january 2016 - number 01latin america and the caribbean

inno4dev

Changing ParadigmsIncreasingly we are seeing how innovation is becoming an important aspect in interna-tional development and for UNDP In Latin America and the Caribbean our innovation efforts are aimed at improving what we do by finding new ways to address complex regional development challenges

UNDPrsquos Innovation Facility was launched in June 2014 with the Government of Denmark as its founding donor The Innovation Facility provides technical support to explore no-vel approaches and development interventions encourages sharing kowledge and ex-periences to promote learning across countries and regions and provides catalytic seed funding

As part of the launch phase in August 2014 the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean carried out a regional call to identify innovative initiatives We wanted to provide the space for Country Offices to take risks and the opportunity to explore new ideas with end-users and partners to quickly prototype and co-design agile and flexible solutions for better development results

30 proposals were received and 6 were selected earning financial as well as methodo-logical support for their implementation In the following pages we share the process methodology and results of this first cohort of initiatives as we positively see the growth and uptake of innovation in the region Employing methods such as human-centered design design-thinking and innovation labs amongst others these initiatives have stri-ved to bring together citizens and governments in a different manner to engage new partners and to work jointly to address challenges in the domains of civic participation citizen security energy efficiency and local development

As UNDP moves forward with the Post-2015 agenda towards helping attain the Sus-tainable Development Goals we are also given the opportunity to re-think the way we are addressing pressing issues in our region Innovation then is not an end by itself but rather it refers to the tools approaches and methods that can allow us to better de-sign and implement projects in a changing development landscape to collaborate with counterparts and partners and ultimately to identify and scale more effective ways to increase resilience foster inclusion and promote sustainable development

Jessica Faieta UN Assistant Secretary-General

UNDP Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean

Copyright UNDP 2016Published by United Nations Development ProgrammeRegional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean

Editorial

Paula IsturizCountry and Regional Programme Support Team

Graphic Design

Abdiel Ovalle

PhotographsUNDP

Barbados amp OECS Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Haiti RBLAC

The opinions expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations Development Programme of its Executive Board or Member States

www undporg 5www undporg4

HAITI

Overview

What did we do

What did we achieve

Who did we partner with

Youth unemployment is one of the main problems in Port-au-Prince especially in very vulne-rable neighborhoods such as Fort National Lack of access to traineeship and business servi-ces are a constant constraint for entrepreneurs Transportation and lack of basic infrastructures make daily tasks a challenge and represent a significant restriction for people that seek employment

We decided to bring innovation to Fort National through LIDEacute Bus a roving facility offering business management trainings for youth in particularly vulnerable neigh-borhoods in order to enable them to launch their own start-ups The community was sensitized on the importance of small busines-ses as an economic and dynamic catalyzer of the neighborhood and as an efficient way of em-powering people The first step consisted of training the selec-ted entrepreneurs the successful start-up projects then received support for their implementation

300 young entrepreneurs en-rolled in the LIDEacute program The LIDEacute bus served as a com-munications mean to inform and sensitize the community of Fort National about the project

80 entrepreneurs selected to receive further training 100 hours of business and self-es-teem courses

After evaluation on their bu-siness-plan and a 4 minute li-ve-pitch 40 were selected to receive funding

During one year the 40 entre-preneurs will receive financial and technical support as well as coaching while starting their businesses

One data collection applica-tion was developed by uni-versity programmers through a hackathon to monitor the activities of the entrepreneu-rs and to allow them to stay in touch with their coaches

The Ministry of Trade and Industry The government counterpart for employment and business initiatives in Haiti

Kotelam Microfinance insti-tution that offered the bank accounts and the daily mana-gement of the microgrants

Fondation Etre Aysyien Training institution provided inspirational and technical courses

SURTAB Haitian Telecom-munications company that provided technology mate-rial (tablets) and motivational inputs to entrepreneurs

Haitian University of Infor-matics (ESIH) Developed the monitor application

LIDEacute is the acronym for Labo-ratoire drsquoInnovation et de Deacuteveloppement Eacuteconomique in French (Laboratory for Inno-vation and Economic Develop-ment) and means idea in Creole

Business proposals included organic chocolates electro-nics and computer services a library and the production of perfumes from native Haitian plants

According to the 2013 MDG National Report 247 of the Haitian population lives in ex-treme poverty 63 in moderate poverty While over 90 of small businesses are informal youth unemployment rates in urban zones almost reaches 60

1

2

3

4

5

What was the problem

What did we learn

Contact

Rita Sciarraritasciarraundporg

Fredly Antenorfredlyantenorundporg

Methodology

- Hackathon- App- Innovation Lab

Innovation is not about tech-nology it is about the oppor-tunities that one is able to identify in hisher own envi-ronment By living in the com-munity young entrepreneurs have the best insights of the needs of their community and how to respond to them

