Decision to dissolve Partners Forum Kerala (PFK)

[Guest guest]

Dear collegues

Partners Forum Kerala (PFK) is a professional networking body of development

organisations in India formed with a motto of " Growing through sharing " .

The Partners Forum Kerala (PFK) has taken the decision to dissolve the

organization.

The meeting of PFK held on 10th November at Cochin, Kerala had taken the

decision to dissolve the organization. The PFK (Partners forum Kerala) has been

accepted as one of the best practices across the country (NACO has presented it

as one of the proven practices in the Bangkok HIV/AIDS conference). The PFK also

has made creative contribution to the HIV/AIDS/ programme strengthening at State

and national level.

The way, the recent appraisal/restructuring initiatives of TI and related

processes were found to be against the partnership ethics.

It was done with out giving any value or recognition for the partnership

principles practiced in Kerala and at National level.

The entire process was non transparent and unilaterally decided by KSACS (Kerala

State AIDS Control Society) and PSU (managed by HLFPPT – Hindustan Latex Family

Planning Promotion Trust).

The partners were kept in dark and were not consulted. They were informed the

unilateral decisions taken through hurriedly called meetings without giving an

opportunity to be heard. In this context the members of PFK felt that it lost

its relevance and it is better to dissolve the organization rather than fit into

a system, which consider partnerships as tokenistic and decorative.

The decision was taken based on the following observations

The KSACS and PSU completed the appraisal/restructuring processes without having

proper consultation or giving proper timely guideline to the partners and PFK.

Only two meetings were organized before and after the completion of the

processes where the decisions were imposed on partners.

To all our queries the uniform answer was, “PD has given assurance in a national

meeting that he would hand over the PSH projects to the stakeholders”. The

partners were not given any chance to express their views on the processes or

concept of restructuring.

The evaluations gave the impression that it was biased and done on the

instructions of some people or agencies. The entire process was non transparent.

The partners feel that it could have been done gracefully giving due credit to

the partner NGOs. The press releases by KSACS and which was reported in the

media were totally damaging the good name of the partner NGOs and their

contributions in the PSH work in the State.

It insinuatingly blames that the NGOs who were eliminated through the processes

were corrupt and ineffective. However, the interesting fact is that these

partners were closely monitored and facilitated by KSACS/ PSU/SMA for the last

eight years.

Though decentralization of HIV programme is widely discussed and accepted as a

strategy for the next phase, in Kerala, the SACS and PSU centralizing the entire

thing. The PSU and SACS will develop proposals for all the partners centrally,

recruit the staff centrally, fix the allocations of the staff strength centrally

and some other processes also will be done centrally. All these things happening

with out any consultation with partners in the state.

If they do all these things, “SACS can very well think about implementing the

project though PSU in various locations, which will be more cost effective.”

The strategy shift based on the CBO concept, which KSACS planned, has its own

limitations in adopting it in Kerala. It will create a lot of negative impact in

the programme and could ruin the very foundation of the programme, which is

already developed over a period of 8 years. The practices in similar situations

elsewhere which are imposed in Kerala as new strategy uncritically without

taking into consideration the Kerala’s situations and ethos will have far

reaching consequences in propelling the HIV spread in Kerala.

A detailed note on the strategy has been prepared by PFK in discussion with the

partners and experts in the field. It will be available on request.

The KSACS has organized staff appraisal and developed district level human

resource pool to identify the quality human resource and to minimize some

manipulative practices at intervention level. This is appreciable, but the

guidelines for all the processes were reached the partners on 11th of November

2006, after completing the processes on 8th of November 2006.

The partners and staff have been suffering for the last 4 to 6 months for lack

of funds in the project. The funds were not released in the name of Appraisal

Processes. The staff in KSACS and PSU cannot understand the difficulties in

surviving with out salary for six months, because they receive their salaries

promptly.

The KSACS and PSU looked at the partner level performance; however, no efforts

have been made to look into their role: the input part – financial, managerial

and technical. The quality of interventions is always determined by the quality

of inputs. Some of the PSU/SACS team members adopted divide and rule strategy

in monitoring and has unprofessionally monitored the partners based on their

personal bias.

In one case, the APD of KSACS conducted an enquiry into the matter and 80% of

the partners expressed their concerns and difficulties in writing. Though the

enquiry reports suggested changing the concerned persons, the higher authorities

protected them. We are not against showing understanding, but it should be

shown in the case of partner organizations and their staff too.

This is an example for the level of partnership in our country which may

ultimately ruin the HIV/AIDS rsponses at multiple levels. We hope time will come

where autocratic way of doing things based on individual vims and fancies may be

kept out and rational and true partnership will lead the programmes.

Thank you for your patient reading. We welcome your response.

Warm regards

Mrs. Anandavally

President

Partners Forum Kerala

e-mail: <pfkindia@...>

[Guest guest]

Mrs. Anandavally, President, Partners Forum Kerala, Kochi/Thiruanantpuram

Dear Madam,

I am a bit disappointed and pained because of the developments which could have

been avoided .

Are we not throwing the baby instead of the bathwater?

Partnerships,solidarities,mainstreaming,shared responsibilities with

accountability are the key principles and strategies to generate effective

response to the dual epidemics.

The concerted efforts at all quarters should not be allowed to be

diluted in any ways. I strongly beleive that a more proactive approach both on

the part of the KSACS and the PFK would have obviated the unfortunate

devwelopment.

Please for heaven's sake do not abdicate your responsibilities as an

effective forum against the epidemic and continue all the endeavours for the

containment of HIV/AIDS in all possible manners.

Best wishes,

Dr.Rajesh Gopal

Gujartat SACS.

e-mail: <gsacs@...>