Narayan, Deepa

"Voices of the Poor" is a series of three books that collates the experiences, views and aspirations of over 60,000 poor women and men. This first book of the series gathers the voices of over 40,000 poor women and men in 50 countries from the World Bank's participatory poverty assessments. Using participatory and qualitative research methods, the study presents very directly, through poor people's own voices, the realities of their lives; these voices send powerful messages that point the way toward policy change.

A guide intended for country teams carrying out the Consultations with the Poor study for the World Development Report 2000/1. Section 2 gives the background to the study. Sections 3 & 4 describe the process and the time frame for the study. the main issues being explored are listed in 5 and a checklist of issues and analysis methods are given in 6. the field methodology is detiled in 7 and preparation for fieldwork in 8. Section 9 describes the fieldwork process and 10 give notes on deocumentation, synthesis and reporting formats.

A review of participatory poverty assessment made by the World Bank. Poverty is discussed from the perspective of the poor, followed by a study of poor people's experience with the state, and their interaction with civil society. The household as a key social instiution is examined and gender issues are also considered. Social fragementation is considered specifically relating to widows and also to the policy. The report concludes with policy recommendations.

This overview describes how poor people in the Consultations with the Poor project viewed wellbeing and illbeing, that is the good life and the bad life. The second part focuses on five cross-cutting problems that were shown to keep poor people trapped in poverty and the bad life: corruption, violence, powerlessness, incapacity and bare subsistence living. Finally there are recommendations for each of these areas.

A resource kit consisting of a video and manuals, providing information and experience on participatory methods in order to support the adoption of participatory approaches in World Bank projects and studies. The kit includes modules on social assessment, stakeholder analysis, PRA, SARAR and beneficiary assessment, and participatory monitoring and evaluation.

This document focuses on the issue of whether community based development costs more or not by looking at the costs and benefits of some projects. It argues that when properly designed, community based programmes can be highly effective in managing natural resources, providing basic infrastructure or ensuring primary social services. In its view participation in community based development (CBD) depends on reversing control and accountability from central authorities to community organisations.

This World Bank Technical Paper presents a discussion on participatory development at all stages of the development process, with a specific emphasis on participatory evaluation. Involving stakeholders closely in all aspects of the program is argued to foster ôownershipö, accountability, and a willingness on the part of users to manage and invest in services. A mechanism is needed to allow for learning, correction, and adjustment to be built into this participatory development process.