Please describe the Spanish contribution and experience within the World Bank Project.

Irene Zurborn: The Global Development Learning Network (GDLN) is a World Bank initiative to promote knowledge-sharing in the belief that know-how is a key success factor to development. GDLN is a global partnership of learning centres that offer the use of advanced information and communication technologies to connect people working in development around the world in a timely and cost-effective manner.

CEDDET, the Spanish affiliate integrated into the Latin American and Caribbean region, has - together with public and private organizations - developed a wide range of online training programmes targeted at managers and highly qualified technicians in the public service. In the past four years, CEDDET has trained over 3,000 professionals in the region. It is important to underline that CEDDET courses are intensive in teachers and tutors (maximum 30 participants per edition) and are taught by experts (not academics) who have practical experience in various areas of public administration.

What has been the special part and adventure of eLearning in this project?

Irene Zurborn: The GDLN project was initially conceived as a partnership of centres offering videoconferencing facilities to enable experts all around the world to share their experiences and discuss issues related to development. These conferences - known as "Global Dialogues" - proved to be very effective in all the regions for the sharing of knowledge.

Along with videoconferencing, in 2002 CEDDET introduced eLearning courses as a more systematic tool to share knowledge. The courses, with a duration of between four and fourteen weeks, were designed to link computer and telecom networks as well as tap into users' knowledge in public organizations of the Latin American and Caribbean region. CEDDET courses are focused on the quality of the contents and the expertise of the teachers rather than on sophisticated technologies. The target group for these courses proved to be very enthusiastic about the training offer and demand has risen from 200 candidates in 2002 to more than 3,500 in 2005.

Additionally, through this project CEDDET has introduced eLearning to many Spanish and multilateral institutions that were already training Latin American professionals through training programs, internships, and face-to-face courses (nearly 200 experts have been trained in online teaching in the past four years).


All institutions are now reediting the online courses and some of them have combined virtual training with face-to-face workshops, which has proved to be a very effective training mix.

Which sustainable effect can be assessed?


Irene Zurborn: Up to now, we have started three virtual expert networks open to the alumni of the courses; these are related to the areas of fiscal policies, cadastre management, and promotion of international commerce and investments. At present we are working on other five virtual communities for professionals working in the areas of public administration, human resources management, quality assessment, renewable energies, and tourism.

This project, called RED de EXPERTOS IBEROAMERICANOS (REI), has been developed in order to support Latin American professionals in their networking activities and to provide non-formal but sustainable long-term training. It is a joint effort among the Spanish and multilateral institutions that provide the experts and know-how for the online courses, Fundación Telefónica, the technological partner, and CEDDET.

The different networks have a common web space with standard eLearning tools (forum, chat, mail box, documentation centres, search engines, etc.) where the members can share documentation and practical cases, keep in contact, and continue working together. The virtual network programme is a huge challenge, but CEDDET is convinced that these expert communities are crucial to generate synergies in knowledge-sharing and, therefore, to promote economic and social development.