Guide for Handicap International staff: capacity development and partnership

Several factors make capacity development problematical, but certain elements and criteria can make the work easier and influence its degree of success whilst others may lead to failure. This guide is aimed at Handicap International’s teams in the field and at head office as well as its partners. It facilitates the analysis of their “capacity development” activities in order to encourage them to position themselves, define a strategy and identify realistic prospects, thus improving mutual capacity development.

The document has three parts. The first part outlines Handicap International’s principles and benchmarks concerning capacity development for local stakeholders via its Programme Department and Technical Units. It is divided into 5 chapters:

• Chapter 1 explains why capacity development for local stakeholders is an integral part of the projects of Handicap International.
• Chapter 2 analyses the context of Handicap International’s work taking place in a complex environment with numerous stakeholders, specific dynamics and sometimes differing internal and external requirements.
• Chapter 3 presents elements for a better definition of “capacity development”; the difference between capacity development and partnership; the two forms of capacity development provided by Handicap International and the distinction between organisational development and the strengthening of technical operationality.
• Chapter 4 defines organisational development and the accompanying process. It explains what an organisation is and presents organisational development in Handicap International’s work.
• Chapter 5 covers capacity development in practice, and draws up a strategy of action for Handicap International. This chapter also outlines capacity development planning with the partners concerned, its implementation and the monitoring-evaluation system.

The second part of this document is a practical guide made up of four theme-based chapters containing questions relating to “capacity development”:

• Organisational (self-) assessment
• Stakeholder analysis
• Strategy
• Negotiation

The tools proposed in the four theme-based chapters can be found in the third part of the document. This part also includes examples of Handicap International’s work and the bibliography.

The definitions and explanations presented in this document are based on a democratic system and social market economy. They are the result of an interpretation of Handicap International’s experiences.