PRESENTATION

“Development and technology enjoy an uneasy relationship: within development circles there is a suspicion that technology-boosters are all too often people who promote expensive and inappropriate solutions without taking into account development realities. Indeed, the belief that there is a technological silver bullet that can ‘solve’ illiteracy, bad conditions of health or economic failure reflects a superficial knowledge of the reality of poverty. However, if the co-operative communities overlook the explosion of technological innovations in food, medicine and information, they risk marginalizing themselves and denying developing countries opportunities that, if carefully examined, could transform the lives of poor people and offer new development opportunities to poor countries.” (UNDP 2001 Human Development Report). UNDP refers here to technological innovation; it is clear, however, that the same concept could be applied to other forms of innovation, especially in social and economic practices. There is little systematic recourse to innovation in development circles, but innovative practices could contribute significantly to the pursuit of development objectives.

With this idea in mind, ILO/Universitas, UNDP/APPI and UNDP/IFAD/UNOPS, as part of their international programmes in human development and the fight against poverty, have decided to launch an Initiative to promote the exchange of innovations through south-south cooperation projects. IDEASS is founded on the pledges of the major world summits of the 1990s and of the General Assembly of the Millennium, which give priority to cooperation among southern actors, with the support of industrialized countries.

The initiative aims to identify and promote, at international level, innovations (and experiences) that have contributed to human development, valorised environmental resources and reduced exclusion, unemployment and poverty. In order to share and disseminate these innovations (and experiences) IDEASS supports specific projects in south-south cooperation, with the technical and financial support of actors in international and decentralised cooperation.

In the pursuit of these aims, IDEASS has involved local authorities engaged in decentralised cooperation projects within human development programmes. Local institutions have identified innovations that contribute to the development of their territories, fine-tuning the technology as well as their methodologies of intervention. IDEASS again supports specific projects in south-south-north cooperation, with the technical and financial support of actors in decentralised cooperation.

IDEASS has an international dimension, as a corollary to the activities that the promoting programmes carry out in the countries. An International Secretariat is flanked by National Secretariats in each participant country.

The International Secretariat is based in Rome, in the offices of UNDP/UNOPS, and in Geneva, at the ILO Social Protection Sector.