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RF_M_8_SUDHA
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| Asian Institute of Technology
DO Consortium
Strategy Development in Non Government Development
Organisations (NGDOs)
1.
WiLVl’ IS STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT?
The word "Strategy’ refers to the broad choices of how an organisation win
achieve its mission. A strategy acts as die guiding light of die whole organisation
and helps it to define its purpose and direction.
The process of Strategy Development requires an organisation to think critically,
creatively and imaginatively about whal it intends to be in tlie future, why it
intends to do it and how it intends to achieve tliat vision. To do this, the
organisation must ask itself ‘WHY?\questions: 4 Why pursue this mission?’, ‘ W7zy
work with this constituency?’, fc VW/y'tliese strategic priorities and not others?, and
so on. Strategy development is a process and not an event and is certainly not an
end in itself. Strategy should be a viewed as an essential tool which helps the
organisation achieve its mission.
Strategy development involves making important and well-informed choices about
the future of the organisation. Choices about:
•
•
•
•
The long-term future of your NGDO.
j
The mission and goals your NGDO will pursue.
The programmes, projects, or other activities you will undertake to accomplish
tins mission. And those you will NOT pursue.
J low you will secure and make use of the resources you need - people, money,
expertise, facilities, and so on.
Strategic Management involves making these choices and then implementing the
plans which are developed from these choices. It also involves adjusting tlie
strategy as you gain more information and experience.
Strategic management requires Strategic Thinking. Strategic thinking involves
the ability to detect trends and patterns in the activ;hes of the NGDO and to create
new opportunities for the organisation where none existed before.
A Strategic Plan is a written statement of die organisation’s strategy. It is also
referred to as a Strategy Document in this paper. A strategy document should be
continuously monitored and regularly reviewed and revised. 'I’he fundamental
aspects of the strategy: mission, vision and values are likely to remain relatively
constant throughout the life of an NGDO. If Uiey do not, this is often an indication
of a crisis of organisational identity or sense of purpose.
‘Strategy Development In NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 1
2.
HOW IS STRATEGIC PLANNING DIEFERENT FROM OTHER
TYPES OF PLANNING?
NGDOs are invoked in a number of levels of planning:
•
•
•
•
•
Programme planning
Project planning
Activity/ operations planning
Work planning
Time planning
All of these are important but they all have a short time, ‘horizon’ ranging from
around two years down to one day. Strategic planning is usually done lor periods
of 4 5 years or longer. Also, strategic planning is normally done for tlie whole
organisation, whereas the other types of planning mentioned above normally
cover<only parts of the organisation or teams and individuals within the NGDO.
The different levels of planning are illustrated in lire diagram below:
I
Levels of Planning in NGDOs
| V
4-5 years
2 years
Strategic Planning
Programme Planning
a
1 year
Project Planning
o
L
2-j
M ont h Iy
Activity / Operations Planning
I.
□
O’Q
Weekly
Weekly Planning
Daily
Daily Time Planning
\/
3cv
K
I
S'
|
o
C
J
^Strategy Development in NGDOs' by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 2
I
3.
WHY IS STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT IMPORTANT?
There are a number of reasons why it is important for NGDOs to develop strategies
for their future. These include:
3.1
lo improve performance
Studies have consistently shown that mission-setting, planning, and goal-setting
can positively irdjuencc organizational performance. History and great leaders
such as Ghandiji and Martin Luther King have taught us tfiat attractive visions of
die future have great i>ower to motivate and empower people. Studies also show
that both large and small organisations with clear strategies outperform and last
longer titan those without strategies.
3.2
To learn from experience
Strategy development requires NGDOs to make realistic assessments of their use of
resources and die achievement of their goals. Mailing use of these assessments
should be seen as a learning process. Organisations which deliberately set out to
learn from their own and others’ experience and put this learning into practice in
strategy development are called ‘learning organisations’. It should be one of the
goals of every NGDO to become a learning organisation.
3.3
To stimulate forward thinking and clarify future direction
Senior managers of some NGDOs become so preoccupied with day-to day issues
that their organizations lose all sense of mission and direction. Strategic planning
can force ‘future-thinking1, highlight new opportunities and threats, and refocus
an organization’s mission. Strategy development is a tool for taking control of a
wandering or drifting organization. Strategy development is also a way lor an
effective organization to stay sharp and focused.
3.4
To solve major organizational problems
l
Strategy development focuses on an organization's most critical problems, choices,
and opportunities. NGDOs sometimes face a web of problems that are hard to
address one by one. Strategic planning is a way to resolve an interrelated set of
problems in an intentional, coordinated way.
3.5
To make more efficient use of limited resources and mobilise new
resources
Recent years have brought funding cuts and increased competition for funding for
many NGDOs. Laced with budget deficits, NGDOs have several choices: look
more widely for funding; cut running costs; put tlie organization together in a
whole new way; deplete capital reserves (if they have any); go into debt; or close
down. Many agencies are using strategic planning t'' think through these tough
choices before they become crises.
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 3
3.6
To resist becoming *donor driven' or *donor-dependentf
A well developed strategy places an NGDO’s mission in die centre of its
operations. 'J’he NGDO with a strategy is seen as being much more than the sum of
all its time-bound projects. A strategy can, therefore, provide an NGDO with
considerable ‘bargaining power’ in its negotiations with donors. It can also be
used to strengthen arguments for ‘core-funding’ since donors can see where tlieir
financial contribution ‘fits’ in the overall development of the NGDO. NGDOs can
also use their strategic plan as a tool to seek out possible new sources of funding,
thereby broadening tlieir, funding base and making them less ‘single-donor
dependent'. finally, NGDOs can use tlieir strategy to resist taking money from
donors on the donors’ terms (becoming donor-driven).
•*r»
3.7
'Id build teamwork and expertise
Most organizations use a team of people to develop tlieir strategic plan. The team
usually includes key staff and committee members and may include others. People
who are not on the planning team should also involved at key decision points.
Good, participatory planning results in several benefits for participants: improved
knowledge of the organization, better communication across levels and
programmes, improved managerial skills and an increased commitment to lire
organization. The planning team is also a place to ‘model’ die values and norms
that you hope will persist in the future.
J
3.8
To influence rather than be influenced
With today's pressure, the managers and committees of NGDOs sometimes lee! like
they have very little control over the future of tlieir organisations, ’[’here are so
many powerful influences on NGDOs that can affect tiie direction and even the
existence of the NGDO. A strategy can help an organization create its own
opportunities for influencing and controlling its world rather than, simply
responding to it
l
3.9
To meet the requirements of others
Some funders require organizations to have a long-range plan as a condition of
funding. A strategic plan can be a good communication or marketing tool with,
such groups. If, however, you arc developing a plan only to meet someone eises
needs, don't waste more time with your planning than is absolutely necessary.
3.10 It is 4good practice ’ in management terms
Operational planning has become an important management process in many
organizations. They routinely chart and update their medium- and short-term
course, take action, monitor progress, then adjust actions and plans based on
changing conditions. Strategy development should also become a familiar
framework for carrying out a number of managerial responsibilities.
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 8. 1994, Page 4
WHAT PROBLEMS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH STRATEGY
DEVELOPMENT?
4.
If strategy development has all these advantages, why isn’t every NGDO doing it?
There arc a number of reasons for diis, some of which are listed below.
4.1
Cost can outweigh benefits
Thu process of developing a strategic plan consumes tune and money which cou d
be spent on other tasks. In addition, planning efforts sometimes go wrong: bad
decisions are made; conflicts may come to the surface; people become obsessed
with the planning itself and forget about die need fdf strategic thinking. Before
undertaking a planning effort it is wise to ask. “Will die benefits of our strategic
planning outweigh the costs?” If costs appear to outweigh die benefits, consider
whether it is wise to proceed. You may need to resolve these problems or get help
before you begin.
4.2
Intuition may be preferable to formal planning
Some organizations are fortunate to have managers widi well developed insight
and intuition. In one sense, strategic planning can be viewed as an effort to
duplicate in a participatory way what goes on in die mind of a gifted, intuitive
manager. Such managers know well die strengths and weaknesses of their
organizations; diey see opportunities and ducats in die external environment
before odiers do; they know instinctively die best way to proceed- and sometimes
prefer to do so without formal planning.
If your orga Jdon has such managers you are fortunate. Strategy development
can harness die ideas of intuitive managers and link dieir visionary dunking win
die need to ensure diat ALL stakeholders are involved in the process.
Some organizations prefer to move along widiout formal strategic planning, In its
best form, this means responding flexibly to new opportunities as they emerge (.this
is called ‘Emergent Strategy’). However, even emergent strategy requires making
ludgments about whether the opportunity is consistent with die organisation s
mission values and priorities. In other words, emergent strategy requires a
strategic framework to make sense. Done well, this approach to strategy can e an
effecuve way of operating. Done poorly, it can lead an organization to follow
directions which seems logical at the time but which do not enable it to achieve .is
overall mission. If your organization is effective at talcing opportunities as diey
arise you may want to ensure diat this flexibility of approach is built into your
process of strategy development. Organisations widi a clear strategy aie more
likely to be able to create, identify and take advantage of opportunities Lian nose
widiout such a strategic framework.
It is important for every organisation to develop a strategy, but overly loimal
strategic planning approaches which entourage die adoption ol a slam
‘model’ or ‘blueprint’ should be avoided. What works lor one organisation may
be fatal for another.
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs' by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page □
4.3
When "life ihreulenin^ " problems should be addressed first
Organizations in crisis should generally consider tackling immediate ‘life
direatening’ problems before proceeding with strategic planning. For example, an
organization widi severe cash shortages may need to improve ils cash situation to
workable levels before developing a strategic plan, lliring-a new director may be a
more pressing task dian developing a strategic plan.
4.4
When implementation is unlikely
Many of us have had die experience of pouring our energy and ideas into a
project diat was never implemented. Disillusionment,cynicism, and feeling of
powerlessness often result. If managers have no inteiftion of following through on
plans, it may be wiser not to plan in the first place. You save time and bruised
expectations. Good plans need good implementation.
4.5
When poor plans are likely
Critics of strategic planning note that some organizations develop poor strategic
plans and diat poor plans are worse Uian no plans at all. Faulty assumptions about
the future and poor group dynamics are two reasons often mentioned. If you
believe that your planning is or will be unproductive, you should discuss die
reasons early on in the process of strategy development (at Stage 1), then correct,
the problem or get help before proceeding. One technique for reducing the risk o
bad decisions is to be clear about die conditions under which you will make any
major change. For example, "We will not begin programme X until we have donor
commitments for Y dollars,” or “If we have not achieved our objectives by the end
of next year, we will abandon the project.”
These cautions are not meant to discourage or deter you from developing plans lor
die future. Strategy development can be a powerful and practical tool.
5.
WHO SHOULD BE INVOLVED IN STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT?r
Effective strategy development requires high levels of participation from everyone
who is affected by die organisation. Developing a strategic plan provides an
excellent opportunity to gadier the views and visions of constituents, staff,
managers, donors, other NGDOs and other stakeholders of die organisation.
Participatory strategic planning can have significant ‘spin-oils’ such as team
building, improved organisational communication and even organisational culture
change.
Participation creates ownership and ownership creates commitment. Commitment
to die strategy makes achievement much more likely. Ibis is expressed in die
‘formula’ below:
P->O->C->C-> A(M)
(Participation enables Ownership which creates Commitment leading to Creativity
(and self-management) in die Achievement (of die organisation’s Mission).
The concept of ‘stakeholder’ is important in strategy development. Stakeholders
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs* by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 6
are those individuals or groups which are affected by or which can affect the
organisation directly or indirectly. They include constituents, staff, funders, other
NGDOs which collaborate or compute with your organisation, other agencies 5 uch
as Government Departments whose policies or services may impact on your
NGDO; community leaders whose support is rcc|uired for your work, and so on.
It may be necessary to arrange special meetings, individual interviews or focus
groups to gather the views from stakeholders. Sometimes it can be useful to
develop check-lists of questions for information-gathering.
6.
HOW SHOULD S I RA ! EGY DEVELOPMENT BE DONE?
Above all, any process of strategy development should be simple and easily
understood by all concerned. There is no point in having such a complex process
that a strategy never emerges at the end or to gather so much information that it is
impossible to analyse and understand the significance of it all.
There are five key elements to strategy development in NGDOs:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The mission of the organisation: its basic purpose.
The problems being faced, the views and expressed needs of the
constituency (or future constituency).
The present situation of tlieuorganisation, particularly its strengths and
weaknesses.
The outside changes and trends facing the organisation, expressed in the
form of opportunities and tlireats / consti-aints.
The vision of the organisation: what it is striving to achieve in the future.
The links between these elements is shown in the lollowing diagram.
I
)
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 7
Fhe 'key Components for
Strategy Development
■
!•
'
Mission
of
Organisation
Present
Situation
(SW)
Constituency
Problems,
Views & Needs
i
I
Vision
of the
Future
f Outside
changes
& trends
<
(OT)
Analysis of
Information
r
Strategic Priorities
These elements form uic ‘information core’ of strategy development However,
the key to strategy development is being able to analyse and interpret the
information in such a way that the organisation can ‘craft’ a strategy from it Phis
requires the application of creativity and strategic thinking to identify the five or
six strategic priorities for the organisation.
This is best done within the framework of a ‘strategy development process’, A
strategy development process involves eight main steps. The steps arc:
Step 1:
Step 2:
Get organised.
Gather information about the problems facing its constituency;
constituency views about their circumstances and what they would
like to sec happening;(the NGDO’s present situation and its ability to
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs* by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 8
Step 3:
Step 4:
Step 5:
Step 6:
Step 7:
Step 8:
do something to address the problems and outside changes and
(rends affecting the organisation, and the constituents.
Analyse the information and identify the strategic options.
Develop the strategic priorities.
Draft the strategy document.
Acquire the resources.
Implement the strategy.
Update the strategy.
rilic eight steps arc summarised in the following diagram:
The Eight Steps of Strategy
Development
1. Get Organised.
2. (hither
Information.
8. Review
and update
the strategy.
3. Analyse the
information and
identify the
strategic options.
7. Implement
tiie strategy.
/
4. Develop the
strategic
priorities.
6. Acquire
resources
5. Draft the
xOtstrategy
document.
These steps arc explained in more detail in the following table:
Step 1:
Decide whether tc develop a strategy.
Gel commitment to the strategy
development effort.
Delcrmino whether outside help is
uordod
Outline a process that fits your
organisation.
Form a strategy development team if
needed.
Gel organised
c
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs' by Druce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 9
r
Step 2:
Gather information about the problems
facing your current (or possible future)
constituency.
Collect constituency views about their
needs and how these might best be
met.
Gather information about the history of
your organisation.
Gather information about the present
situation of your organisation and
assess its strengths and weaknesses
using organisation analysis techniques.
Gather information about outside
changes and trends and assess the
opportunities and threats / constraints
facing the organisation.
•
Gather information
•
•
•
•
Step 3:
Analyse the information and
identify the strategic
options.
*
•
1
•
Step 4:
Develop the strategic
priorities.
•
•
•
•
Step 5:
Draft the strategy document. •
$
•
•
•
Assess the strategic issues facing the
constituency and the organisation,
Develop the strategic options to
address these strategic issues and
achieve your NGDOs mission and
vision.
Be creative in the way you develop
strategic options - do not restrict
yourself to current approaches.
Decide which of the strategic options to
follow.
Develop strategic priorities to achieve
the organisation’s mission and vision.
Try to limit the number of strategic
priorities to no more than five or six.
Consider any necessary changes in
organisation structure, staffing, and
systems which will be required.
Ensure that the organisation has, or can
develop, the capability to implement
the strategy.
Test the strategy for feasibility (see
section 7 below).
Do not adopt strategies without careful
consideration of whether they can be
implemented.
Produce a written document which all
stakeholders can understand.
Introduce the plan to all stakeholders
and alter in the light of their feedback.
Formally adopt the plan <jind gam
commrtment to rt.
Devise suitable ‘Human Development ’
policies and systems to support the
strategy.
Devise suitable Tinrincinl Managomenr
sysinm'i to enable implementation.
‘Slh'ilogy Development In NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 11, 1994, Page 10
<■
Step 6:
Acquire Resources.
Step 7:
Implement the strategy.
Ensure that the necessary resources
are acquired (people, financial,
information, materials).
•
•
•
•
•
Develop objectives and activities for
each of the strategic priorities in the
form of apian of action.
Develop indicators for measuring
progress.
Put the plan into action.
Monitor progress using the indicators.
Take corrective action when required.
A'
Stop 8:
Review and update the
Strategy
•
•
•
•
•
•
Continue Io gather and analyse
information on the external environment.
Be open to learn from ‘emergent’
strategy.
Modify the strategy in the light of
significant external or internal changes.
Do not become a ‘slave’ to the detail of
the plan but act according to its broad
intent.
Be willing to make changes quickly to
avert crises or take advantage of
opportunities.
Always think about whether these
decisions are broadly consistent with
the NGDOs strategy and mission.
CHECKING THE STRATEGY EOR FEASIBILITY
7.
Before committing the organisation to a strategy, it is crucial to give it a ‘feasibility
check’. The following questions provide a framework for this:
Constituency
7.1
•
are the proposed strategic priorities based on the expressed needs of the
constituency?
•
will constituents be enabled to participate in the planning, organisation and
evaluation of the organisation’s activities?
•
what is the likely long-term impact (intended and unintended) of the
organisation’s activities?
7.2
I
Other Stakeholders
•
will all staff members support the strategic priorities proposed in the strategy?
•
will any oilier stakeholders (donors, fund-raisers, committee members, and so
on) support the strategy?
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton. October 8, 1994, Page 11
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I
7.3
Kxtvriiiil I'jivirofinicnt factors
•
are there any external factors such as the socio-economic situation, government
policy, die political situation and die climate - which might affect the success
of die NGDO’s strategy? If so, how can the strategy be adapted to counteract
any negative consequences? How can effective contingencies be developed?
•
are there any oilier organisations working with the same constituency? Boes
the strategy compete with, ignore or collaborate will) such organisations? Can
the strategy be changed to encourage more collaboration?
7.4
I
Resources
V
does die .strategy address the organisation’s need io secure the necessary
resources (at least die minimum financial resources) to carry out die proposed
activities?
•
•
does the organisation have die necessary human resources, materials,
equipment to implement die strategy? If not, can diey be obtained / recruited /
developed?
•
does die strategy recognise the key role of people and ensure that die
development of human resources will be adequately resourced?
Organisational Capability
7.5
I
*
•
is there die necessary organisational capability to pul the strategy into action?
if not, can diis be developed?
•
does the strategy make the most of die organisation’s strengdis?
•
does die organisation have die necessary expertise to pul the strategy into
action? If not, is die expertise readily accessible from other sources?
•
does the
die organisation have the
die necessary management skills, systems, and
structures to implement die strategy?
i
Compatibility
7.6
•
is lhe strategy compatible with the mission, vision, values and purpose of tlie
organisation?
•
will the strategy have the support of senior managers, constituency, members
and executive committee?
7.7
Potential
•
does the strategy enable the organisation to make the most of its potential?
•
does the strategy enable die organisation to make die most of key external
opportunities?
•
are resources likely to be concentrated, and expertise used to achieve the
maximum impact?
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 8, 1994, Page 12
I
7 ,H
Susi aiii.ibil i(y
•
does the strategy aim to develop die constituents’ long-term ability to do
things for themselves?
•
docs the sh;ite)’,y avoid the teodciiey for organisalions to ‘self pcqichnitc’?
WHAT ARE THE KEY ELEMENT’S OE A STRATEGY DOCUMENT
(STRATEGIC PLAN)
8.
Strategy documents can lake many forms and it is important for NGDOs to feel
able to write up their strategy in die form which will communicate effectively to
dieir stakeholders. However, a study of NGDO ‘Slnnegic Plans’ reveals the
following commonly used headings for strategy documents.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
An Executive Summary of die Strategy Document
A statement of die Organisation’s Vision
A statement of die Organisation’s Mission
A statement of die Organisation’s Values
An analysis of die Problems Being Faced by the Constituency.
An analysis of the Views and Needs of .die Organisation’s Constituency
An analysis of Outside Changes and Trends which affect die Organisation
(Opportunities and Constraints)
An analysis of die Present Situation of die Organisation (Strengdis and
Weaknesses)
An analysis of Strategic Options for die Organisation
An analysis of Strategic Priorities for die Organisation.
A statement of Strategy for the Organisation’s Activities.
A statement of Strategy for Organisational Capability-building including
Human Development and Financial Systems.
A statement of Planned Resourcing, including Staffing.
A brief description of the Process of Strategy Development followed in the
NGDO (this can be very useful for other NGDOs which wish to develop
their own strategy).
I-
9.
A STRATEGY IS NOT A STRATEGIC PLAN
It is important to remember that a strategy is not simply a document winch lists lhe
NGDO’s intentions for the next 4-5 years. NGDOs work in very turbulent and
ever-changing external environments. It would be almost impossible for most
NGDOs to be able to anticipate what their priorities will be in four years’ time
because of the unpredictable nature of their working environment. Indeed, this
would also be undesirable since NGDOs must be open and flexible enough to
modify their strategy to take account of these changes. They must also be realistic
enough to recognise that some of their intended activities may never be realised
because of external or internal factors.
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs* by Bruce Britton, October 10, 1994, Page 13
NGDO MANAGERS SHOULD USLTHLIR STRATLGY 1 )OClIMLNTS AS A BROAD
1’RAMLWORK LOR DLCIS1ON-MAKING AND NOT AS A STRAIGHTJACKET
WHICH CONSTRAINS 1'1 IEIR ABILI’I'Y TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OE NEW
OPPORTUNITIES WHICH WERE NOT CONSIDERED WHEN THE DOCUMENT
WAS WRITTEN.
Henry Mintzbcrg, a Canadian management professor, has come up with a useful
way of categorising die different elements of strategy which recognises die
importance of flexibility in strategy development. His model of strategy is
summarised in die diagram below:
•rt
Strategic learning
Intended
Strategy
Dclilxjrate
Strategy
Realized
Strategy
.....
I Jnrcalizctl
Strategy
y ///
Emergent
Strategy
Deliberate and Emergent Strategies
(from Mintzberg & Quinn: The Strategy Process)
JI
In die preceding diagram, intended strategy refers to die NGDO’s strategic
priorities as stated in its strategy document. Deliberate strategy means those
intentions which actually happened in practice. Unrealized strategy refers to die
intentions which, for whatever reason, were never translated into action.
Emergent strategy is die pattern of die organisation’s responses to changes in the
external environment which were not anticipated when the strategic document
was written but which created opportunities for the NGDO to work towards
achieving its Mission. Realized strategy is what die NGDO actually did. Realized
strategy is the sum of deliberate strategy (which was intended as part of the
original strategic plan) and emergent strategy (which was not foreseen but which
was consistent with the organisation’s mission hnd values and was implemented).
The strategic learning feedback loop recognises •' e importance for managers of
learning from die experience of “what happened and why” and “what did not
happen and why” so that future intended strategics can be better ci.ifled.
9.
HOW CAN AN NGDO USE ITS S'I’RA'J’EGY?
Strategy can be used in a number of different ways. I hese uses include.
9.1
To plan for the long-term ability of the organisation to achieve
its mission (existing as an NGDO for long enough io enable its
constituency to achieve sustainable benefits from its programme
activities).
‘Suategy Development in NGDOs' by Bruce Britton, October 10, 1994, Page 14
NGOOs should not aim to self perpetuate indefinitely. They should aim to exist for
long enough to ensure that their constituency can sustain i..; benefits of the
programme activities which the NGDO helped to initiate. 1 his requires a long term
perspective based on a clear idea of what being sustainable means for their
organisation. Strategy development as a process can help NGDOs to clarity this
and then devise ways of working towards genuine sustainability.
9.2
To make realistic decisions about the growth or development of
the organisation.
Many NGDOs ckperienee growth which is unplanned or, worse, uncontrolled. It
can be all too easy for an NGDO to accept funds from donors merely because they
are available. This can lead to the organisation developing into sectors about
which tliey have little or no expertise or experience. Tit can also lead to a giowth i
die organisation to the point where their management systems are no longer able
to cope. Many excellent NGDOs have collapsed under the stress o( unplanned
and unmanaged growth. Having a strategy can enable an NGDO to make: w, e
decisions about its growth and development based on an accuiate assessment o
its own capacity to deal with change.
To take good-quality decisions about new opportunities facing
9.3
the organisation.
Strategy provides a set of criteria for assessing, tlie benefits and costs of pursuing
different courses of action. All opportunities can be measured against
priorities of tire organisation. If an opportunity does not m some way enableAl
organisation to achieve one of its strategic priorities then them womd haw to oe a
im Oto
why .he NGDO should
d.e „ew |»s M
The process of strategy development also enames
lhe
,.4
>» create new opportune,es where
To enable .he
none existed belore.
It is not enough these days for NGIj)9}s
b yhey^need to be able to create
opportunities which
to achieve their mission. A strategy which
turn into opportunities.
!£= toXd
Sd
a&y » 'read
— in
‘read to
its e™
environment
a systematic and ‘entrepreneurial way.
organisation’s mission.
suategy can help donors K> undersmd die overall
NGDO. It describes what the organisation t. try
explains how each element in e
contributes to the
, donors can be helped to
tor0K“dr oto. aspccc 01 to organlsalto's tocto ng.
‘StraicQy Development in
NGDOs' by Bruce Britton. October W. 1994. Page 15
To build relationships with stakeholders, especially the
9.6
organisation’s constituency.
Relationship-building can only really be achieved by using a participatory process
of strategy development which values the ideas, opinions and judgments o(
stakeholders - especially constituency members. This creates many challenges for
NGDOs, particularly those working with groups which are not traditionally
encouraged to express their opinions or those who cannot participate in processes
which rely on literacy. Nevertheless, using methodology adapted from such
approaches as Participatory Relaxed Appraisal (PRA) and other techiiii|ues it is
possible Io involve loiisl'ifiicnls in the development o! stiategy.
9.7
To locus the organisation's energy op its leu! priorities.
The main purpose of strategy development is to enable the organisation to identify
its strategic priorities and undertake activities to achieve diem. Ihese strategic
priorities, by definition, must be related to the NGDO’s mission and va.ues. 1 he
process of strategy development helps the organisation to get a sense of its real
priorities and make decisions which will enable it to achieve these priorities.
9.8
To develop staff commitment to the organisation’s Mission.
If a participatory process of strategy development is used, staff members can be
encouraged to play an important role at various steps in die process. In one
NGDO,Ssmall ‘task teams’ were set up to gather and analyse information about. the
kev issues affecting children in dieir country. The ‘task teams weie deliberate y
selected to enable groups of people to work together who had not done so m the
past This helped to create a sense of ownership for die strategy. Without that
sense of ownemhip, commitment is unlikely but w.th owners^7’cSS
commitment which enables staff to internalise the nussmn and become much less
dependent on dieir managers for a sense of dnecuon.
To communicate the organisation’s purpose to others.
9.9
A Sm.eEy paper ean prey,de a very »eM — “Ji A,nc,ngd.e
fiSta^eri with short -ease studies’ which reWor^
jxmits made in lhe text about strategic priormes.
j 9. j ()
To make decisions about adapting the organisation’s structure.
The structure of an NGIXf should enable it to
life and
NGDOs have structures winch reflect an eai 1 tr sti go u I o^ion .fhe proce.s
these outdated structures may impede the ac.ucvcmu I .
■
NGDO
of strategy development can make tins c ear.
‘
dic!tnot havc a suitable
realised, through the process ol ceve | c, • ‘
< ns
asking themselves
human development
systems.
panacea for every pioblem an oigamsa ion .i i
participatory way il piovalo. the b.d.. nu souno
‘Suategy Development in
v
,uakllIg alld planmng
NGDOs’ by Bruce Britton, October 10. 1994, Page 16
10.
FURTHER READINC
Bryan Barry, Strategic Planning Workbook for Nonprofit Organisations, Amherst
Wilder Foundation, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA, 1993.
David Stevens, Participatory Business Planning, Heinemann Asia, Singapore, 1993.
Manitoba Institute of Management, Managing the Non profit Organisation.
World Seoul Bincaii, Management Manual, WSB, Geneva, 1993.
I
Henry Mintzberg, Mintzberg on Management, Free Press, New York, 1989.
Henry Mintzberg and James Brian Quinn, The Strategy Process: Concepts and
Contexts, Prentice Hall, 1992.
Mike Pedler, John Burgoyne, Tom Boydell, The Learning Company: A strategy for
sustainable development, McGraw Hill, London; 1991.
Sun Tzu, The Art of War, Shambhala Press, 1991. (This book was written 2000
years ago. It is actually an ancient summary of strategy which advocates peace,
though its title suggests otherwise). k
AUTHOR’S NOTE
|
This paper forms the basis of the ‘Strategy Development’ Module of the Asian
Institute of Technology (Thailand) NGDO Management Development I rogramme.
The author, Bruce Britton, works for Save the Children (UK) and is developing a
database and working on a book on strategy development in NGDOs. He would
be very happy to receive comments on this paper and to receive copies of any
NGDO’s strategy document.
I
I
r
He can be reached al die following address:
Bruce Britton,
65 Spottiswoode Street,
EDINBURGH,
EH9 1DL,
Scotland,
UK-
I
fax + 44 (0)31 337 9488
I
I
I
‘Strategy Development in NGDOs' by Bruce Britton, October 10. 1994, Pago 17
AIT NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
Blocks to Strategy Development
I here are a variety of reasons why some NGDOs do not develop sound
processes of strategy development. Some of the most important ones are:
1. There is a lack of awareness within the senior managers of the
organisation’s true position. This could be due to poor information
systems which are not providing the managers with the information they
need to judge correctly the organisation’s position concerning changes in
external funding, the need for services; coil effectiveness and so on.
2. The senior managers are collectively deluding themselves about the
organisation’s position. This means that they have the information but
reinterpret or ignore unpleasant information that docs not lit in with their
pref erred way of looking al the world. This can come about even when
the managers consider themselves to be a tightly knit group (lor example,
founder members). They share the same vision of the organisation but may
also share an out of date, inaccurate or stereotyped view ol their
constituents and staff.
3. There are some powerful managers who have a vested interest in
maintaining things as they are. Maybe their position and status depend on
the perpetuation of the existing strategy and they are therefore likely to
discourage people from asking challenging questions.
4. Managers arc loo locked into everyday operational problems. This gives
the managers no time to consider longer term issues, nor does it prepare
them to take a strategic perspective on their organisation.
5. Past success in the organisation can make people blind to the current
situation the organisation faces? Moreover, past success encourages
management to slick with tried and trusted strategies which may be
inappropriate to changing present and future circumstances.
6. Changing direction can be seen as an admission that what was done~
before was a mistake. This makes managers who were closely identified
with past decisions reluctant to see how the organisation move off in a
different direction.
7. Managers may be unaware about why the organisation is successful. If
they are unable to pinpoint what it is about the organisation which makes
it effective in what it does, the managers may want to leave things as they
me: fc‘II il isn I biokcn, don I lix it!’
Adapted from: ( hit Bowman iTwt)), The Essence of Strategic Management, Prentice
Hall.
E AH NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
"*■
—
-- --------------------- -------------------------------------------------- --- ——
Enabling and Disabling Strategy
Development
X
-Enabling, strategy
development:
Disabling, strategy
development:
1
• involves all the ‘stakeholders’ • excludes some of the
‘stakeholders’
• is simple and focused on the
key issues
•
• is so complex and unfocused
that tlie key issues become
lost in deUli 1.
is creative and innovative, but
realistic too.
• may be realistic but lacks
creativity and innovation.
implementation is considered
throughout the process.
• implementation is considered
at the end of the process only
(when it may be too late).
• does not confuse data
collection with sUatcuic
thinking.
• confuses data collection with
strategic thinking
• does not pretend to be a
‘magic solution’ to all
organisation problems.
• forgets that some organisation
problems have to be solved
BEFORE starting the process
of strategy development
43
j
HRD Section: Save the Children South Asia Regional Office, 1994
AIT NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
Enabling and Disabling Strateg
Development
Enabling, strategy
development:
i Disabling, strategy
development:
• involves all the ‘stakeholders’ • excludes some of the
‘stakeholders’
• is simple and focused on the
key issues
• is so complex and unfocused
dial the key issues become
lost in detail.
• is creative and innovative, but • may be realistic but lacks
realistic too.
creativity and innovation.
I
• implementation is considered
throughout the process.
• implementation is considered
at the end of the process only
(when it may be too late).
• docs not confuse data
collection with strategic
thinking.
• confuses data collection w ith
strategic thinking
• does not pretend to be a
‘magic solution’ to all
organisation problems.
• forgets that some organisation
problems have to be solved
BEFORE starting the process
of strategy development
HRB Section: Save the Children South Asia Regional Office, 1994
AIT NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
External Environment Analysis:
Constructing Scenarios
Scenarios are realistic descr.ptions of possible future states of the
organisation’s working environment. It is usual to draw up more than
one scenario so that strategies can be tested against a range of possible
futuies. For example, you might derive the lollowing three scenarios:
1.
An optimistic scenario (where funding trends, constituency needs
and wants and programme effectiveness turn out favourably in
the fultire).
2.
A pessimistic scenario (which describes the ‘worst case’ situation
for the NGDO).
3.
A ‘most, likely’ scenario (which is likely to be somewhere between
these two extremes).
These three pictures of the future facing the NGDO can help to draw
out the major .issues-in the external environment. There will be some
issues that the NGDO can acthupon directly (cither to reduce a threat or
constraint or to act upon or create an opportunity). But many of the
critical issues will be outside the NGDOs control, so strategics will have
to be developed either to minimise the damaging effect of the threat or
to enable the organisation to change the threat, into an opportunity.
The issues facing the NGDO sector may be determined by one or more
of the following:
o
3.
4.
5.
6.
Changes in government policy towards NGuOs.
Changes in the availability of funding.
Changing constituency needs and wants.
The stage of the life cycle of the NGDO.
Innovative ways of working.
'I’lie entry of other NGDOs doing similar work.
Adapted irom: Cliti Bowmar (1 BOO). The I'.ssencc of Strategic Management, Premiee
Hall.
AIT NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
Gathering Information from Stakeholders
Stakeholder
Ways of Involving Stakeholder in the
Development of Your NGDO’s
Strategy|
i
i
i
I
HRD Section: Save the Children South Asia Regional Office, 1994
AIT NGDO Consortium Management Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
Who are your NGDO's Stakeholders?
A stakeholder is ;ui individual, group or organisation which is affected by or can affect the
NGDO directly or indirectly. Stakeholders will include constituents, staff, funders, other
NGDOs which collaborate with or compete with your organisation, other agencies such as
Government Departments whose policies or services impact on your NGDO, community
leaders whose support is requircil for your work, and so on.
-t’
//
1'
+++
^TLinnnnnnnB^
xicconncinnorinna^
/inn nnnnnnnnnnn n n? z
innnrxc
akps
icnnnk
innnr^Smg
innnna
nnnrjFj
s 71 <T2.£ irir.nry
n mnr/
^nnnd
.........
