G D E ON- G O
P CI I SE ECE
ECA/SDAIIRD/90/1.2 Cd)
F
TIO S 5
U ITE ATiONS
co
0 I CO 0 0 RIC~ I:
PARI' II: UU.L ""'"1
1-
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20- 1
CUIDEL111U 011 T/IIl ROU: OF
_ -aJVUIlIlUtAL
_IZATIOIS IW rUTIClPATOI.T IIJI.AL DERLO.EWXu:
SEL&CT'ID .&n.ICU WUB(&IDIDtrodactioll
"The Afr i c a n Charter fo r Po pular Parti ci pation lD Develop-Dt and Tt' n.fom&tio:J.~•• ha. , 1~ no una bta}:a e l anguag., argued t~e ~•• e for l.u~ch l I of • n • era in Afric., on th,. h u h of vhic the DeN Afr ica of ec r vision can e-e r l e, - an ~rica 1 ~J~ de~c r .c1 t .~oo tabil ty an4
develo~nt fo r t'-anaforsatlul" bee ae in e!"'llalhed In every coun try and de t:p- r o ot ed t eve ry l •• et of our aocht y; aa Africa vbere t e er. b U ng eD'Y1r ~nt tha t prc.o ! e. 1nltlatlve and nt.r~ rl .e and guaran t ee. the diCnit1 of each hu •• a betol beccaea perva alve, a~d, an Afr. ~h e re the eapoveraent of tbt> ,,~ple and tn d..aocrat!&uton of th ..
develop_Dt process b the ord'!t " th e da ' •••o That new Africa .utt be bo rn [0- . , DOt eo-eerree,"11
Thia 1. an ex-r-ece fr o. on e of the cIoef n ta t e . en ts wh i c h ee ee . .de in t oe Inte rnat Icne I (:e-nfere f"lCt: on Popular Participation in tt:e t.e...ove r y end Oc"elo p-en t ?roceas in Africa, Arulha. Uni ted l.ep:sbUc of ran& nts. 12-1b Fe brua ry 1990. It re
r
i eere the enlighteneoJ IDb i t of tbe opening.tate.ent of the Charter of the UDit~ Na t i o~ l . which re a d ••
inte r aUa. "We the people ••• dpter.lneJ. ••• to pro.ote 80ci.l pragrell and better standardl of life in larger f r eedc• • ••"2/ It b this spirit, which pr o '9 i de s the ra tionale for preparing the Guidelines.
Non- Governme n ta l Orga ni z a t i o n : Th e ke y word . in thb:
Guidelines are "non - g overnmental orlt" ni u .t l on," (NCOs) and
" pa r ticipatory ru ral de veIo peent", So me cIe r Lfteat Icus of
the se 110'0rd' are in orde r bef ore we pro ceed wit h th e
'Cuide line l ' . A no n - g o ve rn.e n u l organh"tlon, by defini t ion . 1• • apontaneous and voluntar, body tn origin and autono-eus in aanage.ent irre spect ive cf:
(1) ita forw- foraal or in fo raal; (il) wi t h or without legal entity;
(iU) area of interest or speci a U z a U on ;
(Iv) con t inuity or discontinu i t y of act i vit ie8 . (v) trad itiona l or elect ed or paid . .nale_ n t ; (v1) "it h or "ithout re g h u re d or
location/addreas.
and
peraaneut
It h thus
Cov ern.ent. and, vertical eKtenalon
logically outlide therefo re. neither
although DOt above
the control of the tt. horizontal nor the law of tbe land.
r
t he re .. wideapread interest in the la t . a t prefiJl:
"pa rticipa t o ry ". Bot rben what ttle word. "pa r t i ci pa tor y"
• •an ? It ta a uny aplendou r e d .and attrac ti e word. i f for notbln, ehe. for Ita fleKibl1lt, .3! The in t e r p r e t a ti on . a ri e . leSel, fro. ".abIUzation" of-peo pl e . with or wi t ho u t t eli eee e ea e , to .ad.luistrative de c e n t r al iz a ti on to the proce•• of re- a . lf -.. po ve r8e Dt by r hcae , who uve been effectivel, dl a enfr.aachlsed and aar.lna1iz d over the decade.
fo110"lul. ir o n i c a l 1,. the pha s e of de-colonization.