It would not have been possi-ble to implement such a pro-ject in Fort National without building a close relationship with the population In fact in the context of UNDP 166 PROJECT community plat-forms were set up enabling trust towards UNDPrsquos work and strengthening our colla-boration

Constant communication and sensitization of the commu-nity about the projects its constraints and its objectives is crucial

People we work with encoun-ter few opportunities to chan-ge their situation giving them the choice and the inspiration to change their community by achieving the idea they have can be life changing

Long term follow-up on pro-jects is key for sustainable impact training young entre-preneurs opens them to new opportunities that will require more resources The online coaching platform is one way to monitor these needs and adapt our follow-up during implementation

The hackathon organized to develop the monitoring appli-cation brought together ESIH students and the local com-munity strengthening solida-rity among young people from different social backgrounds

Interested in this initiative

- Read a BLOG from the former Country Director Sophie de Caen (French)- Read the story of a young entrepreneur Alexandra HERE (French)- Have a look at the Bus launch on EXPOSURE- Have a look at a summary of the project on EXPOSURE- Check out this VIDEO - Read the rest of Ritarsquos blog HERE

1

2

3

4

5

6

ldquoThe initiative has made it possible to listen to peoplehellipwho have always been systematically excluded In this sense the process is more important than the result because in the process qualities have been built that cannot be bought such as dignity self-esteem and valuesrdquoRita Sciarra Head of Poverty Reduction Unit UNDP Haiti

300 entrepreneurs

reached 40 received

funding

bus lideacute roving innovation lab from ideas to business

haiti6 initiatives were implemented between the last trimester of 2014

and the first trimester of 2015 We hope to inspire and encourage colleagues to view innovation as an approach for better

problem-solving and as way to continously improve how we respond to development challenges

contents

haiti

p 5

1

Building inclusion and entrepreneurship amongst youth

p 6

nicaragua2

Energy efficiency for traditional income generating activities

p 7

ecuador3

Data capture and geo-referencing to stren-gthen micro and small businesses

p 8

guatemala4

Ensuring access to water through green technologies

p 10

el salvador6

New technologies to strengthen citizen participation

p 9

barbados amp oecs5

Youth as agents of change to address citizen security

1

3

5

2

4

6

Changing ParadigmsIncreasingly we are seeing how innovation is becoming an important aspect in interna-tional development and for UNDP In Latin America and the Caribbean our innovation efforts are aimed at improving what we do by finding new ways to address complex regional development challenges

UNDPrsquos Innovation Facility was launched in June 2014 with the Government of Denmark as its founding donor The Innovation Facility provides technical support to explore no-vel approaches and development interventions encourages sharing kowledge and ex-periences to promote learning across countries and regions and provides catalytic seed funding

As part of the launch phase in August 2014 the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean carried out a regional call to identify innovative initiatives We wanted to provide the space for Country Offices to take risks and the opportunity to explore new ideas with end-users and partners to quickly prototype and co-design agile and flexible solutions for better development results

30 proposals were received and 6 were selected earning financial as well as methodo-logical support for their implementation In the following pages we share the process methodology and results of this first cohort of initiatives as we positively see the growth and uptake of innovation in the region Employing methods such as human-centered design design-thinking and innovation labs amongst others these initiatives have stri-ved to bring together citizens and governments in a different manner to engage new partners and to work jointly to address challenges in the domains of civic participation citizen security energy efficiency and local development

As UNDP moves forward with the Post-2015 agenda towards helping attain the Sus-tainable Development Goals we are also given the opportunity to re-think the way we are addressing pressing issues in our region Innovation then is not an end by itself but rather it refers to the tools approaches and methods that can allow us to better de-sign and implement projects in a changing development landscape to collaborate with counterparts and partners and ultimately to identify and scale more effective ways to increase resilience foster inclusion and promote sustainable development

Jessica Faieta UN Assistant Secretary-General

UNDP Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean

Copyright UNDP 2016Published by United Nations Development ProgrammeRegional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean

Editorial

Paula IsturizCountry and Regional Programme Support Team

Graphic Design

Abdiel Ovalle

PhotographsUNDP

Barbados amp OECS Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Haiti RBLAC

The opinions expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations Development Programme of its Executive Board or Member States

www undporg 5www undporg4

HAITI

Overview

What did we do

What did we achieve

Who did we partner with

Youth unemployment is one of the main problems in Port-au-Prince especially in very vulne-rable neighborhoods such as Fort National Lack of access to traineeship and business servi-ces are a constant constraint for entrepreneurs Transportation and lack of basic infrastructures make daily tasks a challenge and represent a significant restriction for people that seek employment