^nnnnnnnnnrinrirrirV
^onnnrinnndr^
BBSO
~T
x: I)
cXxjCK^z^l-’
V bi
0,r
I
.SponA
+ -t
tv* Ik u
Al I NGDO Consortium Managewienl Development
Workshop, Bangalore, 1994.
*
‘Uses of Strategy’ Exercise
Slratcgy can be used in a number of^fferent
ways. Which of the
following uses would be relevant and helpful to yotirown NGDO? Mote
any other ways in which you could uscyslrategy in the blank boxes.
;/
/ i
■-
f
I
/
Possible use'of strategy.
/
In what way would this be
relevant to your NGDO?
r)
To improve the/long-term
ability of the organisation to
achieve its mission (existing as
an NGDO for long enough to
enable its constituency to
achieve sustainable benefits
from its proL .....^ne activities).
To make realistic decisions
about the growth or /
development of the
organisation.
3.
4.
To take good-c|ii.dity decisions
about new opportunities facing
the organisation.
i
y
To enable the organisation to
create new opportunities where
none existed before.
HKD Section: Save t!b.‘ t
’.dren South Asia Regional Office, 1994
I
5.
To show donors and potential
donors how their financial
contribution will contribute to
the overall achievement of the
organisation’s mission.
6.
To build relationships with
stakeholders, especially the
organisation’s constituency.
'1
To focus the organisation’s
energy on its real priorities.
8.
To develop staff commitment
to the organisation’s Mission.
9.
To communicate the
organisation’s purpose to
others.
i
I .
i
10. To make decisions about ■
changing the organisation’s
structure and/or culture.
I
i
i
HKD Section: Save the Children South Asia Regional Olfice, 1994
Association of Cambodian Local Economic Development Agencies
Organizational Chart
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
BOARD
REVOLVING FUND
MANAGEMENT
COMMITTEE j
r
EXECUTIVE
COMMITTE
TECHNICAL
SUPPORT TEAM
f
LEDA
LEDA
LEDA
LEDA
SIEM REAP
LEDA
LEDA
SISPHON
BATTAMBANG
KOMPONG CHAM
PHNOM PENH
KOMPOT/TAKEO
•t
8.3
AIT hCM CGHSCm'Mii-On/C, INDIA
Management Development Workshop
Ba ng al orej^ 3 ” 21
SUST^.
.-'A7
SUSTAINABILITY IS ABOUT UidUC FAIR TO Tn
■ j benefits, practices,
plfd n to SLlst'c:iin
Pv'e should plan
^el'’organization.
The
'
level
organization.
canab.il i ties, and community level
?
d UiJt) a
...7
.)/ NGDOs Should
snouid bu co
to cn-vuj-L-p
c ^£lts bo
SusL-ainabe Model of Development, Adhere
~ self-perpetuating. The most
S.^“ay^aeSvlFibK- h » earing
Jo .mo sustaloable dovelop.ont progrades.
■ ' r environment found in
Policy^
In the constantly changing
sustainability also requires
developing countries, to
the
policy
ensure
that
advocacy
continual
friendly
to
onvironsiKijit in the country remains
inablu
development.
LJUiJ t cl-----" j on what
be interpreted differently depending
Sustain.ih.i li ty can
level and the
it cn vary according to the
-- -we are talking about;
abject of what we want to sustain.
Ob jec
Levels
O
.
.
.
•
Global
National
Organisational
prograiiime
.
.
.
Institutions
structures
processes
Mental constructs
(e.g.,, attitudes, values)
in
level has become a Inai_ori
been
Sustainability
of the model of
...t technological
recent timesAtasone time, some
some. c_
of us thought V at ---countries could.
following. Atoould ovex-come all problems
other countries,
development
v--insulate themselvesi from problems
Problems_w
not true,
most of us now realise
—T,se that V-lthis
we
dimension of sustainability,
is
an
important
Although this :
shall not di: -v .. it here.
»■
snSTAINAUALIXY oIL-TniSJ[A-XIOil
on the
a national NGDO is dependent
The sustai.nabj.bity of
sustainability of the nation itself.
1
,1
apt wcio
Management Development Workshop
Bangalore, 3-21 October, 1994
-
..’/ix.fi jrzjrr
1.0
'l
•i
s
<•
.1
i
4
Model of P.cy_elQjDHien_t is an important aspect of nat’nnal
J evel sustainabi1ity.
O There are several different models of development:
self-sulficient and self-relidF't, su: istence oriented
economies which communities have followed for thousands
of years,
t
.
need bcised, centrally planned socialist economies (
China, Vietnam),
oriented, free
tree market, capitalist economies
prof
(e.g., USA, Thailand),
people oriented, free market, socialist economies (o.p./
Sweden, Sri Lanka till recently).
Many countries also adopt partsi of these different models
or. as
and have "mixed economies" or,
a some might say, "mixed up
economies".
i
i
1.1 Aspects of Sgstainability
O Resource conservation and environmental quality
4
If natural resources are depleted, it will leua to a
decline in the production base and environmental.problems;
these are too well known to need elaboration he.re,
Discharge of waste or toxic materials, especially non biothoughtless
degradable
materials,
as
a
result
of
environmental
quality
to
deteriorate,
development causes
sometimes to dangerous levels.
•I
Concern for natural resources
minimise these problems:
i
2
i
I
and
the
environment:
can
Use renewable resources at sustainable rates.
soil
Tttke steps; go
co ennance
enhance renewable resources, e.g.z
conservation and improvement.
,
and
Use
non-renewable
resources
efficiently
rendwable
economically; recycle them; substitute with
resources.
,
, . .
.F j
Use processes which minimises production of.-u,
especially toxic waste;■ make
make ’toxic
----- waste harmless before
discharging them into the environment.
J
J
1
I
■!
I
■?
2
AIT HGIX) CCHSOFTXW-C^C INDIA
Management Development Workshop
Bangalore, 3-21 October, 1994
O Human dev&lopment
People make up the country. They are also the people who
use or misuse resources; if they hav^ a proper awareness of
the implications of the wasteful use of resources and how
to use them more effectively and economically, they can use
them more efficiently.
•
People as consumers waste much water, electricity, etc.,
even th.: iAXx they have to pay for them; wastage is even
greater when they
not pay.
People as producers tend to be less wasteful in order^to
the extra
reduce their costs unless they can pass on tho
cost of wastage to their consumers.
If they are not developed, it would not be possible to sustain
development.
O
Flnanacial solvency
A country/ which is spending more than it is earning,
in terms of internal spending or external trade,
whether icannot survive. For some time it might be able to borrow
but it is mortgaging the future generations;
possible to keep borrowing indefinitely.
.
•
O
it is not
Some of the so-called "structural adjustment" policies
are intended to correct that situation by making prices
reflect
costs
more
realistically,
e.g.,
reduce
government spending by cutting subsidiu^, welfare, etc.;
re< .ice imports by increasing their cost through
devaluation of national currency.
I
These adjustments
to hurt the poor but may actually
benefit the rich.
Equi ty
If the model of development does not bring about
development (^jonomic,
social, cultural, and political)
among various groups of people and regions within the
country, frustration and resentment will build up. ..t would
lead to social and political unrest that could lead to a
breakdown in the development process and even a break up of
the n ‘:ion state, such a model of c. velopment. is not
sustainable.
3
• W r*
ait
India
Management Development Workshop
3-21 October, 1994
SUCTATNABTIalTy
. • Non-interventionist models of development tend to cause
this type of uisiiuitabla development
.
. No qrouo(s) or region(s) should be marginalised b/ the
model oi
’velooment followed; all groups of people and
regions within the country must be brought inuO the
mainstream of development.
t
4„
. This requires some form of government intervention m
the utilisation of national resources.
O
rnternational relations and trade
Maintaining ood relations with neighbours-is important,
e
ciallyior small nasions to survive as'nations; this
might mean sacrificing some national sovereignty to
order to preserve it.
‘ ‘ i u. Uier
Unless nations ar- able to bal.ace their trade with
economically
but
countries, they become de^n^ent, not on_y <-----psychologically also.
SUSTAINABILITY OF ZJJ ORGANISATION
1.0
n the Context of an Organizati-OU?
1.1
ror finite period?
0
When we consider the sustainability of an organisation in
all organisations should be
general, we assume that
question we should
sustainable indefinitely. Therefore, a <ask ourselves is:
Should all organisations be sustainable idefinitely?
Some organisation (e.g. Task F°rce>J5*™1* a°compHsh?
itself beyond the task it has been set up to accompli,
Others (0.9. government in the case of
muse sustain themselves in some form indefini
.y
need to sustain itself, therefore, depends on the nat
of th., t.organisation and its function (s).
I
'i.
4
I
i
i
is
Xanage^.-•• it Developaer' ' .?
3-2J Octo^^. r
ri'.
|.b
0
Then we qan think of ,
SDST/
'ABILITY of an organisation AS A COOTIE
"f?
•rt
Considering that the Mission of NGTOs 4s to:
Empower and enable people to be self-reliant and plan
for an achieve sustainable development for tjiemselvos,
•n
i
WHERE DO NGJOS FIT INTO THIS COKTI^WM ?
NLLD TC S ,9u,Vr _
NEI-D TO SURVIVE
LIMITED L'JUOD
«►-------------i '
Task Forces
Rural Owe lopinent
Societies
Cooperatives
Societies
International
Agencies
Govermitnls
Figure 1: Sustainability Continuum
L
5
1.2
O
Like a Forest?
Some trees grow, others die and decay ...,... :,>.t the f.o.
interverv;
continues unless there is some major external
i--natural or human-made.
J
O
Like a Mountain?
Solid and remaining unchanged over long periods.
O
T
Like a River?
Continuously flowing, in rainy seasons a torrent with much
water, sometimes even overflowing; in dry seasons red
to a trickle, sometimes even drying up...but it is t.
when it is needed.
O
Like
any other model?
How will we describe it?
Air N«ijOO CCMSOETIM-CUCt ItWJA
Management Development Workshop
Bangalore, 3-21 October, 1994
SUOTAIKWILTTV
2.0
Euotsra-Af fcoting-Sus
an Organipnti on
Organ!sationa1 sustainability is affected by fiXtenidl W
internal factors:
2.1 External Factors
The socio-political environment including the State and
funders afloCu organisational sustainability very strongly.
o
Socio-political Environment in the Country
In the legal,
financial and
legal.
NGDOs must operate within
their
countries
which
determine
political framework within
sustainable
and
functioning
the
scope
for
their
development:
reporting
1 aws,
Legal
framework:
registration
requirements, regulatory bodies.
Fi nanc i al controls» regulations concerning Loreign and
■ r t^x
national donor and government financial support,
laws, regulatory controls concer
n mg l inancial matters,
concerning
political climate, access to puo ic
sector services, pressure to become service dcliveiy
outlets for public sector programmes.
O
Funders
to
Funders have their own agenda which change from time
time; nGDOs which are. dependent on financial support from
variations unless they
them may grow or decline with those
.
safeguard
themselves.
This will so
have taken steps to
detail
in
the
module
on Financial
discussed • ■in more
Sustainability
2.2 IrLt^nal Factors
~ ___ ‘
■*. Chakra and some others,
The elements in our organisational
.4Iso iuueract with
which ar-; not spelt out explicity in it, interuc - wiLh each
sustainability; at the same time tn^y
other also to affect sustainability.
6
att hcm coysom’iUM-cwc,
n<oiA
zxanagem. -at Development WorKsnop
banqar re, 1-2^ October, 1994
L.-
O
I ____________ ....an^ad, I'fYriliiTiidiii'l
'■
The eluents:
Organisational culture
Vision
Value
Mission
Structure
Leader si i i p
Management style
Level of development
Size
People
Systems
Financial resource
Ccrpstituency
Information
Poli tica1 env?ronment
Other NGOs
..gene i es
Cover.
Private enterprises
Any others ???????
2.1
The Tnteractlo^ulL
a stronger interaction with
Some elements may have bea critical; others m*iy be less
sustaiiikxbili ty, may even
so.
. Are
Are there
some which do not interact with or affect
there some
sustainability of the organisation.
2.2
Prol^ssionali^
As NGOOs have redefined their role lorf^'otess'ionaC has
not
in
ves.
managing (.)
t-
Development Professional ism
understanding of «R-lop»ont as a^ainjMo pro^ is
of
c
very important: their implications
for sustatnabil|. y,
development and
piano ie ,
processes
development
of
participatory
pro juct.
monitoring
and
evaluation;
implementation,
management.
2.3
Qx^\nisajaon_s2uLtur
Elements
in
the
orcjcinisat ioneil•r
culture
at tacts
its
elements which im^auf
sustain^biJ ity in several ways; the
t
_______
relevance, naturd: or
are- vision and mission and their
*especia 1 ly decision-making
leadership and management style,
or
mechanisms (does it promote con-muity. ) , sharing
values, etc.
7
Air .^.DO
Management Development Workshop
Bangalore, 3-21 October, 1994
2.3
Organisat jono L DeyeLopmoiA
**
The steps the organisation has taken to develop its people,
will
management systems, efficiency and effectiveness u—
influence its sustainability.
•z
PROGRAMME SUSTAINABILITY
1.0
O
The Meani ng of Progr«9W Su&t
The vision of a NGDO is translated into action and its
missj on achieved through programmes.
.
O
‘ * i programme they have
Unless NGDOs can implement the
the
participation of the
developed (hopefully with
; ,/ they cannot achieve their programme
constituency)
object'’vos. In
I_ other words, it is critical to sustain
their programmes until they are fully implemented, i.e.
not be interrupted of terminated along the way.
Therefore, the meaning of programme sustainability is:
The ability of a NGDO to sustain the implementation of
its programme(s) as planned without having to abandon
or curtail it/them during the period of its/their
implementation.
This should not, however, exclude modifications in thg
planned programme(s) which are found to be desirable
in the course of its/their implementation.
2.0
Factors Affecting Programme Se^Xainabi?-tty
Three sets of factors, which could be favourable or unfavourable,
affect programme sustainability; these could be grouped under
internal and external factors:
2.1 InternaI Factor
O
Organisa t i ona.1
Several factors related to the organisation and
functioning affect programme sustainability, e.g. z
financial and human capacity, management style.
its
its
Are there any others?
What can we do to minimize the effects of unfavourable
factors and strengthen the effect of favourable factors.
8
4^
AIT XCDO
Development Woi kr»K)p
Ba ng a 1 ore, 3-21 J ■ •
m .!
There could be some internal f^t<£S which are not relied
to the organisation, e.g. flaws inherent m Jd
of
we made in programme formulation, faul y
y
problems, etc.
o
>a
O
0
F
enhances
learning
piv£eS£
approach
Adopting
a
uxv^,
encourage
sustainability: ability to adapt and evolve
for variations.
experimentation and creativity, tolerance
-tical and horizontal
horizontal linkages within the
Develop ng vertical t’and
onsupport enter..
XVJll,
----- ----------- j. x.
e
.
organisation
other local organisations
pendence with
ul
, linkages to private
linkages to public sector institutions,
sector.
7-1 ^5.
2.2
O
Constituency
he
related to the constituency and
an
Several factors -en the constituency and the NGDO
interaction between
LOt
does
Sustainability, e.g.. programme
affect programme
" ; of
the people, constituency does not hkve
meet the needs
c
the capacity to sustain it, etc.
**•
• ---- ----
M
~
Are there any others.
~2 unfavourable
of
What can we do to minimize the effect
favourable
factors?
factors and strengthen the et:kcct of 1____
O
Environment
and natural
cultural
- z
socio-economic,
The political,
are implemented1 can affect
are
environment in
i-- which programmes
leaders
1
_________ 2-iis /, e.g., the ! local
programme sustainability
programme requires
the programme, the
antagonistic ’towards
—--etc.
a major change in people s attitudes, e
’
’
..2 unfavourable
«Mttceaneve''ydotthoer«inl»i2e the effect of
factors?
faSofT...” strengthen the effect of favourable
L-.
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Management Development Workshop
Bangalore, 3-21 October, 1994
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SUSTAINABTZITY
■
O
Funding
_____________________________________________________________________________________ __ ___________________________________________________ —------------------------------------------------------- —’—--------------------------------------
.*
This is a critical factor; it would be taken up under
separate module on financial sustainability.
Wi1
However t we may consider the conflict of expectations
wi .
between, donors and
under constituency:
■
•
•
■j>y '
’
constituency with regard to
funding
Donors expect the constituency to take over programmes
after some time.
.
.
.
The constituency may be more interested to maintainexternal resources flows unless self-esteem and selfreliance are built into the programme.
..
I
■
•
fc/
f ■■ ■
PROCESS SUSTAINABILITY
programmes which NGDOs implement sut m motion various
which are essential to sustain the development -they
initiate in the communities in which they intervene. Most NGDOs
expect that their intervention would enable the people to
continue their development after the NGDO has withdrawn.
The
Therefore, the meaning of process sustainability is;
The people, whose development the NGDO supported
through its programme, should be able t6 continue to
develop them in a sustainable manner and ensure
they can not only maintain but , also develop the
capacities;
abilities,
benefits,
practices,
and
organ^ations
which
they
developed
during
the
programme intervention.
y ;.
■
fit";
1.0
Factors Effecting Process Sust^inabilJdlY.
/
Two set of factors effect process sustainability:
fe'
.■
fe.
1‘
fa-
O
.
Strengthening people’s capacities
strengthening people’s
capacities
to develop themselves is
S L..
x
sustainable, In many
essential to. make their development sustainable.
(e.git financially,
'
areas people have become dependent (e.g-.,
,
mentally) on the better off in their area, government or
external agencies.
W‘
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AIT WDO
INDTA
Management Development Work hop
Bangalore, 3-21 October,
.s^ArwA^rLrrr
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•
Tue typus of
of dependency: expecting hand outs
outs,, exp^*
ouisiXs to take the initiative to solve their
to
problems, considering
everything from outside is better
.
ThinkWoftother types of depedenejy which inhibit process
Liustainci^ility among the constxtuency.
These attitudes are often reinforced by those who try to
me teach you
help them by adopting a paternalistic or •'let
as
constituents
how" attitude instead of treating the
equals.
Tn
i
mces, they are unable to free themselves
from that state of dependence without some external
he?o. social. mobUisatilin is, therefore an essential
qtrateav to achieve process sustainability.
JS:
wi 5. to mio the. ) .tepondent and more selfv-oi-iant
individuals
and have
as groups.
^.at areboth
“e asstrengths
people
“tieh can support
their development and how we can develop them furthe
O
f-
1
!
Strongthening local institutions
L__. ; in which the people
Local institutions are organisations
maintain the structures,
can participate collectively to
local level which are
activities and process at the
development but which cannot be maintained by
required for i..
people individually.
L
i by external agents
institutions
which
are
set
up
• Local
the external
withdraws.
institution
s
often do not survive once the
are
therefore,
better
if
these
• It is,
/---- ' > themselves as a response to
developed by the P^oPje
own
through
the strengthening ofbe their
their needs L
‘
external
capacities rather than being set up
agencies.
make
NGDOs can guide themi on how to strengthen them and
them more strong and sustainable.
up by
why local institution set agency
Think
of
the
reasons
0
after the
external agencies may not survive
sustainability
of local
Wa-Uhdraws and how they affect the s—
institutions.
_',fs capacity to
What can we do to strengthen the P^P16
effectively and
local institutions
organise and operate local
institutions c.
e.. .1 iciently.
i
.1
•i
i
«
11
I II I II—— ■■ II ■
I Illi
Apr KGbO
.
IxMA
Mana^euieiiU Development Workshop
li^uqalore, 3-21 October, 1994
Ki
susTAiihXMtrry
1.2
Uu i Id i ng Procass Sus di Lmib i / i ty i nto tL»e_J
?•
(
We cannot expect process sustainability uo be
automauxc^lly iium implementing a programme.
O
0
achieved
Although most programmes expect ''that what they have
initiated would he sustained, very few try to
---build such an
objective into their programmes and plan specifically for
it.
It is • mportant to
th;s; what we have discussed above
should
provide
some
guidance
should provide some guidance on v.^.at we should build
into our programmes to
it.
1— achieve
,— --i. Think of specific activities which we should include m
a programme to achieve process sustainability
--------- - we jnust
It is not enough to build those into the programme,
j to
check
also monitor and evaluate them periodically
t
achieved.
whether our objective of sustainability js being
J
•
Suggest some indicators which we can use to monitor and
evaluate whether we are achieving it.
12
___
H ^-4S2 Newslet tei’
T
Some Tliougbits on Development and
Sustainable Development
fBy Xamafa 'Bfiasin
These days many people are talking
trade is neither free nor fair. The weak
a constant supplier of raw mater als and
about alternative development. The
and small always lose out to the strong
an absorber of wastes. Consqucntly
word ‘alternative’ means something
and big.
Limitless and ever-rising
nature has been plundered -fores ts have
different. Many of us are thinking about
consumption levels for those who can
been disappearing, land, water, and air
alternative development because we are
pay for it is another aspect of this
have been poisoned by too much use of
dissatisfied with what is usually called
obsession with things.
pesticides, fertilisers. Rivers and seas
development because of serious
have been poisoned by factory effluents,
problems that exist. I will first talk
The present system has exploited nature,
oil tankers, and all sorts of poisonous
about some of these problems as I
and people, increased disparities at all
gases. This killing of nature affects the
understand them, then try to outline the
levels, and created hierarchies of all
poor, especially poor, rural women. If
main characteristics of sustainable
forests disappear, she is the one who
development, and finally speak about
has to walk longer to get water, fodder,
what you and I can do to promote
and fuel.
sustainable development.
3. This present form of development
Some Problems With Mainstream
has
Development
disempowered them. Women were at
marginalised
w< men.
the centre of things when house holds
I. The main model of development
were at the centre ofproduction, centres
followed by our countries has focussed
of health care. Women had knowledge
on production of goods; it has been
and skills in agriculture, animal
obsessed with material aspects, with
husbandry, crafts, medicine. When all
economics, at the cost of all other aspects
kinds, in nations, peoples, cultures, sexes
of life. This is why GNP is the main
etc. In this development, higher values
and industrialised women lost out The
criteria for judging a country’s
like ethics, morality, justice have been
present model of developmen
these activities were commercialised
has
development, people’s well being. And
forgotten or relegated to the area of the
strengthened the patriarchal ideology
GNP is calculated by anything that is
personal or religious life. Public life is
and system.
produced and sold in the market. Liquor
purely for the pursuit ofprofit and power.
production, weapons production,
4. Another problem with development
pornography — all these go into the
2. Modern science considered man to be
calculation of GNP. Can the number of
supreme, over and above nature, not part
of resources and decision-making
weapons a country produces be a
of nature. This same attitude has been
power. Originally, more people
measure of its well being ?
the basis of our development models.
controlled local resources, but slowly
This has not only led to marginalisation
you find fewer people control ling more
Profit is the main God in this model of
of nature, but of the principles of nature
resources. Instead of decisions being
development, profit based on so called
leading to ecological disasters,
made at the village level, they are being
"free market"
"free trade"
environmental destruction. Nature is
made at the district level or country
principles. But actually the market and
considered a non-living thing, a resource,
level or made by international
and
today is that it has led to centralisation
10
organizations
or
multinational
corporations in some other country.
greed.” The planet earth belongs to the
close to nature: tribals, aborigines,
whole of humanity and shouldn’t be
peasants.
plundered by the greedy rich nations and
5. If you want to control people and
rich people.
Excessive and wasteful
B. Sustainable development has to be
their resources from the centre you
consumption by some deprives the
people-centred and people oriented;
need ways to control and coerce;
majority of basic essentials.
not things centred and things oriented.
People have to be the subjects and not
therefore militarisation becomes
essential. Billions of dollars are spent
objects of their development and in this
Some Principles of Sustainability
model there are no hierarchies of people,
even by poor countries on armies,
police, and arsenals. Wars are made to
What kind of development will be
like the white are superior to the black,
keep weapons factories going.
sustainable? A Latin American activist/
the Brahmins to the uneducated.
Militarisation as aprinciple of violence
thinker said recently, “My people do not
Development of human creativity,
or control is closely connected to
want development. They only want to
human potential, inner satisfaction will
patriarchy and male violence.
live.” So, what do we have to do so that
be the prime moving principles.
It is
linked to the violence in the family.
Again women are the worst victims of
militarised and violent minds.
6. Another thing this development has
C. Sustainable development has to be
" This present form of
woman-centred. I am not saying this
because I am a woman or a feminist. I
am saying this because historically and
development has
been doing is homogenisation, which
even today, women take care of the
■
basic needs of the society like food,
means reducing diversity. Instead of
different kinds of crops you have one
fodder, fuel, shelter, nurturing. Women,
marginalized women,
especially rural women are also the
kind, instead of different cultures, one
culture. Small traders have been taken
ones whose survival is most threatened
disempowered them. Women
over by big trading ct^mpanies. There
is less creativity.
were at the centre of things
countries, classes, or castes spreads to
disastrous
the most vulnerable. When forests, or
lands or rivers, or wells die, these
Human beings themselves become like
machines. The culture of the powerful
ecologically
development. Women are the poorest,
Work becomes
mindless. People lose their autonomy.
by
women mourn the most because they
when households were at the
are the most affected.
all others. Homogenization is based
on the assumption that third world,
centre ofproductions.
ft
tribal, or women’s culture is inferior
D. Sustainable Development has to be
basic needs oriented. Basic needs must
J be satisfied before some people
and should be shunned.
every one can live?
squander the limited resources of the
earth on conspicuous consumption.
7. This profit and greed oriented system
is socially, economically, politically,
A. Development has to be in harmony
Sustainability requires relinquishing
The present
with nature. We have to believe that
levels of consumption of the rich. This
mainstream development is not
nature is a complete system, a living
is the most urgent action the
sustainable. US and other industralised
system.
countries cannot be the model for the
Nature sustains us so we have to sustain
so called developing pountries.
nature.
We have to relook at those
E. Decentralisation is another principle
Mahatma Gandhi accurately said that
cultures and religions which respect,
of sustainable development. Rich
“Mother Earth has enough for
worship,ortreat nature asa livingsystem.
countries cannot plan and decide the
everyone’s need but not for everyone’s
We have to learn from people who live
fates of the poor countries; central
and culturally unjust.
It cannot be over-exploited.
industrialised world has to take.
11
S2 Newsletter
governments cannot decide the fate of
other women; give them strength; tell
everywhere, in our family, our
community.
them they are important, their knowledge
organizations so that more people learn
Decentralisation should take place in
is important. We begin with ourselves,
to practice, to respect, to love
politics; in agriculture, in economics, in
our family, our daughters and mothers
democracy; so that democracy takes
industry etc. It will allow diversity to
and then within our organizations, in the
root in our families, in our NGOs and in
communities where we work.
the communities we are working with.
b) Wherever we are, whatever we are
e) In whatever we do we should try to
every
region
flourish.
and
Local people will live
according to their own traditions.
doing we should empower people; tell
move towards self-reliance; not just
decentralisation is to promote direct
people they are subjects of their own
financially, but in'skills, knowledge,
grass-root democracy. Participatory
development; treat them with respect,
information so that dependence on
democracy at every level of society will
recognise their diginity, their wisdom.
others is reduced. Autonomous, self-
unleash the energies of people. Poor
C) Support people’s organizations
reliant groups can safeguard their own
people have no possibility of running
because empowerment of the poor is not
interests.
F. Anotherprinciple which follows from
democracies. It is the elite who are in
f) We should do experiments to create
control and this can only be changed
through grass root democracies, through
'Development has to be in
alternative structures, alternative
cultures, develop things which are in
decentralisation.
harmony with nature, experiments in
G. Politics of non-violence or respect
harmony with nature. We
agriculture, experiments in health.
for all life is another principle we have
g) All this big work done by small
to follow and promote. Instead of each
country defending its borders through
have to believe that nature
armies, it would be a system of non
and fragmented they will not mean
violence where communities look after
themselves.
WHAT CAN WE DO ?
people like us requires networking. If
all these small experiments afe isolated
is a complete system, a
much.
h) We have to move towards controlling
living system. It cannot be
our needs, our greed. The whole of
You may now ask - what can you and I
humankind has to begin a journey
do in our own areas to make sustainable
towards the inside. We have to see the
development a possibility ? Let me tell
over-exploited.n
interconnections, move away from
you that if at all the present system will
narrow specialisations which hamper a
change, it is small people like you and
holistic view of things.
me who will have to change it. The new
i) Wherever we are let us talk about and
ki nd ofdevelopment can only be ushered
possible as individuals. Small groups
in by millions of small people who do
have to become the training ground for
insist on values like justice, ethics,
not have a stake in the present system,
grassroot
participatory
morality, beauty, love. Because these
who are actually victims of the present
democracies. They can build peole’s self
values were lost sight of development
system.
confidence, self-respect, management
lost its human face. We have: to bring
capabilities, creativity, inner strength,
back these values into our private and
inner beauty.
public lives.
a) Let us begin with ourselves; let us
level,
women fill joy in our life and work.
Wherever we are we should support
d) We have to practice democracy
12
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Organizational Growth and Development
w'
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A/.my
have concerned themselves ^th understanding the
lire cycle of oreanizations: how they arc born, grow, and die.
in an early contribution in the field. Larry Greiner argued that g^vmg <aga
■
dons move through five phases of development, each of Mt cm- ..uh u
lion as Organizations Grow" illustrates fow periods oj evolution, chaiacteiizi.
by prolonged periods of growth with no major upheaval tn
tice eive way to periods of revolution. If managers can anticipate
'- ’f1
upcoming crises:
1
1
PhuBUb of Growth'
W'.1 • • • let us now examine in depth the five
;.V dUUUlllk'
specific phases
of —evolution
and revolution1. As|
J/i iwuww «•
• — r----shown in
each evolutionary period.
•• • the
•• •— Exhibit,
-<"
i*. is characterized by the dominant management
siyle used to acliieve growth, wiiile each re
vol urevolu’ lionary period is characterized by the dominant
! management problem that must be solved
before growth can continue. The patterns
presented seem to be typical for companies in
K ‘ Industries with moderate growth over a long
w!>‘ time period; companies In faster growing In• - dusirics tend to experience all five phases more
, while those in slower growing tn>M'
r
.
a
|
’
idly
wih’V' ^ustries' encounter only two or three phases
'
over many years.
i€
w.
Il is important to note that cadi phase is bufh
an effect of the previous phase and a cause J or
. the nest phase. For example, the cvolutionap
management style In Phase 3 of t'n. Exhibit is
“delegation," which grows out of, and becomes
the solution to, demands for greater “aulu.i
omy" in the preceding Phase 2 revolution. The
style of delegation u..cd in Phase 3, however,
eventually provokes a major revolutionary
crisis that is characterized by auumpts to re
gain control over Hie diversity created through
increased dalegnlion.
The principal implication ul each pl.:ue i>
that management actions are narrowly pre
scribed if growth Is to occur. For examp..
i
I
5
I !
wr:
•
•SOUKCE: nei-hnu-d by ,«>.m^iun oj
lions Grow" by Larry E. Greiner (July-Aiigusl. U^J- Liipyi ib»n
*t" • ■*H1 rights reserved.
I
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I
HEADIXftS, STOIUES, AND OTJIEH
( ompany e.X|)eriencing an autonomy ci i.sis in
1'lM.e 2 cannot t cut n to directive tntnit^entent1
''l .‘I »,.’,U1,U"-H "Htst adopt a new style of
di h b.ihon in ordt’r to move ahead.
riutHtr 1: Crvulivity . . .
In the birth slage of an <•urbanization, th<» cmphasis is on creating both ,
’ a product and n
market. 1 lere are the (characteristics
■
of the
pi.*! iud of creative evolution:
1 he company's founders are t
usually techniolly or entreprcieurially orie.tted, and they
disdatn the management activities; their phvsic.tl and mental energies are absorbed entirelv
m making and selling a new
new product.
product.
Communication among employees is fee(|uent and informal.
fc
• bong hours of work are rewarded by
I enefi s'3
a”tl 1,16 P'’""liSe uf o'v™rship
• Control of activities comes from intmcdiale
b’e’en'm™ fecdbi,ck; tllc '"^gement acts as
inc customers react.
• • • 77te leadership crisis: ,\|| of
III
' tIsf-
(fmle obviously, a strung manager |.
who bas the necessary knowledge and'^tw
mil oduce new business techniques
easier said than done. The founder, of.
to -step as,tie even though they are
<mi|u,i-amentally unsuiled to be matL
bm-cXs the first critical development
m locate and install a strong business tnalS
uiio ts acceptable to the founders and wl^W
pull the organization together.
■
I’hn.ie 2; Direction . .
r
grows larger production runs require knowledge about the efficiencies of manufacturing
Increased numbers of employees cannot be
managed exclusively through informal comniumcatioti; new empmyces are not motivated
by an intense dedication to the product or
builds501131 33 3 ,,ic'’arc,iy of litles and nosit^M^
• The new manager and his key supeiviw^F
B
w
’ A functional organization structure
tioduced to separate nianufactiirinF^MP
marketing activities, and job . '
□ s s ig n I n e n u •
come more specialized.
"
• Accounting systems for inventory andX^>»
chasing are introduced.
.
incentives, budgets, and work standmlO
ace adopted.
f‘’ Wff
’ Communication becomes more formalaiS^B
mg to act as they did in the past. And conflicts
between the harried leaders grow more
inlen.se.
°
Al this point a crisis of leadership occurs,
'vluch is the onset uf the first revolution. Who
is to lead the company out of confusion and
solve die managerial problems confronting it?
no
1 hose companies that survive the first*,2^i
by installing a capable business managalH|
ally embark on a period of sustained gri^S
under able and directive leadership. HernBl
the characteristics of this evolutionary per$|^
i.H for the company to gel off the ground. Out
tlieiem hits the problem. As the company
otganization. Additional capital must be
secured and new accounting procedures are
needed for financial control.
Thus the founders find themselves burdened
witli unwanted management responsibilities
So they long for the "good old days," still try-
I^r'
"■ m
k.
gi tV'r I”
I fe
jfe
'p
'•ike most of the responsibility for iiislitutitijt^L
direction, while lower-level supervisorstreated more as functional specialists than wW
autonomous decision-making managers.
L
Ih
• ■ • The autonomy crisis: Although the
9^
directive techniques channel employee cnemfe®
more efficiently into growth, they evenlutiwSI
hr- fAoe
become inappropriate for controlling a largcr.?W
more diverse and complex organizalioi;,®^
Lower-level employees find themselves re-hffi
stiictcd by a cumbersome and centralizcil "'"'t'iI- cris
*34’' '
Inerarchy. They have come to possess
aulc
duett knowledge about markets and macliiii-s^ft'
LT..- ’ihc
ciy than do the leaders at the tup; cui>se'*“ll
nun
<|uently, they feel torn between following pro- .J.iM
lieu
cedures and taking initiative on their own.
-1 SUCI
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P/itOH)
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Phe next era of growth evolves from tin? suecesshil application of a decentralized organiza
tion structure. 1! exhibits these characteristics:
• Much greater responsibility is given to the
managers of plants and market territories.
• Profit centers and bonuses are used to
stimulate motivation.
• rhe lop .executives at headquarters re
strain themselves to managing by exception,
based on periodic reports from the field.
• Management often concentrates on mak
ing new acquisitions which can be lined up
beside other decentralized units.
