Liberia Accountability and Voice Initiative (LAVI) Quarterly Report Q3 FY16

The program supports Development Objective 1 in USAID Liberia's Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS): more effective, accountable, and inclusive governance. Four key objectives underscore the goal of LAVI: increased horizontal and vertical linkages among actors engaged in similar issues, increased organizational capacity of targeted civil society organizations (CSOs) to participate in issue-based reforms, on-going capacity development of services available on the local market, and learning methodologies shared and applied by other development actors. In Quarter Three, LAVI worked with a wide variety of actors through meetings, joint participation in a variety of events and roundtable discussions. LAVI participated in the Concessions Working Group (CWG) Geo-spatial training on May 4 and 5 and in a one-day dialogue on the status of the current constitutional review process. From June 21-22, LAVI attended a structured meeting in Gbarnga, Bong County organized by the National Bureau of Concessions, "Improving National Bureau of Concessions Viability for Compliance Monitoring Workshop." The meeting provided LAVI the opportunity to meet and establish contacts with some of the major concessionaires in Liberia, including Sime Darby, Firestone Plantation Company, Equatorial Oil Palm, and the Maryland Oil Palm Corporation. As part of these events, LAVI attended collaborative mediation efforts with the CWG in Kinjor, Grand Cape Mount County to address issues affecting one of local community within the Aureus Mining concessions area from June 21-23. This level of engagement allowed LAVI to work among development partners and civil society actors through multi-stakeholder intervention, and work to address issues affecting Liberian society. LAVI also held three roundtable discussions: the first roundtable discussion was part of the political economy analysis (PEA) process on the NRM and Concessions sector to shortlist the key problems confronting the NRM sector and identify the root causes of the problems. The second and third roundtable discussions were held with CSOs and potential service providers on April 19 and 29 respectively to better understand the supply and demand sides of CSOs capacity development needs and services in Liberia. The roundtable discussions with the CSOs and the private sector institutions and individual consultants served to inform compilation of LAVI's Market Diagnostic Report, which will be submitted to USAID in Quarter Four. To facilitate issuance of grants to potential grantee partners to address issues affecting the NRM sector, LAVI released its first Request for Applications (RFA) in Quarter Three. The RFA, titled "Collaborative Problem Solving: Natural Resource Management (NRM) and Concessions," was intended to solicit applications from organizations that can contribute to the development of the NRM sector in Liberia. The RFA was designed to support collaborative problem-solving approaches that bring together government, civil society, and private sector actors to address the challenges facing the NRM sector. LAVI's goal is to support the development of a more inclusive and accountable NRM sector in Liberia, and the RFA is a key step in achieving this goal. LAVI's engagement with civil society actors, the private sector, and government institutions has been ongoing throughout Quarter Three. The organization has worked to establish new partnerships and strengthen existing partnerships in an effort to enhance multi-stakeholder partnership in addressing issues of common interest. Through its engagement with these stakeholders, LAVI has been able to identify key challenges facing the NRM sector and develop strategies to address these challenges. In addition to its engagement with stakeholders, LAVI has also been working to develop its capacity development services. The organization has been conducting a market diagnostic to better understand the supply and demand sides of CSOs capacity development needs and services in Liberia. This diagnostic will inform the development of LAVI's capacity development services and ensure that they are responsive to the needs of CSOs in Liberia. Overall, LAVI's work in Quarter Three has been focused on strengthening multi-stakeholder partnerships and developing capacity development services to support the development of a more inclusive and accountable NRM sector in Liberia. The organization's engagement with civil society actors, the private sector, and government institutions has been ongoing throughout the quarter, and LAVI has made significant progress in achieving its goals and objectives.