De.pi te the difficulty in arri v i n g at a cona na u a, there v. a a re . . rkAble _etiug of m udI . .oncat the flYe hundr ed dele.atel, who attended the con f e r e nc e _nUoned earlie r. They declared. int e r all ap
"We believe stroncl y that popuhr parti c i pation is , in essence. th e eapowe raen t of the pecp Ie to effectively involve theu e t ve a in crea t i ng the stru ct u r es and in del1gni nl pollci e s and prog r ~. .s that save the inter.a ta of .11 of ua
•• to eff e c t ive l ,. contribute to the develop_nt proce ss and sh a re equitably in tts benefit a•••"~I
The pre s ent 'Cuidelines' w11l take this dec larat ion 88 8 mand ate of emer g i ng Africa 88 II beginning of the prcces e of part i cipatory rural development.
We have a aandat e in favour of 'par t i c i pa t i on' vhen uaed aa adj e c t iYe, it bec omes 'pa r t i ci pa t o r y' .anin g grass ro o t e d. It i.plies, be s ide s others ,
(i) autonoay of thought.
(ii) dialogue at all level s on an institutionalised b.lis and
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(iii) authorit, to take decisiona. with accountablllt,.
But have we lot a c~JI)n under.tand i n e of the vorda.
"rural" and "de . e l o pae nt" !
Rur a l : Row do II! define and diaUneuhh "rural" fro.
"urban " in the African context! One frequent 1, uaed cri t e ri on h the atze of populnlon per aq ka or within a e1.eo admni.tratl e boo..odary. It. eertain de_Ity of population t. uled a. the cut-off point . If the to Al popalAtlOD of • li.ea area 1. UP to or belo. h. notional fiC ....e thlll t e area 18 eta.sHied. a. 'raral' ene:lIlU,. for eenau. parpoae. A other fa~tor I. the ~rl r f . ono.le aetiY1t1. f ' ure , lift8toek. foreltr, aad Inla d flaher, - th ... ife aU8tainlnl occupation. - are daal_Dt hi the rural are.. eree. IIaraufaeturin& ••r.ie eee ee ee do.inate the ece aie life of the urban sector. The third future or .ari.ble 11 ebe relat! e depd Hem of t e rurat people of the faclIttlel lilte health c e re , edlu:et1on, aate dr l n U IlI vater, t e a port and c~UillcAtlOD raeilltle. and eo on, whi Ch add to th~ quality of life.
Atri u ' a rural area. are spa" eel,. populated , a. tn the USA. Th. l r pr l •• r,. eeono.ie ~aae i . a,rleul tu re a. In Den.ark. Th e,. .uffer fro . rel a t i v e deprl•• tion of the facilltl.a vhl eh . . \te Ufe enjo,able, a. pri. . fad e , runl Ontario of Canada doe.. noe. this eean rura l area . of AfriCA are eo.parable to the USA . Denu r k. and Ontar io! In the USA the rural or far. po pu l a ti on i. dl.persed 1~ cont r ••t to the concentration in the cities . But the .1ellart t, ~n d. there. About five per cent of the popula tion l i ve 'ln the atea.
designated a. rural, the rest in the c Lt Ies, The •••e is e rue for prosperous Den.ark. The country is "rur el" alaoat by pr e f er e nce. The productivit y of its agriculture specially the dairy 8ub-sec t o r is extrea.ly Itilh and in ma r \t e d contrast to that of the low productivity lu bal. u n ce nature of rural Afdea'_ maIn occupetIcn , l.e •• agriculture.
True enoush there are parts of Ontario Provlnee of Can_da, which co.pared to Ottawa, Toronto and Hontr.al• •uffer fro.
relative laclt of facUltiea and a.enitiea of
ute .
