The role of societal forces in the development process

Today, April 27, 2019, the Nation Building Movement held a dialogue session entitled “The Role of Societal Forces in the Development Process,” in the presence of a number of public figures and community activists in the political and economic sectors, and representatives of the private sector.

Independent societal forces in the history of modern Syria constitute the lever of change, and the dynamics of the relations between them and the successive authorities had the greatest impact on formulating public policies and creating political, social and economic balances. The spaces formed by these forces are considered a direct window to read the nature of the relations between them and the state, and they also shed light on the available possibilities to build a balance that provides stability. The vitality of relations is part of the vitality of society, and it is also a measure of the ability of the political environment to interact with the needs of society and the requirements of the stage. The problem within the current Syrian reality lies in the ability of societal forces and the spaces available to them to deal with development, which has become an urgent condition after years of war.

Reality also raises fundamental questions that deal with the nature of war: Are we facing a problem in setting the development vision? Do the current societal and political forces have priorities for the development process and are they capable of undertaking development tasks within a framework of partnership?

This question entails her vision of the current political environment; how do societal forces see the work spaces? Do they describe them? Do they have the capabilities to work according to alliances that reflect their understanding of this environment? From these questions, we can draw a deeper picture of the dynamics of societal forces and their spaces within Syrian society, and even start from specific points, as this workshop was built on two main pillars:

In the first session, the attendees discussed the most important problems in the subject of the collapse of societal structures, in addition to the reality of internal displacement and migration that led to the collapse of the structure of rural society, the inadequacy of previous societal organization frameworks to deal with the current reality, and the absence of a vision in dealing with this reality. Governmental treatments are presented in the same old way of thinking that is still based on the idea of ​​government support despite the lack of state resources and its inability to perform this role. Therefore, they are considered immediate and unsustainable treatments to fill the gaps. There is also a major legislative deficiency that has not been able to fill the gap. Even the laws issued at the beginning of the crisis did not have the desired effect.

They also pointed out that there is a great societal reluctance to participate due to the lack of trust, and opinions agreed that most of these problems are not transformations resulting from the crisis, but rather deep problems that existed before, as the biggest problem is the problem of “awareness and a crisis of concepts.”

In the second session, and within the framework of proposing solutions, the participants explained that there is a great need for development models based on the participation of local communities with the private sector, and a need for a social legal legislative system that attracts small and medium capital, and that to have real levers for development, and the formation of a lobby of independent civil forces, and agreements to reach sustainable strategic visions at the political and social levels, with a development framework that civil society contributes to create as a basic partner, and developing an organized plan or a complete map for this vision or at least its determinants, and new management of relations in society, whether productive or societal, and the right to participate in decision-making and shaping public opinion, and that there be a greater role for opinion leaders in creating a general culture based on volunteer work and partnership, as there is a real need to cooperate with the authorities to redirect development plans so that they are based on partnership and not just a simple reform of them.

It is noteworthy that this session comes within the context of the movement’s work program on the role of community forces in the development process, which is being approached on three levels:

• The local situation at the governorate level or more broadly at the regional level.
• The second path is at the level of organizations and parties.
• The third track that is being worked on today is the civil forces.