We decided to bring innovation to Fort National through LIDEacute Bus a roving facility offering business management trainings for youth in particularly vulnerable neigh-borhoods in order to enable them to launch their own start-ups The community was sensitized on the importance of small busines-ses as an economic and dynamic catalyzer of the neighborhood and as an efficient way of em-powering people The first step consisted of training the selec-ted entrepreneurs the successful start-up projects then received support for their implementation

300 young entrepreneurs en-rolled in the LIDEacute program The LIDEacute bus served as a com-munications mean to inform and sensitize the community of Fort National about the project

80 entrepreneurs selected to receive further training 100 hours of business and self-es-teem courses

After evaluation on their bu-siness-plan and a 4 minute li-ve-pitch 40 were selected to receive funding

During one year the 40 entre-preneurs will receive financial and technical support as well as coaching while starting their businesses

One data collection applica-tion was developed by uni-versity programmers through a hackathon to monitor the activities of the entrepreneu-rs and to allow them to stay in touch with their coaches

The Ministry of Trade and Industry The government counterpart for employment and business initiatives in Haiti

Kotelam Microfinance insti-tution that offered the bank accounts and the daily mana-gement of the microgrants

Fondation Etre Aysyien Training institution provided inspirational and technical courses

SURTAB Haitian Telecom-munications company that provided technology mate-rial (tablets) and motivational inputs to entrepreneurs

Haitian University of Infor-matics (ESIH) Developed the monitor application

LIDEacute is the acronym for Labo-ratoire drsquoInnovation et de Deacuteveloppement Eacuteconomique in French (Laboratory for Inno-vation and Economic Develop-ment) and means idea in Creole

Business proposals included organic chocolates electro-nics and computer services a library and the production of perfumes from native Haitian plants

According to the 2013 MDG National Report 247 of the Haitian population lives in ex-treme poverty 63 in moderate poverty While over 90 of small businesses are informal youth unemployment rates in urban zones almost reaches 60

1

2

3

4

5

What was the problem

What did we learn

Contact

Rita Sciarraritasciarraundporg

Fredly Antenorfredlyantenorundporg

Methodology

- Hackathon- App- Innovation Lab

Innovation is not about tech-nology it is about the oppor-tunities that one is able to identify in hisher own envi-ronment By living in the com-munity young entrepreneurs have the best insights of the needs of their community and how to respond to them

It would not have been possi-ble to implement such a pro-ject in Fort National without building a close relationship with the population In fact in the context of UNDP 166 PROJECT community plat-forms were set up enabling trust towards UNDPrsquos work and strengthening our colla-boration

Constant communication and sensitization of the commu-nity about the projects its constraints and its objectives is crucial

People we work with encoun-ter few opportunities to chan-ge their situation giving them the choice and the inspiration to change their community by achieving the idea they have can be life changing

Long term follow-up on pro-jects is key for sustainable impact training young entre-preneurs opens them to new opportunities that will require more resources The online coaching platform is one way to monitor these needs and adapt our follow-up during implementation

The hackathon organized to develop the monitoring appli-cation brought together ESIH students and the local com-munity strengthening solida-rity among young people from different social backgrounds

Interested in this initiative

- Read a BLOG from the former Country Director Sophie de Caen (French)- Read the story of a young entrepreneur Alexandra HERE (French)- Have a look at the Bus launch on EXPOSURE- Have a look at a summary of the project on EXPOSURE- Check out this VIDEO - Read the rest of Ritarsquos blog HERE

1

2

3

4

5

6

ldquoThe initiative has made it possible to listen to peoplehellipwho have always been systematically excluded In this sense the process is more important than the result because in the process qualities have been built that cannot be bought such as dignity self-esteem and valuesrdquoRita Sciarra Head of Poverty Reduction Unit UNDP Haiti

300 entrepreneurs

reached 40 received

funding

bus lideacute roving innovation lab from ideas to business

haiti6 initiatives were implemented between the last trimester of 2014

and the first trimester of 2015 We hope to inspire and encourage colleagues to view innovation as an approach for better

problem-solving and as way to continously improve how we respond to development challenges

contents

haiti

p 5

1

Building inclusion and entrepreneurship amongst youth

p 6

nicaragua2

Energy efficiency for traditional income generating activities

p 7

ecuador3

Data capture and geo-referencing to stren-gthen micro and small businesses

p 8

guatemala4

Ensuring access to water through green technologies

p 10

el salvador6

New technologies to strengthen citizen participation

p 9

barbados amp oecs5

Youth as agents of change to address citizen security

1

3

5

2

4

6

www undporg 5www undporg4

HAITI

Overview

What did we do

What did we achieve

Who did we partner with

Youth unemployment is one of the main problems in Port-au-Prince especially in very vulne-rable neighborhoods such as Fort National Lack of access to traineeship and business servi-ces are a constant constraint for entrepreneurs Transportation and lack of basic infrastructures make daily tasks a challenge and represent a significant restriction for people that seek employment

