Category: Impact Stories

EWMI Reaches Fundraising Goal in the Fight against Ebola

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PFL used the donations to supply water containers, purification tablets, soap, cleaning supplies, and food (rice and beans).

EWMI reached (and exceeded) our goal for our campaign to Support Liberians in the Fight against Ebola!

With the rapid spread of the deadly Ebola virus in Liberia, the country’s most vulnerable population, the prisoners in the Monrovia Central Prison (MCP) and surrounding regional prisons, are in very serious danger of contracting the virus. In early August, EWMI sent $2,000 in Emergency Funds to Prison Fellowship Liberia for the purchase of preventative hygienic materials to ensure the safety and security of the inmates in the most densely populated prisons across Liberia. Additionally, EWMI launched a campaign to raise additional funds. With EWMI’s initial contribution, Prison Fellowship International’s matching donation, a matching contribution from Open Society Foundation, and the generous contributions of EWMI supporters, PFL will receive over $7,000!

Facing an astonishingly muted international response to this horrifying epidemic, we did what we do best – leveraging resources from multiple organizations and across our personal and professional contacts to make a real difference. Our fundraising efforts not only provided basic needs for the prisoners and their families, and provided critical equipment and supplies to prevent the spread of Ebola into the prisons, but also influenced decision-makers at the highest level with trainings at the Ministry of Justice.

The donations have supported raising awareness, and distributing preventive materials: water holders, purification tablets, soap, cleaning supplies, food (rice and beans), mattresses, and footwear for both prison inmates and correction officers. Reverend Kollie, Director of PFL, is most grateful for the assistance and wishes to express this gratitude for all of those who have supported PFL’s efforts to fight the Ebola Outbreak in Montserrado, Bong, Grand Bassa, and Margibi Counties.

Global (2013-Present): Partner Legacy Support Program

EWMI Supports Kosovo Women’s Network

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EWMI is working with the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) to support the Kosovo Oral History Initiative, a collective of women of different generations, nationalities and competences, whose mission is to record life stories. Working in partnership with The New School, KWN is collecting the life stories of women, whose part in war and peace times has been most often sidelined, if not forgotten. The initiative goes beyond the narratives of victimization and war stories to recover the whole life experience of diverse individuals and is building an archive of life-history interviews and short films for wider audiences. The interviews, filmed and transcribed in Albanian, English, and Serbian, are collected and presented on a new website, Oral History Kosovo.

Global (2013-Present): Partner Legacy Support Program

Keeping Ebola Out of Prisons

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PFL staff improves sanitation within prisons.

EWMI awarded a Partner Legacy Support Program grant to Prison Fellowship Liberia to support its work preventing the spread of the Ebola Virus Disease to the prison population in Liberia. There is currently no cure to the virus and it has a fatality rate of up to 90%, with outbreaks usually occurring in areas with poor infection control and limited access to resources such as running water. Given the overpopulation and poor condition of Liberia’s prisons, the spread of the virus to the prison population would be devastating. Although the virus is believed to be able to survive for some days in liquid outside an infected organism, the use of chlorine disinfection, soaps and detergents can kill it. PFL is using funding to improve sanitation within the prison system by purchasing and delivering water, chlorine, detergents and hygienic materials such as gloves. PFL is also seeking to acquire equipment like non-contact thermometers that instantly and accurately takes a person’s temperature without the need of any physical contact to screen incoming detainees for possible infection.

Fear of an outbreak within the prison population has also led the Ministry of Justice to initiate action to ‘de-congest’ prisons in the country. As the deadly Ebola virus death toll rises in Liberia, the government is now advising against arresting and imprisoning people for minor offenses, and has processed records of approximately 100 inmates to be released on bail to family members that can ensure that they can come to court whenever they are called.

The Ebola outbreak is not the first time PFL has stepped in to fight disease within the prison system. When an outbreak of Chicken Pox threatened the entire population of the Monrovia Central Prison, PFL helped to separate out the infected prisoners to another cell block and cleaned and sterilized the cells, septic tank, corridors and bathrooms. PF Liberia also purchased antibiotics, and other medicines, along with detergents and laundry soap for the entire population to prevent further outbreaks and educated inmates on good hygiene to further protect their health.

