Evaluation of the Southern and Eastern Africa Regional Centre for ...

495 Conclusions and RecommendationsConclusionA solid and even innovative Master’s programme has been created by SEARCWLand through its regional collaboration. We cannot overstate that in difficult andtrying circumstances SEARCWL and its leadership have provided both excellentsteering and also an exemplary level of dedication to its students and in strengtheningwoman and the law as an academic discipline. The predictable funding and indeedloyal support from RNE, as well as other partners in Norway, notably UiO, in ahighly volatile political and economic situation, has also contributed to makingSEARCWL an asset not only for Zimbabwe but also for the region as a whole.Findings show that a fine tuned methodological approach has been developed thatfocuses upon the uneven power relations between men and women. This approachhas been transferred from the course and into graduates own thinking and actions.Key findings are that in terms of impact, this is therefore most notable at theindividual level, especially with much greater career mobility. Though institutionalimpact is harder to achieve through an education-based intervention alone, there arenonetheless ‘spaces’ where graduates have contributed to impacts upon the politicaland legal landscape.The report finds that the Centre has been very creative in terms of meetingchallenges in day to day organisation and even survival. Certainly, conceived aseducational and academic, it is very apparent that this is where considerable effortand energy has been placed by SEARCWL staff and rightly so. However, there isscope for greater impact by harnessing the considerable resources the Centre has atits disposal. Room for improvement concerns closing the gap between assumptionsabout graduates and what more that is required for greater likelihood of impact.There is very little discussion of developmental impact or sustainability inprogramme documentation. In particular, though the justification for the regionalmodel was primarily to sustain Norwegian funding, the over-all rationale requiresgreater insight. Perhaps this omission explains why there has been relatively littleresearch and impact at a regional level outside of course related publications andteaching. Creating a cadre of approximately 195 graduates is, nonetheless, a majorcontribution to improving the legal and social status of women in the region.Perhaps one of the biggest assumptions remains, however, that the cadre ofpredominantly middle income men and women graduates will interact differentlywith and in a manner more pro-active for the marginalised sectors of society.Though there is no guarantee, the findings do show the indirect impact of morebeneficial interactions through the kinds of important legal and policy changes anddecision-making documented.