We decided to bring innovation to Fort National through LIDEacute Bus a roving facility offering business management trainings for youth in particularly vulnerable neigh-borhoods in order to enable them to launch their own start-ups The community was sensitized on the importance of small busines-ses as an economic and dynamic catalyzer of the neighborhood and as an efficient way of em-powering people The first step consisted of training the selec-ted entrepreneurs the successful start-up projects then received support for their implementation

300 young entrepreneurs en-rolled in the LIDEacute program The LIDEacute bus served as a com-munications mean to inform and sensitize the community of Fort National about the project

80 entrepreneurs selected to receive further training 100 hours of business and self-es-teem courses

After evaluation on their bu-siness-plan and a 4 minute li-ve-pitch 40 were selected to receive funding

During one year the 40 entre-preneurs will receive financial and technical support as well as coaching while starting their businesses

One data collection applica-tion was developed by uni-versity programmers through a hackathon to monitor the activities of the entrepreneu-rs and to allow them to stay in touch with their coaches

The Ministry of Trade and Industry The government counterpart for employment and business initiatives in Haiti

Kotelam Microfinance insti-tution that offered the bank accounts and the daily mana-gement of the microgrants

Fondation Etre Aysyien Training institution provided inspirational and technical courses

SURTAB Haitian Telecom-munications company that provided technology mate-rial (tablets) and motivational inputs to entrepreneurs

Haitian University of Infor-matics (ESIH) Developed the monitor application

LIDEacute is the acronym for Labo-ratoire drsquoInnovation et de Deacuteveloppement Eacuteconomique in French (Laboratory for Inno-vation and Economic Develop-ment) and means idea in Creole

Business proposals included organic chocolates electro-nics and computer services a library and the production of perfumes from native Haitian plants

According to the 2013 MDG National Report 247 of the Haitian population lives in ex-treme poverty 63 in moderate poverty While over 90 of small businesses are informal youth unemployment rates in urban zones almost reaches 60

1

2

3

4

5

What was the problem

What did we learn

Contact

Rita Sciarraritasciarraundporg

Fredly Antenorfredlyantenorundporg

Methodology

- Hackathon- App- Innovation Lab

Innovation is not about tech-nology it is about the oppor-tunities that one is able to identify in hisher own envi-ronment By living in the com-munity young entrepreneurs have the best insights of the needs of their community and how to respond to them

It would not have been possi-ble to implement such a pro-ject in Fort National without building a close relationship with the population In fact in the context of UNDP 166 PROJECT community plat-forms were set up enabling trust towards UNDPrsquos work and strengthening our colla-boration

Constant communication and sensitization of the commu-nity about the projects its constraints and its objectives is crucial

People we work with encoun-ter few opportunities to chan-ge their situation giving them the choice and the inspiration to change their community by achieving the idea they have can be life changing

Long term follow-up on pro-jects is key for sustainable impact training young entre-preneurs opens them to new opportunities that will require more resources The online coaching platform is one way to monitor these needs and adapt our follow-up during implementation

The hackathon organized to develop the monitoring appli-cation brought together ESIH students and the local com-munity strengthening solida-rity among young people from different social backgrounds

Interested in this initiative

- Read a BLOG from the former Country Director Sophie de Caen (French)- Read the story of a young entrepreneur Alexandra HERE (French)- Have a look at the Bus launch on EXPOSURE- Have a look at a summary of the project on EXPOSURE- Check out this VIDEO - Read the rest of Ritarsquos blog HERE

1

2

3

4

5

6

ldquoThe initiative has made it possible to listen to peoplehellipwho have always been systematically excluded In this sense the process is more important than the result because in the process qualities have been built that cannot be bought such as dignity self-esteem and valuesrdquoRita Sciarra Head of Poverty Reduction Unit UNDP Haiti

300 entrepreneurs

reached 40 received

funding

bus lideacute roving innovation lab from ideas to business

haiti6 initiatives were implemented between the last trimester of 2014

and the first trimester of 2015 We hope to inspire and encourage colleagues to view innovation as an approach for better

problem-solving and as way to continously improve how we respond to development challenges

contents

haiti

p 5

1

Building inclusion and entrepreneurship amongst youth

p 6

nicaragua2

Energy efficiency for traditional income generating activities

p 7

ecuador3

Data capture and geo-referencing to stren-gthen micro and small businesses

p 8

guatemala4

Ensuring access to water through green technologies

p 10

el salvador6

New technologies to strengthen citizen participation

p 9

barbados amp oecs5

Youth as agents of change to address citizen security

1

3

5

2

4

6

www undporg 7www undporg6

NICARAGUA

Who did we partner with

What was the problem

What did we do

What did we achieve

Overview

energy efficient traditional foods (rosquillas bread tortillas and sugar cane sweets)

