In fact, this has generated a strong tradition of social work and of initiatives based upon cultural identity. Both Protestant and Catholic churches have played an important role in this framework and it is not by chance that some of the main socio-cultural associations have a Christian background. Some of the formal school and educational structures also are basically influenced by the Catholic, Protestant or Liberal national coordination structures, as is the case in the Netherlands.

These cultural and religious identities are also reflected in the presence of many youth centres and in a tradition of cultural events that has recently been used positively for DE activities and festivals:
Belgium also has a colonial past in Africa which has influenced part of its development cooperation policy and which has brought many people from Congo/Zaire and other ex-French colonies to study and to work in the country. Manu Dibango, the `father' of African World Music, originally started to play alto saxophone while studying in Belgium.

The main objective of the NCOS national fundraising campaign is to reach as many people as possible and to urge them to support international solidarity projects promoted by Flemish N GOs. For instance, on the l 1 th of November 1992, NCOS volunteers distributed thousands of money bills from Third World countries to astonished Belgian citizens.
The 1992 sticker for NCOS' 11.11.11 campaign summarises many of the ideas behind it. A black hand (above) is giving money to a white hand (below). The message is very straight forward: "please stick it upside down! " Once done, one might get the point concisely: we face an unjust world order and we must turn the flow of money the other way around. The South is paying for our development. Let's start paying back before this very unbalanced development turns into a vicious circle.

The message is as shocking as in past campaigns, but with a big difference. The other 11.11.11 pro jects were always advertised with images of misery, hunger and death. This time, there are at least two major changes:

• In 1992 the shocking thing is the concept, not the image itself. Hunger and death are good in order to create that `guilty feeling' which in turn may result in `reaching for the pocket'. . . But does it have any educational impact? What kind of attitudes is it asking for? With the new advertising campaign the world turns upside down: all the charity money and the aid events do not change the fact that it is the South that is actually paying (in the real flow of money and resources) for the development of the North; of ourselves.
• This has a very concrete implication. Money is not enough! There must be a structural change, and the posters and stickers brilliantly suggest it. By challenging the more worrying individual ideas/ attitudes/actions, this campaign shows that there can he a deeper educational approach in broad, well- advertised fundraising campaigns.

CNCD is the other active national platform and it coordinates Wallonian NGDOs. French-speaking NGOs involved in DE have recently promoted a coordination group specifically meant for activities addressed to the Belgian public. They hold regular meetings in order to facilitate an agenda for action and to compare each other's activity.
Only a few initiatives are actually meant for all population groups and this is generally reflected in a great deal of diversification, reflected not only in the language but also the working methods of most Wallonian and Flemish NGOs.

The 'Students' Parliament' model nf long term simulation promoted by Jeugd en Derde Wereld (Youth and Third World) has been a successful example of a flexible activity in this field, and it has often been merged with other educational programmes. This is not the only case of an organisation that does not have a specific development cooperation background but which is able to design a very effective DE tool in this field. Other relevant examples come from organisations mainly working with children and the school system, such as Kinder Wereld Atelier (Children's World Workshop) and Cemuvo.
These have effectively combined simulati-on, story- telling, playing and other active educational techniques in activities that have originally been self-financed, and only more recently have had the opportunity to take advantage of the government DE budget through a coordinated national platform, namely the 'Co-program'.

Under the Flemish platform the different initiatives and working methods have been grouped into three main categories :
specialised information activities, which include

• reviews and publications - a field that sees NGOs as professional editors, a source of information for the media, and independent publishers with thousands of readers;
• audiovisual production;
• resource centres and information desks;
• new educational activity models which range from the formal school sector to adult education;
• basic educational work;
• joint initiatives, such as debt, food and environment campaigns, exhibitions, and alternative trade networks. Among other alternative trade campaigns Belgian NGOs have also recently introduced the selling and disseminating of information about Max Havelaar coffee, a first attempt to implement an outreaching alternative trade strategy.

In adult education, there is a general agreement that informative meetings have had their day, and there is a need for more active methods such as music, theatre and festival-like events which present cultural diversity in a rich and positive context. It is an issue that has stimulated creative responses by both trade union organizations and local and regional groups, such as those in Limburg who organise the `Coloured Culture' festival (an event that they share with their Dutch partner organisations).

Common issues of concern for both the Flemish and the Wallonian regions are:

• images and mass media, and the work on stereotypes;
• environment and development, and national actions on sustainable development;
• debt problems;
• the drugs trade;
• the international market and GATT negotiations;
• Africa and the democracy process in Zaire.