Guidelines for APA/ICPD Membership and Institutionalization

Prepared by Sidney B. Westley (EWC), Dianne Proctor (ARHA), and Hee Jeong Han (PPFK), August 2002

• Introduction
• 1. History
• 2. Membership
• 3. Steering Committee
• 4. Secretariat
• 5. Members' meetings
• 6. Working Groups
• 7. Review Mechanisms

Introduction

The Asia-Pacific Alliance: Advancing the ICPD Agenda (APA/ICPD or the Alliance) is a network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), national-government overseas development assistance (ODA) agencies, regional organizations, private foundations, and other related institutions. Initially, member organizations are in seven donor countries of the Pacific Rim-Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand, and the United States.

APA/ICPD was born out of a concern that targets for improving reproductive health, set during the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). in Cairo, have not been achieved. Indeed, in some respects, the world, and the Asia-Pacific region, may be worse off. Generally, unintended and unwanted pregnancies continue at the same rate, maternal mortality has increased, and the HIV/AIDS epidemic has expanded. Much still needs to be done to improve adolescent reproductive health.

The goal of the Alliance is to increase support for the population, reproductive-health, environment, and development objectives set out in the Program of Action of the ICPD. In pursuit of this goal, the Alliance's core objectives are to:

• Enhance cooperation among development, environment, and population/reproductive health NGOs
• Strengthen policy dialogue on population, reproductive health, environment, and development
• Increase financial and technical support for population, reproductive-health, environment, and development objectives
• Improve the effectiveness with which donor resources are used to address ICPD objectives

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1. History

The Alliance has evolved largely through a series of international meetings:

1. March 1999, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, hosted by the East-West Center (EWC)
2. December 1999, Chiangmai, Thailand, hosted by the Thai Ministry of Public Health in collaboration with the Population and Community Development Association (PDA), the Planned Parenthood Association of Thailand (PPAT), and the International Council on Management of Population Programmes (ICOMP)
3. August 2000, Tokyo, Japan, co-hosted by the Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning (JOICFP) and the Organization for Industrial, Spiritual, and Cultural Advancement (OISCA)-International
4. November 2001, Christchurch, New Zealand, hosted by New Zealand Family Planning Association
5. August 2002, Seoul, Korea, hosted by the Planned Parenthood Federation of Korea (PPFK)

During these meetings, participants agreed that cooperative action was necessary to increase funding for family planning and reproductive-health programs in Asia and the Pacific. They chose the name APA/ICPD and named JOICFP to serve as the first Secretariat for a two-year term (2000–2002) and PPFK to serve as the second Secretariat, also for a two-year term (2002–2004). The participants formulated a set of objectives and planned three activities, each to be facilitated by a supporting organization:

• Strengthen the capacity for advocacy in the region through training activities (Population Action International-PAI)
• Enhance communication among Alliance members through a website and other channels (EWC)
• Conduct a small-grants program for participating NGOs to carry out in-country policy-dialogue activities (ICOMP)

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2. Membership

During the first phase of its development, APA/ICPD will consist of up to four members from each of the seven donor countries of the Pacific Rim—at least one population/reproductive health NGO, two other NGOs representing environment, development and/or women/gender, and one national ODA agency. As of August 2002, Alliance members are as follows:

Country	Population /reproductive health	Environment	Development	Women /gender	ODA agency
Australia	Australian Reproductive Health Alliance Family Planning Australia	Friends of the Earth Australia			Australian Government Overseas Aid Program (AusAID)
Canada	Action Canada for Population and Development Canadian Society for International Health	Sierra Club of Canada			Canadian International Development Agency
Japan	Japan Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning	Conservation International	Organization for Industrial, Spiritual, and Cultural Advancement– International		Ministry of Foreign Affairs
New Zealand	New Zealand Family Planning Association		Dev-Zone (Development Resource Centre)		New Zealand Agency for International Development (NZAID)
South Korea	Planned Parenthood Federation of Korea	Korean Federation for Environmental Movement		Korean Women's Development Institute	Korea International Cooperation Agency
Thailand	Planned Parenthood Association of Thailand		CARE/Raks Thai Foundation Population and Community Development Association		Department of Health, Ministry of Public Health   Thai International Cooperation Programme
United States	Population Action International	National Wildlife Federation			United States Agency for International Development
Supporting members	East West Center (EWC) International Council on Management of Population Programmes (ICOMP) Face to Face Campaign
International organizations	Partners in Population and Development (Partners) Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD)
Private foundations	The David and Lucile Packard Foundation The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