Renee,·these are deaignated a8 'rural' and there i. a "rural outreach prolr •• • e" to br i d g e the gap. lut. what rural Ontario haa a. of to-d a y in abso l u t e ter. . would itaelf be a
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very deaand i as ta r ge t to .eet for dev.lop.ent of rura l Afri ca in the forea ••able future . Meaawhile, the r.ality of life in roral areaa of Africa 18 In aharp cootraat to both ita 0,,", tova.' or citie.' and to rural Ontario'a. Thia contr.at haa beea eoyered in a recent publication of the Secretariat.!1
Oe.e10p!!nt: Ve are nov left vith the ta.t of elarlfyiftl ..hat do .an by 'develo~nt' for the purpoae of theae
"Culde11ne.". Inatitutlonallzed acranKe_nt for equitable aece •• to prodnctS •• re.ourcea (aueh aa land, vater and credit), e.plo~nt, acee.a to health care, education.
booaSng and other .-enitlea of life, .atiafaction of eajoyiftl funda_nul hu. .n rllhu. exe re tee lelther directly or by dalelatlon) of the laallenable right of participation at all l•• eh of deci.lon-aak,log, follow-up action. and .,oitorlol and evaluatloa are la-e of [ e indic•• of (partielpatory or Ira••-rooted) develo~nt. It 18, therefore, poallble [ 0 arlue that in Africa. vbere t~e eilhtiea are vrlttea off aa a 10lt decade, glvea an enlighteaed understanding of the African tradition of .olldarity and reciprocity and of dialogue in Rral area. at lealt
.08e
of the indleatora ofdevelo~nt could conceivably still be regarded a. po.ltlve, delpite . .tertal "hardship" aDd. lowr level of quaUty of 11fe. The lafaat .,rul!ty could be Ie •• , the literacy rate better and the Ciot co-efficient of inco.e dlatrlbution cooaiateat vtth Africa'. golden tradition U ita tradition could be practl.ed at the . .cro level.
The condition preceden t for "partici pato ry rur.l develop. . nt" 18, therefore , Institutionalhed acceptance and provtalon of the cent ralit y of the role of people at. every . t .ge both •• the subjects and the object's in a. pr cc e s e lead ing to rur a l Africa' s recovery and devel opment and appr oxi ma te par ity with the urban sector .
Scope of the GuideHnes: Preparation of gUidelines on the rol e of the NCO. in sucb develop. .nt could be a t hec r e tical exe ee tae. 1t could be. baled on a aet of ideal a •• u.ptlona or an alternative set of the. about the .oeio-political context of the couDtrie. or the reI Ion. The a"u.ptlon. are gltaerally re.,Yed fr~ the reaUty. How re.aYed are they. depends bow opt l . i .tic or heroic the, are.
One of the .taDdard a. aptioM 11, "ot he r thina' re.-inlng - 4 -
the . a. ,". Experience IhovI such an .llu.ption, althoulh ulef u l to o¥er-look "inconvenient" variable. or t.ct, of life in build inc up one', clle or l1ne of thoul , 1 , hardl, realiled. In r •• l lIfe other thingl do not rr.-in he I ae.
The, chinle for better or vc r ee, Cui d - 1 e e , b•• ed on l,auapUo ,,01. t e r fore, b-e of ¥e ry 11. 1ted r ekev e lad effic.cy. if an atteapt 1• • • de to try it ute Hen ce, luidellne. of ,~ ale to t e ltCOa ha . . to be pra _ ti t . The, IhoQld not .ffe r • I ldaraLde! !ht -elnl they he ,. to be derived frDa t e .~~ool of x~rle ,e.piriea' ev!~ nce and reallltic nt of : e poI.ibllity ad extent ( chaDII!! . t nationa ! level in th e .el~c ted countrt•• In vlrlou.