I
• Communication from die top is infrequent,
usually by correspondence, telephone, or brief
visits to field locations.
'Phe delegation stage proves useful for gain
ing expansion throogh heightened motivation
at lower levels. Decentralized managers with
greater authority and incentive are able. Io
penetrate larger markets, respond faster to
customers, and develop new products.
. . . T/ie control crisis: A serious problem even
tually evolves, however, as lop executives sense
that they are losing control over a highly diver
sified field operation. Autonomous held mana
gers prefer to run their own shows without
coordinating plans, money, technology, and
manpower with the rest of the organization.
I'reedom breeds a parochial altitude.
Hence, the Phase 3 revolution Is under way
when top management seeks to regain control
over the total company. Some lop manage
ments attempt a return to centralized manage
ment, which usually fails because of the vast
scope of operations, those companies that
move ahead find a new solution in the use of
pe/-ial coordination lechni(|ues.
Phase 4: Cutirtlifiatiou , . .
During this phase, the evolutionary period is
chaMcterized by the use of formal systems fur
achieving greater coordination and by top ex
ecutives taking responsibility lor the initiation
and administralion ut these new systems. 1’or
example:
A-.-'-*
•
^5^4
-*■
'■ •^^^o^ft^**1****
• lh.ujnuiral|jeiid unllH urn inut.K .
uct groups.
• formal planning procedurcr^
lished and intensively reviewed.
• Numerous staff personnel
-if
I i.i >i / I. ■. ...I
....
a .. •
located at
headquarters
to inithi^^Stj©
1
Wtie
wide programs of control and
managers.
|j£an a
•T^Capila! expenditures arR
-J W"
weighted and parcelled out ac,'OS3
zation.
• Each product group is treated i ,
ment centre where return on. invest
is an important criterion used
funds.
• Certain technical functions,■ 5uciiiiWi^conlrl
processing, arc centralized al headtiSja^BfB11’051'.
while daily ojierating decisions remain*'
tralized,
• Stock options and company
mo
sharing art* used to encourage ideality
firm as a whole.
'
■
All of these new coordination systeins’jj
useful for achieving growth throi gh
Hcienl allocation of a company’s lirMlled.f|®^< *
sources.. They prompt field managers Jo
beyond the needs of their local units
units,’*
these managers still have mucli1
................. disci
making responsibility, Lliey learn to juslifyllxi^
actions more carefully to a “"watchdog'
’ ’ *
jJ’
headquarters.
.dience
. . The a|
red-tape
crisis: Hut a lack of confidSiwW^10 a:
gradually builds between line and staff,
Prul
between headquarters and the field. ThcpniM.^. *
liferation of systems and programs bcgitUW-X''^
bcgiiuW
con
exceed Its
exceed
Its utility;
utility; a
a red-tape
red-tape crisis
crisis is
is creale^Sw'::
cre’ale^WS:
iiirrr.isini*lv r*
h'- <«&•• tl~c
Line managers, for examnlp.
example, increasingly
•’"’’t heavy staff direction from those
*
sent
thokc wl^o^Stv
wlio^’i
not Ifamilial' with local conditions. Slaff peoplc>'»$Jy ,na
I % 4^
I \ 11 r» I » « w I
_i. . .. Juncooper*^fj'
_____ bel
on lhe.othcr
hand, complain about
live and uninformed line managers. Togetli^WW'
both groups criticise the bureaucratic
_____
. i._.
i
i
■
system that has evolved. Procedures
nd innovl*^
precedence over problem solving, a
lion is dampened. In shoi’h the organization M
^r‘
&
<
l(\
mt
become loo large and com pl ex to bo managed r_J. __
through formal programs and rigid systciuLL'J
’Hie Phase 4 revolution
___ ’....L... is
............
untie!r way.
j
.4.
. -I
co
il
ia
; .....
. ,. , .
■ S£
W’- ■
T<^1130-1
The hve phases of growth
PHASE 5
PHASE 4
PHASE 3
•. PHASE'2
Afe/VPHASt
SE 1;
i"
,'"13
W<Hoc^W-
wo
tfW'
•v/l
i
i
i
• I
Evolution slagos
i
i
Revoluuon stages
i
. 1''k'
> i
I
■
’
....... . t
••fAzk'-A
<-fi. B
C(l£ls of
»
RED TAPE
:
k
t
\
r
r%.Or'
j
; ’
■
isgf
i5.W
i i
I •:
I '
5: Crisis of 7
\
\ ‘
-
—1
L-
». 5: Growth through t -j
i COLLABORATION,
3fc Crisis ol t
CONTROL ■ •i
J ■
A j.
i
H
j.'j
, j
;j
u
'i
■• 4: Growth through .
• COORDINATION J
jrlr'l'
11
2: Crisis of ; i
AUTONOMY* '
A?
Lt-i
ryZ';::
A •;?.!
all.
an
3
Crisis of . ’ •'j
M iFT:
f LEADERSHIP 1
tea ■■.... v (
w?
1 siiw"■■I fev
rr*
W
II/'
z' >•
• J
'!
M
Growth through J
v-. •;
| direction
1.1
i.l
r^.r----------------- - --------- • 'TH
t Growth through
,
’ L CREATIVITY ».{•<- J
Small i
___
_ /
■ H
_____ :i
L L-m-q.vj .. •
h -.y
: I
3: Growth through 1
^r-frnATirtkl
’
DELEGATION ■
J
I
t
: ■‘1‘;•...•J’r?: V
fcP
'
.‘s V A
7<s;
.-irj.;-
m
..
S..r<
I-'■•!'•'’.?:***••<
-to- L
: U.„
Tl,A^ •id*
-
sibility. Mot cover, lower-level niai.agers a “ not
accustomed to making decisions lor it. m-
Thus the second revolution is imminent as a
crisis develops from tleimnds for greater
autonomy on the part of ’lower-level manage! s
solution adopted by most companies is to
move toward greater delegation^ Yet H >•" dif
ficult for top managers who were previously
selves. As a result, numerous compare s
flounder during this revolutionary period, uhci ing to cenlralixcd methods while lower
employees grow mure disenchanted and
..ve
the organization.
.^. iuccesslul al being directive to give up i uspun-
4
;* y
■’EM
SI
■■.
H I
I
j
■' ■ -f
''l.’llo
'l^U
pcgaiii/.amma! Growth and DeveiopnHiU
?/ t'
ill V
phiiftr 5: Cullaburutiim . . .
' 1,11 <d j ?
'' '
•pbe last observable phase in previous studies
tl,rLd
finphasizes strop/*, inlei pei sonal collaboration
■ jn an attempt to overcome the red-tape crise..
i _ where Phase a was managed moi e through
t
lormal systems and procedures, Phase 5 cm-
ll,l! '"to
jiiasizes" gre.ilcr spontaneity in mana/’imirnt
arlion through teams and the skilllul eonfronlaiion of interpersonal dillei rnccs. Social conirol and sell-discipline lake over h orn formal
J
is an ■”b j
■‘•led
"■’
control. This transition is especially dilbrull lor
H.h
i(J<|uartwx
miin dec^f I
/hose experts who created the old system*, a*,
well as fur those line managers who relied on
• ml
;iy wiih if
a more flexible and behavioral approach lo
formal mcthovl:. .u; aiiswei s.
The Phase 5 evolution, then, builds ,iiound
management. Here are ils characieristics:-
tC*
• Tim focus is on solving problems quickly
leiuspn,,. j
lb mo^jM
d'i luuis’is. ;:"
I
limited
|
lliroufili team action.
totai ^
(!I S f'
nils.
i dcci$iy.£
ustify dji
lask-group activity.
• lleadquarlers staff experts are reduced in
—■
• ’keams arc combined across functions lor
‘s
number, reassigned, and combined in inter
disciplinary teams to consult with, not lo direct,
field units.
• A matrix-type sti uclure is f requcnlly used
jonfidc4F..t
to assemble the right teams for the appi opt ial(
....................
,
^iiB.TProblen,s
'
,
.
m
• Previous formal systems are simplified and
sta
!. Thcjite'W
; begiiw^^&iwcontbinecl into single multipurpose systems.
• Conferences of key managers are held fie-
's i;rcawB. ■ (|uently to focus on major problem issues.
•is’
e
• Educational programs are utilized lo train
* managers in behavioral skills for achieving
ncDOfHnV^
’belter teamwork and conflict resolution.
• Real-time i./cn .nation systems are inle-
• Togq^gg^
iires
id
rationlHk^
;0
grated
into UUUJ
daily ..........................................
decision making.
““VU IUIW
o
*• Economic rewards are geared more lo
lea in performance than to individual achievemuni.
sy5lr»^j|j
• Experiments in new practices are CIV
cuuragud throughout the organization
tic
1
evolutionary stage, so Un: answer s ire criiical.
While there is little clear evidem i . I nnapiic
Ibe revuii;...... will centi c around l JI "j>:. !>'■
logical saiiiralion" of employ14"’ will; I'JU’.V
eiiiolunially and physically uxhausli d by lilt' intensilv o! Icamwoi k and the heavy pressui i 1 lur
inmualiv e solulions.
Myhunch is that the Phase 5 rev liulimi will
bo solved through new structure :» and prolo peril dirally irsl.
grams Ih.n allow cmplloyues
,
' ‘ e may even
reflect, and revitalize themselves. U
see companies with, dual 01 r.am.'.Uioni slrurUin-s .1 ■•habit" structure for gt idin/' I l ie diiily
work done, and a ’•reflective'’ st 'uclure lor
stimulating perspective and persi nalI enrichback and
met it. l-.mployees could then mw.c L
forth between the two structures as their
energies are dissipated and refueled
lizaliiHi liiiJ' i*ii|’li'iiii’iilvkl
( )ik I .in opran urgaii......
such a structure. Five reflective groups Ihive
been established outside their regular structure
for thi' purpose of continuously evaluating fi VC
task activities basic lo the organization. They
report directly to the tnanai’mg director, al
though their reports are n Kide public ihrouf’hout the organization. Members! ip in each
group includes all
i... levels anil fm clions. ami
employees are rotated through the: ••J JUpS Oil
a six-moiilh basis.
Other concrete examples m v in practice inelude providing sabbaticals lor employees,
moving managers in and out ol ■'bell spur jobs,
establishing a four-day workweek, assuring, job
_____;; , building physical facilities fur relaxa
security,
tion during the working day, making jobs mm e
inlercllangrable, creating an e.xti a team on the
assembly line so that one team is a ways off fur
rueducaliom and switching lo longer vacations
and more flexible wor king hours.
'J he Chinese practice of requiring executives
to spend time periodically oi. lower-level jobs
also be worth a nonideolog. ’-d evaluation,
may r..........................
For loo long U.S. management . is assumed
should be e|q tied with
ihat career progress
an upward path toward title, s' ary, and
power. Could it be that some vic
:v.
'"Oij
. The ? crisCs: What will be the revolution
1,1 response lo this stage of evolution? Many
of marketing might just long
benefit from, temporary duly :
C;W'r
k'ge U.S. companies are now in the Phase 5
organization7
wi ■ ■
i
• • i-/
,
...... f "'V"
presidents
, and even
i ie field sales
-
V
n t-G
ORGANISATIONAL COMMUNICATION
pHI
i
information Qa communication moi>ulc
AIT'NGDO
management
WORKSHOP
I99A
ORGANISATIONAL COMMUNICATION
The domain of human communication study and practice concerned
with
relations
between
communication
phenomena
and
the
functioning of those collectives known as organisations.
The
field began to take shape in the late 1940s
Approaches
Historically, specialists in the field have debated whether
communication is a central component of the process of organising
or merely one of a number of variables affecting the ways in
which an organisation functions.
Some theorists have proposed
that communicating and organising are virtually synonymous terms-
Indeed, as early as 1938 it was the businessman turned-theorist
Chester I. Barnard who declared in his classic treatise Th&
Functions of the Executive:
"In an exhaustive theory of
organisation, communication would occupy a central place..." A
more definitive statement appeared in 1951 when Alex Bavelas anc
Dermot Barrett, social scientists at the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology, argued that communication, rather than being a
"secondary or derived aspect of organisation," should be regarded
as the "the essence of organised activity" and the most basic
process to be studied if onek is to understand organisational
phenomena. This view was supported by such other communication
scholars as Lee Thayer in the 1960s, Leonard Hawes in the 1070s,
and Phillip K. Tompkins in the 1980s.
Most behavioral
scientists,
however,
have, perceived communication as an
independent, dependent, or intervening variable alongside other
variables,
such as
organisational
structure,
technology,
leadership style, working conditions, motivation, and the like.
Communication specialists during the 1950s and 1960s tended to
follow this trend as they examined the relationships between
communication behaviors and such variables as job satisfaction,
employee morale, group decision making, absenteeism, attitudes
toward supervisors, and various indicators of productivity.1
The view that puts communication at the center of organisational
dynamics is still being challenged. However, the general premises
underlying this position have become sufficiently influential
that researchers are inclined to qualify carefully their use of
the conventional constructs of organisation theory: upwardformal versus
downward-lateral,
internal versus external,
informal, tall versus flat, span of control, group decision
by objectives,
making,
performance
appraisal,
appraisal,
management
supervisory leadership, and so on.
1
Issues
Although in theory it would be fruitful to apply the concepts of
organisational communication to the study of such entities as the
family or the bowling club, virtually all systematic research in
the field has been focused on formally designated and formally
structured collectivities: business firms, government agencies,
the army, voluntary associations, labor unions, religious
organisations, academic instituions, and so on. This means that
such aggregates as concert audiences, street-corner crowds, mobs,
bus passengers,’ and, spectators at athletic contests are
customarily
perceived as
lying
outside the
purview of
organisational communication.
However, even though
organisations have almost always provided the contextof
research, a major concern has been the innumerable ways in which
informal (i.e., unofficial) groups and subunits, within the
larger, formal entity originate, function, and exercise influ
on the formal organisation.
Indeed, the forma^/inf° be
dichotomy has been a persistent research theme.
It can pe
applied not only to groups and channels but also to media (e.g.,
on the golf course)
formal written reports versus conversations
<------on
official letterhead
------message formats (e.g., typed letters
and
messages
paper)
,
versus handwritten notes on scratch
versus
rumors)
.
themselves (e.g., official pronouncements
Criterial Attributes of Organisations
Used in Research
found it difficult to define an^
Organisation theorists have found
set
of
attributes
characterising all organisations.
universal
-i
__ 1;
' ’ai limited number of
However, it has been possible to
identify
in almost all complex orgnisations.
being of such size that it is no longer possible for all members
to communicate, at any desired time and face to face, with
the other members.
agent. According to the general systems paradigm (dominant in
the field during the 1960s and thereafter), any change in one
part of the organisation will produce changes in other parts.
Reciprocity and circularity of causal chains must therefore be
expected when examining so-called causes and effects
communication in an organisation context.
Differentiation of tasks snd functions:
division of labour.
Under this heading fall such phenomena as specailisation (of
jobs, skills, knowledge, etc.), departmentalisation (based on
purpose, technology, location, etc.)
etc.), and line versus staff
distinctions. rThe
"' classic account of specialisation is Scottish
economist Adam Smith's description
ofJ ;a pin factory in Wealth of
.
Nations (1776) . Functional differentiation is one of the basic
forces behind the creation of various groups within the
organisation, some official (formal) and many more unofficial,
(informal):
work groups,
task forces,
xorces,
interest groups,
work,
committees,
coalitions,
cliques,
leagues,
and
so
on.
Communication researchers have investigated such topics as
semantic barriers, intergroup rivalries,r an,d
aftd group dynamics as
corollaries of the differentiation principTfe.
Goal orientation or purposiveness.
No organisation is a random
aggregate of persons and activities. Although any organisation
exhibits a multiplicity of goals-including frequent conflicts
conflicts
between officially espoused objectives and goals being pursued
y various subunits-and although goals are commonly stated in
vague or ambiguous terms, all organised activity is in some sense
purposive.
The formulation, statement, and dissemination of
goals represent important research problems in organisational
communication.
Control
mechanisms:
hierarchy of status
and authority.
No
coordination of effort can be accomplished without some sort of
entralisation,- this means a minimum of two hierarchical levels.
4any organisations are tall, pyramidal structures featuring layer
upon layer of supervisors and managers; others are described as
at.
Tall structures imply short spans of control; flat
structures imply broad spans of control (span of control is, of
course, a communication construct).
If one were to designate a single area in this field as the most
intensiveiy researched, it would almost surely be superior
subordinate (or management employee) communication-the so-called
vertical dimension. This orientation has accounted espcially for
a substantial corpus of research dealing with a wide range of
topics subsumable under the rubric communication climate.
A
review of the climate literature shows the research findings
largely clustered under five major dimensions, each hypothesized
as contributing to organisational
effectiveness:
(1)
a
supportive” style of supervisory/managerial leadership; (2) the
USe^<?^ Participative decision making; (3) high levels of trust,
confidence, and credibility (applicable in a reciprocal sense in
?
vertical and horizontal channels); (4) openness and candor,
W1^ /PTrtlCUlar focus.on "upward” and "downward” communication;
and (5) emphasis on high performance goals.
Categories of Organisational Theory
The received model.
The five criterial attributes described
above represent basic premises of what may be called the received
model of organisational functioning.
It is grounded in the
assumption that an organisation is essentially a control system
designed to increase the predictability of results.
Subsumed
under this model are two variants.
The first is characterised
by a focal conceiTi for control, productivity, and efficiency, and
the second by a focal concern for human relations, human
resources, and participation (but all in a control frame of
.*
reference).
Network analysis. Another research tradition in organisational
communication incorporates some elements from both variants of
the received model but also adds an important frame of reference:
general
systems
theory
(including
its
close
relatives,
INFORMATION THEORY AND CYBERNETICS).
This tradition is
identified with the study of communication networks.
Concepts
typically encountered in NETWORK ANALYSIS include unofficial
versus official (i.e, organisation chart) channels; patterns of
centralisation
versus
decentralisation
(centrality
and
peripherality); one-way versus reciprocated channles; network
roles, such as liaisons, isolates, and bridges; and the creation
of cliques.
Political framework.
This approach represents a radical
departure from both variants of the recieved model and from
network analysis.
It posits the organisation as a political
entity-politics
taken
in
the
fundamental
sense
of
the
manipulation of power.
Theorists adopting this view take a
special interest for example, in groups striving to gain power;
hence they are concerned with coalitions and power tactics,
including especially intergroup negotiation.
Interpretive or cultural paradigm.
This approach, which emerged
during the early 1980s, draws heavily on anthropological concepts
and methods. Its central concerns are with symbolism, LANGUAGE,
socially constructed reality, and shared meanings.
Hence
investigators commonly deal with such phenomena as RITUAL,
METAPHOR, stories, myths, and ideologies.
The study of organisational communication has continued to be
marked by contrasts. Many texts used in the field are written
by managers, staff specialists, corporate editors, and others,
who often focus on solutions to practical problems, such as how
to conduct an interview or how to motivate subordinates. At the
other extreme are academicians emphasizing theory and research.
Their studies typically utilise constructs derived
from
organisation theory and the social sciences, combined with
concepts commonly regarded as components of communication theory.
H-
Bibliography. Carroll C. Arnold and John Waite Bowers, eds.„
Handbook of Rhetorical and Communication Theory, Boston, 1984;
Samuel B. Bacharach and Edward J- Lawler, Power and Politics in
Organisations, San Francisco, 1980; Chester I. Barnard, Th^
Mass. 1938; Marvin D.
Functions of the Executive, Cambridge,, Mass,
Dunnette, ed. , Handbook of Industrial and Organisational
Psychology, Chicago, 1976.
■
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I
I
I
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I
5
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION
All - NGDO MANAGEMENT WORKSHOP 1994-
INFORMATION ^COMMUNICATION
module
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION
The most general meaning of the term interpersonal communication
is simply "communicating between persons," but scholars insist
on a narrower and more rigorous conceptualisation.
The anchor
points for such a conceptualisation are (1) at least two
communicators intentionally orienting toward each other, (2) as
both subject and object, (3) whose actions embody each other's,
perspectives both toward self and toward other.
In an
interpersonal episode, then, each communicator is both a knower
and an object of knowledge, atactician and a target of another'd
tactics, an attributor and an object of attribution, a codifier
and a CODE to be deciphered.
Beyond this basic conceptualisation the question "What makes
communication interpersonal?" has been answered in several quite
different ways. Interpersonal has been defined in terms of
1. The channels of communication available to the interactants.
Applying
this
criterion,
interpersonal
communication
is
equivalent to face-to-face interaction because only in this
context do interactants have access to visual, tactile, and vocal
messages.
2. The degree of structure in the international situation.
In
contrast to the predictable patterns of communication found in
highly ritualised, formal, or typied situations, interpersonal
communication is associated with informal, spontaneous, and
unstructured situations.
3. The number of interactants.
Accordingly, as one moves from
communication among
dyadic to increasingly larger units,
interactants becomes less interpersonal.
4. The closeness of the relationship between interactants.
Communication in intimate relationships, therefore, is viewed as
more interpersonal than communication in role relationships.
5. The kind of knowledge used by communicators when making
predictions about the consequences of their messages.
By this
standard, predictions based on cultural or sociological knowledge
produce impersonal communication. Conversely, predictions based
on psychological knowledge produce interpersonal communication.
Not only has interpersonal communication been defined in
different ways, but as a specific field of inquiry it encompasses
all the disciplines concerned with social behavior or human
interaction.
1.
Perspectives
There is no general theory of interpersonal communJ.Cpati°^ectr
there are several distinctive perspectives on the su^t.
Underlying each perspective are certain premises about the nature
nf Intlnersonal life.
Although these premises are not always
SaJed eSlicItly, they become quite . evident .when ^nc
the lines of ^pg^g^tfve cTn b^ seen as a set of premises
PboT?JeVr;iaKon Ee^lf and other on the basis of which
specific research problems are formulated.
on eHe - js - -in!
Tnut
interpersonal "^he probabU
determined
largely^y1 whether self has enough social knowledge and/or social
----------Since primacy
skill to predict and control other's responses.
"knower"-the
control
is
granted
to
self-the . individual
The
focus
is
on
what i^
perspective is highly individualistic,
Interpersonal communication is
happening inside the individual.
reduced to an outcome of psychological processes.
The
control
perspective has
given
rise to
several
lines
of
"suXt1rlLa?=hS»e=Uainia’«rgL„ln^
select different strategies.
coordination.
Interpersonal relations as coordination.
interpersonal communication has been construed as ja P^iem of
coordination in which self and other must coordinate theirlines
of action in order to achieve their personal g°als.
to the monadic model of communication represented by ^OLD D
LASSWELL'S famous equation - "Who says what m which channel to
Som with what effect?" - the coordination. PersPectlvfa^o^S
to a dyadic model of communication that views the relation
self toY other as a coorientation process involving something mor^ .
than an aggregate of individual processes.
Rritish osvchiatrist R. D. Laing observed that each person's
behavior PtoYwardth\ other is mediated by the. experience by eac^
ol the other, and the experience of each is mediated by th^
behavior of each. This deceptively simple statement provided the
foundation ^jr a series of collective representations of
experience in a dyad, referred to as levels of coorienta
l^ievel^of agreement (what self thinks; what other thinks);
2.
what
2. level of understanding (what self thinks other thinks;
other thinks self thinks); and
' •? thinks other thinks self
3. level of realisation (what self
other thinks).
thinks; what other thinks self thinks
----
takina into account the levels of experience of self and other
By 1tak g •
■ •
--- . are able to study the relations between
Se’ £oa'pSoSlgSS
1.rtI=riry." T
otr
systematically.
a t==rai„.tion
coordination mode!
model c
measurement tas bee's applied in
been
superior-subordinate
relations,
family
socialisati ,
superior-subordinate
disturbed communication in marriage.
The coordination perspective is rooted in the premise that
realitv is socially constructed and must be socially sustain
Senremise of a socially constructed reality embodies three
important assumptions: (1) meanings are learned through SPEECH
(2) speech is a social process governed by rules, and (3) withou
rules there can be no meanings.
__
interpersonal
Interpersonal relations as self-regulation,
• a problem of self—regulation in
communication has been viewed as - -- , - itself by
which self and other form a system that controls itseir oy
Snowing largely implicit rules established through a Process
of trial'and error over a period of time.
In ^^ast. uo th
time.
monadic and dyadic models of communication, S Sat thev allume
self-regulation may be thought of as N adic
m
,
-in
"it is always the most complex that explains the most simp e .
This contextual orientation implies that an analysis or an^
communication system must extend the boundaries of the system p
include other interactants implicated in or by the system.
C ■
Self-regulation has been used to describe the functioning of
naturally evolving groups such as families and work teams, These
bonds evolve over a period of time through a sequence of
transactions and feedbacks until the members become a unit
The systematic
Governed by stable rules unique to them alone,
-_
“
3
should
be seen as
orientation holds that members of such groups
elements
in
a circuit
elements of such groups should be seen as c^o
that
every
of interaction.
While it is acceptable to assume
member has influence, it is unacceptable to conclude that anyT one
member's behavior causes the behavior of others, As elements in
a circuit, none of the members has unidirectional power over the
Causality is circular insofar as every member influence^
2e1otherVanal'lsi°nfluXn;ea
by them.
then. The part
■ ; influenced linultineLusly
simultaneously by
cannot control
control the
the whole,
“hole, or,
or, as
as systems
eystens ’theorists
cannot
------ - have expressed
it,
"the
power
is
only
the
rules
of
the
game, which cannot be
it, ’’the power is only the rules of the game,
changed by the people involved in it.
’ ' * i are sometimes classified as
The principles of self-regulation
school
of
thought
about human communication referred
part of a l---to as the interactional view.
3
Research Domains
As the different perspectives show, there is no widely accepted
framework for organising the large volume of research on
interpesonal communication. Yet it is possible to discuss som?
particular research objectives in terms of the conventional
categories of structure, function, and process.
___ ____
i__* r e lines of inquiry has been
Structure. One of the
most productiv
determine
universal
the effort to <-------.parameters of interpersonal
The
accumulated
evidence
strongly
suggests tha^
behavior.
The accumulated
----,
influence
and
affection
are
fundamental
processes
of
communication found in some form everywhere.
Most of the
variation in individual behavior can be accounted for by these
two behavioral dimensions and by some measure of interactional
frequency.
There
is
also
conclusive
evidence
of
an
"interpersonal reflex," a tendency for certain behaviors to
elicit certain responses.
Although reciprocity is limite
y
fluctuations in the situation and relationship between partners,
regular patterns of mutual influence have been observed m a wide
variety of linguistic, vocal, and kinesic behaviors.
Function. There are numerous ways, of classifying the desired or
potential consequences-•> of interpersonal communication. Research
that interpersonal communication iq
has strongly suggested
;
Almost
every message has the potential to
multifunctional.
than
one
outcome.
Traditionally researchers have
produce more
classifying
behavior
in terms of mutually exclusive
insisted on <
longer viewed as
categories, but that arbitrary rule is no
included
among the most
The following are usually
useful.
communication:
(1)
to
central functions of interpersonal
(4)
to
(3)
to
validate,
organise, (2) to manage impressions,
disclose, and (5) to protect.
generally
on
how
focuses
process
on
Research
Process.
time
and,
specifically,
i
over
1nterpersonal relationships develop
constrain interpersonal transactions.
associated with longitudinal research. Initial
been shown to be highly predictable transactions that seem to be
governed by a principle of uncertainty reduction. Beyond initial
interaction, there is very little conclusive research on th?
development of interpersonal relationships. The developmen
an interpersonal relationship is not a systematic and orderly
process but seems instead
be characterised by retreat and
instead to
to be
advances that are episodically conditioned by the particular
interaction experiences of the participants.
4
Bibliography. Carroll C. Arnold and John Waite Bowers, eds.,
Handbook of Rhetorical and Communication Theory, Boston, 1984;
Dean C. Barnlund, ed., Interpersonal Communication: Survey and
Studies, Boston, 1968; Gregory Bateson, Steps to an Ecology of
Mind, New York, 1972; Michael Brenner, ed. , The Structure of
ed. , Human
Action, New York,
1980; Frank E.
X.
Dance,
ed.
Communication Theory: Comparative Essays, New York,, 1982; Fritt
Heider, The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations, New York,
1958; Mark L. Knapp and Gerald R. Miller, eds., Handbook of
Beverly Hills,
Calif.,
1985?
Interpersonal Communication,
and
A.
Russel
Lee.
R.d.Laing, Herbert Phillipson,
r\
MYTHOLOGIES
Extracted from 'Mythologies' by Roland Barthes
Myth: According to Barthes, is a type of speech,
A myth is a
collective perception of something, a communication act which
results in a collective image.
A1T-K1GDO management WORKSHOP 1994INFORMAT ION & COMM UNICATION MOPUL-E
i
1
The Brain of Einstein
Einstein's brain is a mythical object: paradoxically, the
greatest intelligence of all provides an image of the most up-todate machine, the man who is too powerful is removed from
psychology, and introduced into a world of robots; as is well
known, the supermen of science-fiction always have something
reified about them, So has Einstein: he is commonly signified
by his brain, which is like an object for anthologies, a true
Perhaps because
of his
mathematical
museum exhibit,
specialisation, superman is here divested of every magical
character; no diffuse power in him, no mystery other than
mechanical: he is a superior, a prodigious organ, but a real,
even a physiological one. Mythologically, Einstein is matter.
his power does not spontaneously draw one towards the spiritual,
it needs the help of an independent morality, a reminder about
the scientist's 'conscience' (Science without conscience,* they
said....).
Einstein himself has to some extent been a party to the legend
by bequeathing his brain, for the possession of which two
hospitals are still fighting as if it were an unusual piece of
machinery which it will at last be possible to dismantle,
A
photograph shows hims lying down, his head bristling with
electric wires: the waves of his brain are being recorded, whp_le
he is requested to 'think of relativity', (But for that matter,
what does 'to think of' mean, exactly?) What this is meant to
convey is probably that the seismograms will be all the mbre
violent since 'relativity' is an arduous subject.
Thought itself is thus represented as an energetic material, the
measurable product of a complex (quais-electrical) apparatus
which transforms cerebral substance into power. The mythology of
Einstein shows him as a genius so lacking in magic that pne
speaks about his thought as of a functional labour analogous to
the mechanical making of sausages, the grinding of corn or the
crushing of ore: he used to produce thought, continously,
____ , , as a
mill makes flour, and death was above all, :for him, the cessation
of a localised function: 'the most powerful brain of all has
stopped thinking'.
What this machine of genius was supposed to produce was
equations.
Through the mythology of Einstein, the wotld
blissfully regained the image of knowledge reduced to a formula.
Paradoxically, the more the genius of the man was materialised
under the guise of his brain, the more the product of
is
inventiveness came to acquire a magical dimension, and gave a ew
incarnation to the old esoteric image of a science entirely
contained in a few letters.
There is a single secret to the
world, and this secret is held in one word; the universe i^ a
safe of which humanity seeks the combibation: Einstein alirubst
In Lit,
found it, this is the myth off Einstein. Z__
_r we find all the
Gnostic
themes:
the unity
unity of
of nature,
nature, the ideal possibility of a
Z---- 11^ 11
---- ; the
fundamental reduction of the world, the unfastening power of he
word, the age-old struggle between a secret and an utterance, .he
idea that total knowledge can only be discovered all at on^e,
like a lock which suddenly opens after * a thousand unsuccessful
1
The historic equation E = mc2, by its unexpected
attempts.
simplicty, almost embodies the pure idea of the key, bare,
linear, made of one metal, opening with a wholly magical ease a
door which had resisted the desperate efforts of centuries.
Popular imagery faithfully expresses this: photographs of
Einstein show him standing next to a blackboard covered with
mathematical signs of obvious complexity; but cartoons of
Einstein (the sign that he has become a legend show him chalk
still in hand, and having just written on an empty blackboard,
as if without preparation, the magic formula of the world, In
this way mythology shows an awareness of the nature of the
various tasks: research proper brings into play clockwork-like
mechanisms and has its seat in a wholly material organ which is
monstrous only by its cybernetic complication; discovery, on the
contrary, has a magical essence, it is simple like a basic
element, a [principial substance, like the philosopher's stone of
hermetists, tarwater for Berkeley, or oxygen for Schelling.
But since the world is till going on, since research is
proliferating, and on the other hand since God's 'share must be
on the part of Einstein is necessary:
preserved, some failure
:
Einstein died, it is said, without having been able to verify
'the equation in which the secret of the world was enclosed'.
So in the end the world resisted; hardly opened, the secret
closed again, the code was incomplete.
In this way Einstein
fulfils all the conditions of myth, which could not care less
about contradictions so long as it establishes a euphqric
security: at once magician and machine, eternal researcher and
unfulfilled discoverer, unleashing the best and the worst, brtain
and conscience, Einstein embodies the most contradictory dreams,
and mythically reconciles the infinite power of man over nature
with the 'fatality' of the sacrosanct, which man cannot yet do
without.
i
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.14
The Poor and the Proletariat
Charlie Chaplin's latest gag has been to transfer half of his
Soviet prize into the funds of the Abbe Pierre. At bottom, this
amounts to establishing an identity between the nature of the
poor man and that of the proletarian. Chaplin has always seen
the proletarian under the guise of the poor man:
hence the
broadly human force of his representations but also tlheir
politcal ambiguity. This is guite evident in his admirable film,
Modern Times, in which he repeatedly approaches the proletarian
theme, but never endorses it politically. What he presents us
with is the proletarian still blind and mystified, defined by the
immediate character of his needs, and his total alienation at the
hands of his masters (the employers and the police).
For Chaplin, the proletarian is still the man who is hungry; the
representations of hunger are always epic with him: excessive
size of the sandwiches, rivers of milk, fruit which one tdsses
aside hardly touched.
Ironically, the food-dispensing madhine
(which is part of the employer's world) delivers only fragmented
and obviously flavourless nutriment. Ensnared in his starvation,
Chaplin-Man is always just below political awareness. A strike
is a catastrophe for him because it threatens a man truly blinded
by his hunger; this man achieves an awareness of the working
class condition only when the poor man and the proletarian
coincide under the gaze (and the blows) of the police.
Historically, Man according to Chaplin roughly corresponds to the
worker of the French Restoration, rebelling against the machines,
at a loss before strikes, fascinated by the problem of bread
winning (in the literal sense of the world), but as yet unable
to reach a knowledge of political causes and an insistence on a
collective strategy.
But it is precisely because Chaplin portrays a kind of prim tive
proletarian, still outside Revolution, that the representative
force of the latter is immense.
No socialist work has yet
succeeded in expressing the humiliated condition of the worker
with so much violence and generosity. Brecht alone, perhaps , has
glimpsed the necessity, for socialist art, of always taking Man
on the eve of Revolution, that is to say, alone, still blind, on
the point of having his eyes opened to the revolutionary ight
'
by the 'natural' excess of his wretchedness.
Other works, in
showing the worker already engaged in a conscious fight, subsumed
under the Cause and the Party, give an account of a political
reality which is necessary, but lacks aesthetic force.