For the present, APA membership will be expanded slightly by recruiting new members so that each of the seven member countries has at least one NGO member devoted to population and reproductive health plus other NGO members devoted to environment, development, and/or women/gender issues, bringing the total number of NGO members up to four, plus one ODA-agency member. Existing members in these countries should work together to identify and recommend new members. NGO members have the responsibility to ensure that as many aspects as possible of population, development, women and gender, and environment are covered by the NGOs participating in the Alliance.

Eventually, the Alliance may wish to consider expanding membership further to form wider alliances of NGOs devoted to population, environment, development, and women/gender issues in each country.

2-1. Criteria for Membership

NGOs, national ODA agencies, supporting organizations, and donor organizations shall qualify for membership of the APA/ICPD, if it is determined that:

1. The organization's aims, policies, and programs are consistent with the ICPD Program of Action.
2. Neither the organization nor its members are likely to achieve any commercial gain from membership in APA/ICPD.

NGOs and national ODA agencies from other countries in the Asia-Pacific region may apply for membership if and when their country moves to donor status. Organizations in countries of the region that achieve donor status will be granted membership by a majority vote of APA/ICPD members present at the members' meeting. New members in other categories (supporting organizations, international organizations, foundations) may also be admitted by majority vote of APA/ICPD members present at the meeting.

2-2. Application Process

1. Applications for membership will be accepted no later than four months before each members' meeting. Formal letters of application seeking membership shall be submitted to the Steering Committee, through the Secretariat, so that the Steering Committee can vote on membership by post or e-mail.
2. The Steering Committee shall prepare a brief document recommending that the organization seeking to join be accepted or not and presenting its reasons (for example, the NGO applying is from a country that has moved into donor status or the body seeking membership has a legitimate interest in being involved in APA/ICPD and will advance the Alliance's aims and objectives).
3. If an application is reviewed and accepted by the Steering Committee, then the applicant organization will be invited to participate in the members' meeting as an observer. The final decision on that organization's membership will be made by majority vote of all APA/ICPD members present at the meeting.
4. Once a country has moved into donor status, the Steering Committee may also approach either the national ODA agency of that country or a suitable NGO and invite them to join the Alliance.
5. The initial applicant from a new country that has moved into donor status should be encouraged to seek out partner organizations representing the Alliance's priority areas and encourage them to apply for membership. It is recognized that circumstances vary from country to country and it is difficult for the Steering Committee or the members of the Alliance to decide which organizations would be the most appropriate members in a newly eligible country. However, this does not preclude the Steering Committee from making general inquiries as to the make-up of membership from each country and encouraging representation by at least one member from a population/reproductive-health NGO and two members from development, environment, and/or women/gender NGOs.
6. Once an application for membership has been approved or rejected, the Steering Committee shall notify the organization of its decision in writing.

2-3. Rights and Responsibilities of Membership

1. At members' meetings, each member organization will have one vote.
2. At present, member organizations will be supported to send one representative to each members' meeting; however, members are encouraged to support the cost of their participation. Members may bring up to two additional representatives but will have to meet the full costs of additional participants.

