Santo Domingo – More than 40 national level CSOs gathered to hold a national consultation on “International Cooperation for Development in the Dominican Republic” last August 18 and 19. Organized by Alianza ONG, a Dominican CSO engaged in the issue of aid and development, together with IBON/Reality of Aid’s Country Outreach Program, the well-attended and media covered consultation put forward the following demands:
For the Dominican government to: “Recognize the potential of Dominican Republic for South-South cooperation as a strategic form of development cooperation, a concrete example of this cooperation is shown with Haiti, particularly in the process of reconstruction after the earthquake of January 2010.”
For the traditional Northern international cooperation to:
“Reaffirm the importance and necessity that developed countries should honor their commitment to provide 0.7% of GNP as development cooperation to the South”
And to both actors of development to: “Establish a permanent mechanism for dialogue between CSOs, international cooperation and Government, which would have positive implications in coordination and programming of development cooperation, as well as facilitate a step forward in the implementation of the principle on mutual responsibility of the Paris Declaration.”