3
Now Chaplin, in conformity with Brecht's idea, shows the public
its blindness by presenting at the same time a man who is blind
and what is in front of him. To see someone who does not see is
the best way to be intensely aware of what he does not see; thps,
at a Punch and Judy show, it is the children who announce to
Punch what he pretends not to see. For instance, Charlie Chaplin
is in a cell, pampered by the warders, and lives there according
to the ideal of the American petit-bourgeois: with legs crossed,
he reads the paper under a portrait of Lincoln; but his
delightfully self-satisfied posture discredits this ideal
completely, so that it is no longer possible for anyone to take
refuge in it without noticing the new alienation which it
contains. The slightest ensnarements are thus made harmless, and
the man who is poor is repeatedly cut off from temptation, All
is perhaps because of this that Chaplin-Man triumphs
told, it
:
over everything: because he escapes from everything, eschews; any
kind of sleeping partner, and never invests in man anything[ but
,
man himself.
His anarchy, politically open to discussion
C*
the
perhaps represents the most effient form of revolution in
realm of art.
r\
ii
STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION SYSTEM
2.1 INTEGRATED NATURE OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS
All activities and behaviour patterns get established to function within a particular
framework. This framework is the "system ' in which all actions are planned or executed.
(Das Gupta, 1990:1) It implies logic, order, rationality and formality in the course of
planning. It is the framework within which the generation and transformation of data to
information is enabled through various torrns of purposeful processing, an impertant
purpose in our context is planning. Various other definitions emphasize an information
system either as the elemental process of data transformation or the process of using data
in the context of planning and decision making. (Batty, 1990:6)
An information system is associated with the levels of planning vertically and the
functions of the related agencies horizontally. For example, if our objective is to formulate
a crop production plan, information /lbws must be both vertical and horizontal.
Information is needed regarding area and production, land quality, water resources,^
infrastructure, etc., 1from
---- various
------ district level agencies. At the same time we need
size of holdings, existing cropping patterns, cost of production,
information on the
t
cultivation practices, family labour, etc from households. These have to be processed in
relation to each other to decide what goes into our plan.
Two aspects, namelv. physical and logical, are important in the organization of
values tire
information in a system. The physical aspect relates to the ways in
in which
«...data
----- —
stored and methods through which tiiey car. be accessed. The logical aspect relates to the
user’s view of data; the logical basis of data is the relationship of the data io the
objectives to be achieved. (Regmi, 1984:96)..
The information system'deals with different functions like collection of data,
referencing, storage and mobilization (i.e.. retrieval and processing). Components related
io these functions are:
Time Series Storage and Analysis System
Survey Storage and Analysis System
Handbooks on Standard Information (particularly tor national and district level
data)
Institution Related Files
Technical Data Banks
Special Studies
I
The role of all information systems is to facilitate assembling and dissemination of ideas
and inferences generated from data processing. As the basic purpose of the information system
we are designing is to meet the overall needs of planning, it must be coordinated with every
stage of the planning process. The interrelationship that should be maintained between the
information system and planning stages are diagrammatically presented in Fig. 11.
Problem
Identification
Project
3 Identification
Fomlation
and Plan Design
i
Dias & Poudyal
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR..J3LANNING
Plan
0 lipleaentation
Including
Monitoring
!__
dInfomation Systen 4-4-
Inpact
v Evaluation
E
N
U
I
R
0
N
M
t E
N
T
■
?
i
)
i
i
i
I
Legend!
■-- > Flow of planning stages
--- ► Flow of data and information
j
Fig. 11: Interrelationship Between Planning Stages and Information Systems
1
i
i
The service provided through an information system relates to the objects and ideas related
to the common goals. Some components of the system may have an unique relation among
themselves, while some others may relate to a sub-system within the major system. The sub
systems are established at situations which can be logically and physically supported and must
be compatible with the main system to be a part of it.
As the system becomes more complex, it should be divided into several sub-systems to
make things clear for the control of the design. The true value of the system perspective lies
II ■ STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
i
20
(
1
5
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR...PLANNING
3
’I
These components relate to different
diagrammatically presented in Fig.10.
objectives,
■■
*
Dias &. Poudyal
These
relationships
are
■
: . .s rrrci
□ bJ ectives
: __
Systew Cawponents
I
Reduction cf Cost
in the Long nn
Ircreasai Use of
Data in Flaming
line Series S^sten
II
Sumey Systen
n?
II
Create tore
Facilities for the
Analysis of Problems
Standard Handbook
__ Systa
Identification of
the Lacunae
771
Onjanizatioa ta
Luta for Vide? Use
|Related Institutional
, J Records Susfea
__ Technical Data Ban*
TJSusta
11
Provide Service
to the Outsiders
"" Special Studies
Strung Lids
Occasional Lids
Fig. 10: Links Between Information System Components and Objectives
Source ! Derived on the basis of Vercueil, 1980’.S.
II - STRUCTURE QF THE INFORMATION ...
19
i
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR.PLANNING
Dias & Poudyal
in the fact that the effectiveness of the components considered collectively as a system should
be greater than the sum of effectiveness of each component considered separately. (Burch
et al, 1983:10)
In all information systems data is the major input. The purpose of an information system
is to organize supply points from where the planners can obtain required information. To
achieve this, the information system should be coordinated both within and across the sectors
of development.
Data are normally collected at the lower levels and can be.used for generating more than
one kind of information. The data at the lower level provides more details on the subject,
while at the higher levels there will be some aggregation loses because some of the details
will be summarized in the course of providing more generalized information. An information
system must be able to handle these differences in data and information needed at the
different levels.
Though many agencies are involved in using the information that can be obtained from and
information system, all of them do not necessarily collect the data which goes into the system
by themselves. As discussed in Section 1.6, some agencies undertake data collection as their
primary function, while others earn' out this task to support their own activities. Agencies
which collect data for their own use are normally in a better position to design data collection
and processing formats so as to suit their own information requirements. However, those
.using data collected by others may, sometimes, find it difficult to utilize them for their
specific purpose because the data are not compatible with their needs. While collecting and
processing data, the data generating agencies should, therefore, take into account the
information requirements of other agencies also. It is to fulfill this need that an information
system is normally characterized by the collection and processing of multi-level data in an
integrated manner.
i
In designing information systems we must take these practical needs into consideration.
The system design could be highly centralized and totally integrated- if one agency is in
charge of data collection and information generation. Theoretically such a design might appear
be attractive as it is easier to design and may seem easier to operate. However, it is both
undesirable and impractical, - undesirable because of the monopoly over information it creates
and the inefficiencies and abuses it could lead to, and impractical because various agencies
that generate and use data would not agree to it.
At the other extreme, the system could be highly decentralized with various agencies and
various levels of the administrative hierarchy having their own sub-systems. Such a
fragmented "system" resembles the prevailing situation; because it is so fragmented, it could
hardly be called a system. As we can see it is wasteful because of duplication, difficulties of
access, inefficiency and other reasons. The difficulties of data transfer from one sub-system
to another and lack of any holistic approach make these sub-systems in reality independent
■ systems and there is no information system to speak of. The desirable and practical system
design would probably be somewhere between these twq extremes.
// - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
21
I
information systems for..j>lanning
n-L
theerefo0miatiOn
—'______Dias Jc Poudyal
"
"
^^subTys^^elvr1^5'5^'^3 beCaUSe
most of
^^-information system must,
_-eg_ore. recognize the need for this flexibility and no/
i
information. At.the same time it is essennX
^d^P^hr^^7~ idity.
needs for
ge on some ^^^-^g^andards
^ofenablg the sub-svstems to be linked
■
—i_v/hich
ompmeTs areT7comi^ used more and more
Given
that
cover data spectfic-cattons, area amts, softyfrdesign ^ndards
must
freedom could and should be allowed to sub
A fair degree of
rcqu^en. .o be able
commu„icaK wi.h
Pr°VideCi
H
!
Different actors
?--play different roles in an infomauon n-stm Tb
generators, gatherersre,rJers md“ r^'™- ntere are information
(Fig- 12).
working within a system
INFQRMIIOH
GATHERERS
BtEORJlrtTIOM
I
GEJiERATORS
IltPOEW’lOII
SIC'REKS
| INFO^IIuN
k LuZ;2
\
( ilff^noil
y?P.OCES80B3 y
—
Fig- 12: Actors
Source ■' ihiwta and Dias, 1931:3 '
\ "rpmirp? /
*. I Urf 1 J I I u V uJ lO
i
^e Information System
--------
Depending on interrelationship among the actors
and the kinds of information required
by the users, t
■» ?i,“TPieXKy °fan inf°rma^on system varies. The
be to integrate the more complex will be"the
more activities there will
----- ...e system.
I< - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
I
a
A*
*1
i
I
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR...PLANNING
Dias & Poudyal
Key functional areas covered by the information system are (Burch, 1983: 7-9):
I
i
I
i
I
(i) organizational aspects,
(ii) functional breakdown of ±e plans,
(iii) procedures involved in actions, and
(iv) analysis of the data dictionary.
The organizational aspects cover details on how an organization is functioning, how
decisions are made with what organizational structure, and how information links are
maintained. The organizational aspect also represents observation of behavioural patte::rns
indicating what happens if a new set of events occurs sometime in the future.
The breakdown offunctions is another area to be dealt with by an information system.
To the extent possible, the functions should be divided into smaller units. This kind of
breakdown helps to establish functional relationships among different entities. By detailing
out the functions according to the responsibility of different entities, the interrelationships
between the task and information requirements can be better established.
The analysis of procedures involved in a set of actions will provide a basis to know) the
decisions influenced by various events. It enables planners to see the design
- o i and
implementation relationships including information required for the control of diversions.
The last but crucial aspect of an information system is the design of data dictionary.
It involves collection and organization of data sets which can be used at different levels
for different decision making purposes. It is a source for identification as well as provicing
solutions to the problems. By having a data dictionary the problems of duplication,
inaccuracy, untimely reporting and information gaps can be easily detected. (Pou del
1990:6)
2.2 DEMAND AND DESIGN ASPECTS
I
The information system can be organized in many ways. Since the nature of an
information system is dynamic, its structure should be flexible to accommodate chanp
circumstances over time. The common logical structures adopted by many informa.
ition
systems to facilitate these are (a) demand, and (b) design structures. (Burch, 1983:8) The
demand aspect covers reasons to arrange information, while the design aspect represents
logical resources to be organized to produce information from the data. Understanding inter
relations between the demand and design elements provides basis to make the information
system more effective. While designing the system, it is essential, therefore, to provide
specific values to the components related to these aspects. The importance of demand also
emphasizes the purpose orientation in design and the critical importance of meeting the
needs of users. The design of an information system should be determined mainly bv
demand (i.e.. user needs) than bv supply (i.e.. data available).
II - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
23
1'1
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR..J>IANN1NG
Dias <Sc Poudyal
2.2.1 Demand Structure
The demand aspect determines the form and substance of the design. Major entities
represented by this are as follows:(Burch et al, 1983:88-96)
(i) Information attributes:
While conforming to the specific requirements of the users the information system relates
to various information attributes. These attributes are: timeliness, precision, accuracy,
quantifiability, verifiability, accessibility, freeness from bias, comprehensiveness,
appropriateness and clarity.
(ii) Data processing requirements:
As the basic purpose of processing information is to meet the requirements of the users,
the information system should be able to summarize the effects of specific information
to the users. This should consider alternatives that would effectively satisfy the
requirements of different users. The components which may complicate the design in this
respect will be the volume of data, complexities involved in data processing, timeliness
and computational procedures.
(iii) Systems requirement:
Three elements are responsible to make the information system more responsive:
► reliability,
► flexibility, and
► maintainability.
The reliability element refers to the degree of dependability of resources to be used in
performing its regular functions. The system should not only be able to satisfy the users’
current needs but also it should cover the potential for growth over time. Flexibility is
another important criteria to be met by an information system; it relates to volume as
well as the nature of data to be processed. The system must be capable of meeting the
varying needs of different users which would change over time. An information system
does not deal with a single input of data only but must update data regularly and make
them available to users when they need them. As this service must be made available
to the users over a long period of time, maintainability of the system is another
important component; users must have confidence that the information system would be
maintained.
(iv) Organizational factors:
The quantity and quality of user requirements
requirements are
are facilitated
facilitated by
by the
the organizational
organizational
factors. Different organizational practices may gerterate different results. The nature of
the organization, its size, structure and management style will largely influence the
Il - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
24
I
I
i
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INFORMATION systems for..j>uwning
performance of an information, system.
(v) Cost-effectiveness:
^ut Z h g7;aUOnulnvolves cost- Any dma which are generated for some purpose
but erm be used for other purposes also will make the generation of those data more
cost-effective and utilize scarce resources more effectively. Therefore, cost-effectiveness
involve Xo‘coX” “ Il“ “'abliSta,'n‘ °f “
of cos.
► optimal use <of resources by avoiding generation of useless data/information, and
► generation of data/information to suit the needs
the1 users.
—of
-----(vi) Feasibihty requirement:
The information system should be analyzed to see how far it is feasible. It needs
compromise between demand and design aspects. Factors that relate to such compromise
are technical, economic, legal and managerial.
2.2.2 Design Structure
«
.
The design aspect represents logical ordering of resources for the processing of
information from data. Major entities covered by this aspect are as follows:
(i) Input:
Data gathered in view of the specific information requirements of the users is an input
by an information system.
to be processed bv
1
1
(ii) Processing:
The input data rare processed....
on the basis of specifications laid down by users (in our
case, planners) to meet their information needs. It is designed to answer queries which
planners must answer to make their decisions. As these decisions must be made at
various stages of the planning process, the processing must be done in the context of
those decision criteria and sequence of activities to be followed in planning.
(iii) Database:
The database is a repository of data which has some interest and value to the users. It
deals with two important dimensions, namely, logical and physical as discussed in
Section 2.1 above. The logical dimension refers to the implied relationships among the
data sets, while physical dimension refers to the ways in which data are organized in
hies. The logical dimension takes into account the kinds of decisions to be made in
planning, while the physical dimension facilitates organization of the files to supply
II - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
25
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR...PLANNING
Dias <£ Poudyal
information when needed. In designing the physical dimension of the database we must
take into account the logical relationships among data sets to make the processing of
information using related data sets possible and efficient.
(iv) Control'.
An information system is complex and dynamic in nature, and needs to be monitored to
see if it is working as expected. This requires a control mechanism to prever.t errors
from being processed through the system. This is a step which alerts the user against
against
actual as well as potential problems. The components to be controlled are input,
processing, procedures, data and security of the stored data. Though all these
components are important on their own account the control of input is a continuing
challenge in various planning contexts. Given that the information needs vary over time
and space, monitoring of inputs is a crucial pan to accommodate changes to make the
system user-oriented.
(v) Output:
The output is the actual information given to the users and, depending on their specific
information requirements, it is tailored to meet their needs. The components of the
output are filtered information, key variables, monitoring indicators, analytical models
and interrogative details ii.e., queries) related to the decisions to be made. For example,
in the context of planning, the use of output will be to formulate alternative development
strategies on the basis of identified problems and target groups.
(vi) Data processing resources:
The components of the data processing resources include: collected data, hardware
facilities, software facilities and personnel (people providing and processing
information). Each of these resources contribute to the system as a whole (Fig J3).
ft = Data
B z People
C : Hardware
D - Software
Fig. 13: Data Processing Resources of an Information System
// - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION .
26
1
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR...PANNING
Dias
Poudyal
i
Planning is organized differently in different countries. Rarely do we find a single
organization responsible for it even in the centrally planned economies. Often many
agencies are involved at various levels and the planning agency tends to act as the
coordinating agency. The wav in which planning is structured affects the design o the
information system. The more decentralized planning is and the more agencies are involved
in it, the higher would be the chances that the system is segmented into different sub
systems. Such an organizational structure involves more tiers and demands more routine as
well as formal communication. This increases the ppressure to segment the system.
Depending on the decentralized or centralized nature of the organization, the information
to be processed at different levels would also vary. The management style of the
organization (i.e., the philosophy governing the organization) which is primarily
responsible for the operation and maintenance of the system is another aspect which
influences the information system. If it is rigid and authoritarian, and not very responsive
to user needs, there is a greater chance of the system becoming fragmented but at the same
time too much of laxity could also lead to the same result.
I
I
i
l
I
II - STRUCTURE OF THE INFORMATION ...
I
I
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27
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• A -•
PRACTISING WHAT YOU BREACH
(A CASE STUDY)
BY
NANDANA REDDY
i
THE CONCERNED FOR WORKING CHILDREN
BANGALORE, INDIA
i
•!
r
PREPARED FOR THE
AIT-NGDO MANAGEMENT TRAINING COURSE
8 - 19 .NOVEMBER 1993, BANGKOK
!
1
'■
I
L
I
I
INTRODUCTION
Non
(MGOs),
Or g an i sa t i on s
I ri
1 nd i a ,
vj e ,
the Non 8ove r nmen t a 1
or
l:-’ r i v a t e
O i" g a 11 i s a I:, i o n s
( N 0 D (J s )
Goverm men ta 1
DoveI opment
one
being
(PDOs)
are
far,, from
Dove .1 opmen t
C) i'• q an i s a L i on s
of
s i e s,
A m o n g u s 111 c? r o e j : i s t s a
v a r i e I: y
li omogeneou s
group.
We
o b ,;j e c: t i v e s a n d m a n a g f? men t s ty1es.
ideal oqiE?s ?
m e t. Ii o d o I o g-.i e s
and
rarely
invari ab 1 y
d o n o t a g r- e e f e >: h i b i t s e v e r e c: o m p e t i t i o n
work together. On t h e w li o .1 e w e a r e a p r e 11 y I in p o s s i h 1 e 1 o t !
to
t li e
I)espi te
a 11.
111i s we
ha ve con t r i I.?u ted
a
q r ea t
dea I
wide
d e v e 1 o pm e n t o f t li e m a r g i. n 1 i s e d a n d d o w n t r c:j> c:l d e n p o o p 1 e . The
ways
variety
of methodologies have given rise
new and b e 11 e r
ih.i. s
of doing this. I lowever the most significant contribution of
sec: tor i s in d e pen d en t t holig 111 a11 d v i s i ori . 7’lie c r ed i t f o r c: r i t .1 c a 1
aq end as
q u e s t i o n i ri g o f s t a t u s q u o p 111 e d r a v) i n g u p o f a 1 t e r n a t i v e
and development of new ideologies goes to the NGO sector.
c i cod
Most NGOs are set up by a person or a groL’.p of persons with
n cj t
but,
who
do
w li o
f ee 1
s t r on g 1 y f o r an issue
in tentions,
their
ob.j ec ti^es .
a c 11 i (.? v e
have
t lie * ex perti se to
necessari1y
bt..i I:
Othersare se t u p by ’ pr-o f essi o11 a 1 s ' who have the exper tise
v) h o
of course those
1 ac k
t lie
c ommi tmerf t. T lie re are
sometimes
possess both the commitment and kthe expertise in varying degrees.
I I).A L
TI inSfrC?
are
11 o wove r t w o v e r y c I i s t i n I. I ■ i r i (1 s o f NGO^ .
There
a 11 c i
System
the
with and sometimes work as an extension of
work
aiH.I
probIem
t
he
t lia t
f e?e 1 t lie Sy s t eni i s r es pon i t) 1 e f o r
those
111G? r (i? f o r e q li e s t .1 o n a n d wlsli to change it.
The former N(30 adopts current managoment systems practised by I IH?
LI it?
vj 11 :i. 1 e
c o r po r a t e w o r 1 d
a n d i s f] u i I’, e c o m f o r t a I.) I e v.' i t h th c? i n ,
v
o I).j e c: t i e «:">
1 a 11 e r f i 11 d s t h a t 111 e s e s y s L e? m s a r i3 c o i) t r ■ a r v t o L lie i r
and
’ c? >: p c? r t ‘S '
and
ideology.
The former is normally staffed by
r e q u i res 1 li 111 f? h e 1 p 3 w 11 i 1 e the 1 a 11 e r i s g r o p i n g i n the dark.
T li e t e r m ' s u s t a i n able d e v e 1 o p m e 111' a .1. s o m (.? a 11 s d i f for e 111 things to
mean
I.) road 1 y
set
it
would
t liese
tv)o
g r oups .
'To
t he f i r s t
en
is li re
wo
li
1
d
the
o
r
g
a
n
i
s
a
t
i
o
n
t
h
a
t
sus t a i n a b 1 e
s y s t e ms
w i t h i ri
slis tai nab I e
o
t
l
i
e
r
s
i
t
V9
o
u
1
d
m
e
a
n
i t' s
c on t i nui ty .
To
t lie
1:11 e
d ev e 1 o pmen t
m o d e 1 s. M o d f? 1 s o f d f? v e 1 o p m e n t 111 a t vt o 111 d ensii re
j
Ll
S:.
t.
;.l
c f?
cli
I
ture
,
su s t a i n a b i 1 i ty
o f n a t u r a 1 r e s o u i- c c* s , s p e c j. f.? s ,
and
peace.
i
I
: .2:
In the 1 a11er case 111e NG0 vtc?u 1 d strive? to mode 1 1.1) C:? o r- q a n i s a i o n
' ’ tri s
on
the same lines ass the development model i I. believes in.
that
does
c
o
1
1
e
c:
t
i
v
e
I:?
a
s
i
s
,
NGO would sstrive for’ managemen t on a
managemen
t
i
ts
i
n
not
h av e a hiera rchy, but i s mo r e ci r cu1 a r
a
r
p
NG
Os
T
he
s
e
ra re .
structure.
Such models are very few and
in a dilemma, striving, hard to practice what it preaches.
Practice
reality:
what
you
preach s
Important
factors/attributes
in
In this paper 1 d like to address the Jal ter N(, because this i e>
way,
sea rch i n g
the NGO that is really fumbling and feeling its
really
exist
?
trying
to
evolve
it and
for something that does not i
is learning through e >: p e r i m e n t s a n d »n i s t a k e s .
•• •
Locating
people
There
are several intangibles in this
process,.
an
o f commi tmen t. sk ills anefi
with
that something,’ a combination
c.~
The
ab i 1 i ty
a n d vi _i 1 1 i n g n e s s f o r, si.a s t a i n e d e f f o r t i s d 1 I '(-i ’'■ ■ n 1 I - seen
NGO world in any case attracts very few people as it is not
s not
as chic job and to find those with t h e d e s i r a b 1 e q u a 1 i 15. e s i
an easy task.
one
is
group)
the
in ta n gibles wou1d be the size of
The other
me?
re
bu
t
1 eve1,
j ust
at
t he
prog r amme
n cd t
working
with,
i
s
W11
t
at the 1 e v e 1 s o f t he o r• g ai) i sa I. .1 ori i brie 1 f importan11y ?
a
g
i
c
m
a
ther
e
I $3
Is? there s c? m e c: u t o f f p o i n t
the-? right size?
more
the
one say t ti a t per f) a p s s m a 1 1 e r NGOe> a r e
number?
Would
ss u c c e s s f u 1 o n e s ?
the
living in influence
and society. that one is ...
Does the
--- culture
----- - --.
would
be
another
structure and
systems
within
the
NG
0?
1
I
)
is
wouId
be
N(30?
and
the
question most
us ask.
Are we influenced
by
the
most of
n
way
th
corporate world
manages itself? Are we Influenced
by
wor 1 d
fl nd
s o c i e t y i s s t r u c t u red'? A r e w e i n f 1 u e nee d b y t h e p o s i t i o n vje
re
V9e
A
curse Ives in within the social and political structui e.
s
h
i
e
1d
a
b1e
able to
truly shed
this influence?
Are we
able
to
.1.
ternative
an
ourselves
from
this and objectively search for
an
a
roots
of
oppression
that does not perpetuate or reaffirm the very »
that we are fighting against?
: 3:
We
could
comp a r e
111 e e >: i s t i 11 q
S I:.a t(.?
s I:r■ uc ture ,
the
Fedora 1
Struetore vs.
the Centralised one to understand
the
cities tie de;
raised here?,
I n a federal syFstem tremendous autonomy is given to
states,
i.e. the states take their o w n d e c i s .1 o n s a n d
v cd i c e
he
opinions of th e i r ?po pu1 a t ion. ■
1n
I n d j. a w e a r e J u s t now experimenting wij:.h a system cal led
t. he
P an c h ay a t Fa j sy s t enr. This system of Sc? 1 y governance gives
both
power and budgets to a group as small as 300 people.
A
federal
system or a decentralised system is
far
str-one er
a
system because there can be tremendons; strength and ri c: hness
in
d i ve rsi ty .
W Id i 1 e C e n t r a 1 i s e d m o n o c u 1 t u r e s can
very
easi 1 y
be
d e s t r o y e cl j, d e c e n t r a 1 .i s e cl ss y s t e m s a r e v e r y d i f f i c: i.i .1 t t o over throw
as each little group is a complete organisation in itself.
I he
small
and medium NGO' s 11)e r e f o re, won .1 d he
111e on es
11) a t
wouId rea 1 1 y bc? re f 1 ec ting t h e t d e c e n t r a 1 i s e d m o d e 1 . f 'i m c? d e 1
t ha t
we should
perhaps
perl-iapss be working towards; as large MPO' s
are
more
1 i k e .1 y t o i m i t a t e a n d p e r p e t u a tu? s y s I: o m s o f o j.? p r e s i o 11 bee: an se o f
their very size.
The. aspect
of competition between MGOs is a 1 s o
a
fac tor
t h at
o r c: e s N (□ CJ s t o m a k e c o m p r o m i s e s w i. I: I) o u t r? v e 11 ri-r?r?aa1 1.
i i.’ -j.inngc;i .1. t.
Je
fight
for
t e r r i t o r i e s , w e f i g I d I: f cd r f u 11 d i n q ,w ewe f i fight
g 111
f ort ■)(:?
same allocation of budgets, we fight ffor
o r aa share of publicity a (id
we fight for' a share of the praise.
Is
t h i es c o m p e t i t i o n i n - b i.i i 11 i n the MG (J s e c t o r • j, .j i .i s t
1 i ke
any
other sector, because it is the culture from wliich we come?
Does
competition
and one upmanship become so important that whi.Ve we'
t r y to ou tw i t e ac 11 cd t he r we ma I; e c ompr oini s-es t ha t wcdu 1 d r e i n f cd r c e
status quo?
7‘ h e
a 11 e m p t t o ' P r a c t i c e vt f) a t y o u p r e a ch' and
a n d tthe
he
p r c.) b 1 e m s
comes
ac ross ?
is
t h e cent r a 1 p r • o b 1 e m a f
N (3 (.")'' s
N(30
( f i cj 111 i n g
system or ) o f f er ing si 11ernati ve mode 1 s o f deve 1 opmen t.
or e
the
i
:4:
are
Those of us who
wfio believe that the problems ^e a r e a d d r e s s i n g
of
c? f * < c t i n g a
mod e 1
the?
result of a faulty system, iref'^ctinq
a 1 o p “ • s i ci e ci
and
d e v e 1 o p m e n t a n d t h e r e f o r e f e e 1 the in -d to change the system
of
r i? se a r c h in g f or a system
r e p 1 a c e i t w i t bi a d iff ere 111 m od e1. a re
this
ref 1 ec't
wi 1 1
o u r o r g a n iJ. s a t i o n s ) th a t
(w i t li i n
tnanaciomon t
to
allow UH:
wil
I
j o 1'^d s
a m
model
o d i ? 1 L11 a t
In’ o 111 f? r i*words
a 1 ternative.
p r a c. t :i. c t? w h a t w e preac: h.
t r' u e
are.
f unc t’i oning
elements of thi s style of
Some of
the
d ec: il s i on
co11ecLive
a c: c: ou n t a b i 1 i t y .
ind iv idua 1
p a r t n e r s In 1. p <
budgets?
power
and
o
f
d e c en t r a 1 i s a t i on
processes?
in a k i n cj
based
need
a
and a e s 111 e t i c: s ( r f 1 e c t i n g
austerity
humi1i ty <
1 ove 5
of
atmosphere
the
based one) and
e c: o n o m y v s .
a wan t
f r i e n d ship a n ci v e s p e c t.
rio
I 11 e i" e
This could
c 01.11 ci be best described as 'Self Management .
are
blue print for this/ as most stylc?cs of managemc?n t t In a t e): i s t
111 a t
11
1
e
C
■
o
r
’
j
.)
o
i"
a
t
e
W
o
r
1
d
y
the
111 o s e e v o 1 v e ci
b y/
t lie State
Sta te or
tl
r e fie ct a m d
pe rpetu a t e
hierarc hicai
invariably a r o hierarchical
an ci
e i s t .i n g s o c i o e c o n o m i c a n d f\o 1 i t i c a 1 s y s t e in s .
my
o r ci ai) i s a t i on y the
t o u *?» e a f e v; c? j: a m p I es f r oin
1 i ke
I
would
the
illustrate some of
f o r N o r k i r i g C11 i 1 ci r e n ( C W I"') y t o
Concerned
Sc?
I f
a
systc?m of
of
t o vt a r ci s
111 e
c? v o 1 u t i o n
experiments
org
an
i
sat]
ion
s
Wo are not unique. as I. her e are many
Management'.
we
successfu1?
tLI.n c? s a m c? p a t h a n d 11 a o u g 11 w e a r c? f a i r 1 y
t read i n g
in
ake
i t c 1 ear
like?
to
’ j the dark. I would
groping in
are still
o
r
g
a
n
i
s
a
t i on on 1 y
of
my
therefore that I am iusing the e>: pcriences
c. an
and
these
situations
because
I have i n t i in a t e e;: p e r 5. e i) c:: e o f t..
speak with some confidence.
EVOLUTION
F-
a
WhPn we first etar ted CMC there were just five of iab . Nr? were
i
n
e
j*.
perience
closely
knit group of Trade Unionists who
had
s y s t e in ( p o 1 i t i c a 1 ,
a
an
d
period of turmoil.
India
had had her fxrsl Laste enf Fa.,c.x un
' ’ .
India had
had
managed
to overcome
overcome it.
I hat broughI wxth iL
a
flu.q of
to
it.
: 5:
was
felt
it:
and
the?re
was a he-dw wind b1 owing. We
e>: c: i temen t
of
re-assertion
I''here was
a
Id r i n ci a b o u t c h a n g e? .
I: o
pos£>i b 1E?
in
tijoduce
v i s i o n f o r o u r c o u n t r y . a s e r i cd u s a 11 e? m p t t cd
(3 a n d h i ' s
'an cl
a
r u r•a 1
d e v (? 1 cd pmen t
1 oc a 1
s c? 1 f g o v e r n m i? n t..
a s t r e s oi)
i:: ornrni tin(-?n I: to buijjld a r;H.?w I ndi a -
wi th
the
in forma 1
u s , h a cl b e? e n
work i ng
f ive
of
We,
the
the
ba t t 1ing
wi th
of
1 a Id o u r a n d 11 a d b ^e? n
sec tor
unorej an i sed
w
o
rk
the
informa 1
of
child
labour - a major part of
c: I) i 1 cl
prob1em
forum
We felt that a trade-? union was not the appropriate
force? .
so
o cl e c i d e? cl t o f o r m a soc iety.
t o cl e a 1 w 11 h c h i 1 cl r e n a n cl s
of
the
basis
H owever o u r w cd r k
w i t h c h i 1 d ren
h a ci
b c-? e? n
on
to
We wanted
p a r t r) e r s I) j. p a n d w e wist) g? cl t o r e t a i n 111 i s appro a cl),
workers
continue to facilitate thee active participation of child
I he
in all aspects of decision making, including those involvinci
thc?i
r
o r g a n i s a t i on.
T h e s e? c h i 1 d r c? n w c-? r e o u r" c: cd n s t i t u c? n c: y a n d w e
s e? 1 -f i m p o £•• e c:l r • e p r e s e? n t a t i v e? s .
1)IA t.
i t.
We
k n e w what
knew
w h a t we wanted to clOj^with whom we wished to do
prc?pared
our
n o thinq i n o
u r p r o f e s s i o n a 1 c? r a c a d e m i c: b a c I ■: q r o u n d s h a d
s;ys tom
FT)(J. We had evolved a v a 1 u e
u s t o f o u n c:l 5 r
run
u n a n cl m a n a g e
to
wan t
not
a 11 i d e o 1 o q y 11) i t w e
did
b(?g in n i ngs
and
the?
beginnings
of
to
ahou t
c o m p r o m i s e?
att
a
a n y c. o s t. J3 u t 11) e o r g a n i s a I: i o 11 vi e wer e?
the?
needed
within
thf?
system 'and
start
had
to
be
formed
recognition of the- system.
a r> i (J i:?
put
A »=>
w (? w e r e a !••>ma 1 1 g roup c:) f f r ig?nds , wt? wnrf? able to
a
111
c?
r
e
q
i
s
t
r
a
t
i
o
i
)
o
f
r f.-? q u i r e d f o r m a 1 i t y f o r
thee by- -laws (a
t.
h
a
t
r
e
?
f
1
e
?
c:
t
e
?
d
cd
u
r
h
e
1
i
e
f
s
.
a n cl e v o 1 v e w o r k i n g s y s t e? m s
society)
al
1
This was h o w e? v e r p o s s idle a ’u w ce w e r c? j u s t a v e I” y s m a 1 1 F’ I? Of,
c:
ou
1
cl
u s u n p a a. d , w i t h n cd m a j o r f u n cl i n g ? e >! c: e | > t t h a t w h i 11 v; e
of
raise from our trade union f i" i e n d s a n (J r c? 1 a t i v e s .
i 11) a
S o o n , p e r h a p s a 1 i 1:11 e? t o cd s o o n P w e g r e w 1. n t o a m E’d i u m F’ I) 0
I
h
a t 11
We
found
s taf f of f i f ty . Now 11)e prcdb 1 ems we?rc? d i f f c?re?n t.
of
cu
1
tute
was
bee om i n g i n c r e as i n g 1 y cl i f f i c u 1 t t o ma i n t a i n t he
the organisation as we grew.
TU
T he
f i r «51 p r cd b 1 e m w e f a c c-? d w ?"> 111 e f i >: .1.11 q. cd f: vt a g c? s . Mere our
scale.
wage
stead
and
we
worked
out
a
experience stood us 'in good
self
s tood
a pa rt
as
a
separ a te ,
The?
problem
was
.that
we
So
we
we
‘
we
r
e
n
o
t
d
r
a
vi
i.
n
g
s
a
1
a
r
ie*?r i g h t e? o u s , s g? 1 f J. e s s g r o u p a s w e ’ w e r
is
sla
es
w
c?
1
1
.
H
cd
w
c?
v
e
Icd
t
Ine
r
put
ourselves on the pay register as
emergf.?d ..
CHOOSING A MANAGEMENT STYLE
E a r 1 i e r ' la n d e r s t a n d i n g s ' L. 11 a t vj o r k e d V9 e .1 1 f o r the five of 1LA ’=> were
f ee 1
We did
not
n cd t
n e c: e s s a r i 1 y
r e fie c t e d
by
t he
r e s t.
re
sla
11
comfortable
imposing our' views on the rest as I. li at wo la Id
th^t
were
in
a hierarchy.
