Civil Society Assistance Program Quarterly Report

In FY2020, the program focuses on increasing transparency, strengthening local governance, and supporting electoral and political consensus building. Counterpart International works primarily with four local organizations: Grupo FARO, Citizen Participation, Esquel Foundation, and Los Hemisferios University - IDE School of Government. Ecuador has been facing a severe economic crisis, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to social discontent and political opposition. To address this situation, Counterpart and its partner organizations have worked to bridge the gaps between different sectors and collaborate in strategic areas. The CSA program has focused on several key areas, including communication campaigns to address the impacts of COVID-19, generation of open data for decision-making, implementation of dialogue processes and consensus, and implementation of mechanisms against gender-based violence. Communication campaigns have been a key component of the program, with all partners collaborating to support different facets of the COVID-19 impacts. These campaigns have reached 653,258 persons and resulted in more than 70 communication products, including videos, brochures, forums, and online workshops. Fundación Esquel developed an innovative tool called "Let's CLICK in America," which features online forums with international and regional experts. These forums have been held weekly and have reached 448,412 people and 62,427 reproductions in other online platforms. The program has also focused on generating open data for decision-making. IDE's Urban Lab monitored local government responses to the pandemic in 29 cities across the country, creating a timeline of local management milestones. FARO and the Urban Lab collected local and national information on regulations for managing the crisis, which was disseminated through social networks using graphics and maps to facilitate recognition of trends and patterns of infection in each city. In addition, the program has implemented dialogue and consensus processes, with more than 80 social organizations inviting different sectors to join a "Social Pact for Life" to generate solution proposals on eight fundamental issues. The proposals will be disseminated to the population, authorities, and candidates for the next elections, and the members of the Pact will monitor compliance by all actors involved. The program has also implemented mechanisms against gender-based violence, with a pilot project held in the city of Manta and promoted by 35 actors. The group worked to attend to 130 GBV cases through a comprehensive and integrated response model with responsibilities shared by institutions. The Council for the National Judiciary and the Department of Domestic Violence of the National Police have recognized this effort and supported the process. Overall, the CSA program has made significant progress in addressing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and promoting transparency, local governance, and electoral and political consensus building in Ecuador.