What did we learn

nicaragua

Technologies 4 ovens 25 stoves 2 boilers were repla-ced with new technologies

50 reduction of CO2 emis-sions

60 reduction of wood con-sumption

50 increase in productivity

Improvement in health through the reduction in ex-posure to smoke

In the Municipality of Somoto around 5000 tons of firewood per year are used for traditional food production contributing to deforestation and increased CO2 emissions Production processes are long and inefficient and the exposure to smoke also leads to respiratory problems In order to reduce deforestation increase productivity while reducing pro-duction costs and improve peo-plersquos health it became necessary to replace traditional technolo-gies for innovative ones

UNDP Nicaragua worked toge-ther with the municipality of So-moto and its Center of Initiatives for Somotorsquos Development (CI-DeS) throughout the whole pro-cess from the design of the ini-tiative to its implementation and monitoring CIDeS counts on over a decade of experience in the execution of socio-environmental projects including prototype tes-ting through a methodology that fosters co-creation with different technologies and alternative so-lutions to address environmental problems

Contact

Douglas Benavidez douglasbenavidezundporg

Joan Peris joanperisundporg

The project identified a real need of the population in terms of im-proving the efficiency of produc-tion processes and the reduction of firewood consumption

In coordination with the Local Go-vernment of Somoto an initiative was designed to improve traditio-nal production technologies in order to reduce the use of natural resources enhance production processes thus improving produ-cerrsquos quality of life especially wo-men Engineers and technicians worked together with end-usersproducers to identify key pro-duction challenges technology design (while maintaining the essence of traditional cooking) elaboration and testing of proto-types and then implementation of the initiative This contributed to develop the local response to a problem already identified by the government

The Municipality of Somoto is lo-cated in the north of Nicaragua and has a population of approxi-mately 35000 In Somoto traditio-nal food production is one of the biggest income generating acti-vities Approximately 400 direct permanent jobs are associated to these activities with hundreds more indirect jobs (re-selling for example) Over 90 of the peo-ple involved in making traditional foods are women

Involvement of end users at every stage of the process is key as it helps ensure ow-nership and sustainability while addressing their real challenges For example certain stoves were specifi-cally designed for left-han-ded women and heights varied accordingly

It is essential to involve the municipal government to mobilize political support as well as technical and finan-cial resources to contribute to the sustainability of the initiative This initiative pro-ves that great results can be achieved if end users and local authorities are invol-ved in the process and work hand in hand

Knowledge capture of les-sons learned throughout the testing of the different prototypes and the final implementation are key in order to allow for transfer and replicability in other parts of the country with similar socio-environmental challenges

1

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5

Interested in this initiative

- Check out this BLOG- Read a more detailed article HERE- And then watch this summary VIDEO

Direct beneficiaries

29 women 2 men and their families

(aprox 210 people)

1

2

3

Methodology

- Design thinking

ECUADOR

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4

248 small and microbusines-ses were surveyed allowing for detailed analysis of requi-rements and adequate res-ponse by the Programme

74 of end-users now offer one or various new products to their clientele

85 of these businesses re-gister adequately their sales and expenses which was pre-viously not carried out

99 of end-users count on basic marketing strategies for their businesses

Who did we partner with

What did we do What did we achieve

en marcha programmecomponent of technological innovation for the development of microenterprises in the municipality of quito

What did we learn

ecuador

In order to strengthen local capa-cities of small and micro-entre-preneurs the En Marcha Program-me was created and first piloted in the center of Quito In order to adequately and an in an inclusive manner identify beneficiary busi-nesses a census was created This census aimed to gather key data on small and microentrepreneu-rs (gender number of children education level etc) the type of economic activity developed and more specific details such as the level of sales as well as weaknes-ses and strengths of the business In addition to the census a me-thodology for the collection and management of this data was undertaken using Open Data Kit software which enabled for geo-referenced data capture on tablets real-time data manage-ment and to complete the census more quickly and effectively

This data allowed the team to individually assess the busines-ses focusing on those issues that needed improvements This per-mitted the project to tailor the response that would be provided to the business owners reflecting directly on their requirements This in turn also allowed for a be-tter design of the Programme as a whole With the support of ade-quate IT tools and devices for this initiative the team could guide and train small entrepreneurs on issues such as management foodsafety marketing and customer service

Municipality of Quito (MDMQ) and the Metropolitan Economic Deve-lopment Agency (CONQUITO) that supports entrepreneurs busines-ses educational institutions local governments through innovation professional improvement and job creation

