A new promising partnership between ALDA and IRDP

Partnerships are stronger than the distance!

On Monday, December 13^th, 2021, a very special event took place, sealing a new valuable partnership between ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy and IRDP – Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace.

The event, livestreamed on ALDA’s Facebook page, involved ALDA Secretary General, Antonella Valmorbida and the Director of IRDP, Eric Ndushabandi, engaged in a dialogue moderated by Afaf Zaddem, Delegate of the Local Democracy Agency Tunisia, culminated with the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two Organisations.

After setting the framework for the event, Ms Valmorbida described ALDA’s actions and strategy for the African continent, having the Associations a growing number of partners and projects active in the region. Afterwards, Ms Valmorbida retraced the history of ALDA’s relations with IRDP, which goes back to July 2021, when Antonella Valmorbida was invited by the International Association of Francophone Mayors to attend their General Assembly in Kigali, Rwanda.

There, she had the pleasure the meet Mr Ndushabandi and a fruitful exchange had started, in light of the many characteristics which are shared by ALDA and IRDP in terms of values, mission and common goals, this event wanted to materialise the already existing cooperation with a Memorandum of Undestanding.

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Let’s partner: ALDA and IRDP e-signed the Memorandum of Understanding

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The event was also important to introduce IRDP to the whole network of ALDA. As described by its Director Mr Ndushabandi, IRDP is an organisation based in Kigali, Rwanda, initiated in 2001 as an Institute to contribute to peacebuilding efforts in the aftermath of the 1994’s Genocide against Tutsi. IRDP is an independent and neutral space where critical and sensitive issues challenging peace are debated with a participatory approach in order to influence positive behaviour change at the community and national levels.

As stated in the partnership’s convention, ALDA and IRDP agreed to “work together in the future and join their efforts to achieve complementary results in the shared geographical areas of intervention”, working on common themes, such as:

• support local democracy and citizen participation;
• support civil society empowerment;
• support media and freedom of expression;
• support to displaced people and refugees;
• integration of minorities.

If you wish to get to know better ALDA and IRDP and learn more about the terms of the partnership agreement, watch again the event, available at this link!

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