In addition to awarding the grant, EWMI accepted donations on behalf of PFL to support their efforts to prevent the spread of the virus. Prison Fellowship Liberia is a non-governmental organization supporting former prisoners, pre-trial detainees, and their families in Monrovia, Liberia. PFL also works directly with communities to reduce mob justice by training local mediators to resolve disputes. PFL’s work and dedication has given renewed hope to thousands of Liberians by helping them break free of the cycle of crime and building safer communities.

Providing Research to Support Cambodia’s Parliament

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Dararith Kim-Yeat, founder of PIC

EWMI provided funding to support the Parliamentary Institute of Cambodia (PIC), an independent organization whose mission is to support capacity development, research and training, and to develop information networks for members of the Cambodian Parliament. EWMI’s funding and technical assistance came at a critical time in PIC’s development, and was used to help develop systems, policies and procedures which enabled PIC to secure long term funding. The PIC has made notable progress over the past few years to balance powers within the Cambodian government. Further progress still needs to be achieved in order for Parliament to perform its duties in conformity with international democratic standards, but certain institutional support is needed. PIC aims to provide this support over the long-term as a permanent institution, rather than as a single project initiative. 

PIC operates independently of any political party, and works with all members of Parliament to research aspects of the law making process which are directly requested from Parliamentarians and their nine technical commissions. Through this research process, PIC ensures the coordination and sharing of the different diverse interests and knowledge of Parliamentary members, developing new networks through local sources of Parliamentary expertise. These networks combined with the high quality research PIC provides has developed the research capacity of Parliament, allowing them to make informed decisions, shape and propose legislation, and analyze new policies. This can further contribute to shifting the Parliamentarians’ responsiveness from their party to their constitutions and shifting the Parliament’s role in government. The goal of the Institute is to build a Parliamentary body that is more pro-active in shaping the country’s policies in order to better balance the powers within the Cambodian democracy.  

In the past, the Institute has completed a number of research studies for the Cambodian Parliament, including: the effects of fiscal decentralization in Cambodia; the role of the Senate in relation to sub-national democratic development; and internal rules of the Senate and experiences in other countries in implementing internal rules. Their current projects include research on Constitutional implementation, migration, health, and alcohol policy. With this high quality research at their disposal, Parliament members can begin to debate and discuss new policies and shape the agenda for the country.

Global (2013-Present): Partner Legacy Support Program

First Students Graduate from Ilia State University MPA Program

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The MPA Program serves as a focal point for public policy research and an incubator for the next generation of Georgian policy makers and public managers.

On July 12, Ilia State University (ISU) held a commencement ceremony in Tbilisi for the first 29 graduates of its new Masters of Public Administration (MPA) Program. The graduation was the culmination of a four-year joint initiative by EWMI, ISU, and Columbia University to establish a high-quality graduate program to train Georgia’s next generation of public leaders.

In his opening remarks at the graduation, ISU Head of Administration and former MPA Program Director Dr. David Aprasidze congratulated everyone involved in developing and establishing the program in only four years. This includes 17 US professors from Columbia University, the City University of New York, and Arizona State University, who came to Georgia over the course of the project to work with MPA faculty and administrators on program administration, curriculum, and course design.

Jason Swantek, the Public Policy Advisor for EWMI’s Policy, Advocacy, and Civil Society Development Project in Georgia (G-PAC) discussed the program’s major successes en route to becoming the most practical program of its kind in Georgia. Mr. Swantek noted that the program had recruited highly experienced instructors, produced the first publication of Georgia-based public administration case studies, and established the Public Policy Research and Training Center (PPRTC), which has already begun to influence public policy and provide demand-driven training to government and civil society professionals. He identified the high caliber of students the program attracted as a particular success.

New graduate Gigi Katsaridze thanked the program’s instructors and encouraged his fellow graduates to aspire to do great things for Georgia. After his remarks, the students shook hands with program administrators and received their diplomas. The ceremony was followed by refreshments, cake, and live music to celebrate the occasion.

The MPA Program, which began its first classes in March 2012, serves as a focal point for public policy research and an incubator for the next generation of Georgian policy makers and public managers. The program’s instructors draw on their expertise in Georgia’s public, civil society, and private sectors to engage students in developing solutions to the country’s most urgent policy challenges. Students gain “real world” experience through an internship requirement and the opportunity to participate in research projects through the MPA Program’s PPRTC and case study publications. The program also provided students and professors with the opportunity to work with distinguished visiting US experts, who delivered public lectures and participated in MPA classes.