Contact

Sergio Novassergionovasundporg

Nicoletta Ghisunicolettaghisuundporg

Methodology

- App- Data management

Significant changes in gover-nment counterparts often delay processes however as demonstrated by this ini-tiative when innovative pro-posals to existing problems are presented this can help build and strengthen rela-tionships with counterparts

Obtaining and managing adequate data is key in order to improve decision-making and develop solutions that are fit to the needs of the end-users

Interested in this initiative

Check out these two videos on the project ACHIEVEMENTSamp SUMMARY

1

2

En Marcha Programme UNDP and the Municipality of Quito through the Agency for Economic Promotion (CONQUI-TO) developed this programme in order to promote economic and social inclusion by suppor-ting small and microenterprises in the historic center of Quito through business advisory stra-tegy development commercial image and marketing

Lina Tamayo is one of the benefi-ciaries of this Programme She is the owner of a grocery store who-se sales had dropped alarmingly and with the support provided she was able to transform this small shop into a cafeteria Mrs Tama-yo experienced a boost in her bu-siness by offering her customers a space where they could try the traditional delicacies from Quito

More than 115 entrepreneurs

reached

This pilot will soon be

scaled-up to reach 1000

businesses

OverviewIn Quito Ecuador the short life span of small and microentre-prises has been linked to factors such as weak training limited innovation lack of new product development diminished ac-cess to credit informal financial management and low use of technologies The traditional programs of business advice have not succeeded supporting micro and small enterprises Fur-thermore in the historic center of Quito tourism has increased generating high impact on the local economy and creating new business opportunities for which not all traditional commerce and micro entreprises are adequately prepared

ldquo With this experience and the implementation of innovative initiatives we reaffirm our commitment to continue supporting processes of economic inclusion job creation and improvement of production capacity which are always aimed at poverty eradication and sustainable local developmentrdquo Nuno Queiros Deputy Resident Representative UNDP Ecuador

www undporg 9www undporg8

GUATEMALA

Who did we partner with

What was the problem

What did we do

What did we achieve

reducing vulnerabilities by increasing access to water and green energy for productive uses

What did we learn

guatemala

In the department of San Marcos Guatemala food security in rural communities is at risk due to the lack of water during the dry sea-son (Nov-April) Additionally vege-table consumption during the dry season drops 20 (1) In this re-gard the aim was to use low-cost green technologies that will allow families to have access to water all year round and thus increase crop production and improve health

Green energy through innovati-ve mechanisms was applied to increase water access for produc-tive uses through 4 pilot projects carried out within the Learning Centers for Rural Development (CADERs) in the communities of San Marcos

UNDP worked with the Ministry for Agriculture Livestock and Food (MAGA) the local Government Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and community volunteers to construct the innovative systems in the learning centers Testing and tra-ining was done with the participa-tion of community leaders families and the local government

Increase in production and in-come at each CADER

Knowledge sharing transfer and replication

Contact

Christina Elichchristinaelichundporg

Julio Martinezjuliomartinezundporg

Methodology

- Design thinking

Creativity and innovation are motors for responsible and sustainable development

Family and community parti-cipation in the design of so-lutions to their problems and challenges guarantee em-powerment appropriation and sustainability

Embedding the pilots within the CADERs ensures sustaina-bility and a farther outreach as this allows for knowledge to be shared and transferred to other families and mem-bers of the community

1

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2

3

4

5

Interested in this initiative

- Read a more detailed description of the initiative HERE- Get a closer look at the initiative through THESE photos- Cultivating resilience read the story of Rosaura HERE

1

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3

CADER Sibinal A system for reusing water from trout tanks with a water hammer pump which forces the wa-ter 20m up to fill a 20000 liter tank was created This water is then used for irriga-tion of crops in a vegetable greenhouse

CADER Santa Mariacutea Tacanaacute By using solar energy wa-ter is pumped 45m up from natural water sources to a 20000 liter tank for drip wa-tering of flowers and vegeta-bles in greenhouses

CADER Flor de Mayo Tacanaacute and San Pedrito San Joseacute Ojetenam Mist harvesting aimed at channeling water to 20000 liter tanks to be used for consumption and towards greenhouses for crop production Two types of mist-capturing panels were tested in parallel to me-asure results

Each of the four CADER Lear-ning Centers are led by fami-ly-members (voluntary agri-cultural trainers) that receive technical assistance and tra-ining from MAGA staff and then transfer this knowledge to a group of 20 to 30 families that live in the neighborhood In Santa Mariacutea Tacanaacute there are 9 families and in Sibinal 19 families that cooperate in the flower trout and vegetable production to increase their family income

CADERs are visited by MAGA (central) staff local govern-ment and community leaders for training and replication in other rural communities that lack water