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3. Steering Committee

3-1. Steering Committee Membership

APA/ICPD is governed by a Steering Committee consisting of seven to nine persons elected by members at the members' meeting. The membership can amend the number or composition of the Steering Committee, however, in order to achieve a balance of representation. Among the members, it is recommended that the Steering Committee include at least:

1. One representative from the Secretariat organization
2. One representative from an NGO focusing on population
3. One representative from an NGO focusing on development or women/gender
4. One representative from an NGO focusing on environment
5. One representative from a national ODA agency
6. One representative from a supporting organization
7. One representative from a donor organization
8. One representative from an international organization/NGO

In addition, the host organization for the members' meeting, if not already a member of the Steering Committee, will be an ad hoc member for the purpose of planning and conducting the meeting.
Each member will serve a two-year term and may be re-elected for a maximum of two additional consecutive terms. Terms will be staggered, with four or five new members selected each year. The Steering Committee will elect a chair who will serve a two-year term and will guide its operations.

3-2. Role of the Steering Committee

The Steering Committee shall:

1. Oversee the governance of APA/ICPD, including financial accountability, and ensure that the decisions of the membership are implemented
2. Promote country-level activities through nodal NGOs and regional-level activities through working groups
3. Seek funds for APA/ICPD activities, especially with a view to diversifying funding sources
4. Review and evaluate the progress of APA/ICPD
5. Recommend organizations to serve as Secretariat for a vote by the membership
6. Guide and oversee the work of the Secretariat
7. Call regular and special meetings of the membership
8. Approve proposals for the small-grants program
9. Screen membership applications and make recommendations to the full membership for vote
10. With the Secretariat, oversee external evaluations of APA/ICPD including selection of external evaluators
11. With assistance from the Secretariat, promote the sharing of experiences among members, and through them with wider groups of stakeholders

Meetings of the membership shall be called approximately annually, with the date and place set preferably at the end of each preceding members' meeting. Special meetings of the Steering Committee shall be held whenever deemed necessary. It is recommended that the Steering Committee shall meet at least once between the members' meetings. Such meetings may be held by telephone, email, or face to face as the situation and funding dictates.

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4. Secretariat

A rotating Secretariat is responsible for operations and information dissemination in pursuit of APA/ICPD core objectives. The Steering Committee selects a Secretariat from among member organizations and oversees the Secretariat's work. The Secretariat rotates among member countries for terms of two years, starting on 1 July. There will be a six-month transition period beginning on 1 January of the year when the Secretariat changes. The Planned Parenthood Federation of Korea (PPFK) will serve as Secretariat from 1 July 2002 to 1 July 2004.

The role of the Secretariat is to:

1. Support the work of the Steering Committee, with instructions and supervision from the Steering Committee Chair
2. Support the activities of the working groups
3. Act as a conduit for information among members
4. Work with the local host organization on logistics and proposal submission for the members' meeting

The Secretariat has the primary responsibility to seek funding support for the members' meeting, for Secretariat activities, and for other activities such as the small-grants program. The Steering Committee is encouraged to assist in diversifying funding strategies.

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5. Members' meetings

The Secretariat and host organization will coordinate APA/ICPD members' meetings under the supervision of the Steering Committee. At an early stage, the Steering Committee Chair and the host organization will draft the agenda and related planning documents. These will be circulated for comments and approval by Steering Committee members.

Member organizations will be supported to send one representative to each members' meeting; however, members are encouraged to support the cost of their participation. Members may bring up to two additional representatives but will have to meet the full costs of additional participants.

The host organization may recommend observers and guest speakers to attend members' meetings, subject to approval by the Steering Committee and funding constraints.

Working Groups and the Steering Committee may be asked to meet on the day before a full members' meeting. An orientation session for new members might also be conducted during the day before the full meeting.

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6. Working Groups

Individual member organizations, country groups, or the Steering Committee may form working groups for specific tasks or projects. Members who form working groups for country-level or regional tasks should inform the Secretariat and the Steering Committee to facilitate the distribution of information to all members.

 

7. Review Mechanisms

APA/ICPD activities shall be reviewed and evaluated at regular intervals. External evaluations will have two components—programmatic and managerial. A working group will be constituted to identify performance indicators and draft terms of reference for the review. The Secretariat and the Steering Committee are responsible for the selection of the external evaluation team.

 

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