Understanding differences; Acting on commonalities

   

Angola

2005 Independent Impact Assessment of Search for Common Ground in Angola's UNHCR Refugee Reintegration Project

The researcher for the 2005 external impact assessment of the Refugee Reintegration Project was Todd C. Cleveland. This document is designed to represent the key findings and lessons learned and is not a full programme-wide evaluation. Instead, this assessment looked at Center for Common Ground in Angola's progress in achieving the indicators and expected effects of the project funded by UNHCR.

Some highlights from the assessment include the following key findings:

  • Invariably, informants readily identified a number of tangible results that they attributed to the sub-project, reflecting the positive impact that programming has had in communities where it has been offered.

  • Communities overwhelmingly welcomed this type of programming and consistently participated in numbers much larger than anticipated, while in areas where programming either has or will end recipients were saddened as the need for this type of program is widely seen as necessary if the reintegration and reconciliation processes are to successfully continue.

  • Awareness of returnees' rights and the laws protecting them was extremely low prior to exposure to SFCG programming, even if these individuals had had some exposure to this type of information while in refugee camps prior to returning to Angola. SFCG was instrumental in raising awareness levels.

  • Female participants have taken a very active role in the program and cited a number of improvements in their lives related to the ongoing reintegration process as a direct result of the program.

  • SFCG was often perceived as performing tasks and offering services that returnees felt that the government should/could be doing.

  • SFCG was widely praised for its willingness to react to needs identified by the communities' themselves, rather than adopting an inflexible or "cookie cutter" approach.

Read the Project Impact Assessment

2004 Independent Formative Evaluation of Search for Common Ground in Angola

The evaluators for the 2004 external evaluation of Search for Common Ground in Angola (Centre for Common Ground or CCG) were Christian Bugnion, Daniel Ntoni-Nzinga, and Joao Kambowela. The evaluation looked at SFCG-Angola's work over the past year, assessed its impact on the current dynamic in the country, and offered suggestions in order to ensure continued success. SFCG's goal in Angola is to support sustainable peace and national reconciliation by working with Angolans to transform their society away from a culture of violence to one characterized by coexistence, security, social justice, and popular participation.

A few of the key findings:

  • CCG is using an excellent methodology, based on concrete examples that are normally taken from Angolan everyday life, which do not require a high level of education, making it practical and within reach of everyone.

  • Contrary to the typical assistance type of projects that have long endured in Angola because of the war situation, CCG is not creating any dependency nor fomenting any adverse or negative effect.

  • The first area of success has been CCG's capacity to bring to the same table participants from all sectors of civil society, government, authorities, political parties, and traditional authorities, national and nongovernmental organisations within a constructive dialogue.

  • People who participated in CCG activities do not only change their perspective, they change their attitude and their behavior. This is due to CCG's excellent methodology (and recognized as such by all stakeholders) and its high staff quality.

  • It is strongly recommended that CCG establish an effective database to improve its monitoring capacity and be able to track participants, register changes and their impact on the individual people and respective communities.

  • With over thirty evaluations conducted over the past ten years the team leader has not witnessed any other programme where results have been so rapidly positive and where change was induced immediately as a result of the training activities.

Read the Final Evaluation

Read the Evaluation Summary

2002 Independent Evaluation of Centre for Common Ground's Program

This external evaluation, conducted by Rowland Roome & Mario Kajibanga, examines the relevance of the program (including its selection of target groups and partners) to the declared goals. CCG's declared organisational objective is to enable people from the grassroots to the leadership to resolve conflict and violence through non-adversarial means. Key findings include:

  • CCG's programme successfully advances progress at the frontiers of the peace process in Angola

  • As part of the strategic planning review, CCG should identify and consider the inclusion of social groups which may exert the most negative influence on stability and peace in the foreseeable future

  • CCG is making great efforts to mould attitudes and build skills among the formal hierarchy to respond to issues of conflict in the community

  • The media component of CCG's programme is achieving remarkably imaginative and high quality output and the high levels of productivity are achieving effective results

Read the Final Evaluation

Read the Key Findings

2002 Evaluation of the Radio Soap Opera Produced by the Centre for Common Ground

This evaluation of the Centre for Common Ground's radio soap operas, Vozes Que Falam and Coisas Da Nossa Gente, was conducted by the National Institute of Statistics in Luanda, Angola. The soap operas aim to build the capacity of Angolans in conflict prevention and resolution. Key findings include:

  • Coisas da Nossa Gente was mostly listened to in Luanda and Lubango and was generally listened to by 58% of the interviewees

  • 91% of those interviewed noticed an increase in their conflict resolution and prevention capacity

  • The desire for continued production and broadcast of soap operas was nearly unanimous among survey participants

Read the Final Evaluation

Read the Key Findings

1999 Center for Common Gound Luanda, Programme Evaluation

At the time of this programme evaluation, the Centre for Common Ground in Angola was involved in a variety of projects and activities including conflict resolution skills training, consensus building facilitation of dialogue, consensus building training, video facilitated dialogue, production of conflict resolution materials, and theater and music productions. To assess these activities in light of the overall programme objectives, the evaluation utilized three methodological approaches; qualitative techniques used were participant and non-participant observations and direct interviews both at the individual and group level, evaluator observations of CCG events, and quantitative methods in the form of a broad-distribution questionnaire regarding participant satisfaction and behavioral change. The evaluation ultimately underscored the effective use of theater programs in conveying socially dense subject matter in an appropriate and constructive manner.

Read the Program Evaluation

Read the Key Findings