USAID through EWMI G-PAC provided approximately $700,000 to ISU to establish the MPA Program.

Serbian Courts Introduce Electronic Filing of Documents

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Zaječar Commercial Court staff during their electronic filing training session with the Separation of Powers Program in April 2014.

The large number of old pending cases is a major challenge facing Serbia’s courts. Faster court proceedings and improved efficiency of the judicial system depend on several factors, most importantly good case management and communication. To help make this process easier, EWMI’s USAID-funded Separation of Powers Program (SPP) has introduced an innovative technique — electronic filing — a revolutionary service allowing courts and other parties involved to instantaneously and securely exchange documents via email.  

“The objective of this type of communication is to allow the parties to access the court more quickly and easily. Attorneys can communicate with the court at all times, on weekends or during the night, they don’t have to come to the court building and they don’t have to go to the post office,” explained Acting Court President of the Basic Court in Subotica, Rozalija Tumbas. 

E-filing offers not only increased efficiency, but also enormous cost savings for the courts and the affected parties. The speedy exchange of official documents leads to savings on printing and postage, and expedited communication reduces the length and cost of case proceedings. These are real, concrete improvements that can be measured in days and dinars. 

Additionally, the more timely sharing of information results in greater transparency. Attorneys in Basic Courts in Subotica and Užice and the Commercial Court in Zaječar have been able to easily verify information they have exchanged with the courts through the web portal. 

“When I was given this opportunity I was very excited about it and I wanted to start using it as soon as possible. I believe that my colleagues felt the same way; that’s why we started with the implementation very quickly,” Subotica attorney Nenad Vuletic explained. 

The three courts are part of the pilot project initiated by EWMI through SPP. During March and April this year, EWMI helped the courts re-organize their supporting services to allow legal, efficient, and secure electronic communication between courts and attorneys. To facilitate this change, the three courts signed a memorandum of cooperation with a small group of interested lawyers. These new solutions bring significant improvements and cost savings to both courts and attorneys. 

In cooperation with the Supreme Court of Cassation and the Ministry of Justice, EWMI legal staff reviewed the legal framework for electronic communication and developed procedural and technical guidelines for the exchange of documents and subpoenas via email. The transactions are authenticated by electronic signatures and secure time-stamps issued by the Serbian Post Office. 

The electronic exchanges of information should grow automatically, as more attorneys and courts come to understand the tremendous benefits. E-filing will reduce the cost of paper in the long run, and immediate access to documents via a computerized document management system will allow the court to process documents faster and reduce case disposition times. 

“I expect that an ever increasing number of attorneys and courts will switch to doing business this way,” said Brian LeDuc, SPP Chief of Party, during the launch of the new service. 

In addition to e-filing, Basic Courts in Subotica and Užice have cooperated extensively with EWMI. The two courts are among ten partner courts operating a very successful Backlog Reduction Program, which demonstrated the feasibility of the National Plan adopted by the Supreme Court this year.

Contract Law Textbook Released

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On April 16, 2014, EWMI and the National Center for Commercial Law (NCCL) at Free University held an event to publicly present a newly published, Georgian language, Contract Law Textbook. Georgia’s leading experts in contract law wrote the book over the course of the last year – under the editing direction and with the financial support of EWMI through the Judicial Independence and Legal Empowerment Project (JILEP). The book is designed to be used in the modern law school classroom. It not only provides law students with explanations of the core concepts of Georgian contract law, but the book is also structured in a way that teaches them how to analyze and solve problems. Each chapter of the book consists of a theoretical section, enriched by relevant practical examples. More than 100 people attended the book release event and the book signing that followed. Both EWMI-JILEP and the NCCL have made the book available online through their websites. EWMI will provide a number of hard copy versions to targeted law school libraries, public libraries, law firms, and relevant government institutions.

EWMI Raises Funds to Send Liberian Children Back to School

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PFL provides the children with counseling, mentoring, and recreation opportunities.

