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to M&E, adequately using the results in contemporary or subsequent communication and awareness activities. In particular, the impact of implemented activities on
the well-being of the people and the effectiveness of mainstreaming processes must
undergo periodic monitoring and evaluation with a view to: identifying barriers to
addressing drylands issues and building on good practices in order to upscale and
replicate (UNDP 2008).
Evaluation of the mainstreaming process can be carried out concomitantly with
evaluation of the development programmes, projects, or initiatives. It should focus
also on the impacts risen from implementing the mainstreamed programmes.
However, how to link M&E with communication and awareness raising strategies?
Successful mainstreaming includes citizen participation by ensuring that they
have sufficient knowledge about drylands issues and they are informed about the
policy or plan being developed. Unfortunately, many factors act as barriers to communication, including the diversity of languages and dialects, the liberalization of
the media, and poor infrastructure. For these reasons, a well-planned communication strategy is crucial. The strategy should pervade all processes in an iterative
manner. Most importantly, it should target the stakeholders that were prioritized
during stakeholder analysis. A key element for successful communication strategies
is advocacy. That aims to bring to the forefront country-specific evidence needed to
convince skeptical policy makers, economists, and planners of the need for drylands
mainstreaming.
Some Experiences in Mexico and Latin American Countries
Throughout all Central and South America, there are numerous contexts of drylands
where the opportunity of cross-cutting analysis and of strategic/operational
approaches of EM emerges clearly. The areas of work or phases, which the method
is applicable to, are many: national or local strategic planning, capacity building,
project planning, targeted technological applications, project financing, collection
and analysis of data for monitoring, and evaluation at national or local level.
In theme of planning, we can recall the case of the EM approach adopted by
CONABIO (Mexican Biodiversity National Commission) and other public dependencies such as SAGARPA (the Mexican ministry for agriculture) in Mexico. An
example can be the project implemented by GIZ on mainstreaming biodiversity into
the Mexican agricultural sector. This project aims to recognize and integrate the
value of biodiversity and ecosystem services into decision-making and planning
instruments of public and private key actors in the Mexican agricultural sector (IKI
Alliance México 2018).
With a variety of actors involved, starting from international and national organizations, sustainable land use practices are going to be tested and integrated into
selected agricultural production systems and value chains for the period 2018–2021.
The same practices will be embedded in public policies and in practical experiences
in selected states with the purpose of up-scaling these experiences to governing and
M. Zortea and S. Lucatello
to M&E, adequately using the results in contemporary or subsequent communication and awareness activities. In particular, the impact of implemented activities on
the well-being of the people and the effectiveness of mainstreaming processes must
undergo periodic monitoring and evaluation with a view to: identifying barriers to
addressing drylands issues and building on good practices in order to upscale and
replicate (UNDP 2008).
Evaluation of the mainstreaming process can be carried out concomitantly with
evaluation of the development programmes, projects, or initiatives. It should focus
also on the impacts risen from implementing the mainstreamed programmes.
However, how to link M&E with communication and awareness raising strategies?
Successful mainstreaming includes citizen participation by ensuring that they
have sufficient knowledge about drylands issues and they are informed about the
policy or plan being developed. Unfortunately, many factors act as barriers to communication, including the diversity of languages and dialects, the liberalization of
the media, and poor infrastructure. For these reasons, a well-planned communication strategy is crucial. The strategy should pervade all processes in an iterative
manner. Most importantly, it should target the stakeholders that were prioritized
during stakeholder analysis. A key element for successful communication strategies
is advocacy. That aims to bring to the forefront country-specific evidence needed to
convince skeptical policy makers, economists, and planners of the need for drylands
mainstreaming.
Some Experiences in Mexico and Latin American Countries
Throughout all Central and South America, there are numerous contexts of drylands
where the opportunity of cross-cutting analysis and of strategic/operational
approaches of EM emerges clearly. The areas of work or phases, which the method
is applicable to, are many: national or local strategic planning, capacity building,
project planning, targeted technological applications, project financing, collection
and analysis of data for monitoring, and evaluation at national or local level.
In theme of planning, we can recall the case of the EM approach adopted by
CONABIO (Mexican Biodiversity National Commission) and other public dependencies such as SAGARPA (the Mexican ministry for agriculture) in Mexico. An
example can be the project implemented by GIZ on mainstreaming biodiversity into
the Mexican agricultural sector. This project aims to recognize and integrate the
value of biodiversity and ecosystem services into decision-making and planning
instruments of public and private key actors in the Mexican agricultural sector (IKI
Alliance México 2018).
With a variety of actors involved, starting from international and national organizations, sustainable land use practices are going to be tested and integrated into
selected agricultural production systems and value chains for the period 2018–2021.
The same practices will be embedded in public policies and in practical experiences
in selected states with the purpose of up-scaling these experiences to governing and
M. Zortea and S. Lucatello