On February 16 and 17, representatives of the Regional Development Agencies (ARD) of Cajamarca, La Libertad, Piura and San Martin shared their experiences of inter-institutional coordination at the workshop “Regional Development Agencies. Strengthening territorial articulation”, held in the city of Trujillo, with the purpose of promoting inter-institutional articulation among the ARDs to strengthen the work and the fabric of public-private relations among the regions.

The delegation of Team Europe, composed of the representative of the Delegation of the European Union and the representative of the European Commission, took an active part in the workshop. European Union in Peru, the representative of the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation, technical advisors from the Governance area of the German development cooperation implemented by the GIZand representatives of the quadruple helix of the Regional Development Agencies (ARD) of Cajamarca, Piura, San Martin and La Libertad.

During the two-day workshop, ARD representatives from the above-mentioned regions exchanged experiences related to the mechanisms they have been applying for the articulation of the quadruple helix and learned about international experiences on sustainability strategies for Regional Development Agencies.

THE VOICE OF THE ARD

The coordinator of the Technical Secretariat of the ARD Cajamarca, Roberto Montero Palacios, said that their intervention is multidimensional, synchronized and designed to address complex problems in the value chains.

He also indicated that they establish coordination with the National Roundtables of value chains, access national programs and competitive funds. They also promote integrated water management as the basis for their economic development. “There is governance whenever there is respect for the rules with effectiveness and social acceptance,” he said.

Luis Ubaldo Cueva Jiménez, Deputy Manager of Investment Promotion of the Regional Government, stated that the ARD Piura promotes inter-institutional coordination to solve problems and has an operational manager who implements the proposed solution.

Regarding the action strategies developed by the ARD San Martin, the agency’s representative, Mitchel Guevara Encalada, said that they implement agendas, plans and strategies with the participation of actors through a national normative base. Likewise, they identify and sign agreements that arise from the Technical Tables.

Meanwhile, the ARD La Libertad leverages funds from various public, private and civil society institutions. The agency has six working groups: agroforestry and pastoralism, tourism and handicrafts, manufacturing, mining, prioritized projects, as well as works for taxes.

The representative of the ARD La Libertad, Melisa Donet Paredes, emphasized that the work they do is focused on the provinces of the highlands of La Libertad, seeking to generate a more dynamic economy and contributing to the closing of gaps.

PRESENTATIONS: SUSTAINABILITY AND TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT

During the first day of the workshop, Diego Dorado Hernández (Colombia), a specialist in social evaluation of projects, gave a presentation on “Inter-institutional coordination experiences and sustainability strategies.

During his presentation, he mentioned that articulation must be understood from the diversity of actors, committed to linking knowledge and work for development. He added that the common objective – focused on improving the quality of life of the population – is the driving force that unites the work of the various stakeholders and that science, technology and innovation activities should be decentralized and have a greater presence in rural areas.

He also expressed that it is important that the regions maintain a DNA that strengthens the union of territorial spaces and that civil society, exercising its right of vigilance, guarantees the continuation of the projects.

The workshop also included the participation of the former Minister of Development and Social Inclusion of Peru, Silvana Vargas Winstanley, who gave a presentation entitled “Coalitions for territorial development: moving from intention to transformation (ARD)”.

During his presentation, Vargas Winstanley indicated that the heterogeneity of territories must be recognized in order to achieve their development, which implies understanding the territory in the space we inhabit, in the field of resources produced, transformed and exchanged, the place where we establish links with others, the configuration of the power relations that are established. Furthermore, in the routes we travel, the normative frameworks that delimit it, the sense of belonging and the common stakes.

2ND DAY: VISIT TO THE ASSOCIATION PERLA DEL PARAÍSO AND CLOSING OF THE WORKSHOP

On the second day of the workshop, the representatives of the northern ARDs traveled to the district of Agallpampa to learn about the experience of public-private articulation for the development of the dairy value chain, promoted by the Perla del Paraíso Producers’ Association.

Abel Luis Cueva, president of the Perla del Paraíso Association, was the guide during the tour of the facilities, explaining to the workshop participants how the association is formed and what it does: “We are an association made up of 24 members who are basically dedicated to raising dairy cattle and processing the milk, in this case for dairy products: cheese, yogurt, yogurt, butter, and butter.

During the afternoon, workshop participants returned to Trujillo for closing activities. In these instances, ARD representatives met in groups by helix (private sector, public sector, academia and civil society) to reflect on the inter-institutional articulation experiences visited and the technical exchange carried out during the two days. To conclude, the participants signed a symbolic agreement that shows their commitment to the continuity of actions and the strengthening of the sustainability and territorial articulation of the ARDs.