The MASMUT programme conducted by the Christian Mutual Society, the Solidaris Mutual Society and Free Mutual Society of the Little Kingdom (Mutualité Chrétienne, la Mutualité Solidaris et la Mutualité Libre du Petit Royaume) will come to an end in December 2016. On the occasion of the AIM meetings, the three promoters presented an account of this programme which will have lasted two and a half years.
Launched in 2014 with the support of the Belgian Development Cooperation (Coopération belge au Développement), MASMUT’s aims were to reinforce the institutional, technical, thematic and political capabilities of the mutual societies of Burundi, Congo, of four of the eight countries comprising the West African Economic and Monetary Union (Union Économique et Monétaire Ouest-Africaine) (Burkina Faso, Senegal, Mali, Togo) and the entire West African Economic and Monetary Union area (UEMOA).
The platforms representing existing mutual society movements have been reinforced whilst others have been created. Collaborations with different social security structures have been initiated in order to consolidate the mutual society network. A MASMUT-UEMOA coordinator charged with a double mission (to know and to contribute to the mutual society structuration on a national level and to reinforce the mutual society issue in regional and global debate) has thus began his function.
On the plan on technical capability, certified training in mutual society governance has been organised in partnership with the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-En-Yvelines, in Bukina Faso, Burundi, Senegal, Togo and Benin. Combining mutual society experts from the north and the south, all training has been adapted to the national context and to the specific needs of the partners.
Other initiatives to reinforce the capabilities of the platforms on the subject of universal health cover have been implemented: participation in workshops and seminars, development of arguments and launch of two research studies, one for “West Africa” (Togo, Benin) and the other for “Central Africa” (Congo).
The programme conducted activities on the subject of advocating policy and communication: mutual society days, participation in institutional events (national consultation frameworks,…), training journalists or reinforcement of advocating the UEMOA.
Finally, the programme organised or co-organised regional-scale events, such as the Abidjan conference on the perspectives of the African mutual society movement within the context of universal health coveage or the sub-regional workshop on applying UEMOA regulation to social mutual societies.
The action of Belgian mutual societies towards their partners will be of course continued via the programmes of the NGOs, Solidarité Mondiale, Solidarité Socialiste, Louvain Coopération and the “MASMUT synergy” is resumed in these.
