2. Assessment of implementation of Action activities

2.1. Activities and results

Please list all the activities in line with Annex 1 of the contract during the reporting period

Activity 1.

Surveying of returnee population

Topics/activities covered
During December 2006, RRS and Youth Council conducted survey in all targeted areas (Drvar, Glamoc, Bosansko Grahovo and Bosanski Petrovac). The total number of surveying people was 1000, as follow: Glamoc- 200, Grahovo- 200, Drvar - 400 and Bosanski Petrovac- 200. The statistic results and statistic preview was made by RRS and Youth Council, the results of the survey is part of this interim report as a separate document.
Reason for modification for the planned activity

Intention of this activity is to better knowledge, what citizens, mainly returnees thought about Agriculture cooperatives, their previous work, and their possibilities in future. Returnees have interest to participate in work of agriculture cooperatives or to become their external users of services.
Also RRS opinion was that returnees have no enough relevant information about principle of work in Agriculture cooperatives.

Results of this activity
In separate document ANNEX A, is possible to see detailed information of surveying people, results of survey per each target area. The most interesting answers are:

Activity 2:

Trainings for Agriculture Cooperatives members

Topics/activities covered
During first six months RRS has organized four trainings for members of Agriculture cooperatives. Please see short reports about each of the training as follow, in section Result of this activity.
Reason for modification for the planned activity
Management and members of boards has no enough capacities and experiences for new kind of work for Agriculture cooperatives. New kind of work is partnership with other Agriculture cooperatives, relationship with different level of authorities, making project proposals, managing of the project, cooperation with the citizens etc. Post war period changed a lot of things according organizational structure of Agriculture cooperatives as well as their normal daily work. The goal of trainings is to improve capacities crucial members of Agriculture cooperatives, capacity building of their management and Steering boards, as well as presentation of better structure for them.

Results of this activity
Please see short reports from four held trainings, with all necessary information, as well as trainer observation. The trainer reports are part of this report as ANNEX C.

First training "Organizational development"

Number of attendees: 14
Place: Bosanski Petrovac, Hotel No 9.
Date: 21 and 22 December 2006
Trainers: Zlatko Sarić and Eni Kurtović, Terca Mostar

Training objectives:

To gain necessary knowledge on the phases of the organisational development and the types of the Organisational constitution
To gain necessary knowledge on the importance of the procedures and ways of using them
Training themes:
Phases in organizational development
Different kinds of Steering boards
The role and responsibilities of Steering board
Book of regulations
The role of Executive director
Relationship between Executive director and Steering board and assessment of Executive director work
The internal procedures and their importance for the organisation
Process of creating Internal procedures

Training techinks
Presentation
Group disccussion
Work in groups
Presentation groups conclusions
Presentation cases from practice, other experiences

Trainer observation:

It is necessary to point that Agricultural cooperatives which are right now in a stage where they are in need on necessary knowledge on how to direct an organisational development attended this training. Most of the Cooperatives who have attended the training have so far functioned in a way of internal aggrements and lot less on the bases of the established procedures and rules. Just because of this reasons themes presented have been well accepted with all training participants. All treining participants, with special pointing of the members of Agrycultural cooperatives Bravsko near Bosanski Petrovac have shown that they have potential to be the bearers of the changes in their area where education, gaining of the knowledge and internal changes of the expiriences have invaluable importance.
Trainig itself is concepted in a way that all the participants can express themselves which they mostly did.
Second training “Writing project proposal”
Number of attendees : 15
Place: Bosanski Petrovac, Hotel No 9.
Date: 26 and 27 Januar 2007
Trainers: Zlatko Sarić and Enisa Maksumić, Terca Mostar
Training objectives:
Participants of the workshop will improve and upgrade their knowledge in the area of projects writting
Participants of the workshop will create at least two project proposal drafts

Training themes:

Foundation and philosophy on putting on the funds
Project proposal structure
Defining of the problem statement
Targeting of goals
Methodology and plan of activities
Monitoring and indicators
Making budget for project
Summary, supporting documentation
Most often made mistakes in projects writing
Training evaluation

