There is no doubt that achieving the MDGs calls for extraordinary effort. The business as-usual approach will simply not do. To meet the challenges we need to come up with new and creative solutions and we need to identify solutions that have high impact and are measurable. “Partnering for development” is one of the solutions which could help to gain and maintain the necessary momentum required to meet the goals. Pooling our resources, creativity and skills may enable us to reach better solutions. For decades the international community has tried to improve the lives of people in developing countries. Sometimes it has been successful and at other times not. We have now reached the stage where good intentions and optimism have to be replaced by a development process which can bring about radical results – both qualitatively and quantitatively. More than 1.1 billion people survive on less than $1 a day, and more than half of the world living on less than $2 a day. In most cases people are deprived access to energy, water, health or services, and they are left in a situation where they cannot do anything about it themselves.

Strategic alliances between business, government and civil society are a growing feature of both developed and emerging economies. Such multi-stakeholder partnerships are necessary because it is increasingly clear that no one sector in society can deliver the complexities of sustainable development alone. In recent years, the term “multi-stakeholder partnership” (MSP) has gained much currency in development circles, trouncing the popularity of PPP (Public-Private Partnerships). MSPs are about partnerships that are greater than the sum of its parts and about creating lasting and meaningful impact at all levels of action. They are meant to promote a more holistic approach to development and better governance. The concept of MSP as an instrument for achieving development goals is sound, particularly when stakeholders with unique complementary strengths or core competencies add value to development efforts and pool their resources and assets in solving problems. Open Forum, believes on this MSP approach, and carries forward all its activities and programmes under their Partnership & Networking Activities. The central challenge seems to revolve around the nurturing of a working relationship based on trust, mutual respect, open communication, and understanding among stakeholders about each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Stakeholders from each sector bring their own organizational mandates, interests, competencies and weaknesses to partnerships. We at Open Forum believe, without open acknowledgement of these factors, and without processes in place to facilitate negotiations among stakeholders for optimal outcomes, effective MSPs will not emerge which can definitely be a factor for achieving all round social development.

Creating Effective Partnerships
Partners have different research strengths. Those located in developing countries have a much better understanding of in-country situations and local policy concerns, and much higher capacity to do in-country research. Organizations like Open Forum are better placed to connect debates about the international dimensions of development and to stimulate and support comparative studies across different national contexts. But the long-term aim should be to help organizations from developing countries toward that position of relative privilege.

Effective partnerships are meant to be challenging. The understanding and trust that they embody require mutual engagement and a certain degree of tension and conflict. Open Forum has increased its impact on Grassroots Development activities by collaborating with other CBOs, NGOs, Civil Society Organizations, Media House, Institutions and Corporate Houses. We believe that partnerships are not an end in themselves, but an important means to fulfilling our mission. Open Forum pursues partnerships among equals, where more can be achieved together than either party could accomplish alone. We at Open Forum have put considerable effort into making successful partnership models and experimenting with new ones. Under this initiative Open Forum has learned to work together and learn from each other.

Open Forum promotes and establishes state level networks for more impact and coherence in dealing with development issues. We enable voluntary groups in each state to come together to identify common causes and to work together to address them. Open Forum's recent project in this area is its creation of Development Directory (DevDir) for India, list of development organizations and individuals throughout nation. Through this on-line initiative we aim to strengthen intellectual level of civil society efforts to improve the quality of life of the poor and help in achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Open Forum fits into the overall design of the programme by promoting value-based voluntarism for the thematic areas of MDGs and Social development. We believe in building networks of voluntary organisations in order to promote a favorable environment for development organizations that work with the poor and marginalized. DevDir aims to build broad-based networks of civil society organizations and individuals in India. Objectives of this recent initiative are limited to three points:

•	Strengthening state-level networking process to build an enabling environment for the voluntary sector in state-specific political situations;
•	Influencing development goals in favour of the priority communities by dialoguing with development agencies;
•	Improving governance of voluntary organisations for greater accountability and credibility;
•	Creating an enabling environment and build favourable conditions for the voluntary sector.

Future activities includes appointing a fulltime state coordinator for each state to facilitate the process of network formation, capacity building, linkages, and information sharing with DevDir partners. This direct intervention is needed to avoid local dynamics which usually creates obstacles in the formation of networks. This programme will bring together a sizable number of Development Organisations (VOs) under a common platform and the development initiatives will go beyond their individual programmes by involving more organisations interested in strengthening the cause of voluntarism and evolve into a larger identity of civil society in the respective states.

Steps in Building the State-Level Networks:

•	Taking up a common issue for each state to bring VOs on a common platform;
•	Bringing together Development Organisations and other strategic organisations through thematic workshops/seminars;
•	Formalising the networking process through drafting rules and procedures by constituent members;
•	Consulting members on a regular basis;
•	Building the capacity of members in terms of advocacy and governance.

Utilising its strength and reach as a national-level Programme, DevDir will facilitate sharing of experiences between Development Organisations and Individuals. In this manner, strong networks would inspire and influence others to do the same. DevDir Programme of Open Forum is committed to its mission and larger goal of influencing national level policy. It would tap into the strength of Development Organisations to influence policies like FCRA/FCMC bill, Income Tax law and the proposed national policy for the voluntary sector.