As part of EWMI’s Partner Legacy Support Program, EWMI provided a grant and organized a fundraising campaign for Prison Fellowship Liberia’s Break the Cycle program, which provides the needed funding for prisoners’ children to attend school each year. The program ensures that students do not interrupt their education when their parents’ are incarcerated and that they are given support and opportunities to steer them clear of the cycle of crime. By keeping children in the classroom and off the streets, these students can spend their year learning and avoid entering into crime themselves.

With support from donors, in the fall of 2013 PFL was able to send an additional 60 children to school, who otherwise would not been able to afford the cost of attendance. PFL was able to pay for school fees and provided them with uniforms, shoes, book bags, copy books, and pens so they can primary school and junior high school.

EWMI’S Work in Romania Cited as an Example for Future Reforms

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Every six months, the European Commission reports under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism on Bulgaria and Romania’s progress with judicial reform and the fight against corruption. In the Commission’s most recent report, released on January 22, 2014, EWMI’s work in Romania under the Court Optimization Project from 2011-2013 was highlighted as a successful model to test and replicate in other parts of the country.  The Commission invites Romania to continue addressing workload issues including case management, as cited in a EWMI study, and to pass the necessary legislative measures needed to restructure the court system. The Commission points to EWMI’s process for implementing new case management systems by piloting the project in a few courts before applying the program nationwide as an example to follow for the implementation of continued judicial system reforms.

Building the Next Generation of Professional Civil Society Leaders in Kyrgyzstan

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Professor Lester Salamon and members of the Association for Civil Society Support Centers in Kyrgyz Republic

Today the global civil society sector is widely recognized as a major economic force. In a national study carried out by the Kyrgyz national Statistical Committee, in conjunction with Johns Hopkins University and the United Nations Volunteers Program in the Kyrgyz Republic, 2.3% of GDP and 3% of the workforce in Kyrgyzstan is comprised of the civil society sector. Furthermore, the research indicates that Kyrgyz civil society organizations that are nationally funded derive 85% of their income from fees for services, contributing to the organizations’ sustainability. This demonstrates the establishment of the civil society sector as a significant source of potential in the country.  

The civil society sector can also serve as a collaborator and facilitator for the government in the provision of public goods and services. However making this partnership thrive requires joint will, a supportive policy and legal environment, and a sophisticated workforce that can manage the complex funding and operational management these organizational partnerships require. In an effort to strengthen the civil society sector in Kyrgyzstan by developing a workforce of professional leaders, East-West Management Institute (EWMI) assisted in establishing a consortium of Universities on Nonprofit Management spearheaded by Kyrgyz National University. The Consortium will work to improve existing nonprofit management (NPM) courses, establish new career-track courses, and enhance academic capabilities and resources for NPM studies in Kyrgyzstan. Ongoing collaboration with civil society leaders will also be critical to ensure that new courses meet real world needs.

In December 2013, 27 faculty members from 16 public and private Consortium member universities gathered to participate in the first in a series of professional development workshops facilitated by EWMI’s Kyrgyzstan Collaborative Governance Program (KCGP) and Johns Hopkins University’s (JHU) Center for Civil Society Studies. The workshop was the key activity during a five day field visit by Professor Lester Salamon and two other JHU experts who actively engaged faculty and students in discussions about global trends and innovation in NPM and NPM studies, and the favorable shift in perception about the economic and social value of the nonprofit sector. The JHU team offered various lectures on NPM to a total of 55 CSOs, 19 faculty members, and 139 students from Osh and Bishkek.

In conjunction with the official launching ceremony for the Consortium of Universities on NPM , Kyrgyz National University launched its Nonprofit Resource Center, supported by EWMI’s CGP. The Center will coordinate the Consortium’s activities and will provide online and other resources to advance NPM studies in the Kyrgy Republic. The JHU team also offered various lectures on NPM to a total of 55 CSOs, 19 faculty members, and 139 students from Osh and Bishkek.

An initial Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector and Nonprofit Management course should be ready for the classroom at a number of Kyrgyz universities by the fall of 2014. Universities in the Consortium will then have the option to develop additional courses on specific topics — such as nonprofit law, financial management, or advocacy — to be offered in subsequent semesters. As a result of EWMI’s work, within four years, core courses in nonprofit management should be offered as a minor track at Kyrgyz National University and ideally in at least two other locations throughout the country.

Their plan is ambitious, but the confluence of motivated faculty, supportive rectors, and a vibrant and receptive NGO community bode well for their anticipated successes.