Mixing theory and practice
The training programmes embrace both theoretical and practical aspects. The latter consist of study visits to Swedish government agencies and municipalities. One entry requirement to the programmes is that the participants bring a project geared towards change with them at the initiation of the programme. During the year that the programmes last, participants are to work actively with their projects with the support of advisors in Sweden. Yet another aim of the programmes, fulfilled by mixing theoretical and practical aspects, is to make use of the participants’ experiences.
The training programmes highlight relevant and pressing issues in local democratic discourse. The duration of the programmes is one year, divided into 3-5 phases. The participants spend approximately 4 weeks in Sweden and one week of the total duration of the programme is spent in one of the participants’ countries.
During their stay in Sweden the participants will meet a variety of actors. Some will be the lecturers they meet during the theoretical parts of the programme; others will be the actors they meet while on study visits. Previous international training programmes have shown that these meetings can lead to both institutional and commercial forms of cooperation. Furthermore experiences from previous programmes have shown that it is not only the participants in the training programmes who benefit. The Swedish participants too stand to gain from the international training programmes since the meeting with the participants from the developing countries has led to renewed interest in municipal partnerships as well as increased commitment for international development cooperation in general.
