to this enquiry is based on consultations with our partners and international volunteers working in these four provinces.

2. Delivering basic services - DFID education programme

 

2.1 The China-UK Basic Education Programme is focused on the same target provinces as VSO (Gansu and Yunnan) and in our opinion it has had a significant impact on Chinese government policy and methodologies used in the Chinese education system in support of the New National Curriculum. VSO volunteer educationalists working in Gansu have noted huge improvements in Chinese education over the past few years, however, it must be stated that whilst some schools have benefiting greatly from government investments and curriculum change, schools in rural areas are not being reached by the improvement in the education system.

 

2.2 A feature of DFID's involvement in education has been the training of national and local experts to deliver future services. In our opinion local Chinese volunteers and experts can increasingly take on the roles previously filled by international technical advisors to introduce and embed change in the schools that remain untouched by the advances in education reform. The challenge ahead is still significant (Gansu province alone has a total population of over 25 million people).

 

2.3 We have seen that the change process can be accelerated in the future by making links to models of good practice. This has been demonstrated in Qingyang prefecture in Gansu province, where 40 heads from VSO's beneficiary schools have adopted a more inclusive approach to school management following a study visit to a DFID education project in Linxia prefecture.

 

3. Delivering basic services - DFID HIV and AIDS programme

 

3.1 The China-UK HIV and AIDS Comprehensive Project is focuses in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces where the basic HIV and AIDS-related services are in greatest need of improvement and support.

 

3.2 As in education, local experts are being trained through the DFID programme and are now already playing a significant role in organising and delivering other HIV and AIDS projects. This means that as well as seeing an improvement in the provision of basic HIV and AIDS-related services, partner organisations and authorities are being empowered to play a positive long-term role in responding to these development needs.

 

3.3 Since DFID joined the Global Fund, however, some partners have suggested that the HIV and AIDS programme has become 'indicator-driven' with too much emphasis on the achievement of 'hard indicators'. Although this has led to great efforts to identify potential service users (for instance, those infected with HIV), inadequate attention has been paid to the quality of the care and support work.

 

4. DFID approaches

 

4.1 Given the diversity of local contexts and needs, and the scale of poverty that still exists in China (especially in rural areas of the western provinces) it has been particularly helpful for DFID to focus on a few target provinces.

 

4.2 The successful provision of basic services for local communities is reliant on the principal of empowerment at community level. Ideally, this empowerment means that all stakeholders have equal rights and are involved in making important decisions about the delivery and management of these services. Feedback from VSO partners suggests that the DFID programme has played a positive role in the promotion of these values at grassroots level. It has been acknowledged that the provision of support to community-based NGOs and volunteers has a stronger, more direct and sustained impact than support delivered through government channels alone. The DFID programme also assists the development of grassroots organisations, which is essential for the empowerment of poor and disadvantaged groups to participate in change in the long-term.

 

4.3 In our opinion there is a crucial role for DFID to continue to support the emergence of a development community in China. In particular, local authorities and grass-roots NGOs have commented that DFID support can continue to add value by extended its involvement in the more "soft" aspect of development programmes such as the training of local experts, the provision of learning opportunities, and bridging of communication gaps between the government, grass-roots NGOs, and community groups.

 

 

5. UK Government engagement with China on International Development

 

5.1 In our opinion DFID's role in supporting the International Poverty Reduction Center of China (IPRCC) is yielding positive results. Its role in promoting learning and sharing between China and African countries has been well recognised through its training of development officers from African countries and the organisation of research and consultation between African countries and China. The IPRCC has also become a lead player in coordinating exchange and learning on social development and poverty reduction programmes also between its neighboring countries in Asia, as demonstrated in the ASEAN +3 summit in Guangxi province in 2007.

 

5.2 There is potential for the Center to become a 'policy advisor' for the development work in Asian and African countries and to understand the lessons from China's success in converting economic growth into poverty reduction. China now has the opportunity to engage in international development relevant and focused manner, drawing on China's own development experience. With such potential, DFID's role is becoming increasingly strategic.

 

6. Conclusion

 

6.1 We believe that there is an important role for development agencies to continue to support social development in China if focused at community level in the poorer western provinces. The DFID basic education and HIV and AIDS programmes have provided an opportunity for a wide variety of authorities and organisations to work together. Once these programmes have been completed, however, there is a risk that this valuable learning exchange could discontinue. We recommend that DFID's exit strategy include the provision of continuous support for the practical professional development of local partners and service providers. DFID has already demonstrated its positive influence in facilitating learning and sharing in the development community in China. Although this development community is increasing, especially in the local NGO sector, there is a continued need for global expertise and knowledge, which DFID can help to provide.

 

6.2 China's influential role in global development, especially in African and South East Asian Countries is increasingly being recognised. We believe that there is also a crucial role for international organization to work with Chinese organizations to support global poverty reduction. For example, VSO is currently developing initiatives to support the recruitment of Chinese volunteers for global volunteering. DFID, through the implementing of HIV and education programmes, has developed a position of influence that can be used to significant effect within China. We believe there is potential for DFID to play a bigger role in supporting China's global development agenda through investment in the IPRCC which can provide a base for China to learn more from its own success and provide new lessons for the rest of the world in how the benefits of economic growth can be spread to reach the poor.

 

6.3 In addition, there is a key role for DFID to play, working in partnership with UK NGOs, to provide the British public with a more balanced and considered view of China's current state of development, the challenges it faces in the future and its role in the global community.

 

 

(18/04/08)