Training techinks

Presentation
Group disccussion
Work in groups
Presentation groups conclusions
Presentation cases from practice, other experiences

Trainer observation
There are two main problems the trainer has faced during the training. First one is insufficient period of time for processing this broad subject, so for that reason the basic approach has been chosen and it offered to the participants an insight into the project structure and ways of its writing. Of course because of the insufficient time period this training has to be seen as an introduction to further education of the participants. Second problem in the training is that most participants meet with the subject of project writing for the first time and the certain time was needed for the explaining of the basic concepts from this field. Satisfactory condition is that all participants were ready to give full contribution to the workshop where the extenuating circumstance was that the participants knew each other well which created relaxed and productive atmosphere. It is important to point that at the training ideas, which are going to be used in future for the projects proposal creations, crossed.

Third training “Strategic planing”
Number of attendes: 16
Place: Drvar, Hotel Bastašica
Date: 12 and13 March 2007
Trainers: Zlatko Sarić and Eni Kurtović, Terca Mostar
Trainings goals:

Participants of the workshop will improve and upgrade their knowledge on the strategic planing area
Participants of the workshop will through practical work pass all the phases on Strategic planing creation

Trainings themes:

Importance of Stategic planing
Elements of strategic planing
Targeting beneficiaries
Organization values
Creation of the Vision working version
Creation of the Mision working version
Analysis, SWOT and PEST
Goals tree, Strategic directions
Defining of the priorities (concrete goals)
Operative plans, Strategic budget
Strategic plan as a document

Training themes
Presentation
Group disccussion
Work in groups
Presentation groups conclusions
- Presentation cases from practice, other experiences
Trainer observation:
Topic itself has been marked by participants as one of the most important concerning their further future. As during workshop it has been worked on the concrete examples from their experiences, it was evident that there is not clear vision on what to do in a future and in what way to achieve better results. It is obvious that with most participants there are still wanderings when it comes to further destiny of their Agricultural cooperatives and in that context this training has offer them mechanisms on the ways of making it easy and usefull. Special benefit was attending of the Director of the Vrtoce Agricultural cooperative, the most sucesfull Agricultural cooperatives from the region, whose experiences have helped trainers in the clearer presenting of the strategic planing.

  Fourth training “Public advocacy”

Number of attendes: 17
Place: Drvar, Hotel Bastašica
Date: 26 and 27 April 2007
Trainers: Zlatko Sarić and Eni Kurtović, Terca Mostar
Training goals:
Participants of the workshop will improve and upgrade their knowledge on public advocacy
Participants of the workshop will through practical work be introduced to all the elements and phases of public advocacy

Training themes:

Importancy of Public advocacy
Elements of Public advocacy
Targeting problem (10x why)
Targeting of theme for Public advocacy
Targeting of goals for Public advocacy
Targeting partner and opponent
Techniks of Public advocacy (lobing)
The role of media in Public advocacy
Public asdvocacy as continualy process

Trainings themes
- Presentation
- Group disccussion
- Work in groups
- Presentation groups conclusions
- Presentation cases from practice, orther expiriences

Trainer observation:

It is interesting to notice that this topic induced gret interest among participants just because of the reason that through its processing and concrete excersises they have noticed the similarity with the situation in which their Agrcultural cooperatives are. A procesed example itself and on which the elements of campaign of the public advocacy has been introduced has come from their environment which enabled their greater and more concrete contribution to the training. It is important to note that there has been a certain disproportion in the level of previous knowledge among participants which has unabled trainers themselves, to some point, to get deeper into essence of the problems.

Activity 3.