Sesides many c? f cdlai" staff had views
encDUrage
d i f ■ f e r g? n t
f r o m o la r s b la t e >: t r e m e 1 y v a 1 .i d . We wanted to
the c?>:change of different view points, a s t h i s a 1 o n e c. o u 1 c|j ensure
t h e f c? r t i 1 i. t y a n d g r o vj 1.11 o f 111 e o r • g a n i s a t J. o n ' s v.i si on .
a 11 d
to
handle-?
s i. in p 1 e r
11
cd r g a n i s
ss a t i cd r i
w o la 1 cl
be
A
I d i c?
e? r
i" a i"
r c: 11 i a 1
and
co
mini
ttep
a
v
e
r
y
o r g cA n 1. s t? .
T he
o
n 1.1 y
r e q la :i. s i t e
Id e i n g
on
i
sla
a
1
i se
who
can
v
a
f
f
a
i
r
s
,
i n t e 1 1 i g e r 11: i n d i v i d u a .1. a t t h e 11 e 11 n o f
to
i
i
c::
1
1
and
methods
by
vj
the
goal s the organisation 'should r e a c. 11
n
cd
t
wo
Li
1
d
organisa t ion
t h c?
i"eacl i them .
Thc?
systc?ms v.« 1.1hin
r 11? c e s s a r i 1 y
r e f 1 ec t
111 e o b j e c 15. v e r;; .
Wl IO .1 ( ?
I I H?
V.h.A I.
TI) e
g
a tLes
es L
d i s a d v a 111 a g e
o I a 11 i o r a r r. 11 y
I r.
gri' • e
ea
I.. I 1.1 !=»
.1. f
o r ci a n i s a 1:5. o n
w
cd la
la 1
b e d e p e n d nt on o 11 c i n d i v i c I la a 1 rTintl
wo
1d
d
cd
rqanl
sa
t.
i on
i n d i v i d la a I
c
e
a
s
e
s
t
o
b
e
a
p
a
r
t.
o
f
i
t.
,
1
1
a
g
?
w
11
o
.1
c?
ceases
to
try
t
:i
in
posss
:i
bl
r-?
c ola 1 d c cd 1 1 a pse . 11 wou 1 d be d i f f i c la 1 I.. ?
i ‘f i • cd
13
r*
s
1.
d
e
s<
i.
1
1
c.:l
i.
v
i
d
v
a
a
1
t o r e p 1 a c c? 11) i s o n e , <30
s cd c: a 1 1 e d i 11 d i [d c? n s. a I :> 1 e
r
a
111
e
r
bu
I
we
cJ i cl n o t w a n t a n y o
n e i n d i v J. d la a 1 t o t:«c? p r cd j e c:: t e d ,
one?
t bi e organ i s a t i o n ,
I
have
Though
it was an easy way out we rejected this as it wou 1 i::l
to
11
a
d
been
ccdmp 1 ete 1 y agains t cdur c:cdnvic. 1:.ions and there f or e wf.
and
the team
find a way
of main tain incj the close knit nature? of
anarchy.
e n s u r i n g a s y s t e m cd f d e m o c r a c y 111 a t v/ o la 1 d n cd t r t? s u 1 t i 11
not
This was tricky. Tliere were also practical problems - we did
i
he?
ref
cd re
h a v e e i t h e r a c r i t e r i a n cd r a s y s t c? in cd f r e c r la i 11n c?r 11 a n d
educational
had
people oof
different beliefs,
background
and
f
:7:
1 eve1s - a n d e v o 1 v i n g a n i d e o 1 o g y f o r o i..t r o r i::i a n i s a t i o r i w i 111
al 1
these
f i f t y p e o p 1 e see m e d i m p r a c t i cal . f> 1 s 6 we, 'll i e f i r s t
f i ve,
w e r e b e i n g v i e w e d as .'the management' in the traditional sense of
the word. Either our c 1 osen ess wa s rese111ed anci we were
thoLig h t
of
a s a cl i c| u e? o r we were deferred to and our word was
as
accep led
as 1 aw.
We felt a participatory process for the evolution of an
ideology
ha ci
to
be tried out soon or we were? in -the danger
of
becoming
v i c t ims
of
sta tus guo .
Is
111 e r e
a *means
of
ensuring
a
p a r t i c i p a t o r y p r o c e s s o f ci e c i ir, i o n m a k i n g '? Such a decision making
process wouId ensure a very ferti1e v i s i o n a n d m e 11) o d o 1 o g y .
I t
w o u .1 ci
r eq u i r e an
o rg an i s a t i on
111 a t
c: a n
c u 11 i v a t e n e w
a n ci
di f f ere?n t means of doing t hings . This cou 1 d be possible
if
at
e very
level
i d e a s a r e po o 1 e d
t o g e t her,,
s i f ted .
accep ted
or
rejected and then decisions are taken within certain
guidelinesf h e s e ci c? c i s i o n s c o u 1 d ' 111 e n b c-? c: o m m u 11 i c: a t e d 111 r o u q 11 a we 11 de f ined
c o m m u n i c a 15. o n s s y s t e m .
T he
problem really lies in strue luring sued) a
system.
Pili tDn|oiny
and
i n d e pen d enc e
would
be kkey
elements
for
sue cess.
On
o r g a n i s a t i on w ou 1 d
have to be ev o1ved 111 rou g 11
a
participatory
process
at t he inc e pt i on its e1f.
It would then 11 a v e to
su stain
such a structure and be mon i t o r ed vj i I h c: on s I an I review.
We decided that we needed help as we were not the right peoplEj? to
hancl 1 e
i t ourselves. We c a 1 1 ecl in an ou
tsicle organisa t ic?n
t ha t
ontside
k n e w u s ? s h a r e d o u r b e 1 i e f s a n ci h a ci t h e e x p e r t i s e t o I) a n ci 1 e
sli c h
s i tu a t i on s to as si s t u
t o o b j e c I: i v e 1 y find o u r ■ f e (? t.
Lt s
‘3 .j.
They designed a workshop that w a s an e >: i? r c i s e i n d i s c C3 v e r y ,
both
indi v i dually
a nd a s a g r oup. I t w a s a d i f f i c: u 11 t i m e , w e lip d
to
1 a y ou i'“ s e 1 v e s b a r e a n d m a n y o f us, t o o u i' ■ s u r p r i s (? f o u n d 111 a t
we
had b e e n p r a c t i c i n g e 1 e? m e n t s o f a d i c t a t o r • ;i. a 1 s t y 1 e of m a n a g enen t
in
order
to
''preserve/safe
preserve/safe-?
guard'’
our
Some
organ isa tion.
e >: p i'" e s s e ci
c?
m o r c?
wi II)
a
111 e
f ac t
111 a t
t h (? y w e r e
com for tabIe
ver tica 1 1 y
ss I:.ru
organisa
I:, r u<:::<::: tur
t u ree?dd
o r g a n i s ation
t J. o 11 ch.• 11
c 1 ear
gave
them
n ci t
ask s t
o p
e r f o r m . They said they were
guidelines a
an
taskss
to
perform.
1 os t
im hen
given autonomy and they were expected todemonstrate
ini tiat.f.ve.
to
T hey
f c-? 11
t h e r e s p o n s i b i 1 i t i e s w e r e t c? o heavy, Others
seem
1wan t
e n j o y 111 e r i g h t s cA n cl 11) e a t m o s p 11 e r e o f f reed Din« but did not
t o f a c e u p. t o t h e i r r ce s p o n s i b i 1 i t i e s.
l:o
It was a t i m ce o f 1 e a r n .1. n g . s 11 a i" in g , u r d d e r s t a r i d i n g a nd g c? 1: tin g
dac li
respect
know each other better. It was an opportunity to
What
i d e n t i T y and
u p p cd r t w e a k n e s s e s .
other's
s t ren g t hs an d
c a p a Id 1 e ' of
Tina 1 1 y
emerg ed vjas a r i c: 11 p h 11 cd s o p? 11 y , d y n a m i c: a n d
growth.
rnak ing .
also emer g ecl was a p r cdc ess T o r c o 1 1 ec;.t j. ve d ec i si on
What
few
of IAS
I
d
a
d
a
n
F£
>:
e
c
u
t
i
y
e
(2
o
u
n
c:
i
1
(
E
C
)
t
o
vvj
11
i
c
h
o
r
d
1
y
a
Though we
the
at
were members, w e d e c i d e d t o t a k e d e c i s .1 o n s c: o 1 1 e c: t i v e 1 y
level
and
put
it
L
cd
the
council
for
ratification
o r g a n i s a t i cd n a 1
per son s
if required, W e vj e r e 1 u c I; y 11) a t ou r c: cd la n c: i 1 c:: on ns i s t e d o T
with similar be 1 ic? f s who endorsed this sys tc?m .
wpu 1 cl
I.)i rec: tor
F j. r s t
w e a g r e e d 111 a t 11) e Ei e c u t i v e S e c r e t a r y /
group.
share his/ her duties , and respcdnsibi 1 i ties wi th an e1ected
g r ou p
Al 1 the staff belonging to the organisation then elected a
and
members
EC
represen
t
a
t
ives
Tr
om
each
p
ro
g
ramm
e
,
s
cd
me
of
w
as
Group
Work
ing
to
form
a
Working
Group
(
WG
).
This
others j,
a
w
i
t
h
i
n
m a n d a t e b y t h e w h cd 1 e g r o u p t o t a k e (J e c, i s i cd n s
g i ven
a
P
rogr
amines
1
i
n
e
s
.
T
h
e
r
e
p
r
e
s
e
111
a
t
i.
v
e
s
o
T
1
1
)
e
g i v e n s e t cd i: g u i d e
t IirI r
re f1ec ted
t cd 11 de i I'- p r og r a mme s t a f T an d
accoun tab1e
were
vie?ws.
t. a k .1 n cj
wa
.1 n (.1 i v :i. cl u a 1
ar i
The Tact
t ti a t
a g r ou p r a I. he r t ha11
f
ramework
s
41 by
a
decisions and that t h e s e d e c i s i o n s w c? r e w i 11 d i n
the whole gr ou p i mm ed i a t e1y c ooverte d a verti c a1 m a n a g e m e n t s t y 1 e
into one that wass close to a circular one.
MONITORING AND EVALUATION
L
an cl
Our
n e >: t c: h a 1 1 e n g e w a s how 1.0 c:lpv;i ‘-sc? sys tpms Tor moni I:oring
t
e r in
The
t hat w o u I d
r e f 1 e c:c tI: 11
p h i 1 o s cd p h y .
111 e s a m e
eva luat.ion
vert
i
cal
a
a s u s e cl b y
T orma 1 mar i ag emen t
sugg es t s
mon i toring
sorn ebody
mean s
7‘fii s
cleno les hier ar c 11y as :i. t r ea 1 1 y
strut: ture.
comp I :? I: i on
above you is 1 ocdking cdver your shou 1 cder to ensui-e tlie
it
bee ause
wo r cl
assignment. Supervision is a clangorous
of
an
could make the supervised responsible for very 1 i 111 e .
we
1 n bu i I t
accountability wou .1 d I)e mor e [)r od 11<t i ve , bu t how g o
where
e n s u i" e a c: c o u n t a b :i. 1 :i. t y 7 11 o w d o vj e e 11 s u r t? r e p o r t i n g s y s t e m s
an individual feel.s compelled to bo? accountable? I low to niLtr ture
d i sh- cuss ,
s y s t em s
111 a t e n s u r e 11»a t 111 e j. n d i v i d u a 1 d o e s
r e p o r t,
share and take decisions in a collective way?
We
tfir?re f ore c: 11tfnged ft he t(?rm mori i tc?ririg to
accountability,
We
or
e;: p e r i m e n t e d
vj i t h
111 e
p o s s i b i .1 i t y
c? f
s e 1 fm o n i t o r :i. n q
accountability
first
to oneself, tothe^group
one was working
w i t h / f o i'- ( i n t h i s c: a s e w o r k i 11 g c: h i 1 d r e n )i- o c? n e ' s
o 1 1 eaques , to
111 e o r g a n i s a t i o n a n d t o 111 e p u (::• 1 i c .
both
D c-? v i s i n g
a m e t hod o 1 og y
for evaluation
th a t
w o u .1 d
be
of
participatory and in keeping with the above described concept
the
w a s a d i f f i c la 11 t a s k a nd w e a r e
sti 1 1
iri
ac c oun t a b i 1 i ty
process of p e r f e c t. i n g i t 1.1»r o u g ti t r i a 1 and e r r o r .
i ndi yic *ua
There were s ome organ isa tions I c amc? a c r o <-r> s w 11 e r e o n e
for
sc.
ope
ova1uated
eac h member of ‘the staff. I 11 i s p r o v i d e d n o
the
f
o
r
possibi 1ity
and there w a s n o
feedbac k
d iscussion or
co I 1 elc t..ive
was
no
thc’mse .1 ves . I! k no
i r i d i v :i d u a 1 s
t o eva .1 ua te
where
organisa Lion
TI a i s w a s c 1 e a r 1 y a 11 i e r a r (7 11 i a 1
evaluation.
person at the? helm of a f f a i r s f e 11. I. hrea toned The
danger
i n d i v i cl u a 1 s
weaknesses.
here? waffi
v i.ion
tiki. rr>
11 t a I: the orgaiiisa t ion .1 mp I. omen tod on 1 y
r e f .1 c? c: t e d
11 i b / h e r •
and
a .1 so r i a t u r • a 1 1 y
11 o t j u s t f o r N G G s , b u t f o r I the
This method fi a s se r i o u s d r a w b a i::: I;
and
world
corpora te wor
1d as it would deny 11) q i n d i v i d u a 1 s c r e a t i v i t y
a b i .1 i t y t o b e a b 1 e t o c: o n t r i b u t e t o a c 11 i e v i n q o v e r a .11 ob j e c t y e s .
an
participatory
evaluation system is
a must
for
A
hea 1 thy
most
specially
if it is people oriented. The
problem of
NGO,
fa.I 1
is
that
they
do
not
have
access
to
such
systems.
They
NGO' s
on e s
vi 11 i <::: h d o 11 o t
f a c J. 1 i t a t r?
c: o m p 1 e t e
bac k
oo
nn ee>: >:i is>stti inngg
p a r 11 c 1 p a t i o d o f: the evaluee.
: 10 :
a
devised
To
such problems for our first evaluation
we?
avoid
L lie
for
questionnaire
for self
evaluation and a
second
one
annual
e v a 1 u a t i o n b y t v> o c o 1 1 e a g u e s o f t h e e? v a 1 u e e ' s c:: h o i c e . The
eva
1
ua
tion
increments were based on the combined results of this
a n d the i n c r t? m e n t s w e r e d e c 5. c:l e d b y t h e W 0 .
!•
T h i s s y s t e m d i cJ n o t w o r k for se? ver al reasons:
give
we re
1.
r e -- d e t e r m i n c? cl t h e? a n s
The questi onn ai re
r"B and did not
those
that
room
for
views e r e >: p e? r i e n c c? s o 111 e r t h a n
mentioned.
2.
1 e f t to
As t he cl)o i c: c? o f t wo c o 1 1 e a g u i? s (t? v a 1 u a t o r s ) id a s
e? v a 1 u e e ,
c? n 1 y t h o s f? w 11 o w e r e c: 1 o s c? f r i e n (J s o r s y m p a 11-) e t i c
11) c? oval u e e w c? r c? c hosE?n .
jT
The more
evalua ted
vh? '"e
rare 1 y
organi sa tion
members of the
seni or
the
one (J i s c u s b i o n . w I) e r c?>
o I:? j c-? c t i v e 1 y i n a one? to
vj
a
s
t
ti
e
b
t
r
o
n
g
e
r
.
-the
evaluee
.j un ior was t he? eva 1 ua tor , as
/•I .
to
inc: remen ts ,
1 inked dirc?c tl y
111 e c? v a 1 u a t i o n uj a s
As
c|
cianti
tatively
was
seen
more
ev a 1 ua t i on
proc e?ss
m
e
a
n
s
o
f
* g e 11 i n g
qua 1 i ta t i ve 1 y .
111
1 vj a s secan more as a
than as a soul s e a r c h i n g e >: p e r i e n c: e .
’5.
deci deci hy
T111?
i n c i" g? m e n t s
b c? i n g
programme did not seem fair .
The?
second
ci u a 1 i t a t i v e .
7.
t he
to
quest ionna ire
was
’I ’ I) e q u e s t i o n s c:l i d not e n a b 1 e? 111 e
their s t r e-? n g t h s a n d w e a k n e s s e? s .
11 h?
mo re
o f
direc: tors?
c] 11 a n I: i t a I: i v c?
i n d i v 5. d ci a 1
to
the
I. ian
ahbad
ea ch
t ha i
deter mi to =?
t he
mod i f i ec:l
Ue
this.
e
c h a n g e cl
a1 1
we
The
following y e a r w
to
and
freedom
scope
the
t
he
e v a 1 u c? e f n o r e
qu e s ti onna ire g i v i n g
We
c|ua 1 i tati ve .
a n d d e? v i s e d q u e s t i o n s 11) a L w e r e
express views
one
individual of
that
it
was
c hanged t he r e-eva 1 ua t i on sy s tem so
th '•ee
c I) o i c e a n d then a t e a m s e? 11? c t e? d b y the group, (there were
W(3
was
fur
tier
of
us)
.
Tin?
t e? a m s a 1 1 t o g e t h g? r
f or the f i f ty
evaluated by the Executive Council.
: ..I. .1. :
We reduced the link between tl’ie increments and*, the? evaluation and
left
this
the
final
evaluation.
Their
tto
o the team that did
11
) c?
decisions w
were
the
evaluation
e I'- e based not Just on the results of
he
but also on budgets, past year's performance and tthe
impressions
o f ci o 11 c-? a g u e s . TI h i s
!=> vt a s d i !=> c u s s e d w i 11) 111 c:-? c? v a 1 u e c? a n d cl e c i d e d o 11
m u t u a 1 a g r e e m e? n t. j*
This system worked blotter than the previous one. For it to
e a c I’T-r i n d i v i d u a 1 i n
e f f c-? c t i v e 1 y ,
we n eeded
to em pow e r
organisation to be a leader and not a foilower.
work
t he
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
i
and
recrui tinen t
i s su e
t o p e r s o n a 1 in a n a g e 11 > e n t i s
t F ie
The
key
a
b1 e
that
they
are
o f e a c h i n d i v 1. d u a 1 t o 11 ‘i e e >: t e n t
empowerment
combined
in
a
framework
of
autonomy
and
independence
to function
and
LI t?
accountability t o o n e • s t e 1 f , 111 e o r g a n i s a t i o n
w i 11)
au
tonony
group one
is working with.
Independence
and
ta rgc t
1n
without accountability could lead to a very sc?rious breakdown
the fun c t i c::« n :.i. r i g a f a n o r g a n ;i. s a L i o n .
This
kind
o f e m p c« w e r m e n t w o u 1 d i" stain cultural
diversity,
the
tremendous possibility of doing things in different ways and also
the a cl d 5.11. o n a 1 a d v a n t a g e o f b e i r) g a b 1 e t o p 1 a n vt i I:. I) i n a
c u 1 t u r c: 1
an d
context
for local specific conditions. It would be flexible
of
g rou p
therefore be able to meet tlie needs of a
particulai'
f i i 'i ci i n g
people,
seeing
the
problems through
their
eyes
and
solutions appropriate for them.
RECRUITMENT
r-
the
of
Cine of
of the
the crucial
crucial factors' in tlie effective functioning
has
T
h
i
s
NGO is
the recruitment of the right kind of
people,
iss
and
implications on thE? culture, methodology, systems, confIicts
kind
•f e r t i 1 i t y
o f 111 e o r g a n i s a t i o n . *T’ f) e r c? i s a s carcit y of this
co mini Linen t <
those
with
of
people who possess that something,
sk i 1 1 s an d t he rig h t tem per amen t.
:12:
Commit m e n t i s s o m e t h i n g which i s v e r y d i f f i c u 11 t o i d e 111 i f y <,
but
once
the?re j,
i t needs to be supported arid nurtured.
This
wo1 li 1 d
mean
that
the training.methodo1ogy will have
to
empower e ac h
i n d i v i d u a 1 w i t h i n t hi e s t a f f o f 11) e o r g a n i s a 15. o n .
r
T h i s pa r t i c: u 1 a r c bm t^i n a 11 on o f c; comm i t.men t a
a n (J s k i 1111 i <=> e >: t r*emJ? 1 y
rare, a very difficult commodity to come by. bio
Mo re so because
the
') o t
development
sector
has not yet cpme of
age.
People
do
that
believe
working
s4ac tor
is con si de red
w o r k i n g in
i n the
111 e development
d eve 1 o pmen t
or
d i g n i f i ed
or
i m p o r t a n t. W cd r k i n g i n t h e d e v e 1 o p m e r 11
s e c: t o r
las
the
almost come to mean that you have failed everywhere else and
only area in which you can succeed is development as it does
not
demand much from you
you.. It does not pressurize you or demand of you
is
Thi s
t he same 111ing s t ha t per ha ps 111e c or por a t.e wor 1 d wcdu 1 ci .
f o r tun a te 1 y n o t t ru e .
f h i s i s a 11 the more i m p o r t a n t i f 11 i e I*' 13 0 i s «?■ t r i v i n g t o
a
be
thrrn
T he
w i 111
pro
[:) i" o ffess
c? s sioi
i on
)aa11
sta f f .
professional
o rgan isa t.i. on
it
professional
i n 111 i s
c o n t e t n i a ynot
n o t /no
mean
a n 1.1) o s a n i e t h i n g as
lias come to mean.
d i f f er :?n t
T h i s p r o f e s s i o n a 1 t:
c: o
ou
u 1 d h a v e a very
c: o m b i n a t i o n o f
s k i 1 1 <5 , a very d\ f f r?rei i t metabolism and
a
v [? r y
c.l i f f e r e n t p e r s o n a 1 i t y f r o 111 111 a t e >: [) c? c: t o d t > y 111 (? c o r p o r a I e w o r 1 J .
one
ci e v e 1 o p m e n t world ■ t cd day ha s b e c cd m c? a v e r y
p r o fess i cd n a 1
an d
an d
needs professionals who understand what they are
doing
possess the skills for doing that, i.e.. people who do not try to
r i :j h t
ac hieve
things
tT)rough the trial and error
method.
’the
person, i n t h e r i q h t p 1 a c: e w o u 1 ci m a I; e 111 a t s o m e 11 d i n g h a p p e n .
The ■
r>o
How do you identify that something? I low do you train a per s>on
po
ten
tila
1?
111 a t
s om e t h i n q
i s r e 1 e a s e ci a n d r e a c: 11 e s i t s
fu 1 1 es t
I
T hesej
How
do you allovj that something to grow and blossom?
think
are
thee crucial issues that an N(.?0 needs
to unders tand
I:) e 11 e r a n cl 1 e a r n s h o w t o cl e a 1 vj i 111.
This would I)ave i ts imp 1 ications
rec: rui tin ent of s t a f f .
on
111 e rn e 111 o ( J o .1 o g y u e (J
f or
the
have
We have found that a workshop situation is the best way. We
do
d e s i g n e ci a s e r i e s o f e >: e r c: i s e s o f (J i f f e r e n t k i n d
t h a t w e a .1. 1
i
,
t o g e 111 e r .
i hey
are
a
ran g e
11 ) a t d e a .1
w j. t h g e n c l e r
: .13:
c o m mu n a 1 i s m ,
pe rc e p t i on s o f
t h e w o r k i i) g
c hi 1d
(J ,„
team
w o r I -. .
creative skills and commonication skills. It ogives all
concerned
t i m e t o g e t t c? k now e a c: I a o 111 e i • I.? c? 11 e r I.:) e f o r e a d e c i s i o i a i s t a k en .
When
the? decision is taken it is normally for a
long
term.
W e t r y n o t j u s t t co t c? s t 111 o i nd i v i du a 1 c: o 11 c e i-1) (? cJ , I.? u t la n d e r S t a r j d
t ry
u '•:>.
s - We
a n d g i v e 11 a a t i n d :i’v i d u a !1 a n o p [) o r I. u r i .i I; y t o u n c:l e r s t a n d la
in
not
to
tr ic k tfiem and try to e;: p 1 aii) olar phi 1 osophy
in
de tai 1
d u r i n g 11»e w o r k s 11 o p s .
(? are
a r c?
a b 1 e t o g i v e t hem
At 11) e e r i d o f the w o r ks I) op we li o p e 11) a t w e
an
off 1 o o k i n g a t t h i fa g s ,
something to take away, maybe a fa e w w a y o
aiA understanding of how we woi k .
i n s i g 111 i n t o c: I a i 1 d 1 a b o u r r.x n d
s u c (_* e s s
w i 11 a
our
rec ru i tmen t
We
have
had
a
fair a m o u n t o f
of
OVJ
b
o
r
n
e
o
u
t
b
y
t
h
e
1
o
w
t
la
mover
procedure and
this has been
an d
tu
rn
staff
who have been i" e c r u i t c? ci 11 a i s w a y a s a g a i n s t 111 e I a i g h
over of t he o t he r s «
Having dealt with the key problems we faced in 'managing' CWC or
found
more
simply 'how to practice wdiat you preach', and having
two
that probably there are no simple answer’-", 1 e I: me move on to
o t bi e r
p r o b 1 e m s , o fa e w h i c I a i n v a r i a b 1 y
c r i pp 1 es
an
a r q a fa i s a t i on
a i a cl t h e o t h e r a g r c? a t o p p o r t la r a i t y a r e a .
The
rig lit kind of training is cruci al to ensure that 1.1 h? op t..1.im.un
p o t e n t i a .1. w i 111 i n e a c: I) i n d i v i d u a 1 is releasc.d- I he skills for this
sh ou 1 cJ be such that the NGO can acquire it easily and apply i t to
i ts condition.
t. he
with
and
i :-s
wo r I-. .inq
of
the group one
empowermen t
The
addressing
.‘
are
a
part
of
the
issue
.
one
is
i n ci i v i d u a 1 s
w ho
?
within
1
the
c:
e
m
p
o
w
e
r
m
e
n
t
o
f
e
a
c
11
i
n
d
i
v
i
d
u
a
1
the
depends
on
a1 1
are
We
mi 1 i eu_.
a1 1
comc-? frcm the samc?
We
o rg an i s a t i an .
same
the
by
oppreseed
problems and
the
same
in f1uenced
by
in
a
be?
not
o ia i'- s e 1 v e s w r? w i 11
1iberate
we
sy s te ms .
IJ r a 1 e s s
: .14 :
posi tion
to rea 1 1 y
I: h c:?
e m p o vt e r m e n t o f
is
one
of
the
organisation.
wi Lh
em | .ao v> e r a fa o 11 a f? r i f a d 1 v i d u a i c .a r e v e nI a e 1 p
staf f
ano t l ier i fa d i v i d u a 1 . I I»e e m p o w e r m e n t o f
the
crue i a 1
a s p e c: t s
of
tra in i n g
w i 11 a i n
I Iow do y ou empower '*your ’s t a f f'? ’ How do y on i?r) !”> l 11" c? c om m J. t ine n t'?
How
DC t
d o y o u e fa s u r e 11 a a t y o i.i
ur c
c: o 1 1 1f?eaaggui.iee i.1 s a 1 e a d g? i" / manage r
an d
jiAst a follower?
How do you
y o i.i ensure
i? n s la i" i •' I. h a t l|i.wu 1 i t.y miariagemen t t a k e s
p 1 a c Ft? ? H o w d o y o u e fa bla r e 11
11 a) a tt 11
11) (?
) (?rrer? i s I:, e a nr w o r ............
!•;
Tlrese
requ ire
sustained and continual t
traiiAinq
r a i i a i n c:i. h
A I. r • a i n i r i q 1.1 > a t i s inbi.ii 11 into
t h e s y s t e m a fa d i s a n a t i.i r a 1 pi a r t c j f d a y t o d a y w o r k .
Tl lore
a 1 so
needs to be some motivation for
the
i r i d i v i d la a 1
to
conti i a u e
c i r (” u m s t a fa c e s ,
t o w o i" I •; , s- o m g? t i m e s i r a
very
d i f f e i" e r) t
without
ackn ow1ed qemeia t, g1o ry or grea t recoq ia i tion. How do you
■ sustain a n d e n c o u r" a g e t h e’m ?
We
heir »q
play this by ear. An adv can tag’s we have is that besides
c o ]. 1 e a g u e s w e a r g? a 1 s o f i" i e fa cl s a i a d there is an a tfiiesphere of 1 eve
and caring. We are as close to a*» family <tis or ie can cj(?l „
?71AC h a
waly
I t
b e c a m e c-? s s g? n t i a 1 to structure the organisation ‘ifi such
aiad
i f i d e pi f? fa c:l e n c e .
t Iaa t.
.11 a .1 1 ows f or an :.i. n d i v :i d i a a 1 ' s a 111 o n o m y
t3
TI a i s a 1 s o c? n c: o u r a g c? d c? v c? r y in d .JL. v i d i a a 1 w :i. I h i. n I hi? or g ai) i sa t ioi i
an
ays
ci f
11 o i n g
c ome
la p w i t h i d e a s a n d s u g g e s t i o 11 s
f ir 11 e w
1 o cd k i fa g a t 11 a i ri g s .
t ha
) a tt
a 1 1 o vt e d
f o ir
We
also went one step further to try a system 11
the gener<ation of ideas from outside, tha t is f rom the j?artici.i 1 ai'■
and
and
w ci men
v)
r: h i 1 d r t: • i a
c. o n s t i t la e n c: y
we
w e r e wwoorrkkiinnqq wwii11
1a1 a -•-•
and
o|A.in
ions
t
h
e
i
r
tr i ba 1 s
-so t ha t t hey we re a b 1 e to v o i c e
[
c on 11" i bla t e to t ne d ec:: i si on rna k i r i rj p r oc: essr?s .
to
"f h e r e
is
o m e t h i n g e >: t r e m e 1 y e s s e i a t i a 1 a b o u t c'a 1 1 o uj i i a q
11 a i s
is
to
happen.
We do not know everything. We are not
the
people
tha :
decide for someone else and it is important I.hat the groups
we work with have the means arid have communication channels open
where they can express what really needs to be done.
: 1 5:
i
the
within
It
is necessary to be able to make each individual
they
what
organisation
feel important enough to be able to say
that
Ideas
feel
and to contribute to new ways of doing things•
have to be welcomed.
will enrich the organisation
This is not an f^asy task. This.would mean the ability to liberate
and
each individual from his/her shack lea and release creativity
the
imagination.
Our social
upbringing tends
to
do
exactly
reverse. Our reference points are inhibiting and constraining.
He need to explore the possibilities of realising the
potential
of the individual to the maximum. With some it is more difficult
than the others. The answer probably lies in dynamic training.
the
The support
and empowerment of the individual
begin
with
the
criteria for recrui trnen t, the recruitment procedures itself <,
integration or induction of the individual as an integral j^art of
this
of
sli ppor t
the group and
the’ continued nurturing
and
personal
of
individual
in
all
aspects including the solving
problems.
CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
Despite this we realised quite soon that we had to be equipped to
a
deal
with conflicts within tlx? organisation. Wo tried to find
wa y o f con v e r t i n g these i n to s t r en gths a nd 1e a rn i n g p r oc e s se s.
Conflicts are regular occurrences.As our numbers increased so did
of
11) e c
o n f 11iicts
c t s.
T here w e r e p e r s o n a 1 i t y • cl a s 11 e s ,
d .1 f f e r e n c e s
conf
we
opinion
and .non- cooperation among colleagues. This
again.
and
realised was largely dependent -on the temperament of people
could be reduced to an extent through judicious recruitment.
How does
conf 1ic ts
facbions?
all ow
than
one use conflicts to learn 1e s son s rat he r
resu t
in
a c tu a11y diss i pate a lot of energy and
to
T.-l
•’i
vj-
/
Z''
/J
: 16:
A very e m b a r r a s s i n g , t r .1. c k y , u n c: o m f o r t a b 1 e a nd ' d i s p 1 e a sing
aspect
of
an N(30' s work is. having to take disciplinary
action
against
one' s colleagues.
It ’is a very
delicate situation,
you
are
preaching
j us t i c e , equa 1 i ty and f)uman r i g h t s , bu t v/hen it
comes
to your own staff, you don't know how to deal with it.
You
are
told
t fia t i t i s be 11er- to be ru t h 1 e?ss , because the 1 aws of
your
country or
the area from which you work do not
really
support
Taking stringent ac tion invol vese;tremendous litigatioil)
fairness.
and
could cause problems in the future also,
You don't
know
which side of the fence you really are sitting on. You
nor
are
sure that you can be fair and firm at the same time
most of
us
do not know how to deal with such situations.
We
were faced with a situation of this kind last
1 a s t year.
year*, Seven
of
our
field. activists were found
-found negligent. They
were
just
not
working, but refused•to admit this and created An impasse, Our EO
strongly a
advised
disciplinary
d v i se d
dj.se
i p 1 j. n ary
a c t j. o n t)
u t v) e ccould
ou 1 d
n
ot
bu
not
bring
uncomfortable]
ourselves
to
proceedings,
initiate
proceedings.
We?
felt
treacherous and betrayers of the cause, We, who had struggled for
workers' rights all our lives an ci had critic ised and decried
the
system, were suddenly on the other side? of the fence.
We
let things drag on for an interminable eight months, all
the
w h i 1 e keeping channels of comm uh j. c a t i o 11 s o p e n in th e I > o p e 111 a t
a
s e 111 erne n t w o u Id be r e a c: h e d . W e f i n a 1 1 y s u c: c c? e d e d
a nd
rec e i veq
their resignations in return for a cash payment.
o t he rs .
1 hi s
inc i den t
This solved
si o.l ved
one problem but can erea te
couId be seen as a precedent by otfiers. I t J. s p o s s i 1) 1 <? 11) e y c: o u 1 c.
ci
take? advantage of it. We cannot be sure that this has not left
mar k
conceirnec
on
the culture of the organisation. We are now
about
having everything down in writing so that we will be able
to produce the necessary proof i n tlit? even t 111i s i s repiea ted ,
We
this
and
we
are
still
exploring
are not comfortable with
a1 ternatives.
This
has led us to the collective framing of service rules,
listing of rights and responsibilities as each of us see it.
is
still
at the discussion stage and we are not sure
how
will work .
.
a
.
■ K
■
The
Thid
thi s
However it was too late to think of that now. We had a grou □ w i t h
on 1 y
us and we had to make it work and training seemed to be the
answer.
a 1 1 j,
for
Training
therefore
became a priority,
training
for
us
together and in smaller need based groups. We? did not possess the
no t
were
expertise? and most of, the training programmes offered
are
designed
to our needs. Professional trainers exist but thej/
as
them
very
expensive? and our budgets do not allow us to use
on
a
muc h as we wou 1 d 1 i ke . r~ur ther' we? needf^j train ing
inputs
s u s t a i n c? d a n d r e g u 1 a r basis.
by
We decided that we would try working this out for
ourselves
once
opting for a change of scene and living together for a week
a year
—
retreat from the normal routine.
This
has
helped.
Occasionally it has resulted in the resignation of an
individual
bu t
who has not been a-ble to identify with
the organisation F
for
mostly it has brought us closer together and strengthened LIS
the-? year ahead .
our ',“etreats art? loosely structured. We
list
problems
Norma11y
on
have emerged during the year and try and invite experts
tha t
lot
subjects to share thE?ir knowledge with us.. We allow a
t he? so
we
time
time for discussion and reflection. The rest of the
of
to
together
fun
together.
