In one year, the CORÉOM program—co-financed by the AFD and the Fondation de France—has supported the transition from a landscape of isolated initiatives to a collective dynamic. Under the coordination of La Guilde, the “conductor” of the program, regional cooperation stakeholders in the overseas territories are united on the same score: that of working together for the common good.
1. In one year, how far have you come?
When CORÉOM was launched, the field was already rich: associations, institutions, networks involved... but often each on their own. The program has made it possible to build bridges, to connect initiatives that are sometimes invisible to each other, and to offer them a common framework and visibility to provide consistency. “The approach chosen is not ‘come to us to be seen’; it is the program that reaches out to the territories.”
By bringing together different actors around the same table, CORÉOM invites a real sharing of experiences and visionsStructures that had never collaborated before discovered complementarities, paving the way for new cooperation. “The pieces of the puzzle were already there; within a year, the opportunities were generated for them to begin to come together.”
2. Why is the partnership dimension central? And what is the role of La Guilde?
The heart of the program is the multi-stakeholder cooperationEach partner – whether territorial networks, design offices, institutional or technical actors – plays a specific role in a coordinated whole. “The Guild has a conviction in serving the common good: the objective is to make it work for everyone.”
The Guild acts as a conductor : it ensures the balance between voices, the proper circulation of information and overall coherence. The partners, for their part, provide their knowledge of the field, their technical expertise and their local roots"We are expanding the table of international solidarity, while being careful not to take anyone's place: rather, we are adding additional chairs to invite new actors to sit down."
The deployment of the program in Mayotte in 2024 perfectly illustrates this spirit. The absence of a structured network dedicated to international solidarity could have hindered its implementation. On the contrary, it was chosen to adapt to local realities and to develop the intervention strategy, by mobilizing key actors in the territory. "In Mayotte, we adjusted the program's architecture by promoting what already exists and the richness of the multi-actor approach. Without this, we would have missed out on local energies that are crucial for the territorial anchoring of the program."
3. What lessons and challenges for the future?
The first lesson of this program, in terms of conduct, is the importance ofbe present on the groundUnderstanding local dynamics, meeting stakeholders, and listening to their needs cannot be done remotely or through one-off consultations. “Meeting people is not a slogan. It’s a method.”
Second lesson: financing alone is not enoughFor a project to succeed, it also requires relationships and human support: networking, engineering, sharing of experiences, spaces for dialogue. "Money sets things in motion; support strengthens and provides direction."
Third lesson: success comes through fairness and flexibilityAdapting devices to overseas specificities does not mean standardizing, but on the contrary allow everyone to play their own note in a harmonious whole. “The goal is not uniformity; it is harmony.”
The challenge of the coming months will be to maintain this collective dynamic over time, despite sometimes different rhythms and challenges. This requires clarifying roles, recognizing everyone's contributions and consolidating what has been learned. "CORÉOM is the illustration of the famous proverb "Alone, we go faster; together, we go further." It is a materialization of doing things together: each with their own instrument, but the same score to play music that carries further than us."