2016 Programs
Asian Approaches to Development Cooperation
Asian Development Experts Convened to Discuss the Future of South-South Development Cooperation in Asia
Following the success of the last 5 years of collaboration between The Asia Foundation and the Korea Development Institute (KDI) to address the gap between emerging and traditional donors, the two organizations extended the project for an additional year, this time focusing on the role of non-state actors in Asian Development Cooperation. The first dialogue, held in Beijing, China (April 2016), featured perspectives from non-governmental organizations. The second dialogue in New Delhi, India (August 2016) focused on private sector perspectives, and was followed by an Authors' Workshop in Seoul (November 2016) to enable focused discussions on the forthcoming publication "Advancing South-South Cooperation: Provider and Partner Perspectives from Asia." A detailed description of each event can be found below.
Beijing Dialogue
The 14th meeting of the Asian Approaches to Development Cooperation (AADC) was held in Beijing, China from April 19-20, 2016, which was entitled "Non-State Actors in Asian Development Cooperation: The Role of Non-Governmental Organizations." The dialogue was hosted by the China Association for NGO Cooperation (CANGO) and The Asia Foundation's China Office, with additional support from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). During the meeting, civil society and government participants shared their experiences on the role of NGOs in development cooperation in Asia on domestic as well as international affairs. Sessions also highlighted NGO advocacy work, legal and policy environment for NGOs, and opportunities for collaboration and capacity building among Asian NGOs. The China Daily gave prominent coverage to the meeting, and key discussion points from the conference can be found here.
New Delhi Conference
The Asia Foundation held its 15th meeting of the Asian Approaches to Development Cooperation (AADC) dialogue series in New Delhi, India from August 10-11th under the theme of "Partners in Asian Development Cooperation: The Role of the Private Sector." During the two-day conference, government representatives, NGOs, and representatives from the private sector convened to discuss the role of the private sector to tackle social and economic challenges encountered in the Asian region and plausible strategies and cooperation methods for implementation. Representatives from companies such as AirAsia, LG Electronics, Jain Irrigation, and Cisco participated and shared their experiences of successful cases and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities.
The dialogue was convened by The Asia Foundation and Korea Development Institute and co-hosted with the support of the Forum for Indian Development Cooperation (FIDC), Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) India, and Voluntary Action Network India (VANI).
A summary of the AADC discussions in New Delhi can be found here.
Authors' Workshop for Publication
"Development specialists met in Seoul, Korea on November 24-25 to discuss papers and case studies being drafted for a new publication on the theme of "Partners in Asian Development Cooperation: The Role of NGOs and the Private Sector." The Seoul authors' workshop was jointly organized by the Korea Development Institute (KDI) and The Asia Foundation as part of their ongoing Asian Approaches to Development Cooperation Dialogue Series.
The workshop provided a forum for focused discussion on the forthcoming publication which draws from previous dialogues in Beijing and New Delhi. The publication will include chapters on the role and impact of NGOs in development cooperation and private sector approaches to Asian development cooperation. At the workshop, participants shared comments and critical analysis of each draft paper.
