On 14^th and 15^th June 2010, the Deputy Director General of DGIS, Mr. Andre Haspels, visited SNV’s programme in Northern Zambia to see domestic accountability in action. He was accompanied by the Netherlands Ambassador to Zambia, Mr. Harry Molenaar, First Secretary, Mr. Peter de Haan, Ms Deneke Myers from DGIS, SNV Zambia Country Director, Mrs Jennifer Willis and SNV Portfolio Co-ordinator, Mrs Sara Mbago.

The group learned how, with SNV support, head teachers, schools, parent-teachers associations, pupils and communities are working together to improve the quality of basic education service delivery through self evaluation, score cards and budget tracking. Mr. Haspels was impressed with the ways empowered citizens can solve local problems when they work together and how a collective voice speaks louder in demanding better service delivery.

Another dimension of the visit showed SNV value chain development in action. A local rice producer’s association, rice processor and a social enterprise milling nutritional porridge told their own stories about their journey with SNV and how this has empowered them to access markets, enter the money economy, grow their businesses and demand better service from government.

On departure from the brand new Kasama Airport, the Mr. Haspels expressed his appreciation of SNV’s work in the field; “I now understand how SNV operates”.  Overall, the visit was a great success with positive feedback on SNV’s approaches and appreciation of the challenges faced in strengthening service delivery.