Resources
Results
266 items
Sort by
PRA: a tool for community capacity building?
Abstract
Brief note on results of internal evaluation regarding the use of PRA by The Community Action Programme in Uganda. In the programme trained community facilitators used PRA techniques with partner communities to develop micro-projects. The report outlines some of the short-comings of the facilitation process based on the results of a survey of a random sample of the partner communities. The survey examined, attendance by men and women of PRA sessions, PRA tools remembered by participants and aspects learnt, the relationship between men and women's main problems and the final choice of micro-project and their level of agreement with it.
FAO (AGROTEC) participatory baseline study : smallholder technological constraints in Shinyanga district, Tanzania : the case of Bulambila Village
Abstract
Draft final report describing the methodology and findings of a baseline survey, designed to examine technology (especially engineering) requirements. The survey involved using various PRA tools and techniques whilst staying in the village of Bulambila for a period of 20 days.
Networking situation in Africa.
Abstract
This paper defines various types of network and then goes on to review the evolution of the networking process by the Participatory Methodologies Forum of Kenya (PAMFORK).
Culture and Local Knowledge: Thier Roles in Soil and Water Conservation
Publisher
Stockholm University
Participatory Development Communication: a West African Agenda
Publisher
IDRC|Southbound
Questions of Difference: PRA, Gender and the Environment
Abstract
This four-part video aims to merge recent developments in PRA with existing conceptual frameworks on gender to provide a practical and thorough approach to gender analysis in natural resource management. It is intended as a training tool to enable fieldworkers to understand and incorporate gender issues in their work. The first section gives a summary of the analytical framework subsequently illustrated by three case studies. It is structured as a series of short themed segments (2-10 mins) which allow trainers to select what suits their specific training objectives and to stimulate discussion on related topics. The trainers' guide provides extensive suggestions for the use of each segment (34 mins). The following sections present three case studies from different cultural and environmental contexts. They demonstrate several PRA methods in detail and can be used in a training context as fieldwork examples, or for more in-depth exercises. The case studies are accompanied by hand-outs in the trainer's guide. The first case study looks at the use of coastal mangroves and other natural resources by women and men in two neighbourhoods near Karachi, Pakistan. The methods demonstrated include natural and social resource mapping, venn diagrams, a matrix of income sources, a pie diagram of fuel use, and a matrix of fuelwood types (28 mins). The second study of natural resource use and management issues in two villages in Burkina Faso shows seasonal calendars, transects, a matrix of land-use types, natural and social resource mapping, and a flow diagram (28 mins). The third case study explores biodiversity in forests and agriculture, historical change, and land use and management issues in Brazil. It demonstrates the use of seasonal calendars, transects, flow diagrams on deforestation and the impact of medicinal plants on local work, and a matrix of maize varieties (28 mins).
PRA in a health education, water and sanitation project in Kenya
Download available
Abstract
This case study describes the Siaya Health Education, Water and Sanitation Project (SHEWAS) which was implemented by the NGO CARE International in Siaya District in Kenya in 1990. It focuses on the use of PRA as a means of stimulating community participation in the identification and planning of water and sanitation micro- projects. The SHEWAS approach is outlined and some of the achievements and results, and lessons learned, are discussed.
Publisher
International Institute for Environment and Development
PRA for self-reliant rural development: the case of a resettlement area in Ethiopia
Download available
Abstract
This paper focuses on the Tana Beles area in Gojam, Ethiopia, where in the mid-1980s almost 80,000 people were resettled from different parts of the country. Many of the settlers experienced severe difficulties in adapting to the new environment . These difficulties, combined with the implementation of a large-sc ale infrastructure project with a very top-down approach, resulted in a strong material and psychological dependency on external aid and assistance. Following the suspension in 1991 of all foreign projects in the area, the challenge has been to enhance the transition from emergency aid to self-reliant and self-sufficient development. The paper describes how PRA techniques were used to explore general adjustment problems and constraints, needs and priorities, as well as the expectationsand aspirations of the settlers. It was found that 'in this specific context of general upheaval, PRA represents a particularly useful approach to understand how people react to such disruption and develop new coping strategies'. Furthermore, in development projects characterized by 'project dependency' PRA introduces a valuable external stimulus favouring self-awareness and a crucial means for encouraging people to become self-reliant.
Publisher
International Institute for Environment and Development
PRA, social tremors and rolling heads: thoughts on PRA and empowerment
Download available
Abstract
The article discusses the issue of conflict and the skills required to deal with it, in the context of two FAO projects in Guinea and Tanzania. In the Guinea example an exploratory RRA investigating food security issues in a fishing community revealed conflict between the project credit scheme and the local community over the repayment of loans. In the second example an exploratory appraisal focusing on nutrition and food security in fishing communities in Tanzania uncovered layers of corruption and manipulation in the management of the credit team. This was the cause of conflict between the communities and the project. Although in these examples a constructive resolution to the problems was found, it does raise questions about whether facilitators and researchers have the skills to deal with such situations.
Publisher
International Institute for Environment and Development
Coping with cost recovery: a study of the social impact of and responses to cost recovery in basic services (health and education) in poor communities in Zambia
Abstract
The report deals with the social implications of the cost-recovery measures adopted in the Zambian health and education sectors since 1989. The focus of the study is on the impact of the charges on access to basic health care and primary education among the poorest sections of the urban and rural population. The report is also concerned with the way poor communities, and the most vulnerable households within them, cope with demands to contribute more. It concludes by reviewing alternative ways of ensuring that the poorest are able to maintain access to basic services. A mix of approaches were used, including a range of standard RRA methods, focus-group work and anthropological insights from more traditional sources. The study also drew on a baseline survey and intensive household studies which had been carried out over several years.