MICI Met Recently with CSO Representatives and Academics.
MICI Director, Victoria Marquez-Mees, and staff held a half-day meeting with a group of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) Representatives and Academics on April 11, 2016 to brief them on its work and consult them on several initiatives. Participants included representatives of leading accountability CSOs from Latin America and Washington, as well as several academics that specialize on accountability issues. Representatives from the following organizations, among others, participated: Latin America ( FUNDEPS/Argentina, DAR/Peru ), United States ( Accountability Counsel, Center for International Environmental Law, American University ). See complete list below *.
The meeting began with lunch and had a two part agenda. The first part comprised an update and briefing on various components of MICI’s work. This included: introducing new MICI staff; providing an update on recent complaint cases in the region; informing that MICI has just expanded its accountability mandate by taking responsibility for receiving complaints on private sector operations financed by the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC); and exploring ways MICI can collaborate with CSOs to organize civil society outreach events in Latin America and the Caribbean. The second part of the agenda was used to dialogue with CSOs on the recently published Glass Half Full Report which assesses the characteristics and effectiveness of 11 Independent Accountability Mechanisms (IAMs), including MICI. MICI also consulted the participants on a draft proposal to establish an external and multi-stakeholder consultative group which would provide MICI with ongoing advice and analysis on accountability issues in the region.
Participants seemed pleased with the meeting structure and substantive and frank nature of the discussions. MICI hopes to make these briefing and consultation meetings with CSO representatives and academics a regular feature of its outreach efforts.
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* Accountability Counsel, American University, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), DAR / Peru, FUNDEPS / Argentina, Indian Law Resource Center, International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Oxfam America