Shift the institutional arrangements

Ten Lessons on multi-stakeholder partnerships, Lesson 9

The irons are in the fire, now what’s coming out of the kiln?

What is systems change? And how do we know that a system has been changed?

We have wrestled deeply with this question at Synergos. There are many dimensions to systems change, and we have learned that one major component of shifting systems has to do with changes in what we call “institutional arrangements” or the creation of altogether new institutions.

In Namibia, enabling the Ministry of Health and Social Services to become more responsive to citizen needs, more open to feedback, and more able to change practice as a result of data and client input is an example of a new institutional arrangement. The creation of Delivery Units within the Ministry to listen, solve problems, and to implement new solutions is also example of the same.

Each of our major partnerships has resulted in the creation of a new organization, the reorganization of an existing organization, or the reframing of the nature of relationships between key stakeholders so as to unlock new commitment, innovation and action. In Ethiopia, a new quasi-governmental organization, called the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency, has been created to support the Ministry of Agriculture on a major reform and productivity effort. In India, we created the Bhavishya Alliance, a registered Indian trust with a mandate to carry on efforts to address child nutrition issues by drawing on input and resources from government, business and civil society. In Canada, we helped establish the Ahp-Cii-Uk Society, a Canadian charitable organization, designed to continue the long process of community engagement and relationship building between First Nations and others in Canadian society.

Ten Lessons on Multi-stakeholder Partnerships draws from Synergos’ experience helping to create sustainable solutions to complex development problems at scale.