The water-hammer and the solar-energy projects have proven to function well lifting sufficient water to the needed heights and filling the 20000 liter water tanks in two (ham-mer) to three (solar) days

The mist harvesting projects generate an average of 60 liters of water per day suffi-cient for watering crops The families that attend these CA-DERs indicated that these me-thods allow the production of crops and flowers to continue during dry season providing sufficient food for the family diet and they can even sell the surplus on the local market

As a result of the increased wa-ter access the flower green-house in Santa Mariacutea Tacanaacute will produce up to 6 dozens of flowers weekly selling at Q18 ($240) per dozen resulting in a gain of approximately $750 per year

2000 additional crops per sea-son (broccoli cauliflower cab-bage) will be produced in San-ta Mariacutea that when sold at the local market at Q3 ($040) per crop represents an increase in income of $1600 per year

The tomato production in the greenhouse of Sibinal will add another $1120 to the annual production income

The piloting of these mechanis-ms allowed for quick testing and revisions Their success has led to resource mobilization and their uptake and replication in other communities

Mist harvesting was tested for the

first time in San Marcos through this

initiative

1 (FAO 2013 Report ndash Measurement of Production and Consumption Indicators)

BARBADOS amp OECS

1 UNDP Caribbean Human Development Report Human development and the shift to a better citizen security (2012) page 34

What was the problem

What did we do

What did we achieve

socialinnov4changeengaging caribbean in social innovations for positive social change saint kitts and nevis

What did we learn

barbados amp oecs

Convened over 25 partici-pants from a broad range of community organizations in Saint Kitts to talk about common concerns on citizen security

10 proposals were trans-formed from ideas to pro-totypes 5 were selected as winning initiatives to receive funding and mentoring for their implementation All participants received trai-ning on entrepreneurship

Beginning of establishing a network of organizations and people who are willing to work together to foster change

Ministry of Youth Depart-ment of Youth Empower-ment of the twin island Fede-ration of St Kitts and Nevis

UNWomen to address gen-der-based violence and to help participants better in-corporate the gender pers-pective within the different proposed solutions

Arts-in-Action NGO esta-blished within the University of West Indies St Augustine Campus The Arts-in-Action team were able to open dia-logue spaces to touch upon difficult topics concerning youth violence and crime through theatre and creative arts

Contact

Janine Chasejaninechaseundporg

SocialINNOV4Change is an initiative designed by UNDP Barbados and the OECS ai-med at bringing young people together to jointly find solu-tions that address social pro-blems and challenges within communities

We designed SocialINNOV-4Change as an initiative aimed at bringing young people together to jointly develop citizen-cente-red solutions that address youth crime and violence within high risk communities An Innovation Lab was organized to allow par-ticipants to develop their ideas into effective and quick-impact solutions that could be imple-mented within a three-month period in a community in Saint Kitts and Nevis

To fulfill this purpose two approaches were merged Thea-tre in Education as a way of dis-seminating messages on citizen security and facilitate dialogue towards the social issues pervasi-ve in communities and an Inno-vation Lab focusing in applying a design-thinking methodolo-gy to move ideas into tangible solutions Through the use of methodologies that foster inno-vation and the arts UNDP enga-ged with youth as well as worked with counterparts and partners to create new ways of tackling development challenges

All participating groups presen-ted their prototypes to a selection panel After a five minute pitch and discussion of the panelists 5 winning projects were selected Each winning proposal targeted strategies covering areas such as agriculture the arts media as well as rehabilitative social and skills training

SocialINNOV4Change as a pilotSocialINNOV4Change being the first of its kind was piloted in Saint Kitts and Nevis as a novel approach to engaging with communities to develop solutions to insecurity issues The focus was on involving youth as change agents The testing of this methodology is an initial step towards broader community engagement in Barbados and the OECS through a larger citi-zen security programme This learning model will be further tested before being finalized and replicated across the region

In the Caribbean there is a growing sense of insecurity as a result of the rising level of crime and violen-ce where youth are both perpetra-tors and victims This trend is as a result of the social and economic inequalities and asymmetries that exist increasing rates of unemplo-yment drug trafficking and the readily accessibility and misuse of firearms

Likewise crime and violence re-lated to poverty unemployment and other political and social in-equities remain the number one concern among adolescents and youth in the Caribbean

Theatre in Education metho-dology can be seen as a good practice for the dissemination of development issues in a you-th-friendly manner It is recom-mended that such workshops be incorporated during the sensitization phase on an In-novation Lab Further support can be provided during the ideation stage of the process

Partnering with other agencies that can bring further exper-tise and interact with partici-pants is a way to help streng-then proposals

It is important to consider the capacities of the target audien-ce to implement the initiatives formulated and incorporate additional capacity develop-ment following the Innovation Lab phases