There
is
nothing
like
living
have
or
can
help
get
to
know
someone
and
it
is
only
then
one
rea 11 y
s u p p C3 r t t h e o t h e r .
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
Crisis
Ever
since our inception we have had to manage crises,
management seems to be? a necessary part of a FIDO's life, Moist of
manage
us meet crisis with stunned disbelief and then 'somehow'
trusted
to survive it.. This has hit us in every shapi? 'and size:
colleagues have embezzled money., a child died while he was in our
care, a twelve year old girl was raped by a sixty year old unc 1 e,,
of
a
funding
agencies suddenly withdrew support in the middle?
financial year because? their policies had changed.
: .1.8:
L i k e u s mos t IM(30s seem t o s pen d a 1 o t o f the .1. r t i me
on
management.
Management of crisis is a skill that an NOU
develop or it could just flounder.and go under.
4
i s 1. s
to
Is
it
p o s s i b 1 e for a n N (3 0 t o u s e c r i s e s ' t o
r e ally
st r e n c t h e n
ourselves rather than to allow them to weaken the organisation?
I he
averting
of most
crises
is
impcj^si bl e,
as
they
are
unpredictable.
ft tremendous amount of energy is
required
whi 1 e
crisis., besides the emotiona 1 stress undergone.
I)and1ing a crisis
7 his
perhaps is the single largest cause of 'burn outs' among N(30s
We have not learnt the best way of dealing with this yet. We
are
not
really equipped
for it and we just rely
on
a
person
or
persons who are the strongest at the time and battle it as
best
we can.
I
will
use an example of a.crisis we faced in 1992 to
try
an d
i1 lustrate
some
with
of the aspect<s of how. we instinctly dea 1
s u c h s i t u a t i o n s.
Tippu<, a 11 year old boy died while he was attending the
ing
i
open
of
our
training
centre.
He was there
along
with
25(3i other
c hi 1dren
a
and despite security measures he strayed off to have
swim
in
a nearby pond and drowned.
We gave
him
ar ti fic1a1
respi ra tion
a n d r u s h e d f i i m t o t h e near e s t. h o s p i t a 1
where they
pronounced him dead.
On
realising
the gravity of the situation the
t
first
we
thing
co .11 d
decided was
was
to stop the news spreading further as
panic
had.
break loose and that could result in further casualties.
We|
250 children in our care and they had to be returned home safe
w e cou1d n o t allow this t r a gic i i) c i d e n t t o e f f e c t. t h e m .
f arnj. 1 y
Secondly we had the responsibility of informing the boy's
and explaining, consoling and supporting them through their shock
and grief.
Thirdly we
statemen t.
had
to
inform the
police
and
file
an
official
V'
.'.A
4
I-
J?
i
i
519:
fuhction
w a‘s to decide-to let the
By far the most difficult task was
the
Those of ps who knew could not risk going back to
proceed.
same
at
the
venue as our faces would have spoken for themseIves,
a d to
to e
>: p 1 a i n o
u r a b s e n c e . W e w e r e forced to resort to a
time we h
had
explain
our
partial white lie; - saying we? were with the boy at the hospital
a 11 e n d i n g t o h i m .
of
tas k
Our work
however did not end here. We htid the? furl he r
to
and
chiIdren
other
explaining
to the community, all our
T
i
ppu
w
here
continue
to work with Tippu's family, and the slum
of
lived.
This was not easy — our field activist was terrified
to
be
the possible anger of the community and had to be supported
still
there
for Tippu's funeral and after. As it happens we? are
one
working
with children of Tippu's slum and 'Ti-ppu's mother is
of our ardent advocates.
have
However
it
would have been so easy for that
incident.
to
it
destroyed CWC.
Children cou.ld have panicked and rushed home, the
cou Id
wi t h
facts could have distorted, the communities we work
been
have
have
t u r n e d a q a i n s t li s a n d o Lt r f i e 1 d a c t i v i s t s c o u 1 d
of
driven out of the area.
All this could havehappened
J. ns pi te
one
rea 1
c on c e rn ,
d e id i c <..> t i o n
and
c o m m i t m e nt.f h e s t r a t e g /
of
employs
to deal with a crisis is important as it is born out
the values and
culture of an
organisation.
Even
though ou r
Wc<s
response
to Tippu's death was instinctive
that
instinct
of
influenced by what CWC stood for and the level of development
CWC.
•
■
an cl
c on f 1 i c t s
We
learnt
that an essential factor in
avoiding
time
A
t
on
■:?
handling crisis is an effeetive1'Communication system,
we had very poor communication systems between the field, P '-oj ec t
did
not
offices and the head office. Our excuse was that
......we- just
h a v e s li f f i c i e n t t i m e t o b Li i 1 d a n e f f ec ti v e i n t e r a c ti v e By s tem.
simple unco rn pile a t e d
posed a problem, The solution lay in
This
Verba1
.1 evel s.
the
different
operation
between
communi ca t ion
'
most
t
he
ou
t
i n f o r m a tion
a n d t h e a I:) i 1 i t y t o c u 11
sharing
of
Decjisions
bits of information need to be
emphasised,
important
made.
needs to be
'what'
to
be
communicated
to
'whom'
regarding
or
ti^p-down
pr oc ess . p f. c ommun i c: a t i on is., ■.n o t
n pc essa r.i 1 y
This
,< a 1 1 .■’tevpl s;' based on ' /lewd .
d own -'Ll p but k hr '-weeri
•
‘ f ■;
’ '•/ '7- ' : 7
•
' ■ : '• •
'■
7
■
■
■!
•
■
-7
: 20:
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Financial
management ■ is one of 11) e m o s t
i rri tating
p r o b 1 ems
within
t he N G0 sector.
Most N G0s have collapsed or
disappeared
because
their
financial
management has
been
weak.
In
I nd i a
accou n t in g.. .pr oce d' ur es► are very complex. We have to account tlo our
funding
p a r t n e r s J, t h e I n c o m e T a x 0 e p a r t m e n t, the Home
Ministry
the F* r o f e s s i o n a 1 T a x D e p a r t m e n t, t h e F r o v'i d e n t
F u n cl
De par tin cent
and
the Registrar of Societies, T h e s t a t e m e n t s a n d
f o r in a t s
for
all
these
are different and have to be submitted
at
different
times of the year.
T hi s
rec|uires speel.a 1 isecl persorine 1 ancl inost NGOs ei11)er do not
budget
for
this or just cannot afford it. What
aggravates
the
probl e/n
is the fact that very few funding partners set? the
need
to allocate funds for this purpose.
T h e g ener a t i on of f u nds r e qu ires a s pec i a1 sk ill. I d e n t i f y i n g t h e
rig ht
f la n d i n g
p a r t n e r s , w r i 15 n g o f p r o p o s a 1 s a n d
that
reports
make sense and clearly state
lat you are trying to ac hi eve
an cl
h o w you
are
p 1 a n n i n g t o a c h i c? v e t h a t.
I d en t i f y i n g
bench
the
n)a r k s
i n d i c a t e?
t ha t /ola a r e on t he r i g 111
pa t h .
This
req ji res
ex pe r t i s e.
Most f un ding pa rt n e r s a r e ve ry d em an d ing a n d
require
ca lot of inf ormation clearly pre?sen ted .
t
i
The proper and effective utilisation of funds vj u Id also
re q uire
cl eta i 1 ed f i n an c i a 1 p 1 an n i n g .
To what extent does an NGO actually
plan finances or does an NGO just spend money as long a s i t 1 as ts
nex tl?
To
and
then worry about where it is going to come
f roin
what e >: t e n t are b u d g e t s a d h e r e d t o'? T o w h a t e x t e n t can one
all ow
for f1e xi b i1i t y ?
r-
We
have a difficult time of it. Just kecsping track is
a major
e f f o i" t. Most of us do not understand balance sheets, The
figures
p r esen ted o
on
n
the
t
he
balance
b
a 1 anc e s
sheet
hee t a
any
ny
way
do not
necessari 1y
oca 1
coincide
with
those
in
the
proposals
because
of
ti me
requirements.
FProcedures
’rocedures
for
the handling
of
cash
are
consuming and accounting and book keeping is cumbersome.
:21 :
We have found it lie of u.I to ensure that h u d q e t s a r e d i s c u s s c d
and
known
to all and every one? knows wliat 11 ) o i r b u d rj e t i s , I) o w
muc:: I)
111 e y c a n
s pen d ,
how much money i s a v a i 1 a b I e <, f o r w In a t
it
ie
available and what control they have o n 111 a t p a r t i c u 1 a r a m o u n t.
We also took a decision quite early in our hi story to c hoots e our
partners:based 9n 11)(?i r c omini t men t t o c: I) i 1 d r" e n a n d t h e i r
policy
for chi Id labour, This ensuites 11) a t 11) e p a r t n i ? r s I) i j..-) i s n o t
J li is t
based on fund's., i t i s m o r e e q li a 1 . we do not have to compromise on
c:< u r v a 1 u e <s a n d we do not have t o c h a n q e mo li r o b j e c t i v e s
to sui t
theise of 1.1 "i e f i.i n d ;.i. n g a g e r i c y .
U ie
t
f I) i? o :111
e?I'p r o b 1 e m w i t l i li s i £;• p I a r) r i i n ci
for
11 > e
f i n a n c i a 1 f u t u r e . T t) e r e a r e no e a is y s o .1 n t i o n s f o r
is t .1.1. 1 g i- a p pi 1 i n g w i 11) i t.
orljanisa tion ' s
11) i s a n d
are
0u r sli s t a i. n .a b j. 1 i t y i s a 11o 11 y d (•? I:) a t (.:? d su b j ec t w .1 11) 1. r i CWC . Some of
t h e q u e s t i o n s w e a r e a d d r e s sin g a r e :
I low long do we need to exist.? I f i t is not. for ever that
lion Id we
b u i 1 d i m m o v a b 1 e a s s e t s ? W h o si i o u 1 d 111 c?
b e 1 o 11 q to 1 atc?r? When
we
p r e a c:: 11 s e 1 f r e 1 i a n c e? a r i d j. n t e r*d e p> e r i d e n c e , is i t f a i r that wle
are
so dependent on external funding? I low do wo roEo 1 v(? I he
con f 1 it: t
b e t. w e e n f i x e d a s s e t s a n d e x t e r i) a 1 ei.ippor !.'?
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
There
is a treinendous amoun t o f in forma I ion that C'WC has
at:: cess>
•to and qenerates. We do not net:essari 1 y I ■ now w h a t t o d o w i t h
a 11
this information and do not have the time to document all of i t.
The
trick
is
to be able to cull out
1 11 e
iimpor
m i J o r ttant
a i) t
I.? i t. is
and
discard the rest. When we? first started o u r I.) o c: u m e n t a t i c::« n del 1 we
j ust
hoarded
ny thing
v)we
e cou 1 d 1 ay I)ands
oi).
Every thinq
was
relevant
and cconnected to child labour in some way and
kep t
we
i t j,
li n t i 1
we
f o u n d t h a t w c? w
e r ce? q cd i 11 g t o d r o w n
wer
in
i t.
Mo re
i. m p o r t a n tw e c o u 1 d n o t u s e a n y o
off i t a s o u r f i 1 i n g s y s t e m
con I d
not keep up with the flow.
: 7'7':
Ne
had
t h e s a in e p r cd b I e m w i 11) r e p o r t e f r o i n a c t i v i nr, t ‘a .
We
would
r e c e :i v e p
pa
ag
ge
eo
c> a
an
n c:l
d p a g c? s o f i n f o r n i a t i o 11 j. bu t
t lie? main pcdin ts wcdc.i 1 c
h a v e b e e n in i s s e d .
The
i... j Lie. ial factor was liovv/
decide
how to sift in f cd rm a t ion and
what
was important and what was
not
and
to
train
our
si?
1
ves
w <n <3
t r a i n cd u r *;■» c? I v e «5 t o d o t! i i ‘s
This
dependent
on the perception of the
individual.
t he
individua 1 .
I.) i f f e r en t
. p e o p 1 e fD e r c e i v c? d t h e s a in e s i t u a t i o n d i f f e i" e i^t .1. y a n c j f e w w ere a b 1 e
to put their fingers on the importan t occurrence.
How
cJcd ycDLi train yourself
’
to
perceive the right things within
a
s i t u a t i cd n a n d n o t .j u s t cl e 1 i v e
...r
. ■ a f .1 o cd d o f i n f o r in a t i o n ? I-1 o w do you
doc u in e n t
this
i n f o r in a t i o n ?
Who do you think
this
in formation
needs to be shared with? Who w o u 1 c l 111 i s i n f o r in a t i o n be useful tc:)?
W h o !=• G-?
w cd r k
c ou 1 d
i m p r o v c? as a result
of
of
knowing
a b cd ut
this
informatton?
Repo r t.E=.
cd r
the
were o f t e n t e r r i Id 1 y b cd r :i r i c:i a i) d 11 a 11 no link to the
cio a 1 s
ob.j ec t i ves
cd f
t h (;? ‘ cd r g a 11 i s a t i cd n s .
I t
was
c.i i f f i c u 11
sometimes
t cd u n d e r s t a n d w 11 y w e vie r e t a 1 k i n ci a Id o u t
a
par ticu1 ar
inc: iden t o r e v c? n t a i d d c cd u 1 d n cd t in a k <■? ou t w I la I i in p 1 i c a t i on s i t had
to past? present or future:? worl; .
The
ac:cii.ii r inq
cdo f:f 1:11i s sI; i .1.1
vjas in bu i 1 I: iid to
r.i ic?I;he? I: r a iri inq
of
in d I. v i c:l u a I s and now
now we arc learning Io m<ioaiio i n f or ma 1.1 oi i sy st enis
better
and
.11d f orma t i cdn a11 dd oc ume?111 a t i on ha vc?
I:a k e11 on
a
very
s 1 g n i f i c a n t r o .1. e , w I i i c: h a c: t u1 1 y e n h a n c:: e s a n < I i n»[ < r o v c?
I he overall
functinning of 111 e cd r g a n i a t i o n .
EXTERNAL RELATIONS
I
I hr-..’
final
area
that
I
would
like?
to
addre-’ss
i r>
ex terna1
relations.
An N(■)(J ' s
r*c? 1 at.i.cdnsI‘iijd wi th
the
governinon t
wo Ll 1 d
de
pen c:l on what the NGO is involved in and wliat
. largely
depend
of
k ind
government it
is
i.c?., the rel a tionship a
NGO
has;
w i I: h
the
Government would depend largely on the .ideology of the NGO
and
t he
p cd .1 i t i c a 1 s y s t e m cd f t he c: cd u i d t r y . An cd 11 d e r 1 m p o r tan t
d c?cid ifiq
factor would be whether the NGO is working with or to change
t. he
ex ist ing
po 1 i t i c: a 1
system .
NG0■••• N00
re 1 a t i on ship
woi.i 1. d
a 1 £5 o
largely depend upon the same parameters and that, would dec1de t he
1 i n k s a n N G 0 w cd u 1 d c h cd cd s e t o h a v e .
: 73 :
but
Wc? ai"c? an cdrgani-saticdri working in the? field of child 1 a bo Lt r <1
i<i th
I inks
useful
to
have
we
have not
fcDund
it extremely
i
t CD
ap
p
rcDac
h
cd r g a n i s a t i cd n s w i t h s i m ,i 1 a r o Id j e c: t i v c? s b e c a id r, c? 11 d e i r
appr
:>ac:
It
we 1 f a re
t Ide prob 1 em har> been more 111 e c I) a r .i t a I d 1 e o r
in
labour
look
at
the
issue
of
child
which differs from ours. We look at
have
to
a
political
c::ontext and have found :i.... t... far more Lt Si of ui
bn t
1
aboLtr
.
links with NGOs who may have nothing to do with child
ibcd
re
far
a p p r o a c I d a nd f r a 111 e vt o r k . lie
Ihave
dave
I dhad
ad
have
the same
g r c?Li[DS
associations with trade? unlon<r, c?nv i r on men la I
pro due: t ive
g r oil p*s
court
try
rather
than
a n d w;i. t Id women ' s orq an i sa I:, i or >s in c::«ur
working with the sa me? t a r g e t g r ou p .
CONCLUSIONS
find
that
we
on
t he
a Id o v e m e i d t i o n e d i s s u e s <
Ref 1ecting
•far
dec?per
a
i
o f prcdb 1 ems 'are ac tua 1 1 y symp tomo f
in a j o r* i t y
t
ry
ing to pr ac t i ce wha t y ou r>reac Id .
that of
the
cjne ,
an
a r * c?
v\' cd r K
ng
t cd w a r d s
vsi
k .1
ing
There?
are
many
NGOs
in
Asia
who
r
est.t 11
c?>: pe r i me?nt i n g.
resn
t
a 1 ternative
mode1 o f dove 1 opmen t ai id a s a
vjitti an al ternative siy 1 e oI mariagc?11rc?id t that reflecIs this.
W e r e q i.t i r e a s s> i s t a n c: e t o i..t rt d c? r s I: a r t dI fully the implications of
ami f teat ton’s .
rsoc:
i o po .1. i. V. i c a 1
e x i ts t i id g
in o d e .1. w .1111 a 1 1 i t s
c
□c::cdi kdmi.o's and
□t
tr
l?.L\ying
in
role IMF and the World Dani; are
marg in a 1 irsed
I: he?
i i n p 1 i c a t i cd n s
cd f
a Free Market CconcDiny on
rt.tra 1
tlie
The
the
and
sec tors .
nt?f:?c:l
strue lures
and
We
need he?Ip to c 1 a r .1 f y cd u r o r g a r) i s a t i o i d a 1
dc|ve
I op
Wc?
need
to
a re
t a i I cd r
i n a cJ e f cd r t Id i s .
s'>ys terns
tin at
work
tJ
but not on traditional lines, Wc? should try
expertise<
domination.
A
than
par
tn
c?r
s
I
)
i
p
r
a
t
he?
r
kJ c-\ -3 v;- \.J
.
on* | -* • *-• • ••• • ...... i"
towards
a model based
partnership that
d iversity.
respects the envirenment, indigenous cul ture cine.
r
inbi.ii 11
has-;
We
require dynamic•systems and course ware,
that
req 1.1 i rc?
We
•f 1 e x i b i 1 i t y a n d i s a p p r o j d r i a I: e t cd v a r y i n g ~ s .11 u a I .t o n s .
p 1 ace
i n f □ rma
- t i on c an ta k e
f o ruins w I d e r e t h e e x c h a n g e o f i cl e a s a nd ..........
on r
sympathetic and supportive to
and
groups cd f |D e o |D 1 e w h cd a r e
cause and can Ido Ip us along Lhir> paih.
/
n
CHILD PROTECTION IN ASIA
'EMPOWERMENT'
THE PATH TO THE FUTURE
BY
NANDANA REDDY
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
THE CONCERNED FOR WORKING CHILDREN
BANGALORE, INDIA.
PRESENTED AT
THE 8 INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT
HAMBURG 2-7 SEPTEMBER 1990
<
i
I
Dear friends.
I am honoured* ..c be addressing such a distinguished audience
in this beautiful city of Hamburg. I am priviledged to
here ,
visit this country, where, astonishing chapters of *2^ Iq
Ibis is my
H
that
have so recently been written.
Germany and I am glad it is
i after that shameful edifice that
your people, the Berlin wall, has been torn down. 1
divided your
people,
y
1
H --- convictions and the courage you have
congratulate you on your
actino
on them. What you have achieved is no
all shown m are washing away the blood of thousands and
easy task; you
a new chapter chat proves that the spirit
with that opening
of humankind cannot be chained forever.
fl
is a fitting
It is my conviction therefore, that Hamburg Child Abuse and
venue for the 8th International Congress on history of our
Neglect. The time lias come to rewrite the
rewrite this
children and what better place than this? For just survive,
must,, it our children are to, not ;
history we must
reach their fullest potential; for if we
but blossom and
it is sure to Lead to our
any further on the present path,
destruction.
It is criminal chat in Chis day and age, wheni humankind is
planning Che firsC peopled
Flight to planet
P1-^■ Mars, ^en
■ ' space flight
communication b 'tween continents can be
L_ had at ^he_ .push
.
button and when, for
for some,
some, the daily chores ot life have bee~
the
made so simple, we still have in most of the third world
abused
and
neglected,
abject pain and misery oi children
and immunisiation.
exploited, and dying for lack of
c_ nutrition
--It
do survive the first years
Even if our children
the
industrial
wheel,
prostitutes
to become cogs in
is only
survival.. While some
q'rreet children, "to eke out a mere .survival
and washing machines, vacuum cleaners and
microwave
microwave ovens
use “Cer K torld, - selll have Llctlo children
ehUdren pxeUns
all
refuse dumps, sorting out garbage. While some eat
through 's and fasc foods, we have little boys less than nine
Big Mac
old working an eighteen hour day standing in dirty ,
years water washing utensils m the grubby Uttle^back_ rooms
ofa?estaurants7The
matches we
we use,
use, the garments we wear, the
“j. The matches
most of
carpets■» we
we walk
on and
and much
much more
more,, are produced
walk on
writing
,
Asia by
tiny hands
hands - hands that should be playing,
by tiny
a
batter
pat’eing,
In Joy and helplns to buxld
world.
1
I
i
i
Countries like India, still suffer from the shock, of colonial
rule and its dicermath,
dlcermath, even after years of Independence.
Because of economic disparity, which is the result of
planning
patterned
on an imported western
model
of
development based on a paL.iarchial view of society and lop
sided growth imposed by a minority vested interest; the child
has fallen by the way side. When the commitment to defence
is more than the commitment to welfare and poverty is used as
a tool for political power, from birth, the child has to find
its own methods to survive in an already hostile atmosphere.
Asia can be a case study on child abuse and neglect and the
conscience is slow in awakening to the needs of its
states’
As a result not enough thought has been given to
children.
the child and its needs and in the few instances where action
by
has
been
taken,
it has been
cramped
political
considerations.
have forsaken our children and in doing so sabotaged our
future. We nave used the " if you don't look at it, it may go
away" theory and the " it is our fate" philosophy to ignore
the issue. if
7“ any remedies are to be found,. we will have to
face the problem head on, recognise it for what it is and
begin to tackle it with no holds barred.
We
As the Chilean poetess and Nobel Laureate, Gabriella Mistral,
says in her eloquent poem:
We are guilty of many errors and many faults,
But our worst crime is abandoning our children,
Neglecting the fountain of life.
Many of the things we need can wait,
But the child cannot,
For it is now
That his bones are being formed
His blood is being made
And his senses developed.
To him we cannot answer tomorrow.
His name is today.
According to UNICEF's state of the world's children report,
1990, "the problem of absolute poverty in the world still has
its centre of gravity in South Asia. Approximately 407o of all
young children who die in the world each year, 457« of those
who are malnourished, 357, of those who are not in school, and
over 507o of those who live in absolute poverty, are to be
and
found in just three countries - India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh."
2
1'
Clearly,
there is something questionable about a path of
development which has not alleviated the poverty experienced
by millions in these countries.
The pursuit of urban
centered ,high-technology,capital-intensive Industrialisation
and
the neglect of rural areas, with the
consequent
pauperisation of
people in the countryside, has led to
widespread migration into cities ill-prepared for the influx.
The
development of viable small-scale,
low-technology, .
labour-intensive cottage industries in rural areas could have
minimised the double-edged problem of rural impoverishment
and urban chae".
The current pattern of education, which serves the interests
of the elite (if anybody), is another root cause. It
completely bypasses those who cannot as pire to fancy jobs but
could benefit from an educational system which addresses the
needs of persons who will eventually work in areas such as
arts and crafts, agriculture and industrial labour.
The neglect of the environment and the precedence grantedI to
large-scaxe
developmental
industry, as well as expensive, large-scale
projects, has resulted in the destruction of forests, the
inundation of vast tracts of land and the displacement of
huge populations in different parts of the Asian continent.
Those who once earned their living off forest produce and
small-scale agriculture without depleting natural resources
any ’Jway they can on the
1 ' '
are now reduced to eking out a iiving
fringes of an urban-oriented economy.
These are just some examples of the ways in which the Pat;h of
development chosen for India and other Asian countries have
contributed to the problem of poverty and unemployment, The
complex
model of development grafted on to this enormous and c~
just
to
continent has proved Inappropriate, and^harmful not
the majority .mi our people but to the
t.._ rich
----- natural resources,
culture and traditions of this sub-continent.
As Stewart
Stewart MacPherson
MacPherson has
has written
written in
in Five Hundred Million
Children',
"we
have
seen
services
in nearly all countries
"we I.
have considerable
considerable urban bias and have grown in ways which
reflect the dominance of Western approaches and concepts.
This is further borne out by the situation in backward areas,
such as the Sivakasi belt in Tamil Nadu, where the only means
of sustenance is provided by the highly exploitative matches
and UrXorks industries that were further expanded and
promoted by the British Raj m India.
3
3
11
i^kshmi^is six years-old.. She works from 6 am to 6
match factory in Sivakasi. She fills rows and p. m. in a
rows of
matchsticks into endless frames, She and he r
siblings
support the family. Her parents ar^ unemployed and they
r will
not work in the factory: as 1C is considered a
child
’
s
job.
However, her family still owns land, But, it
cannot
be
cultivated as there is no iwater in the district. The
Nadars
(a cast of traders), Lthe dominant. community and the owners of,
the industry, have successfully prevented the :*
implementation
or irrigation projects planned and sanctioned by
the State
Government.
7
Lukshiui sees no way out of her drudgery. She will continue
to
work until she is 16 and then get married and bear children
^5
industry. Meanwhile, the Government programmes
and the Child Labour- -Act
— have no impact
______on 41v
_ life.. The only
her
solution is a long termone of afforestation,
education in dry land farming, to reduce the irrigationi and
dependence of
Lakshm1's family and those of 45 thousand other
children on
the match industry. This requires resources, a
s t rong
pressure group
technology inputs and planning. This is
is a
slow process and if and when
started , the results will not be
-T.-a started,
visible in less that ten years.
Howeve r, even before this long term solution
is <effected,
there is a need for the strongest infusion f
f
political
will
and a determination that the interests of the’
majority must
be served at all costs.
Only this can reverse
this
deplorable trend, Evils such as child labour,
the
oppression
of women, the marginalisation of tribals and
environmental
degradation
can
can only
only be
be (countered through
a
drastic
alteration of developmental goals.
the pre-lndustrial
pre-industrial era, children were primarily involved
artisanal or allied activities , where. they
V* <1 1 1 x r r
1
« J J
1
‘
generally
worked along
side
adult
members of their
families.
This meant that child workers could 'by and laree
function
,
?2d!5uthe bei?iS9 gaze of adults who ’cared' for'thein and '
were
,
thereby,
relatively protected from the worst forms of illtreatment
4
c 4,
vand exPloitation.
In addition, children involved
in family based work had greacur chances of acquiring skills
and knowledge handed down by their elders. Children working
with families were also more likely to be emotionally secure"
culturally integrated and physically looked after.
Finally’
their incomes benefited their families directly instead of
their employers.
In
in
iagricultural,
’
4
I
I
I 111
M I I Illi 11H|
JI
I I llllli III III—WMIIIHII
The onset of urban-orlented industrialisation brought In
Its
I
of
they
JeJort 'ti^ta^nJ^rP^" ?bS ^rln/skill "d JLd to
resort to taking whatever they got - primarily casual
and
liXJuy. ”“rk' “lLh ““ th°
Jnstabui^ and
livelihood. Unskilled, untrained and largely illiterate
Uprooted
physically,
alienated
both
physical]y,
emotionally
and
culturally, brutalised and dehumanised by
their ’
by their
bitter
the^rieilCUS and’i ab°Ve aLi unabLe 1:0 sustain themselves
with
their meager and uncertain earnings, parents found themselves
forced to send their children out in search of work to
supplement the family income.
work to
From workers living in slums or on pavements
with their
impoverished families to lone rangers fending for themselves
on the streets without the protection of aduit relatives
but a small and inevitable step for many children. Thus was
in
the post-industrial context, the
the child
child came
came to
to be
be seen as a
means of production, often deprived of family
and
protection, vulnerable to health hazards as well support
as mental,
psychological and physical stress and abuse.
^^Cha parted working when he was 5. He comes from
a village
OU kilometers away from Bangalore. He works in a hotel in
the city of Bangalore. His father took a loan from the hotel
owner tor his daughter's marriage. In return he left Kantha
to work in the hotel. Now Kantha is 9 years old. Kantha
grinds, cleans and washes the utensils. He has no time for
recreation.
u::s never been to school. His d ream of
becoming a motor mechanic will never come true, because he
will not have the opportunity to acquire the necessary
skills.
Like Kantha a large number of children who work in match
industries, fireworks, power loom sectors, forging
and
machine workshops, chemical, asbestos and cement industries,
stone
uarries and mines, work under dangerous conditions
that o ten cause respiratory problems, lung diseases,
skin
diseases , loss of eye sight, loss of limbs and sometimes even
life.
5
5
I
"-•r special and different kind
As a group, girls represent a very
level
At the
of
of
situation
especially in Asia.
A
challenge
,
different
kind
of
intervention, they present a
to
that of having to redefine their life-situation in order The
beings deserving attention.
be even recognised as human
Lthe
roles girls play in Che villages and towns are pre cast
role of a mini adult as soon as they are old enough to
'fetch' and 'carry'. They get type cast in being immediately
immedia
identified as
'help' in tasks which have to be done, yet
rarely have a direct link with either earning or production,
their daily routine leaves them with no choice, and little
respite - where even concern is missing, The masters are
masked in the form of parents and demands come from those
who are supposed to care.
The roles are precast, the options are nil and the future is
already the ptesent. The peculiarity of this situation is
such that no legislation can help, no development schemes can
make even a dent. Even relieved poverty conditions seldom
register, unless the circuit is completed through revised
perceptions of the family.
words of
Their predicament can best be described by the
Hermann Hesse:
The Lonely** one
who
looks
on,
•
A. I_
1
4
The bearer 1of human
longing.,
the• a rt pale^image
fulfillment
of the world
Of whom the future, the f
-----Has no further need.
lives
India, nearly l/3rd of~ the> metropolitan population
Gurupadaswamy
and
tenements.
in his
and Improvised
f
in slums Child
Labour in India says,"In these families the
report on <- ----- co in this world is endowed
cn
since it’s very appearance
child,
.
These
families
cannot
sacrifice
the
with an economic mission,
of the present
for the larger gains of the
t
smaller gains c_ _
1
not have any surplus
to sustain them. The
future as they dofrom
child
may
be ac pittance but it
J..112 labour
’ 1
Z
income accruing £
i a shipwreck.
plays a crucial role in saving the family from
compulsions weigh so heavily on the conscience of
’’Economic
n'irents
that
do not mind colluding with
poor parents
thatin they
P employer
violating the law and putting the child
child's employer in
under risks of inhuman exploitation^
and tend to reinforce themselves
thus always beg^t <each
--- other
- in families and communities, The net result is that children
are condemned to exploitation and abuse.
In
6
i
%
I
■
Although poverty and adult unemployment: are the major causes,
the reasons for the persistence of these factors despite
anfd
decades of developmental efforts must be explored
included in the causes.
The iunequal distrLbution of wealth, chronic poverty and th
failure ’of an elite-oriented educational policy create
large and vulnerable population of children.
The consequences have serious economic as well as social
childrei
of
It damages a large number
implications.
this
is
mentally and emotionally;
while
physically,
resources
of
in
itself,
it
also
means
the
human
deplorable
the country are being effectively depleted.
Only by address ing each of these realities and tackling th$
totality
is is
it it
possible
possible
to to evendream
u- of
problem Ln its totality
improving the condition of our children.
Let us therefore examine schemes for child protection am
welfare in Asia in the wider context of the model o
development. It is important to point out that even those wh
have been seriously concerned with welfare and protection o
children fail to look at these issues in the wider context,
micro approach to this problem ignores the deep rooted causes
and falls to find solutions. This would tend to put the
'
stress on the individual symptoms rather than social anc.
political symptoms and further on individual explanation
rather than political ones.
the match and fire work producing belt of Tamil
S ivalcas 1‘ ,
India, has been named as one of Che ten project a read
Nadu ,
under the child labour action plan. Child labour has been
banned Ln f: ctories in India since 1948 and the new Child
* i has reinforced this ban and included
Labour Legislation
matches and fireworks in the schedule of banned industries
and occupations, but children have always worked in Cue
factories of Sivakasi and continue to do so.
The estimated number of child workers according to labour
ministry statistics was around 40,000 to 50,000 in 1983 but
the survey conducted by the state government came up with an
figure of 14,000 and the number of child workers actually
re
covered by the scheme are 1,700 children and 75 women at a
cost of approximately 55,00,000 Indian Rupees.
7
1
I
1
■J
The project area defined by the Government covers only about
o£ the child labour belt in the area and the children
307o of
cove red lor in only 3.4,O of the total ci.^Ld labour population
in Sivakasi. 'The scheme further only extends to children in
the match industries and does not cover fireworks
:
j
or other
occupations.
The centers are supposed to be run by NCO's but in fact the
funds have been given to organisations rm. by the wives of
match factory owners. Th; /e are 24 special schools in all and
the syllabus contains singing religious songs, hygiene
literacy and vocational training that is actually craft, fhe
pioduction of wire baskets and sewing.
These centers, In
spite of paying a stipend to the child have not succeeded in
removing these children from the industry. This is because
the
scheme
'..as not visualised any viable
long
term
alternatives and in fact makes no dent at all. The Impact on
the child s lite is in fact negative as now they work longer
to compensate for the hours spent in school.
hours Co
In many
the
ways Che cure seems worse than the disease but the Labour
Ministry's conscience is satisfied and they have a way of
silenclng c r L l i. c i s m and claiming that something has been
done.
MeanwhiLe ,
the young and dedicated Director of the Malaechi
Trust, Prabakaran is imparting information on if
aforestation
and dry land farming in his little programme for child labour
in the same belt. His vision is to develop skills that can
revive agriculture in the region, thereby i_2__
reducing their
dependency on the match and firework
-- industries
--------- and
-- 1 breaking
the vicious cycle Chat has existed for .more
more than
two decades.
( ’
<
In his centres Prabha has kids coming in the early
morning
and late evenings. The primary activity of the centre is
creative expression and collective action.
Children play,
discuss issues of concern Co
to them, learn to read and write,
identify the skills they will need to take charge of their
lives and most of all learning how to once again use the land
they
have.
He has been able to wean children
away
permanently f: rom the match Industry and also
generate
employment for the adults. Prabakaaran is making a dent and
with that perhaps even starting a flood in Chis drought prone
area.
8
■i
I
|j
But the rationale adopted by the Ministry is that of
concentrating their programmes on the organised sector in
order that children will move into the unorganised sector and
from there hopefully disappear. There is absolutely no basis
for such a theory and in areas such as Sivakasi where the
industry spreads to the unorganised home based sectors, this
attitude is criminal. The child producing murches in a’hut is
doing so in conditions much worse than ti^. factories and
without the possibility of ai:y
npervision or regulation. The
virtually disappear into obvilion. In this case, the analysis
is not just faulty, but totally lacking.
The analysis with regard to wdf re programmes is also often
within
a
national framework and -rarely
acknowledges
international linkages. In Asian countries neglect of these
linkages
has seriously affected policy.
