Within the framework of the Tava Apo Program, promoted by the Alma Cívica organization, the first Meeting of Councilors was held. It was in the city of Encarnación on July 2 and 3 with the participation of members of different municipal boards of the country.
Members of the Municipal Boards of Itapúa, Capital, Central, Ñeembucú, Paraguarí, Alto Paraná, Amambay, Boquerón, Caazapá, Cordillera, Misiones, San Pedro, Presidente Hayes and Canindeyú participated in the meeting.
The councilman of Encarnación, Keiji Ishibashi, gave a motivational talk on “Being a leader in my city” thus sharing with his colleagues the Plan Encarnación + (more), which encompasses innovations in planning, urbanism and comprehensive transportation. The exhibition served as great inspiration and learning for the councilors present who wish to implement the plan in their cities.
“I want to highlight the importance of this citizen training space, especially for the authorities that have been elected, because it allows us to know and manage the necessary tools to face the different difficulties that are found in each community,” said Gustavo Godoy, councilor of Karapai .
During the day, a theoretical and practical workshop on Territorial Urban Planning Plan (POUT) was developed, led by the Environmental Engineer Montserrat Ferreira; taking into account that the territorial urban planning plans allow the development of public policies for the construction of the territory with a global vision in the short, medium and long term.
In addition, different participatory dynamics were developed where the councilors were able to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of their districts as a basis for strategic planning.
As the last dynamic of the workshop, a role play was carried out where each group of councilors had to represent the different actors of society when they face some significant change in terms of urban development, in this case, the construction of a complex urban within a public domain space. The participants represented environmental activists, business groups, neighbors and, finally, councillors. With this they had the opportunity to understand the importance of stakeholder mapping as an essential process to develop new projects.
To end the meeting, the Executive Director of Alma Cívica, Olga Caballero, shared with the participants the main objectives of this initiative. One of them is that the councilors manage to acquire technical knowledge about the methodology of the Territorial Urban Planning Plan (POUT) to continue learning and feel inspired to apply it in their cities.
Likewise, the objective is to create a meeting space to work between colleagues from different cities and various political parties, placing the common good above all else, supporting each other to strengthen their own leadership, collective intelligence and community learning to be agile public servants. and effective.
About Tava Apo
Tava Apo is part of one of the initiatives of the Political and Political Leadership School, promoted by Alma Cívica. It has two projects, one aimed at training community leaders, active citizens in the development of their cities and neighborhoods, with a high interest in getting involved in the public sector from the council or other spaces in the future; and another aimed at political leaders, specifically elected councilors so that they acquire the necessary information to better understand the needs of their cities, and also have the opportunity to have vital tools to work and defend the rights of their city and its inhabitants.
About Civic Soul
It is a support, promotion and collaboration platform that fosters a network of ethical, talented and effective citizens who contribute to the development of their localities and to democracy in our society.
