Community Action for
Development
Dr. C. Krishna Mohan Rao, Ph.D
Centre Head, Research &Training
AMR-APARD
Community Action for
Development
What is community
 What is development
 What is community action
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Community
What comes first in your mind when you
think or hear the word “COMMUNITY” ?
What is a Community
A Community is a set of
people living together with
common interest”
We all live in a community.
There are different things
that bind us together. Let
us try to identify them.
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Territory
Sharing resources
Administrative unit
Language
Religion
Culture
Occupation
What is Development
 Development
means on overall
positive change in the physical
quality of life. This change for
better encompasses both
economic and social aspects.
Dimensions of
Development
Development has two dimensions
Economic
Social
 It implies an improvement in quality of
life through better health, education,
housing and overall material and social
welfare.
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Development Projects
An analysis of development projects that
have failed in the past shows that
failure occurs because:
 the people concerned were not involved
in the planning, implementation and
monitoring of programmes which
affected their lives;
 there was an insufficient level of
participation of the beneficiaries.
Community Action
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Community action refers to the process of
building social relationships in pursuit of
common community interests.
Community action is seen as being the
foundation of the community development
process.
Community development seeks to empower
individuals and groups of people by providing
these groups with the skills they need to
affect change in their own communities.
Community Action
Explore the common issue
& Set priorities
Prepare to mobilize
Prepare to scale up
Organize the community
For action
Evaluate together
Plan together
Act together
Steps in Community
Action
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Step 1: Identify the problem/issue.
Step 2: select a strategy to solve the
problem
Step 3: Community Mobilization
Step 4: Implementation through people’s
participation
Step 5: Assess the results and improve
Selecting Core Areas
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Identify core areas of community
development
Poverty
Health – Maternal and child mortality, HIV/AIDs,
Malaria
Education – Pre-primary, primary, secondary
Women empowerment
Water and Sanitation
Prohibition of Alcohol
Agriculture and allied sector
Skill Improvement
Prepare to mobilize
Identify a common issue that the whole
community can get involved
 Gather information about the issue and
the community
 Identify resources and constraints
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Select a strategy
Depending on problem, plan for
community dialogue and select a
strategy.
 Some problems
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– require sensitization on the issue.
– call for mobilization of community
– need interaction with individual family
members.
Community
mobilization
A process whereby a group of people
become aware of a shared concern or
common need and decide to take action
in order to create shared benefits.
 A continual and cumulative process that
involves communication, education, and
organization, which together lead to
community action and development.
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Community
mobilization
linkages
Capacity building
Outside
Group
Community
resources
Participation
Mobilization
Empowerment
Key Task involved in
Community Mobilization
Developing an on-going dialogue
between community members
 Creating or strengthening community
organizations (Committees etc.)
 Creating an environment in which
individuals can empower themselves to
address their own and their community’s
needs
 Promoting community members’
participation
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Implementation
Implementation and constant
monitoring
 Assess the results
 Revise the strategy wherever necessary
 Scale up
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Community mobilization – model film
Who are you?
You are working for people, with people
as a Bharat Nirman Volunteer,
and so…
What is your role?
How can you help the people in the
community?
Facilitator
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A pearl is beautiful but alone it
doesn't make a necklace. It is the
thread which makes the necklace
A facilitator
Role of BNV
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BNV is community mobilizer. A mobilizer is
a person who mobilizes, i.e. gets things
moving. Social animator. A Catalyst
Bringing People Together
Building Trust
Encouraging Participation
Facilitating Discussion and Decision-making
Helping Things to Run Smoothly .
Facilitation in community mobilization
process
Skills needed for BNV
Attitudes include:
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a willingness to examine and challenge
their own assumptions, opinions and
beliefs
a genuine respect for all community
members
a non- judgmental and accepting approach
an understanding that different people
have different views and perspectives
a belief in community capacity to take
effective action.
…..continued
Skills include:
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good communication skills, especially listening
good facilitation skills to enable communities to
conduct their own analysis of their lives and
situations
techniques to help facilitation awareness of
political, gender and cultural issues and
relationships
an ability to challenge assumptions sensitively
(e.g. about the role of women).
…continued
Knowledge includes:
the community mobilization process
 the principles of community mobilization
 knowledge of Education related Issues
and problems, causes and effects
 understanding of the ethical issues
related to community mobilization. .
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Conflict management
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Conflict is an inevitable result of social
interaction and is not necessarily
negative. A distinction must be made
between positive and negative aspects
of conflict. When constructively
managed, conflict may lead to clearer
ideas, innovative solutions and
increased effectiveness and
commitment.
Factors contributing to conflict
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Diverse groups
Strategic disagreement
Competition between groups
Unreasonable expectations
Lack of common understanding
Goal conflict
Poor communication skills
Unclear/unfair expectations
Power-plays and manipulation
Conclusion
Community action needs continuous
efforts
 Using its available resources for the
community effectively
 Obtaining support from the community,
 Explore cooperation with other
agencies.
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Thank you