The v economic
conditions prevailing in the world seriously affect child
welfare, and children, in countries that are the weakest . and
poorest, are affected the
..e must. The less we have the less \ we
have to give our children.
Corazo Alma Leon, a dynamic Under Secretary in the Department
of Social Welfare and Development in the Philippines told the
story of Rosario,, a street child and little girl of twelve,
who died
as a result of an operation to remove a thick
vibrator that had festered in her uterus for three months.
Rosario was <abandoned
’
by her family, picked up by a criminal
syndicate and sexually exploited for profit.
’ . Tl.l
fhe law in the
Philippines and most other countries
Asia ban
----- in --—i pros t i tut Lon
under which soliciting and Che act itself is a c rim Lnd I
offence, but only for the prostitute. When the so cal Led
prostitute is a child like Rosario, the law seems blind, Hou
can the onus of the crime be on a child of twelve?
Wha i
country can permit a- man to do such a despicable thing. WhaC
kind of society can permit this heinous crime?
Laws do not effectually deal with the sexual exploitation of
children in the third world but let us also examine why such
exploitation is allowed to exist in the first plac^. . Most of
the countries in which this evil exists are countries largely
dependent on tourism from countries better off than they are.
When the demands of these jaded tourists in search of
excitemenc a.J quick gratification go from adult prostitutes
to enacting fetishes, it is but an easy step to want
children. When countries have so little they are prepared to
close their eyes to things like child labour and prostitution
it the revenue from such trade is substantial.
9
:•
1
The Labour Secretary, Government of India recently tried
to
explain to me why he could not effectively impose Che ban on
chile
labour m Che carpet industry of Mirzapur. He said
In
all
seriousness
that these carpets could only
be
mad
Ly
children
and
that Che export earnings from
the
U.K.
we re
substantial.
India, he said, could not ailurd to
lose
this
foreign exchange. When I pointed out that Siv.ikasi is
known
as Mini Japan, ho agreed and went further to say
that
iliac
was why child labour could not be banned even there.
agencLes
InCernaCional
agencies
like UN I CHF, WHO,
UNESCO and
£1.0,
whose intentions I do not wish to question and whose work has
1. L e C L i V C in m.»ny a r < • a ■ , do actually
been ex l. i i • mu 1 y tr
effective*
in hun ly
the
k.au
Iturn
urn du cl lupine j.t mod<.l and
ways, rul. u to rue
s L a nd u. i i i b .
O rreinforLU
By doing so they
c y aalao
1. a o
u L n f o r o c status quo rather than
give
n.; a
aalx;ut
Ihguc
B
;u c a change.
uh.injU . 1 ivmild like to
rouiii Lor bringinp
illusti^ce
thLi: with two examples,
>.u.. in
iiip
pics,
L es , one Local
local ar.« . no .;ai anal.
In
B. 11 jya I o r
!’ • Ika) i?oiuni
for Si rcet
reel and VJurki ng
p I'uiiio led by I in 11 IL', Look op I lie issue
L s 11 e ol pul i
...11 cut
kid s
and approached tne <\.'i
i •.•.inner
Co'I
Cii i 1 d run ,
ha r.i s .*>iicunC ol
of
I’..' LCe .
Hu
hlldfun
If
i u
he
e xp lux
d ,
prompt 1y
voliniLuured to issue Identity Card^
Chuy
were sponsored l-v an ay.encv. This card,
would ensure Chose Leo kids iiiiiiiuii i C v against police brutality
LhuL
is
i 11.
illu^.il
I ro.ii
1
b
m any point id
v i uw .
iHi i i.1 sS
ot
u oLi i •
impliud
pl i ud
t hai. Che Cops had i.nu ri./.liC l • harass kids
that.
kid.-,
uno
not Letvu tl ic ad .. al .i • u o
uiI this
l hi
card, I In* su r p
|> iI 1.
I.11. ne
it
1 n 1 n:
o i i I y (lid l ha i?o riii!i a
.n
nr i h i ..
that
not
o 1.1i \?
or
er
I>ui
d u: C i d t_ 1.1 L O proii.
.• LI h
h. a 1idea
d c J kkii
a oi-ucr c L L 1 s s
This
may Sceiii as a progressive step if seen by the
10
card
for the other
o
very regressive fur
kinsluilde. r s
hoi
The
r -he
. i.
<» |; p i u u» .»
have Im . -ii to demand
du hi a nd ih
lb. : r i ho
won' d
pot Leu
a m.H.'icr .tpprupriate* l.
,ui r .i _ e l. t . s :
with ciji Id run
a nJ
1 *1iu
w and
de vc 1 opine nt
Ln kcvp 1 n!, ‘.viiii the 1.
nubiuii
r
act ion won I d also have made more
mo re seiisu !. I' Lt
Th 1 s
:.
1 n 1C i a i: > j
by the. a • oc i .. Cion of st reef and work11.
<...
rather chan che NlK.' iurum.
10
■-
f
example is that of ILO’s r
proposed project in India,
gramme
... <CLASi,)- The
Ln I nd i a has been a vet
Che
new
yvl a.e „ UgUlatl..,, I,.ls vary 1 icttf11 P“"I>W« one
very Little Co offer
to
a 11 e 111Lon
- -- 1 encourage a
The
of the
_ — _J i abour
been
will. to ,
...
a i (< I Viable .solutions to Che prCblM
In
“ in-.wur
U' ”s p!>'«•>»■•
r c b u i c s'- Labour llLnistrius rel,,o„se
\:.r.
was
ng ol first world c-Nrrts
,• ,‘'‘c 1impofti
"'Port-1'iv
standards.
Ihts was further amended to include’Indians5 and
the approach remains the same.
Indians. But
Another
.rrf» "r
cheXe
h^htlcal
5Croi1dly felt that this project will first nF
i-h
1
: 3 |°1.5 d°W" aPPr°^h rather than the existing aLL
who re
one
I. o
likely
'
Id c'" rled “■> by ch. voluntary dc'di
and Chuy a' , “
1
h
a
rt.
in
l hiunc ing Government pol icy
If Cl ' sp
bur ps
lirl
cTf
ii
C
6
F
in
Chis
area
wiil
be
evaluated
in
Clio 1 • 'hi c. >1 lf|r;""ewurk* a,ld ^Cber discredited or side
Lined,
no could be very dangerous for Che future ofor child
of
l.i Lour in
our
country riddled
and could
lend leeiciniacv
tn
Legitimacy
.and
policy
with
Loopholes^
^inforce
Leglslat Lon
i and
the prevailing structures Chat rperpetuate
this
evil. Rather
than solving the root causes India
-a
may
continue
to treat Chis
malady symptomatic ally.
However,
thp^o
i nr..
tthese Intornationa
1 _organisations can play
important
role pos
1
Clon3d
"as
T'""play a verV
positioned as N
I I uy
are and
the kind
Government participation
they
have
if with
^nlv^Tl
participation they have,
if
only
realise their limits
Th n, n
i i \ 1
onLy they would
limits.
Theyor could
1 beth ve
supporting ---1/
efforts
ofTco"
others
tT
ry eUeCCive in
efforts of NCO's or others- thu
_.iut
have,
proved that'
solutions
possible
> iT
aare
re
possible and problems can
be
Grganraations like the
Che ILO
couldTe ef fective^eo ’
I Lt) and
and UNIChT
UNICEE could
letwecns and
actually
rh^
/IT
an
actually influence
influence governments
governments in the
know
India
foLe^of'^br^!1 kn
°W in In<
‘La t_
aC IeasC the IL0 could P'ay
the
play
bringing suppo^ln^o
about changes in
LnsUVuK®
Child Li
^
Labour
"
supporting it.
protection laws anTpolicies^re^eallyfprocection 0^
our
or
legal interference when the child either r- —-- - merely
transgresses the Law
.1 as abandoned and
of • cleaning
the garbage alter it collects and begins one
r- --*
Ieanln« up
to
stink
rather
than
tac^l ,,g Che problem that creates the garbage in
i the first
11
J
>
l‘LSl? run disaster
^Sapoluy"
“™“a,m.oCcadl'scoSnct'C’he "porc!“e of'
management
of
or policy. One cannot
is
"eeUS tO be d0''a,-“„aaLdCnC
social
CO be Lade. A-ain as Stewart MacPherson says, formal
Services generally have
.w priority in the Purest courier i es
remedial
and are still in general dominated by
^vLces
aunroaches.
In most countries organised social servicest for
chUd?'M« restricted in coverage and may bear eery
I
J little
needs
and
priorities
”.
relationship to the pattern of urgent i._
9
1
•
—i is to first of all
short
te™
What needs to bc done in the
T
to
the
welfare
and protection of
approach
adopt an integratedthe'
child docs not have to shop around for
ch i id ren so that i t-*- 3 and mministries,
with various departments
s e r v x c«. u and uical --window
approach
will reduce the
Th i s s ing.le m i n i b t r y , s Ingle
•H.d
ultimately
for the child
I
has:; 1 us f o r voluntary aMCncles l iiu more Important work
of
u— leaving Ulie L L mu <lU
enip garment to be duiiC .
protection schemes should not. just allow for
Vlel '.‘..re and but actively encourage it. It is clear that
umpowe rment, changes need to be brought about and the group
1 Uiid mu...- n t a 1
IMo is Che affected group. This process has
most likely to by their lack of access to information,
been hampered
of the social , economic and pol itical processes
understand Lng oi tnc sol
’
,cLiou. Our role and that <’t
and the advanlap.es ol co co
c
process. Policies and
Xull” Suoo
r’kht.r than dependency
should Shud^HhoracU.g
be to
action should be
creating and allow for innovation.
Bur
rll,hv
Che
the child
child has
has no^piucfor^and^^nsequencly^no
no
protection
voice, lhe area of
of child
chi
p
vulnerable, dependent
.
The
child
is employment
seen
adult
Vhe safe?' time
of children with or
At the same time employwent
X^safe guards
do enter into
u-ds is
is permitted
permitted and
i---- children
gin;.
r
•->*all
over
the world.
written or oral contracts oi employment
further
highlighted by the
Thi q i q n conC’'••u.ticcion in terms J—
^.re
ilowed to op^u
op<.n bank accounts or be
f
that they are not allowed
~^or?aoEtlu^o„s or associacions « o„ Ch^age of lo. In
permitted to vote at 18 but
the
^Lur^^aerp'J^raU- or understanding of banks
used as vulnerable vote
political processes, they are
by unscrupulous politicians.
•i
12
I
Children
are
an unrepresented
constituency
and
any
representation they do have is through self
appointed
advocates like ourselves, persons they do not necessarily
choose or even trust.
--- - There
--- e are many children who are forced
to make decisions about survival at the very tender ages of 6
and 7, but who are not necessarily consulted on decisions
concerning themselves nor even prepared for this process, We
muse ac chls po5nc remember also chac children do not remain
children forever and do grow up to be adults, sometimes
sooner chan we think and they will inherit the future and the
legacy of our mistakes. So the only role we can play is to
prepare them for this struggle ahead,
that will
mosC
i nclude undoing some of the crimes we
cercainly include
have
committed.
While doing so, remembering Chat we cannot
c annot be
ou r responsibility Co care for and procect
absolved of our
protect bur
children.
I would like to describe this using the words of Hesse:
TO CHILDKLN
(Excerpts)
You know nothing of time,
You know’ only that,
Somewhere in Che distance,
A war is being fought
And if my wish for you has any power,
So war will remain
For you, always, only a dim legend...
Nevertheless, you will be soldiers one day
And you shall know that whatever is n« hie
In your soul is always a warrior,
Even Chough he bears no weapons,
That every day a struggle and a destiny is waiting.
Do not forget this!
Hermann Hesse
13
■
i
j
!
An excellent example of empowerment i..
,
ihe Mahalya Samakya, a
pioject tor rural women, 1..
in
India,
designed
and implemented
by Dcpartmnnt of Education,
“
.with
NCO's.
This
programm has
been pattui;icd on a
—
very exciting NCO experiment in Rajasthan
conceived by Sharada' Jain. ho
Theprogramme
programme is ostensibly a
Li Luiacy programme for
Lor women but in fact concentrates' on
empowerment through Che formation of unions of
who then
'tCH- / literacy as a tool, among others, to women
brine^about
lasting. and ,- rmanent changes. This is one ray ofbring
hope in a
bleak scenario,
and .NGOy^work ^her^^d^o^t^rj^^o^k^t^r^00^
problems
not
I even
go
that
will lead co a fundamental change in the fabric of socletv
Here a silent revolution has begun.
bv nprC!ht|3 learn
and Pro,lloCe Chis example and those
set
are
n.and Corazone and all those other voices that
we wiMWhp b^Lnnin8.tia be heard. I hope in the next few days
Ptrh°eble:L“8
addJs? n^18^0!
but
, - P-pZZJ
°our
“r countries
—
But during this exercise let us i.__
not forget the children
the
group we are discussing here in their absence,
-L
Their voices
are not heard here in Hamburg and I would like"
day, when they will stand here instead of me to work for a
what they want.
’ and tell us
rho
C° c°nf:lude my presentation with the wor
words of
the Indian poet, Rabindranath Tagore. These words have
my source of strength and more that once the impetus to been
even when near despair. I would like to shareP these go on
J
1words
with you and hope you too will draw sustenance from them.
He
wrote:
Every time a child is born,
It brings with it the hope,
That God is not yet,
Disappointed with man.
And I am sure that this congress will try, at
least in a
small way, not to betray the hope in the
eyes
of our
children.
14
i
• H 8-13
-A QUARTERLY NEWSLE'I"! ER KROM HIE CONCERNED EOR WORKINC CHILDREN
GANDHISM-A LIVING MODEL OR A DEAD DREAM ?
"A/ Jiui/iHi Gandhi and the atom bumh were die. two orii;inuliiies of our century and one will def at the other before the
end. (However) the point to consider is whether Gandhiji and the atom bond) cancel each other so completely.
- Ri.nimanohar Lohia
Western culture and the Western way of living which have
been ingrained in us, because this culture has mack our
living expensive and artilicial, both lor men and women,
limancipation horn this culture would mean real Irecdom
lor us."
( I ?>() January 1948, Gandhiji was assassinated and with
h i i died the seaich for India's hue identity. One hopes
lli.. docs not mean that the atom bomb and violence will
•n supreme by the riul ol this decade. II this is so, il
11
be a sorry state of allairs lot Indra and the workl.
w
W : al will we tell our children? That we, the only country
to base achieved independence through a non-violent
nu vcmenl, have .swung full circle and arc. now using
vii cnce as a means to address all kinds ol issues? Today
vii lence has almost become a way ol lile in India and, as
suit, we have lost our sensitivity and moral librc.
There was nothing static about Gnndhiji. 'I he pursuit ol
truth cannot be static -- but an ever evolving, dyn umc
process, through which one all cm pls Io understand and
respond Io an ever changing envir »nm: H.
However, the lew signs of Gandl isi.i we see today lire
symbolised by the bales of khadi doth H reked up in dusty
Khadi Bhandars, covered with cobw:bs, portraits ol
Gandhiji fossilised on walls and, wors. of all, chcaj and
unscrupulous politicians sporting hand-spun clothes, If
he had lived today he would have wepl with shame and
humiliation. We have lost the spi.it, frozen the symbols
and killed the movement.
Aic we such blind imitators of everything ‘modern^
in. hiding those things inspired by the baser instincts ol
m. nkiml? Can we not protect our own culture and idcoloj, and leave a positive legacy to our children?
’I’.'u most striking symbols of Gandhiji's philosophy were
hi experiments with truth, lie did not have the answers
li« everything and never claimed that he did. His was an
h- ic.'il pursuit of truth and his quest showed him and
1 iia's millions the way to Irccdom bom colonialism. But
b. was not satislrcd.
But there arc rays ol light in this bh ak scenario. I he other
day I was talking to a group ol six kjds who had just
completed a course in Appropriate Construction Tech
nology and had joined together to set up their own con
struction cooperative. They had pul aside some money
and bought new clothes.
I r him "lliu rc.il hucdom (would) (umc only when we
li e ourselves of the domination ol Western education,
1
:•
I had not noticed this ami so they drew my attention Io H.
1 towever, when I made all the usual comments and complimcnh d them. Ilu y weir still mH satisfied. They wanted
me to look closely nt the imileiinl - it was pme handwoven collon and they were*proud ol it. I heir rationale
no. khadi,bmdrnn lhe'rc wasnoone spinning khadi in the
arCi”
Their choice was born out ol a rationale drawn up by the
children of Bhiinn Sangha (Association
of Working Childrcn)in the villages of
South Kaiiara. When asked on what
basis they, as consumers, would pur
chase a product, they came up with (he
following list: a relationship with the
producer (crallsperson), the saluty ol
the raw material in terms of personal
health, the environmental consequences
of using the product, the utility or com
fort of the product, its duiability and
only then the price.
land incliidinulhc cotton for his dothcs. He has designed
a water wheel Irom scuqi and has (wo buckets Io dinw
waler Goin his well. I le and his lamily do all I he work on
(lie lund uihI Hl home.
1 le always has lime lor people, lakes pleasure in cxplain’ i many Imd impossible
ing how he has managed io do what
pletely
contented.
words invariably
and is comr'"
1'*’? ^'
n,< nletL His
H,s final
1
■ : us what we
arc: "Mother earth can and will always give
need, we
we nst have- to learn how Io
need,
hci.. We
---- respect
respect l.~.
. - cannot act like leeches
and suck her blood; we should be like
hci Childnn and be nouiishcd on her
milk and, i > turn, learn to nourish her."
Cherkady was disillusioned with the \
Gandhism was being preached and
practiced. He feels the spirit ol Gandhi
is in being and doing and in setting real
lite examples. So he icsigncd bom ns
job with !he Khadi and Village In
dustries Board, settled down on this
small | ficce ol land and proceeded Io live
like Gaudhi.
Their list was so dillcicnt Irom the one
we urban adults came up with. I he
children seemed to have synthesised so
much in formulating their list, the most
important factor being their sense of
commitment to local trails, the environ
ment and all-round appropriateness.
This was Gandhism in practice in today’s
These arc glimmers ol hope that the
Mahatma would be proud ol. 1 hey con
stitute a vibrant evolution of his thought.
These are the examples we need Io mul
tiply until we can defeat the atom bomb
so (hat non-violence may succeed by the
lime oqr children inherit this country.
world.
• Another example can be found in Sri
Cherkady Ramchandra Rao, an old Gandluan. He is a
good friend of our organisation and a source of much
mspiialion to us and (he working cluldien^c work with.
We decided to visit him one day.
Stepping into his compoundI was like being transported
kit the- heat,
into another world. We L
. dust and all the
trappings of the modern woild outside and entered
sell-reliant oasis. This was (he epitome ol a need-based
economy. I le grows everything he needs on two acres of
I slept
And dreamt (hat life was all joy
I awoke
And saw that life was but s ’/ vn
/ seised
that service was joy.
Rabindranath Tagorc
Nandana Reddy
2
f
\ !
\ I
ACTIQNAID DISABILITY NEWS
that thousands of disabled people and
rehabilitation practitioners do their
own fresh, local thinking, in their own
cultures and languages, to develop
information-based rehabilitation and
to use information technology to
improve images, plans, services, and
ultimately the way each whole society
functions.
M.Miles,
4 Princethorpc Rd., Birmingham
B 29 5PX, U.K.
EVALUATION OF HEALTH PROGRAMMES/OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL
ORGANISATIONS
According to the World Health 4. What should be done with the
findings?
Organisation (WHO), "Evaluation is
EVALUATE?
a systematic way of learning from .
experience and using the lessons
arned to improve current activities The starting point is to question
.^.nd promote better planning by careful oneself, to see if any changes have
selection of alternatives for future occurred in the programmes and if
action. This involves an analysis of the intended goals have been achieved
different phases of a programme, its in practice. In all probability one
relevance, its formulation, its would feel thqj: errors and wastages
efficiency and effectiveness and its could have been avoided if only one
acceptance bv all parties involved'' knew how to evaluate the programme
at its inception. Evaluation not only
' (1).
highlights successes but also turns
Non-governmental organisations failures into learning experiences.
(NGOs) have been a 'vital part of Many disability intervention camps
health care development in India. distribute appliances without follow
Historically, starting with the up. The appliances are often not put
missionary hospitals which initiated to use by beneficiaries. If a systematic
health care in the remote areas to the follow up evaluation is done, it often
programmes of care in mental shows that there is no one in the
disorders, disability, drug abuse, locality to repair an appliance nor
women's health, HIV / AIDS, etc., it docs the beneficiary have information
the NGOs who have often opened on where such facilities exist.
^.ew paths for the development of
appropriate alternatives. The example Usually maternal mortality is
of the JAMKHED experience of the attributed to lack of maternal and
1970s which led to the community child health care, lack of transport,
poverty, local traditional practices in
health volunteer (CHV) scheme at the
an
area and low levels of literacy. A
national level is probably the most
study
of maternal mortality rate
striking (2). However, when it comes
(MMR)
in Ananthapur district of
to the subject of evaluation of their
Andhra
Pradesh by Bhatia showed
programmes, many NGOs tend to
that
MMR
in rural areas was 3.5 times
react with either resistance or many
more
than
in urban areas. In fact, 41%
justifications regarding their inability
of maternal deaths were considered
to undertake such an exercise.
definitely preventable. The MMR was
This paper addresses the subject of higher in elderly women and in the
evaluation touching specifically on p00r]y developed villages as
four aspects :
compared to the better developed
villages. MN1R was also found to be
1. Why evaluate?
twice as high among illiterate women
2. What to evaluate? •
as compared with literate women. The
availability of transport was an
3. How to evaluate?
16 Vol. 4 H No. 1 S 1993
important factor in averting maternal
deaths. This evaluation contributed to
the development of better action for
prevention of maternal mortality in
the areas studied (3).
In an evaluation of the District
Rehabilitation Centre Scheme of the
Government of India, it was found
that the programme was executed
without
adequate
linkages to the other
i
_____ _____________
4
health systems. It was also reported
that there was need to
U have
---- further
This
example
integration (4,5).
highlights that limited resources are
best used by integrating and
a.— coordinating services.
In a study by UNICEF of community
based
rehabilitation
(CBR)
programmes in Lahore and Jhclum it
was observed that there was need to
involve local health infrastructure in
the CBR work. It was also found that
CBR workers should focus on the
disabled persons and their families in
their training
the community, that t-._
_
should be longer than what it was.
that they should maintain better
records of activities and
a..- that
— there
should be more developmentt of
indigenous aids
i----- for training of
disabled persons (6).
In another study of CBR in SnLanka,
it was found that even though the
programme was well structured with
allowance for the team to develop, it
was not adequately sensitive to the
needs of the child within the home. In
this programme the school curriculum
tended to influence 2 the type of
activities undertaken with the child
on a home visit by the CBR worker,
rather than the needs of the child in
;
'
i
.
actionaid disability new *
SOME EXAMPLES OE WHAT TO EVALUATE
omponents
•viewed
Immunisation
programmes
Probable
method
Community bascxi rehabilitation
Probable
method
ealth status
- Incidence of six killer
diseases
- Prevalence of six killer
diseases
- Available facilities/
infrastructure for storing
vaccines, conducting
immunisation sessions,
conducting awareness w
programmes
- Periodic
vaccine preventable
disease surveys
- Incidence of various disabilities
- Prevalence of various disasbilities
- Informal
enquiries
witn key
infonnants,
knowledge,
attitude practice
studies
- Available facilities/in fra structure
- for identification, preliminary needs
assessment, actual uebiled assessment
medical/surgical intervention, physio
therapy, occupational therapy,
vocational training, job placement etc.
- Periodic
identifi
cation
surveys
- Informal
enquiries
witn key
informants
- No. of pregnant mothers and
under I//under 5 children,
eligible vs. covered,
no. utilising services
- No. of villages/slums/tribes
covered by the programme
• Coverage
evaluation
surveys
- No. of beneficiaries of various age
groups aru^/Alifferent disabilities
covered/utilising the services
- I lealth worker (Female)
Health worker (Male), staff
from the NGO, Traditional
birth attendant, Anganwadi
worker, formal and informal
leaders of the community
- Informal
enquiries
witn key
informants
id
,‘eds of the
immunity
overage and
tibsation of
resent services
esources
taff selection,
ecruitment,
raining,
ttitudes and
divides of the
taff
- Availability of transport to
the village/slum/tribe,
vaccines, vaccine carrier,
facilities for preparing ice
packs, syringe needles and
maintenance of sterilisation,
physical space for conducting
sessions, etc.________ _____
- Procedure of staff selection
recruitment, induction,
inservice training
• Training content and
method
• Whether job description/
task description specified
are adequate
-tandards
>racdce
mpact, effective
ness and output
-Oil
•tkesveness
- What is the code of
practice e.g. Antenatal check
up indudes detailed history/
Tetanus Toxoid 2 doses/
Haemoglobin % estimation/
distribution of Iron and folic
acid/advice regarding family
welfare/nutrition/dothing and
features of complications of
pregnancy_____ ______ ___
- Reduction of morbidity and
morblity due to six killer
diseases
- Average cost of fully
immunising a child
• Costing of services
^7 Vol. 4 □ No. 1 13 1993
- No. of villages/slums/tribes
covered by the programme
- CBR worker, ENT specialist,
orthopaedic surgeon, ophthalmologist,
special educator, physiotherapist,
speech therapist, occupational therapist,
orthotist, etc
- Coverage
evaluation
surveys
- Review of
records for
follow-up,
utilisation
drop out etc.
- Infonnants
and home
visits
- Calipers/hearing a id/s pec b des//
- Interaction
white cane, etc, transport
with personnel
facilities etc
of the NGO,
community members,
stock inventory
- Review of
- Procedure of staff selelction,
records,
recruitment, induction, inservice
discussion with
training
management
, ,
- Review of records,- Training, content and method
interaction with
trainees
- Direct observation - Whether the job description/task
of trainees'
description are adequately defined
performance
and being performed
- Judgement by
expert group
- What is the code of practice?
eg. a child with visual disability,
debi led assessment, surgery,
mobility training, braille,
vocational training and job
placement
- No. of disabled persons who are
-Coverage,
independent
evaluation survey
-----r----- - with respect toj
and vaccine prevenbble activities of daily living and
income generation
____ _________
disease surveys
Average
cost
of
detailed
assessment
- Cost accounting
for different disabilities
and
- Average cost of Med.Surg.
cost analysis
intervennon
- Cost of physiolherapy/occupational
therapy/vocational training for
individual disabled persons
- Costing of sendees
- Review of
records,
discussion
with manaeement
- Review of
records, intera
ction with
management
_ - Direct obscrvation of
trainees'
performance
- Judgement by
expert group
- Coverage
evaluation
surveys
- Cost
accounting
and cost
analysis
ACTIONAID DISABILITY NEWS
TEPS IN EVALUATION
IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM
SPECIFY THE TARGET POPULATION
DEEINE THE OBJECTIVES
BASELINE DATA COLLECTION
INTERVENTIONS
REPEAT MEASURES
ANALYSIS OF DATA
OUTCOMES AND ACTION PLANS
HAT SHOULD BE DONE WITH
IE FINDINGS?
- at the micro level and at the macro
level. The micro level issues refer t&k
the individuals who are the focus of
the programme. The macro level issues
relate to those aspects of
administration, economic condition,
local situation, community functioning
and government policies which
positively or negatively influence the
programme's outcome. It is very
important to focus evaluation on the
core activity of the programme. It is
not possible to evaluate all aspects of
the programme aUany one point of
time. Hence evaluation should be
carried out in phases, depending on
the typo of activity that is going on in
the programme at different stages of
implementa tion.
evaluation is another area of
controversy as it is not possible to
carry
out evaluatior without
earmarking a specified t me for it.
From the past experie ices it is
suggested that a "once a week" work
review mechanism should be built
into a programme. This-allows for the
evaluation to progress in phases and
on a continuous basis, avoiding a
situation of accumulation of work at
the end of a project with very little
time left to evaluate it.
Some NCOs fear that negative
e guiding principles from WHO
findings could lead to a setback in
th respect to health programme
their programme. How ever, the
iluation are also relevant to other
programmes
are usually result
jgrammes (1). In order to draw
oriented
and
if
they
are not generating
iclusions, one needs to summarise
results
the
negative
findings can be a
■ objectives, approaches, methods
positive
contribution,
allowing fo.'
.1
ills of the programme. In case
newer
strategies
to
be
developed.
a service programme the
Hence
one
should
consider
them not
itionship between its different
as
negative,
but
as
observations
which
nponents should be evaluated, e.g.,
lead
to
positive
action.
functions of the programme, the
tegies adopted to perform these
Many donor agencies expect
ctions and their relationship with
evaluations that cater to their own
results. The summary' leads to
needs, which can be quite demanding
elusions regarding the relevance
on the NCOs if they do not already
he policy to the programmes, the
have an in-built mechanism for
nition of the problem, 'adequacy
evaluation. The best way to avoid the
□rogramme formulation and the However, in all programmes it should stress is to have an in-built mechanism
gress that is being made, the be possible to evaluate the needs of of evaluation right from the inception
Jency in implementation, the the target group, existing attitudes of the programme.
etivencss and its overall impact.
and practices in the community, the
training programmes for staff, and As noted in the beginning, the goal of
en preparing the summary one
impact at the family and community evaluation is a systematic way of
ild make sure that the comments
level. In some specific programmes, learning from experience and using
1 those involved in the evaluation
there would be other indicators like the lessons learned to improve current
-C ire taken into account and
infant mortality rate, maternal activities and promote better planning
fuily discussed with
the
mortality rate, nutritional status, by careful selection of alternatives for
viduals responsible for the
immunisation status, cure, control etc., future action. This involves an analysis
jramme. After this a better plan
of different phases of a programme,
that need to be evaluated.
ction should be formulated, such
its relevance, formulation, efficiency,
defining problems, functions and One of the major issues confronting effectiveness and above all, its
ctures that are not clearly NCOs is whether the emphasis is to acceptance by all parties involved.
ented
and
redesigning be given on action or evaluation. This
rammes inadequately formulated, option is often presented as an 'either/ Dr. R Srinivasa Murthy
would help in deciding whether or' situation, though it is not Professor and Head
'Ould continue, be modified or necessarily so if adequate planning is Dept, of Psychiatry, NIMHANS,
inated. Lastly it is necessary for done. Evaluation can become part of Bangalore -560029
ideations of the objectives, targets, the programme. In addition it is
Dr. S Pruthvish
wman and financial assessment important to remember that all
Programme Advisor. Disability
sources to be deployed and the programnies work towards a specified
required for the intended change. goal and evaluation essentia I ly Division, ACTION AID India
examines whether the goal has been Dr. Maya Thomas
■CLUSIOX
achieved and to what extent.
Field Director, Disability Division,
’ation has to occur at two levels The issue of committing time for ACTIONAID India
'ol.4 0 No. 1 H 1993
■ i
I
ACTIONAID DISABILITY NEWS
the home influencing his activities at
school (7). This example suggests that
professional perceptions sometimes
disregard the real needs of the
beneficiary.
WHAT TO EVALUATE?
It is of utmost importance to follow a
systematic procedure in evaluation of
programmes. The following sections
suggest guidelines for accurate
evaluation at each stage, though it
may not be always possible or
necessary to obtain the information.
One of the first points to be considered
for evaluation is the policy/objectives
of the programme being evaluated.
Two levels of objectives are
distinguished. The first one is the
general objective (goals, aims) which
may or may not always be measurable
and the second one is the specific or
component objective. The objectives
should be reviewed to determine
whether the goals set out by the
project are under its control and to
see what the programme has achieved
against the objectives.
To evaluate a disability programme
on the basis of "need" is a simple and
obvious idea. But one should
distinguish between the need for a
service from the demand for service
and from the utilisation of services.
The data to be studied must include
magnitude and severity of different
disabilities in different age groups,
j available services for assessment,
medical and surgical rehabilitation,
job placement, vocational training
and education. Other aspects to be
included are the extent of other
existing health care services and the
participation of the community in
programmes. Demographic data,
fertility, morbidity, mortality data and
disability free life expectancy also need
to be included.
Other areas which may need to be
evaluated include resources (men,
material,
money),
level
of
collaboration with other agencies,
staff selection, recruitment and
training, standards of practice such as
quality of care, impact, effectiveness,
output and costs (8).
18 Vol. 4 ES No. 1 13 1993
Apart from deciding on what to
evaluate one needs to take into
account methods of data collection,
data analysis, presentation of results
and recommendations. Voluntary
organisations
often
begin
implementation of programmes
without detailed planning. Often,
rehabilitation programn'r?
evaluation data to be collected from
individuals as against other health
programmes where such data are
collected from the community^
implementors and it has to bu
participatory.
The theoretical concept of evaluation
is relatively simple but the practical
application can be difficult. Most often
these difficulties have been used as
excuses for not making a start. Once
pronrammp is started, the
experience, data and techniques grow
very rapidly. It is important to begin
evaluation at least in some activities
of a programme rather than never tc
have started at all.
Methods of evaluation vary from the
In most cases evaluation is not
complex
to the simple. There arc
possible without baseline data which
quite often are not available. However' quantifiable tests that are administered
by skilled professionals, which can be
this should not be a discouraging
undertaken by staff with suitable
factor and one may have to create
’ ’ ’1
vill
such a database for future evaluation. _ training. Other methods whic
A few examples of what to evaluate be of help are informal cnq._..ies
through key informants, focussed
CBR
in
immunisation
and
interviews
with the community, direct
programmes are given below.
observation and recording and
informal surveys like the Rapid
HOW TO EVALUATE?
Assessment procedures adopted by
Evaluation should be a continuous
UNICEF (8). These procedures may
process aimed mainly at correcting
not be possible for all NGOs to
and improving action in order to
undertake nor is it necessary always.
render activities more relevant, more
NGOs must go beyond the subjective
efficient and more effective. Every
element to objective assessments of
person in the programme should be
the work done. For such assessments
made aware of the importance and
it is necessary to concentrate on
utility of recording the data which
measurable results rather than
facilitates the development of a good
generalities. However, many aspects
information system. There is need to
in programme planning are not always
develop a system and culture where
measurable. Most often statistics
the people are not apprehensive about
cannot replace judgement, no' "an
evaluation. In fact, the responsibility
judgement replace statistics.
for evaluation should be with the
Methods
Direct observation
recording
Key informant
enquiries
Focussed interviews
with community
Informal surveys/
renews
Formal surveys
Examples
Observing the steps in the organisation of the immunisation
sessions, maternal/ child health clinics in the outreach areas
with predesigned, instruments.
Approaching a group of key informants who are likely to
provide reliable information in every village / slum and collecting
the information o i services provided and programme
implemented using a predesigned instrument.
Collecting information from a group of beneficiaries, formal or
non-formal leaders about the need, services provided, utilisation,
staff etc.
A mixture of descriptive and analytical work, not necessarily
using statistical techniques that reviews the programme from its
inception often using previous records and an observational
view of the programmed).
Coverage evaluation surveys - e.g. surveys of immunisation,
maternal / child health services are undertaken periodically by
Government of India and UNICEF in all the districts in India.