t tae Ipan. - 1 or • .edi - an lona. The t1_ horhon for thit luld.. lin I f hort-tf! ~; er the ! dlate real tt y _ pre -oc cu pat l onl of A!rica. Let
'.1'
recol nlae that U f. fa I con t l nu lt y . Th palt ca.tl it. lhad ow for e'te r or vorl on the eeeeeee , Th ere ee ee p:royid•• t he pe r e cec e r II!! an experience to pI !or ~ e ata re . Af~ i c.l. ~r•• nt preoccupation I to .Hl let e the C'"'I\I u ne e I of r"e c:.pCld e of the eightl•• an. to ee et. th e ba" • d of 1"'. p ep Ie, _Olt of "hoa re li de 1n the rura l are at . . a P rt, of the conttnuo- of the atrl tegy for .If-r e llan t de~el o paen t.Either the ee Cui .. Une. can be nvlle4 or a frel " De draf ted in future II and "hen It t. ~el t t al the 0 ect t. re lltles Vlr r a n t .ueh an exere i.e.
The CuideHn.e. prl . . rtly cover the African NCO• •ince there ar e enou s h of thea for the northern or nUI\-indicenou.
NGO••
6!
The ICOpe i . H ai t ed to the role of "friean NGO"which-have bee n en ga ce d in the dev e l o p _ en t of the rural lector of Afric a and not in re li e f' epe ret Lcne, The Guideline a are. the refore. no t concer ned wit h their ad.inhtr.tive pree e duee s and fina ncia l ru l ee and regulations. Si.ilarly, the gutde Lf nea do not co ve t any organization. which is ei t he r under the tu telage or effective control of a Government. For, an NCO, by def i n iti on , ha. to be an authentic autono.au. organizatio n.
In covering their eXisting role and IUl,eltlng the future on••, the •• phalll 15 on the tr ad itional lnforaa l NCO., followed 'by the fonaal one.. Rec o l n l z ing the polttical real i t i e . , del p ite recent pie •• to re~er.e the. and the pre-occupltlon of . " t rural people for lurvi yal . , huaan
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be inll. the pr. . . .t1c ro le of NGO. hal to be very hu.ble .nd I t .tted to baalc develop.ent •• al.ln.t the ideal or ide ol og i c a l eee te the short run. Hence. then CuideUnel Ih.ll deliberat ely a. o i d dil e ul . ine or ,ulle. t i ng • po'llble ro l e of African NCO. In contentioul tll ue l. even if they .re re l ated to dew.lo~nt. Let UI be: ava re: the ve ll -.e a ftlng propenltty to opt for or advocate the Ideal or the belt "y.
in ret r o l pe e t . tur n to be • preleriptlon for enforced in a ctl o ft or Uquld.tion at least In the lhort run. Let UI try to cautloull,. IIOwe forwarc step by IUp and buUd brick b,. brick. Richteoul lapatience to IIOwe forward too taat or adwoc.cy tn fa.our of co.batlwe role to accelerate developaent can be counte r -productive in the . eeeee of an
nablln. clt . .ta . t aacro level.
Ba . h of the Culdeltn. . : The guldeUnea ere b.aed on deat acudy. The Inforaatio and data for , i t we n obtal Tled (ro. aecondary eeeee e s, prlaarUy fca., bealde. otherl. the paper •• wh i c h re presented at the Intern.tlonal Conference on Popular Parttclpnlon In the Recovery and Develop8l!nt Proce•• tn Africa. "rnsha, Tanz.ft!a. 12-16 February 1990.
Organhltton of the GuldeUoes: The CuldeUne. an 10 two p.rtl. Part I br iefly covert the aetlvl t h . and e s pe rtence s of Indlgeooul NCO, in leveral ccunt rte e, They .re indeed warled an d co y er s a vi d e range of lectoral actlvttlel . Plrt -I • •• ha s already been Itl ted . prov t d e l the b•• tl for (op tl ~. tlc_lly) pr_g __ tlc , u ld e ltne l In P. r t 11.
