Community Participation Methods
Community Participation Methods
Community Participation Methods
SCHOOL OF
POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
Program:
Masters in Project planning &
Management
Course unit: Community Participation
Methods - Module 1
Module objectives
Community participation is
simply a presence, with
people's representatives on
official boards who are
unelected and have no
power.
2. Passive participation (Compliance):
Communities participate by being
told what has been decided or
already happened. Involves unilateral
announcements by an administration
or project management without
listening to people's responses. The
information belongs only to external
professionals.
3. Participation by consultation:
Communities participate by being
consulted or by answering questions.
External agents define problems &
information gathering processes, and so
control analysis. Such a consultative
process does not concede any share in
decision-making, & professionals are
under no obligation to take on board
people's views.
4. Participation for material incentives:
Communities participate by
contributing resources such as
labour, in return for material
incentives (e.g. food, cash). It is very
common to see this called
participation, yet people have no
stake in prolonging practices when
the incentives end.
5. Functional participation (Cooperation)
Community participation is seen by
external agencies as a means to achieve
project goals. People participate by
forming groups to meet predetermined
project objectives; they may be involved
in decision making, but only after major
decisions have already been made by
external agents.
6. Interactive participation (Co-learning)
People participate in joint analysis, development of
action plans and formation or strengthening of local
institutions. Participation is seen as a right, not just
the means to achieve project goals. The process
involves interdisciplinary methodologies that seek
multiple perspectives and make use of systemic and
structured learning processes. As groups take
control over local decisions and determine how
available resources are used, so they have a stake in
maintaining structures or practices.
7. Self -mobilization (Collective action):
People participate by taking initiatives
independently of external institutions to
change systems. They develop contacts with
external institutions for resources & technical
advice they need, but retain control over how
resources are used. Self-mobilization can
spread if governments & NGOs provide an
enabling framework of support. Such self-
initiated mobilization may or may not
challenge existing distributions of wealth and
power.
How community participation works
The importance of community participation in
planning, problem solving and policy making?