DRjVFT paper
n
This draft paper is prepared by the Centre for Development Studies, Swansea, UK, with
a commission from the ODA. It does not nccesnrily reflect the views or policy of the ODA.
SECOND DRAFT
ANNEX TO TECHNICAL NOTE ON STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION
MEASURING AND ASSESSING PARTICIPATION
Summary of Key Points
Tills annex discusses the identification and use of indicators for measuring and assessing
participation in development projects. Checklists of quantitative and qualitative incacators are
provided and their application in a limited number of examples is discussed in relation to the
project framework.
For project frameworks (PFs), quantitative indicators which are also proxies for qualitative
outcomes may be appropriate in some cases. The significance and meaning of these proxies
can be elaborated in the main text of a project document
However, ideal indicators combine quantity’, quality and time reference. Time can also be
expressed in terms of milestone sequences.
Qualitative indicators, or dimensions of indicators, are descriptive statements about the
outcomes of participation - ie. descriptions of attributes or characteristics which are not, in
themselves necessarily quantifiable. Such indicators remain problematic, partly because of the
interpretative leeway which is associated with their use. However, qualitative statements point
project staff to important aspects of the process of participation which numbers alone cannot
capture. Qualitative statements have been used in project frameworks, and there is room for
their further use.
In most process projects there will be some participation indicators which can be identified
prior to project implementation in relation to objectives (eg. number of institutions / groups
to be formed). However, initial PFs can specify that some indicators will be defined by
participants as a pan and result of their involvement.
Extending the involvement of intended project beneficiaries in M & E is complementary'
(though not a substitute) to more conventional top-down systems. It facilitates the
incorporation of indigenous evaluative criteria and can also be a cost-effective way of
monitoring die more qualitative aspects of participation. Methods developed by the FAO
People’s Participation Programme are presented as an example of how participatory M & E
can work.
A project framework is designed to identify, and thereby create incentives for the attainment
of predetermined goals - it has inherent ’blueprint’ tendencies. It is necessary to counter these
tendencies with close attention to participation in initial project planning, learning from a
project’s progress, and allowing a participatory identification of achievement indicators.
Introduction
1
This annex discusses the identification and use of performance indicators for the
monitoring and evaluation (M & E) of participation in development projects.
1.1
1.2
Project and academic literature shows chat, although donor agencies and development
NGOs stress the importance of participation, so far they have had only limited success in
translating tliis priority into operational M & E indicators.
General principles of indicators, their use, checklists and examples, are outlined in
1.3
relation to the project framework (PH).
1.4
Because work in this field is relatively new this annex should be regularly reviewed
in the light of further experience. Appropriate indicators are context specific, but the examples
given here are intended to provide a general guide to the kinds of indicators which might be
considered.
The Project Framework and Participatory Projects
2
2.1
Participatory projects are often, by definition, process projects. In all such projects a
premium is placed on refining the project framework as outputs and immediate objectives
(and also performance indicators) are redrawn in the light of experience. Process projects are
intended to minimise directive (top-down) planning and encourage responsivej (two-way)
....... '
styles. The Team-Up approach to using project frameworks is part of ODA’s move
i---------towards
greater responsiveness in the form of stakeholder planning.
2.2
Particularly in relation to participation indicators, planners need to be aware5 of the
'blueprint’ tendencies of project frameworks (PFs). Initial planning is often
cr‘^ done by
l')' higher
level stakeholders and existing organisations. In many cases ’project groups’, which facilitate
the involvement of intended beneficiaries, are formed after the initial PF has been drawn up.
This makes it difficult for indicators of participation to be identified and agreed upon by the
intended beneficiaries prior to project initiation. While this annex provides examples of
indicators which should be useful at project identification and appraisal, refinement. or
substitution of individual indicators will often be appropriate as the project progresses and
;
lower level participants become increasingly mvolved.
However administrators can promote the process nature of participatory p'ojects, and
2.3
overcome the blueprint tendencies of PFs, by following (a) the guidance on the participation
matrix in secuon 4 of die Technical Note; and (b) laying out milestone indicators in the
outputs row of the PF, which provide an outline of the necessary steps for facilitating
facilitating
participation in a project (see the Social Development Handbook, section 3).
3
Indicators - General Principles
’ i is included in the hierarchy of objectives there is a
At whichever level participation
3.1
identify indicators of
(including intended beneliciaries)
need for project st:akcholders
participation.
2
,,
,
a„y md.eato.s used in X“mX—-
otive to use. PFs should also use a
indeed, the best
*9
“
bwh qutmulauvo and
“errnTby 'a ™e pX ™s
lk'C“S“
'
the checklists show (see
can be used in PFs in
Xh
“77 ZZ
“ Sml Zd X*
plXZVcesTdepeZonZpo^mtP pan.c^ts to
, are more difficult io specify and
a5
.. .......... ..
(or dmmnsmrrs) ol^FfcW?
Sated with dam use. ym.Msl™
Z. puTtQ* because <>l d.e -g.’
d,c process and outcomes ot
which are not, in
opacities, ability to draw up
and sustainability).
ZeX^sohdao^..
is often influenced
36
The appropriateness of such ^ah^“^”e"“ZZltas'I’participation in defining
I, cultural nonns. svhtch
?°"X»ve indicators have been used' .in recent
s’ch qualitative ^‘“Xly NoOs”»dZre is room for their further use.
3 7 The
drmensmu of intators i,
ZZZoZnee mdieatots for PF outputs. |
However it is not always afpropHam to "XZ
Xre^ time
3.8
, . no . o'ps ?onn=d before project month
in»imu»n budding is earned out
tormaticn>.
or wj-.
lc,„s „
XXX projeet staffi
loea. respond
to
l0 a set umetable the projec s abany
when hsung indicators "" PF'
‘’as
“sequence
SS^lOnfindlyrelalldistopstn
reduced. However. affiCar. -also bo
- time’limits
on each step.
XemZXXii’notneeessanly Placing-
..
Note that all indicators require intc.J.et
'XmnSSSS
3.9
‘'“2S t i i miy on spociryrnp tenable
J^Z’q7Xm“.wZh|ity^
purely <4u;:
'“'Z itueai. economic and slo.alcoo.ea>because
sumptions m the project documentation, uenvm.
3
Il 'lox 1:
Participation Indicators in Slum Improvement Projects Quantitative Proxies for Qualitative Outcomes
Wider Objectives
Indicators
Meeting basic needs and improving
health and education standards of tlie
urban poor
11n rncd i a te O bj ec ti ves
I
Sustained improvements in infrastructure
and service provision through community
development, participation arid
management
* Frequency of neighbourhood coipmittee
meetings
* Social composition of attendance at
meetings
* Number of installations in worlring
order
L
L
I
Outputs
Numbers of:
* Neighbourhood committees
* Maintenance agreements
*
Pre-primary school teachers paid) for by
community
* Communally constructed buildings
Health centres
Schools
Water supply installations
Neighbourhood committees
Community contributions
Comments
The indicators used are all quantitative indicators of the project’s outcomes
(theoretically) resulting from participation by slum residents - they are therefore proxy
indicators of qualitative processes and achievements. For example, attendance at
meetings over time, by various social groups, indicates the level of commitmei l to the.
| project by the intended beneficiaries; die number of installations in working order
ji indicates the quality of community maintenance activity. This example illustrates that
i even when an indicator is quantified it does not (necessarily) disqualify it from being
I a qualitative indicator.
j
|
■
4
■
4
Identifying Stakeholder Indicators
^.1
A.s noted above, it is not always possible to identify all appropriate indicators of
participation prior to project implementation. Some stakeholders, including government line
departnunts, loial tnd-users and bcnchciaries, may introduce their own indicators as the
project progresses. b\ut of any participatory project should be the negotiation of objectives
and performance indicators by different sections of the ’target population’ such as women,
social groups (etc), at the various stages of die project’s cycle. There may be different
priorities given to different indicators by different stakeholders, and it is therefore important
that, as far as possible, the key indicators included in refined PFs represent a selection from
these different perspectives.
4.2
The Evaluation Department has been supporting work (eg. by AciionAid) which is
investigating the use of stakeholders’ indicators of project performance and impact in general.
Such indicators have sometimes been labelled "indigenous" or "subjective" - both of which
are misnomers,since local people’s indicators can be as objective and as widely applicable as
project staff indicators.
4.3
The participatory identification of indicators is fully compatible with milestoi
planning and implementation approaches used in process projects. Initial PFs in past ODA
projects have left room for such indicators (see Box 2).
4.4
It should be noted dial such statements about a delayed identification of indicators, as
in Box 2, should be referred to in column 3 of the PF (How Indicators Will Be Measured and
Assessed) by specifying the wav in which they will be identified. For example, by stating the
format of consultations and composition of group meetings required to indicate that
indigenous objectives and outputs will be decided appropriately (by men and women, different
user groups, etc.).
4.5
Several multilateral, bilateral and non-governmental development agencies have
experimented in recent years with participatory monitoring and evaluation systems in order
to identify appropriate stakeholder indicators - and also to facilitate the participatory process
itself (eg. die FAO’s People Participatory Programme; Save the Children UK). Such systems
may be appropriate, in combination with conve^donal M & E procedures, and can be justified
in relation to four criteria:
(a) different cultural contexts %nd backgrounds of project participants or stakeholders
(the process of participation is perceived tn different ways by diflerent participants);
(b) how high a priority is accorded to participation as an end in itself;
(c) how necessary' participation is for the success of the project overall; and
(d) the low opportunity' costs incurred by such data collection methods.
( Jox 2:
Initial PF Allowing Stakeholders’ Identification of Indicators
(Adapted from Faislabad Area Upgrading Project, Pakistan)
. - -
I
L_
Immediate Objectives
Indicators
(1) To develop sustainable capacity of
local communities to participate in
design....and management of
infrastructure improvements....
Participatory systems continue to work
beyond life of die project:
* infrastructure and services qualitatively
maintained
* other indicators as identified by
community groups
(2) To improve status and meet needs of
women...
* women participate more fully in
identification, planning and management
of activities in successive years; area
specific targets for women’s activities to
be agreed between P1U and community
groups in phased manner by project
month 10, and al start of each successive
year.
I Initial Participation Milestones
J Outputs_________
| (1) Community groups established
(2) Community level activities
implemented from the following menu:
* infrastructure
* income generation
* primary health care
* education
i
_ one group
-------) established in each
At •least
six months) and leaders
j areal (after
(
tiallied by project month 6
Groups make proposals for local
activities relevant to majority of
community members by project month X
Annual work plans and targets agreed
between PIU and community groups by
project mondi 10
i * other indicators as identified by
I commo ’
groups
I
b
—----------- --
J
Maintenance agreements formalised
,
between PIU and community groups by
|
oroiect month 12
_______ J
! (3) Maintenance of improved services
I
6
_____________
~~~ ’
c:
How Indicators Can Be Measured and Assessed
5.1
Indicators have to be cost effective to use, and verifiable. This means that when an
indicator is incorporated into a PF (in column 2), the means of measuring, and assessing, that
mdicaioi must hr speeiiied in practical terms (in column 3). Decisions on appropriate
indicators should take into account the range of methods available (and the staff, budget and
time implications of these methods).
5.2
M &. E systems utilise a range of methods appropriate for collecting qualitative as well
as quantitative information. Rural appraisal and process documentation are most likely to
capture qualitative results, but are the most intensive, in-depth methods (requiring trained
personnel). Some quantifiable information collected on standard monitoring forms or through
surveys may act as proxies for qualitative performance (as noted above). M & E methods
appropriate for measuring and assessing participation include:
- regular project staff and consultants’ reports (eg. in mid-term reviews);
-- process documentation (eg. the results of farmer participation in crop trials; uf
regular records of groups’ planning and decision-making meetings);
— baseline and follow-up surveys (eg. using with/without, before/after comparison
groups);
- rapid rural appraisals (RRA), participatory rural appraisals (PRA) undertaken by
project staff or external evaluators over time;
— participatory self-evaluation (PSE) systems.
5.3
Extending the involvement of project clientele in M & E through participatory self
evaluation systems is complementary to (though not a substitutc for) more conventional topdown systems. Participatory M & E facilitates the incorporation ut local evaluative criteria
and can also be a cost-effective way of monitoring the more qualitative aspects °f
participation. NGOs such as the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme, Save the Children J
Oxfam arc advocating the increasing use of participatory M & E, drawing on the experience
of the FAO’s People’s Participation Programme (see Box 3). Such innovations are
complemi'ntary to recent attempts to improve' on participaloty methods of appraisal and needs
assessment (PRA) and participatory ("micro-") planning .procedures.
il Box 3:
Participatory Self Evaluation: The FAO’s People’s Participation
Progranunc
The FAO’s PPP emphasises participation as both a means and an end in itself.
Participatory self-evaluation (PSE) is seen as contributing to this goal. PSE is
designed to provide project beneficiaries with their own methods for understanding
and strengthening their ability to manage and sustain collective action. While, as in
any project, there is a need for top-down monitoring and evaluation, PSE provides
project stalk and planners with access to people’s perceptions of the quality of
participation achieved.
In PSE, project groups and staff agree on objectives and qualitative indicators of
participation. Each group’s self-evaluation session involves discussion about whether
these criteria are being wholly, mostly, or partly achieved, or not achieved at all. For
example, one of the participation indicators used in the PPP included:
Collective participation in group meetings':
(3)
All members participate actively in meetings, all feel free to speak up
and play an active rule;
(2)
Most members participate actively in meetings, most feel free to speak
up and play an active role;
(1)
Some members participate actively in meetings, some feel free to speak
up and play an active role;
(0)
Few members participate actively in meetings, few feel free to speak up
and play an active role.
The four alternative rankings for each indicator thus provide judgements by those
mostly closely affected by the project. Scoring on various criteria enables groups to
agree on where there are problems, where decisions need to be taken to alter present
working practices, and to assist in the identification of new aims and criteria.
Scores for different groups on speciSc issues can be recorded in summary form by
project staff without creating much work additional to conventional field reports ai^d
documentation procedures. Comparison between group scores on different indicators,
and
in different project locations, will show which groups are strong, which are weak, a*,
why. Comparison over time will indicate progress (or its absence) in various
qualitative terms. Overall, the process is a self-educating tool for both individual
I members, groups, and project staff.
8
6
Checklists
- i
I’his section present two checklists of qualitative and quantitative dimensions of
participation indicators. Note that it is through the combination of such examples that
composite indicators, with quantitative, qualitative and time dimensions can
drawn up.
Combining dimensions to produce composite Indicators for project frameworks is discussed
in the Examples section below.
6.2
Most participatory projects require the creation of new organisations and community
based institutions in order to facilitate beneficiary involvement. ODA assisted projects work
with a range of such local institutions (see Box 4). When assessing such bodies, many of the
quantitative dimensions of indicators are common. Combining them can provide an index of
the progress of participation and^socio-institutional maturity. This is illustrated below in Box
5. When drawing up indicators for use in the project framework, the following dimensions
of, and questions about, participation should be considered:
Box 4: Examples of local institutional development for participation
Locally elected councils; NGO village-based institutions; fanners’ clubs, committees,
assessment groups, irrigation user groups and associations, home-gardening groups;
catchment conservation committees; forest user groups, forest protection committees;
producer and/or marketing co-operatives; village (or neighbourhood) water
committees; neighbourhood health committees and groups; village education
committees, school parent-teacher associations.
■ Checklist A: Quantifiable Dimensions of Indicators
Who is participating?
Most indicators should specify the soci^ composition of participants - in particular
(a) women and men,
(b) people from different ethnic groups,
(c) members of different castes, and
(d) different economic classes.
These quantifiable dimensions of participation help monitor whether the project is reaching
the intended beneficiaries, whether certain social categories are being excluded or
marginalised; and when combined with other dimensions of participation will give the
indicator more precision and greater relevance.
a
How imuiy people are partit ip:P’.
L j^ct coverage or inclusion of participants can be monitored through the
(a) numbers of groups or local institutions established (see Box 4 for examples);
(b) their membership;
(c) die rate of membership growth or rate of drop-ouL
In conjunction with milestone planning, these quantifiable indicators of coverage should be
related to locations and the phases of project implementation.
Are local project institutions developing satisfactorily?
Quantifiable indicators of organisational development include
(a) the frequency of group meetings, and
(b) numbers attending at meetings.
(c) die number of linkages between project groups (to form associations or federations
in order to spread project activities laterally).
Examples of (c) include, numbers of groups forming clusters, number of farmers crop
assessment groups visiting each other, etc.
Project input take-up ratu; - are people actively engaged in the project?
These indicate whether prciect inputs are being accessed by participants, and are therefore a
proxy indication of whether participants are actively engaged in the project. Examples of such
take-up rates in different types of projects include
(a) loans,
(b) seeds & agro-chemicals,
(c) school enrolment,
(d) clinic visits,
(e) contraceptive and medicinemase.
What is tlie level of participation in key activities?
There may be key activities in the project, crucial to its success, which should be monitored
as indications of whether intended beneficiaries are participating. For example,
(a) numbers attending at project workshops,
(b) numbers participating Ln training events, or
(c) the number of farmers participating in crop assessment trials.
10
Are participants mobilising their own resources and
contributing to the project
nateri ally?
Parucipmts coninbuu'ons are a key
key quantifiable
quantifiable indication
indication that
people are committed to the
that people
project. Such contnbuuona may be in cosh or kind, and therefore include such items « '
(a) labour,
(b) construction materials,
(c) tools,
(d) local seed varieties, as well as
(r) money.
Are installations kept in J’jhxJ running order by participants?
In all ^projects where a maintenance responsibility is being accorded to local
groups
quantifiable indicators include
(a) the number of maintenance agreements between the PIU and local groups, and
(b) the number of installations in working order.
Example of (b) include the number of village school or health
health shelters
shelters beina
being maintained
maintained
water supply points operating effectively, trial plots being cultivated, catchment embankments
or forest plantations being protected and managed.
Checklist B: Qualitative Dimensions of Indicators
As noted in section 3 above, qualitative dimensions of indicators are descriptive statements
about attributes and characteristics which are not, in themselves, quantifiable. Such statements
are important because they draw attention tn aspects of participation which numbers alone
cannot capture. However, such statements are rarely context free, and their appropriateness
in a specific project should be. carefully considered. The folio-./ ig questions may act as a
checklist when drawing up qualitative statements for project framework indicators.
How arc groups expected to achieve stability?
Qualitative indications of stability may include
(a) emergence of leadership,
(b) the effective allocation of special roles and functions amongst group m.1
(c) the formation of sub-groups,
(d) the existence oi Jctnocratic selection procedures,
(e) die rotation of ' ■ > 1 -ship roles over time,
(fl evidence of coni,at management and resolution within die group
' ers,
What capabilities are participating groups being encouraged to develop?
. .iCse capabilities may include
(a) decision-making,
(b) managerial roles,
(c) the ability to analyse and identify local needs and opportunities,
(d) the realistic prioritisation of opportunities
(e) the ability to draw up micro-plans and annual workplans,
(f) the ability to self monitor their own activities and progress,
(g) self-promotional capabilities enabling linkage with other institutions or project
groups,
(h) the ability to disseminate trail results, new technology and practices through inter
group contacts.
What behaviourial characteristics are groups and participants expected to display?
These behaviourial charadi-iisiics may include
(a) high level of involvement of all group members in meetings and discussions,
(b) evidence of com./! :'ial decision-making,
(c) speed of arriving at decisions,
(d) facilitating activities to aid project staff in the performance of their duties,
(e) increasing evidence of collective identity and solidarity, such as mutual support
and cooperation in terming, maintenance, or non-project activities.
What are die expected qualities of participant’ contributions?
Qualitative criteria of participants contributions may include
(b) effective use of indigenous technical knowledge in relevant activities such as onfarm trials, catchment conservation or forest area husbandry,
(c) provision of high, quality mattrials for commcmally constructed buildings.
Are groups achieving increased self-reliance and control?
Qualitative indications of self-reliance and control (or "empowerment") may include
(a) evidence of reduced reliance on project staff,
(b) evidence of reduced reliance on project inputs while sustaining level of activities,
(c) effectiveness of participants’ modifications to inputs of project and staff guidance
to suit local conditions,
f practices amongst project groups according to local needs
<d) increasing divci .<
and conditions,
managerial and technical competence in maintaining
(e) increasing lc\ J
12
iii'jallalion.s,
ffpwide.ncc of jj.ii Iicip.ints iic;-oli;iting with oilier oigiinisations lor accessing resources
without recourse to mediation by project stall,
(g) independent collective actions taken by group to further overall objectives of tlie
project,
(h) use of collective bargaining to withstand pressures which are external to the group,
(i) reduced reliance on traditional economic and political intermediaries and
local elites such as landlords, moneylenders and politicians.
tj) continued group activities alter project withdrawal.
13
■
■
Ex a in j) les of ( •unhiiiing Quality, Quantity and Time for Project Framework
J ndicators
7
Combining quantity, quality and time (or sequence) dimensions listed in the checklists
7.1
produce
a wide vari-’ty of participation indicators for both output and objective levels of
can
the PE. The. •.ection piovides .some lilustianve examples ol participation in the sectors of rural
water .sujiply, primary education, farming research and development, and forest management.
7.2
/\ possible way of compressing performance indicators of participation so as to present
them in a succinct manner in the PF is to construct an index of participation or socioinstitutional maturity - an index which is elaborated in the PF’s suppe-rmg documentation.
Drawing on experimental work by the Pakistan Aga Khan Rural Support Programme and the
Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, an example is included in Box 5 below.
Box 5: An Index of Participation or Socio-Institutional Maturity
I
NG(J programmes promoting village based multi-purpose groups have placed
emphasis on the quantitative and qualitative nature of participation. In the case of
multi-purpose groups, participation underlies their ability to make locally appropriate
needs assessment, decide on micro-plans and workplans, carry out functional roles (e
main tain in p installations) and generally to enhance the status and self-reliance of
group members. Indexes of socio-institutional maturity for such groups may include:
(a) Number of groups formed
(b) Number and low drop out of members
(c) Frequency of, and attendance at meetings
(d) Number of gioups forming cluster links with others
members at leadership and skills training workshops
fe) Attendance «>f group
g
i
.
'1_____ r»T-rM,r-i n r't ,t rt r i CJ
(!) Members labour and material
contributions to group activities
(g) Democratic changes in leadership over time (elections)
(h) Consensual production of micro-plan and implementation workplans
(i) Evidence that workplans have been adhered to and the specified outputs
I
achieved
.
...
(j) Effective applications of skills to maintain group assets in working order
(buildings, machines, water supply installations etc)
(k) Mutual support between group members in non-project activities
(l) Examples of collective bargaining with local elites
(m) Examples of group members accessing non-project resources from other
!l
i
I
local institutions.
I
I Axsesxinp individual poops across the project area on the basis of this ranp.e ■
HKhMHor, r. leirable ni piojccl.s with field stall in regular contact w.th K'^ps. sue•>
stall require skills in process documentation to record outputs over time. ODA r....
fed farmm« projects in India have experimented with process documentation m
l| relation to “a similar r: - of participation performance indicators.
~
I
I
Immediate Objectives
Sustained improvements in
watm snpply.
.
communities in decisions and
ensuring the paructpauon of
. women & disadvantaged
1 groups in 200 villages
—
^^OutpuiT__
Indicators
project.
s1
workplan for each VWC._
_------ -------- —
New VWCs and neighbourhood user groups, with
|| Village water committees
li (VWS) formed
'pX u, insullauoas in each tonon.
I Neighbourhood user groups
formed, effectively
contributing to installauon
I maintenance
pteed mU=stone
'50
made prior to installations;
Maintenance agreements
users; high quality
labour days contributed by
maintenance.
I
Immediate Objectives
Indicators
Increased enrohnenl,
improved teacher
performance, and
community support for
schools in 2(X) villages
Village Education Committees identify children not in
school by project year 1 end, support teachers in
encouraging enrolment, and coordinate PTAs in their
locality.
Teacher attendance levels increa.se in project year 2 after
VECs are established in project year 1. VECs supervise
teachers work in schools.
Outputs
Village Education
Committees established
Parent-teacher
associations formed for
each school
Maintenance of school
shelters
VECs formed with more than 50% women members,
meeting once per month with 70% attendance. VECs
organise awareness campaigns in village and organise PTA
meetings.
PTAs meet with teachers at beginning of school term, plain
and implement weekly rota through which parents assist
teachers in making visits to homes of non-enroled and
absentee children.
School shelters repaired to satisfactory standard after bi
annual rains in each year.
16
Example 3: A farming research and development project
Immediate Objectives
Sustainable improvements in
; farm production, income, and
livelihood security through
participation of farmers in
mutual support groups in 30
villages.
Indicators
banners identify qualities of local and exogenous
crop varietal performance at end project year 1 and
during successive seasons.
New varieties and techniques adopted by
neighbouring fanners by end of project.
Outputs
Farmers clubs formed
Club micro-plans produced
Assessment groups carry out
crop trials
30 farmers clubs formed with men and women
representative leaders; 90% of club members attend
explanatory workshops by project month three.
Micro-plans agreed by each club by end of project
month six; plans detail prioritised local needs and
trial options. Two separate men’s & women’s
assessment groups formed by each fanner club by
month seven.
Assessment groups introduce indigenous technical
knowledge into trial process (eg. varietal choices for
different micro-environments).
1?
5
Example 4: A participatory forest management project
Immediate Objectives
Indicators
To establish effective joint
management of forest resources,
strengthening capacity of local
government staff, and sustaining
people’s livelihood in 50 villages
O utpuLs
Village forest protection
committees formed
Registered user groups established
i
50 FPCs formed with proportional membership
from poorer households and 50% women by
end of project month six. FPCs agree formation
of local user groups, inform local government
staff by month seven, and coordinate user group
proposals.
Village workplans established as
agreed practice between staff and
local communities
User groups identify priority needs and propose
local use and conservation rules with FPCs &
officials by month 10.
Minor forest products accessed by
user groups
All 50 annual workplans estimate realistic
grazing and fuel wood needs before local use
rules are agreed.
__________
18
£ A-f e_i g_Xi K*}_t; ha tl
I '
Life is a handout — photocopy it!
Lif o i n n worknhop * fol! ow J t. up .
Life is a chakra
1
don’t reinvent it.
Life is a casino — play ‘it.
Life is a practical announcement - announce it.
Life is a challenge - face it.
i
Life is a palm - read it. '
Life is a struggle - face it.
Life is a mountain
climb it.
Life is a chakra - keep it going/moving.
Life is a boon/blessing - share with others.
Life is a drama - play-your role.
Life is a structure
list it.
Life is a crisis - manage ' it.
Life is a Burpri.se
i
cope with 1t.
Life is a value - obey it.
Life is vision - see it.
Life is trust
. '.up
I f .
build it.
Life is information - analyse it.
Life is a relationship - network it.
Life is a process
accomplish
Life is a lecture
’’please 'summarise it”.
Life is a chakra
revolve it.
• i
Life is a daily log - fill it.
Life is a tail
wag it.
Life is a challenge
meet it.
Life is beauty - worship it.
Life is love
share with others / do it.
i
Lifo is a pilgrimage - carry it out.
Life is a song - sing it.
Life is
hell
damn it.
Life is a cigarette - smoke it.
Life is money
spend it. ,
Life is a river - swim in.it.
■' ’»”. •? i» ' ’
Life is a book - read it.
Life is a mountain - climb it.
Life is a fly - SWOT it.
Life is cocktail - drink it.
Life is a mystery - unfold it.
Life is a paradigm - shift it.
. > i.
Life is a family - space it.
Life is manure
spread it.
Life is an empty pen - refill it.
i
Life is rubbish - recycle it.
Life is a lunch
. t .
eat it.
Life is a toilet - clean it yourself.
Life is a typewriter - type it.
Life is a martian - xpl !
** o , .
Life is a cough - expel
Life is full of negatives - neutralise it.
Life is an NGDO - manage it.
< >
i *
Life is an organistion - analyse it.
Life is a strategy - implement it.
•
i ■
H S4G
Background Material
Conflict Management
CREATIVE CONFLICT RESOLUTION - A WAY OUT
When I see che room in a mess I feel angry because I need a clean
and neat room when I return from work."
This was the statement which impressed me most at a workshop on
Creative Conflict Resolution and Non-Violent Alternatives, held
re:
a?.
What I found new about the statement was the
fact
that
it
related
I .
------- .'needs'
—' to 'feelings.' The workshop emphasised
e importance of being aware of our feedings and our needs if we
want to be truly healthy.
It revealed that conflicts arise
basicaliy because of frustrations — in individuals, and between
individuals, organisations, states and nations.
Conducted by Chris Klug of Non-Violent Alternatives, South Dakota,
U.S.A., ^nd^
r-'3 organised
-----'
by the Community Health Cell,
, Bangalore,
between 31 May
and
1
June
this
ay and 1 June this year, the workshop set out to make
conflict a positive learning experience. It tried to explore
non-violent alternatives to conflict resolution not only as a
strategy for solving- .problems
-3 but also as an opportunity for
growth.
Conflict was defined c._
...__ k arises when two or more people who
as what
interact with each other perceive incompatible
differences between
themselves or sense threats to their resources, needs or values and
ln response
resP?nse to the interaction and their perception of it.
i .Kriedler
Kr?edler) .
A conflict occurs internally when an
individual is in conflict withini t
’
' “ or externally when two or
the
self
more individuals are in conflict?
The i
............................
workshop
initiated most participants into a whole new way of
looking at 'conflicts, as we were encouraged to search
within
ourselves to find the cause of the conflict.
The programme was
divided into four sessions and the agenda for each session wa;s kept
flexible so that participants
iartiryinAni-s/ responses to earlier sessions could
be addressed. The entire workshop consisted of activities. The
logic behind this
—j was. that if two people involved in a conflict
could not interact
with
,
-- each
--- 1 other, then the level of tension
between them would become much more difficult to resolve.
The workshop began with a few basic assumptions:
1.
Conflict is an <opportunity for growth.
2. Peace results from the creative
------- j use of conflict and the
3.
tension it causes rather than from evading it.
Conflict is a normal, unavoidable part of each person's life;
so we must welcome and learn to use it.
One^ of the concepts emerging from the workshop is that there is
such a thing as a 'safe space, which is essential to resolve
conflicts. This is a space where individuals are able to feel safe
to discuss and confide their problems, For this, an environment
wh^re people trust one another, see good in others and feel
reaffirmed about themselves has to be created. This encourages
cooperation as well as conflict resolution.
We learnt that conflict resolution has four guiding themes:
1.
Affirmation
This helps people feel positive about and kt peace with themselves,
thereby enabling them to be more comfortable with others, too.
The?.very first activity was an affirmation exercise called the
'adjective name-game.' This also served as the introductory
exercise. All participants had to attach a positive adjective to
their names, which would be used along with their names throughout
the entire workshop. So we had Bubbling Benjamin, Active Thomas,
Listening Kalpana, Kind Chris, and others. It was surprisingly easy
to recall names with their corresponding adjectives; we soon
realised that each time we addressed a person,
we were also
recalling a positive aspect of that person.
Cooperation
Cooperation is crucial to conflict resolution because without it
people^^cannot work together towards a goal and fulfil it jointly.
A conflict between two people cannot be resolved unless both
cooperate. This point was made essentially through physical
exercises.
For example, two people squatted on the ground with their backs to
each other and their hands entwined at each other's waist. They had
to,5ise ,to their feet without the aid of their hands. This could be
achieved only when they cooperated with each other and jointly ■
generated the force to get up.
Without such cooperation,, both
partners would collapse.
Communication
It is essential to be able to communicate about the problem or the
conflict in question. In a conflict situation it is important to
keep channels of communication open.
'Back to back drawing' was the exercise used to illustrate this
theme.
Again, two partners sat with their backs to each other.
Partner A. had to draw a picture behind partner B's back and then
describe it to the latter in such a way that he/she could draw a
similar one. Then the exercise was reversed. A comparison of the
partners' drawings reflected the effectiveness or otherwise of the
communication between the two.
Problem solving
every conflict is a problem which needs to be looked
at in an objective! manner. In problem solving we were divided into
grotaps of three or four; we had the freedom to select a problem —
personal or official — and analyse it in the context of the
techniques we had learnt. One of these techniques was the 'I
statement,' an example of which is quoted at the beginning of this
report. Our group found the 'I statement' an effective tool.
At ^
• ’ e^oot °f
The statement i§ made up of three components:
When I..
I
feel..., and Because I need.... In the first part of the statement
the
confli’ ct is placed on oneself in order to avoid
making accusations.
.--- *
In the second segment one's feelings are
expressed and in the last part one's needs are highlighted. In this
way
way it becomes clear that it is one's own needs which are being
frustrated and that to be truly healthy one must pay attention to
these needs and try to fulfil them as much as possible.
Aftbr each activity we reassembled to share our perceptions. Often
suggestions were made on how a particular activity could be
modified to serve a special purpose — for example, for use with
children. During the workshop the objectives of each exercise were
P ■*-'*-'*-*u. jr
O L-CA
previously
stated;/
some participants felt that prior
information could
—increase
--------- the. level of participation.
In the definition of conflict, 'behave' is the key word — because
it is behaviour which escalates any conflict.
_ _
So we discussed the
factors which help escalate or de—escalate a conflict. On further
reflection and observation we found that factors which escalate
conflict are usually unconscious and/or emotion-based, whereas
factors
which de-escalate require
more conscious effort and
I—w -A
x. J _ J □
x
bj^ctivity
.
A' conflict can be resolved in four ways:
whi ch both parties get what they need, a a win-win situation in
lose-win situation in
whi ch the second party wins, a win-lose situation
in which
which the
the
firfst party wins and a ^^”lo.se situation in which both
parties ■
are not satisfied. In most situations
--- ; one tries for a win-win
solution.
In the last--session--we briefly-dealt—with conflicts in family
A famiiy meeting was simulated, with members meeting in
a cp-rcle and talking about needs and feelings. It is important to
stafrt this P^°^ess with children when they are young so that ]they
can be introduced
------ J early to healthy ways of dealing with a
contlict-filled.. world.
- --- - Such regular sharing can create a safe space
where children feel free to- discuss
their
feelings
----- their
feelings
andandproblems;
it
i helps build good relationships among family members.
Most participants felt t.:.„activities
^ivu.v.u.^
highlighting cooperation
should be introduced first to children^
; — • The agenda should be quite
lengthy and involve many activities as children tire of any
activity quickly and do not readily go into discussions. Stories
could
be used ■>-with
resnin-t-ior.
4-- children.
-ZC"' esPecially those which have a conflict
resolution situation within them.
I found the workshop personally helpful and I feel any personal
development reflects itself in the work
situation. Tl.
Though
temperamental by nature, 7L.J1°W
caPak>le of thinking about . the
w^hin me and reasoning through conflicts in my work
P^-sonallC and nrof
hS1P me b^ld better relationships
Personally and professionally.
z
That conflict is an integral part of the universe is indisputable,
We live in a world where
is inpvi+-ah7~ JLe^OUrCe/n -are few and contenders for them
many ; it
it is inevitable that conflicts occur. It is left to us to
resolve our conflicts in the best way possible to build a happier
and healthier world.
Caroline Wesley
Tom Molake (The Sprout), Volume 3, Issue 3,
a quarterly newsletter
rom the Concerned for Working Children
L
J
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