The long term aim of ODI's Civil Society Partnerships Programme is to develop partnerships with southern organisations which share its commitment to the MDGs; to the importance of evidence-based policy-making; and to the value of civil society participation in the policy process.

ODI will bring to the partnerships access to ODI's research knowledge base, and techniques of knowledge management, institutional development and policy advocacy. It will provide a channel for wider dissemination of experience and lessons, help southern organisations to develop their own independent capacity, and will help them to strengthen links with other organisations involved in this area. The southern partners will bring their own experience from the region; opportunities to learn through collaborative work; and the potential to multiply the impact of the programme regionally.

Together ODI and its Southern Partners will learn more about the art and science of using evidence to influence policy, develop approaches and tools useful for others, enhance the impact of CSOs on national and regional policies, and work together to bring international evidence to bear on global policy issues.

The focus of work during the first phase is on learning more about how CSOs use evidence to influence policy processes, identifying northern and southern organisations helping them to do this, and improving ODI's own information and communication activities to be more useful and accessible for CSOs.

Key questions at this stage include:

• How do CSOs influence policy in development?
  
• Does evidence matter to CSO work? If so, how, when and why?
  
• Can evidence improve the legitimacy and effectiveness of CSOs?
  
• Does evidence help them influence policy processes?
  
• What networks do CSOs engage in?
  
• Does this help with influencing policy with evidence? How and Why?
  
• What organisations are helping CSOs to do this?
  
• What kind of support do they need?

The CSPP's first step is a series of consultations in different geographical regions of the developing world to learn more about the role that CSOs currently play in using evidence to promote development policy and practice, explore what they need to do it better, and to identify opportunities for small-scale collaborative work. The first three consultations were held in Africa at the beginning of 2005. Consultations in South Asia, South East Asia, Latin America were held mid-2005.

The main focus of the consultations is on organisations supporting CSOs to build their capacity to use research and evidence in the policy processes in support of poverty reduction. These include policy research and advocacy departments of national and international NGOs, development research institutes and think tanks, policy research departments in universities, support and umbrella organisations and others. The consultations also include discussions with a wide range of other stakeholders including national government organisations, bilateral and multilateral donors, and representatives from civil society organisations.

Each of the consultations are coordinated by a reputable national or regional organisation involved in policy-related development research, with well established relationships with CSOs, government and bilateral and multilateral donors. The consultations include:

• one-to-one meetings with people from support organisations, CSOs themselves, policy makers, practitioners, donors and other stakeholders;
  
• regional workshops, focusing on staff from support organisations; and
  
• national seminars, involving a wider range of stakeholders.

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