Conference with Agriculture cooperatives

Topics/activities covered
Conference was held in Bosanski Petrovac, motelu No.9, at 20.12.2006. Attendees at conference were members from all five targeted Agriculture cooperatives, members of partner organizations, members of RRS, representatives from Agriculture Cooperative Vrtoce as a quest and Mayor of Bosanski Petrovac. Aim of holding these conferences is to gather agricultural cooperatives around of the idea of single presentation in the market and toward government institutions, regular assessment of and harmonizing of attitudes, as well as creation of plans for future actions.The total number of attendees were 18.
Reason for modification for the planned activity
The goal of this conference is presentation of project goals, planed activities, expected results of the project and presentation of time table for implementation project activities.

Results of this activity

Representatives of RRS and Mayor of the Bosanski Petrovac municipality opened the conference. The representatives of Terca have spoken on the activities connected to the trainings and time frame for the realization of the same. After the report the rest of the participants took part in the conference as well as representatives of “Vrtoce” Agricultural cooperative, who briefly have introduced the way of functioning of this Agricultural cooperative. Anyhow this Agricultural cooperative is the example of the successful Agricultural cooperatives, who has been before supported through different projects, and one of them was “ Obnova 99”, project financed by EC.

Activity 4.

Topics/activities covered
Reason for modification for the planned activity
Results of this activity

During the first half of the March, the RRS representatives have visited all the cooperatives where through the meetings we evaluated that beside the problems of coming to the meetings because there was no vehicle, representatives of the cooperatives have problem regarding gathering biger number of the members and shortage in regular means for undisturbed work (shortage of computer equipment, offices, internet etc.)
RRS based on the concluded has donated one computer to Agricultural cooperative «Bravsko», with aim of opening an office in order to atract as much as they can members and create the ground conditions for the work of the cooperative.

Activity 5.

Establishing and working of cordinating board

Topics/activities covered
Coordination board for Agriculture cooperatives was established at the conference from the begining of the project, December 2006.

Reason for modification for the planned activity
Coordinating board is a operational body whose task to implement decisions made, to present conclusions in the public and toward the government institutions, and to do all the above through regular monthly meetings and other field activities. Members of the Coordinating board and founders, at the same time, are representatives of Agriculture cooperatives.
The task of the Coordinating board is establishing a better cooperation with the government institutions, business sector, as well as, to promoting an idea and purpose of agricultural cooperatives.

Results of this activity
Establishing of Agriculture Cooperative coordinating board was at the first Conference held in December 2006 in Bosanski Petrovac. The coordinating board have five members, one from each Agriculture cooperative. RRS is in continually contact with coordinating board. Now coordinating board is operational unformal body who have clear picture about their scope of work.

Activity 6.

Creating of strtaegy for join Marketing presentation

Topics/activities covered
Non-existence of the strategy of marketing presentation for the agricultural cooperatives has showed as one of the main obstacles to their further development. Document who is in process of the creating, should be a basis for implementation of all activities in regard to further marketing presentation, designing of approach to potential customer, detecting of basis production directions and product promotion.

Reason for modification for the planned activity
Problems of all the five agricultural cooperatives, despite their specific characteristics, have actually been of the same nature. Therefore, creation of the strategic plan for joint marketing presentation as a document where the agricultural cooperatives involved in the project will clearly express directions for further actions has truly showed as a high necessity. Majority of duties on creation of the Strategic plan isl take over the Coordinating Board of the agricultural cooperatives, while for duties of coordination and logistics is in charging the project implementer, RRS.
In creation of the Strategy RRS engaged a consultant from this field to ensure a comprehensive analysis and finding of optimal solutions for successful presentation of the Agriculture Cooperatives. Terca provide fully support in this activity.
Results of this activity
Process about creating marketing strategy is ongoing. The marketing strategy will be finished in planed time, with no problems.
Important activity about marketing strategy will be presentation at the conferenece in June, before deadline for final modification.

2.2. Please list all contracts (works, supplies, services) above 5000€ awarded for the implementation of the action during the reporting period, giving for each contract the amount, the award procedure followed and the name of the contractor.

In December 2006. RRS bought computer and printer in accordance with BiH law and EC rules. RRS get the offer of East code from Banja Luka, the prize for computer were 1947, 35 KM

2.3. Please provide an updated action plan

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