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Li.iution. of the Guideline. : The guideline. auffer f roa aeveral liattationa. So_ of thea are the follovin.:
(1) bein. a deak work. it did not benefit Eroa dial0.ue ",ith African MGO. which are directly involved in the proee •• of participatory rural d.velos-ent; (ii) the indi.enou. NCO. - in their foraa} fore - .re of rather recent ori.ln. Renee, they do not Mv. . .ch to offer by "'a, of esperhnce; (u1) the countrie., covered in thi. study. leolraphically happen to be in aub-Sahar~ Africa. Th1e .ana the ex~rhnce of the ROrth African WCO. coald not be taken Into account; (iv) the inforaatlon .v.ilable on the coontrie. covered va. une.en In CDverage and In depth. Rence It va . not alvay. po •• lble to dewerlbe all relevant actlvitie. of the indigenous NCO. In
• ,,1 .~ n country; and (v ) guidelinea. to be operuional •
• hould preferably be country-specific . Thla i . not true 1n the present eeee,
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p I: C S udies
t8 . ar e de s on
elp th
ic of sehold . .1,.
w th hi e ber and oth r a co pound 0 ork on n nnu
the riou th I co pound"
It ou e o
an he e re
to con so id te ong run. In
A "co pou 11
Anoth r organiz t on is t e a n' gro u p. It a nearl 90,0
°
er ou of a to 1 of ]62,015 sp e d ove ri e er rur 1 re a of the co un r • d 0 op ti n of th i group .odel e af er th t of th e Heaga tradit ion
so ci t lon s . Thi and other group w re for ed dur ng 66-6 to re ctiv te the tradit i on a l tru tu r e by adapti ng it t cur r e t d ve ent needs. he other roup s have mixed e ber i of bot male and f aLe, Their economic activiti s inc ude the establishme t of cereal banks, cu ti v a t io n of market gardening plots, ani mal husbandry, storage and pr e s e r va t i o n of produce, soap maki ng and produ t ion of text i le s . he se activiti s are carried out throu ghou the country and peop are in re ing1y interested in th as th i cr e a s e in me b rs h i p fro 50 to 1 1,015 and in n e r of gr up f r o m 3 27 8 in fro m 19 to 1989
re.pe c tlve l y Indicate. These gro upa at a r t locally and epon u ne o u l1 y and are then gradually Inel ud ed In the Nae. A.e oc i8t l o n. The N. . . group. of th e cou n try are reaark.ble es. .plea of ba. i e ~lo~nt that can b. . .de throulh luch ' t r ad it iona l but Info raal institut ions. In fact, tb~ e ....pie of the H••• sro u pa, cou ld be fo llow~d by other eountri@1 vi th advlntae;:- Thf' s. nh In. the Niger ar e do.el y at. U n to
the . . . . of Bur k i na Fa~ o.
In Iddition to the traditional l~! o ~ l enee , I forsal HCO 51 .. 5 - v •• elta~l1shed re 1974. I t l eet Inal objecti.e v•• to take adYa!ltagol! of the: lona: dry per ad hoe October to y to un~ e rtake a serlea of lelf-help aoc ial and eeeeeere let4.vlt1 e A to i.prove the 11.10 atared . r d of t
rur l l p.o~le. The trend until then had been for t e ourll people to ai,tlte to urba~ are. . . Dd to Del bour lna countries 10 .earch of eaployaeot. One feature 0' :~ i.
initiative •• re l ta nce oa t r ad i t l v a _1 ,roup. to pr OLe
• 1.r,e scale ulf- ~p ..,veaent d t h n abenhlp 0' ~ .000
and esten,IOD 1nto tn r countries, luch a. Kali. M.uritarla
.nd Sen~al .
Th e Volun u ry De elo~ nt Or g anila tlon. (VOO.) Is yet ano her sec i0 Burkina ra.o. I t 6u p por"' S orlan1 ud Iroup . , whi c h a ••u_ respons ib il it y for the i r ova deve l op" Dt and
•••let vil lag e Orla!llt. . ti o o s to ta ke i:lIUatl ve vtthln t he .copt! of tbe obj ec tives defined in the Platlooal PJeD. Th ..