Additional support is also re-quired for implementation of the selected ideas through on-going monitoring and to ensure that the activities are successfully executed in the projected time frames

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Interested in this initiative

- Check out this summary on EXPOSURE- Read a more detailed article HERE

Who did we partner with

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Methodology

- Design thinking- Innovation Lab

www undporg10 www undporg 11

EL SALVADOR

What was the problem

What did we do

What did we achieve

public value citizen voice and efficient public services

What did we learn

el salvador

3 mobile applications aimed at increasing citizen partici-pation were developed and launched

120 young programmers were engaged in the ideation and development of these appli-cations

3 groups of young program-mers developed the applica-tions and became key allies in this initiative

350 Response Cards were pur-chased which will be used to assess in real time public accountability presentations This will strengthen the ac-countability mechanism but also to boost other mecha-nisms for citizen participation and transparency The Res-ponse Cards were tested in the evaluation workshop of the Open Government Part-nership Action Plan and as a result 21 commitments were validated to constitute the new Action Plan

Being a primary area of focus the SPCTA will use the outco-mes of this initiative to further strengthen their activities

GobScore Online feedback mechanism in response to services provided by gover-nment institutions

Camino a la U (Road to Uni-versity) Platform that con-solidates and openly shares academic information about careers study options and access to scholarships of Sal-vadoran universities

Infouacutetil 20 Application ai-med to improve mobile ac-cess to the InfoUacutetil Portal of the Government of El Salva-dor through which users can ask for databases of interest rank databases and voice their concerns to the appro-priate authorities

In El Salvador the Law on Access to Public Information and the Alliance for Open Government has been in effect since 2012 Though this has provided oppor-tunities for public management to be more open governance indicators from the World Bank 2009 - 2012 highlight deficits in the Rule of Law control of corrup-tion and government effective-ness One of the main recommen-dations is to improve government response to citizens and increase citizen participation currently at very low levels One way to close the gap is to improve the deli-very of public services through a co-created proposal between government and civil society that can open new channels of com-munication

Contact

Laura Riveralaurariveraundporg

Daniella Olivaresdaniellaolivaresundporg

Methodology

- Hackathon- Design thinking- App

The aim was to put new techno-logies at the service of citizens to give them a voice and promote a more responsive government one that is accountable and that will deliver better services

Together with the Secretariat of Civic Participation Transparency and Anticorruption of the Presi-dency of the Republic of El Sal-vador (SPCTA) we supported the development of three web appli-cations These applications were designed by groups of young programmers and are the result of the Open Government Hacka-thon held in June 2014

The applications are

A hackathon is an efficient and fun way to mobilize young people on open innovation Despite the impression of ha-ppy disorganization their suc-cess requires a well-prepared methodological process and the mobilization and coordina-tion of an organization team Likewise a strong relationship with the government resulted in high levels of participation

A government hackathon will be aligned with governmentsrsquo interests if participants can uti-lize public data It can be just a small set of data but its avai-lability during the hackathon is key to design meaningful ways to use this data

The results of a hackathon are just a working prototype Fo-llow-up after the event is nee-ded to maintain momentum so that the interesting ideas in-cubate This initiative allowed to take the top 3 ideas desig-ned during the hackathon and pave the way for their imple-mentation

The incubation and implemen-tation process take time a good communication strategy to disseminate ideas is neces-sary to increase the use of the technology

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Interested in this initiative

- Read this BLOG amp watch this VIDEO summarizing the process- Read an ARTICLE from the Presidency of El Salvador- Learn a bit about the programmers behind the apps HERE- Read about the launch of the 3 apps HERE

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ldquoIn El Salvador by placing new technologies at the service of citizens we seek to encourage civic participation and improve the provision of public services In collaboration with the Secretariat of Civic Participation Transparency and Anticorruption of the Presidency of the Republic of El Salvador we supported the development of three web applications designed to give fresh impetus to transparency access to infor-mation and accountabilityrdquo Stefano Pettinato Deputy Resident Re-presentative for El Salvador and Belize

ldquoUNDP has invested in advancing innovation to disrupt lsquoBUSINESS AS USUALrsquo encourage change in the search for ever greater effectiveness and identify NEW WAYS of doing things which could be of wide benefitrdquo

Helen Clark UNDP Administrator

looking for more informationTo learn more about UNDPrsquos Innovation Facility CLICK HERE

Read UNDPrsquos Innovation Facility Annual Review 2014 HERE

To stay up to date on UNDPrsquos innovation work CLICK HERE

And follow us on UNDP_innovation

Sharing some toolsUNDP Field GUIDE to Exploring Innovation

DIY TOOLKIT

Social Innovation Camp TOOLKIT

Nestarsquos GUIDE for Prototyping

On the next numberhellip