VDO. cenerally pro vide assistance to de.lsn and e.t bU sh school. or cHnic. or to cultivate urket gardeni ne plo ts. The ai. of the VDO. i. to raiee the avarene •• of ru ra l peopl e of their re.ponsib llity in the development proce •• snd ••• ist thea to play their role.~1
CalDeroon: CalDeroon's traditional informal NGO. suc h . . t he Cai••es populalres (CP) and tontines , 8p ~cialize in 88vings and credit. Th e facUlties are available 0 va r-Lcu a production group' operet tng in th e forlDal and the i nf",rsal e ectc r ••9/ The . e inlti t u ti on s operate in vartcu e way s and appear to be th e .Olt pract icel way to d.te of aecurin g people'. participat i o n in the development of Caaeroon. In this eat e lo ry can be found pe o pl e 's ban ks or grouptng. or var i ous co-o pe ratives, which have been foraed fra-
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cr.ll- rootl coe.u nltl el and to nt ine l. The latter are dlverle tn their collection and le od!nc network••
It i. well known that rural people face dlff!cultiel in d eaU ng with urban-bII.ed bank! ng .,.te... Hence, t hey have .trencthened their inforaal a ••ociationl whtch are .ore elli11 Icceaalble. Theae an ca-alnit,. aavlnea atructurea.
auch al ••• inga and credit co-operativel vhicb lerve fa~r.,
pea.anta and crafta. .n. Sa.e of the co-operatlv.1 ate troe a lpeciflc croup ieh . .,. be a villa,e or protellional a •• ee ree tee, The co-operathel .,bilhe capital eithe r by
pa~nt of • lu.p .u. or by regu l a r d.polit by their . .aberl.
The volua. of depolits in thea obvioully depend. on th e lavinga of the . .abera.
Tont Inea: Theae are association •• which ar e baaed on co-operation .t the faa11,. clan and ethnic levels for the purpo.e of altual fin.nchl . . . . .renee• . The allocation of the contributiona froe each of the . . .ber. (about SO) to ODe at a ti . . 11 . .de tn turnl foUowin, the eltabUlhed cycle. An .cIditlonal ~t 11 eet . .ide . . Meurlty. Thil info~
banking arraage.eat in ea.erOOll pre-d.tel the eatab) "h.ent of fo~l or of Uclal credit Institutionl. The _etln•• of the Tontine. help ae.bera learn about the benefita of aavlnCI, whi c h beco.ea -ore attractive when practlled collectively and rai.ea the confidence of . . .bera . ThUI, by bringing people to get her both econoaicall, and locially. tontine. help to re du ce the inadequaciel of individual. In a cOllalnlty, thereby fac Ultatl ng st ructu ral coh•• lon in the lociety. Savin•• and credit flo ws fro. tontinea ue u.Jed for financinl production as veIl as conau.ption . The production ac t ivitiel, whi ch are finance d, incl ud e both find and var t . b l e COIU tn Inccee gener a t i ng Ict !v i ti e . in the rural lect o r.
Rwanda: In Rwanda there are a nuebe r of activities.
whi ch are initi a te d by the inf orm al NCO. in the for. of .utual aid In th e Ipi r it of trlditio n.l soli da r i t y . Thh involves ahari ng of services or good. by groups in turn, 8u c h .1 the construction of houle.. co.eunll far . work an4 lavinCI. Generllly, these activitie. are a eueee ae, An exa.ple of thla ta the Ibi"n.
!Q/,
practiled in the Uvuye co••une , in the North of Rwanda. 1t la • fa~r.· thrift Ind- 10 -
loan alaoclation, which operatea on the principle of ro t a t i o n. An .-Guat of -aney 11 allocated to beneficiar1ea in eu rne, The turn of each ~aber ia uluaUy deterained by the de«ree of confidence the group ha. in hi./her aa a . ..bet and the urgency of his/her needs.
lbialna 1. relhtered in the co.aane after the p.,-.ent of a fee. lell.trltlon eeeuee e tt. reco«nitioQ by the co.-unal authorlti.l. lbiaina aeetings are held -aathly and 10 the ho~ of the peraon vtlo will eeeet ye the loan. Each beneficiary'. turo i ' deter.ined by conlen.ul of I t ' aeaberl. Several project. have been financed throulh i t . luch I ' purchaae of live.toek, land and i.proveeeot of houle.. Thel.
faraer.' thrift and loan association., io which ae.ber par ticipa te fully. contribute lubet,ntiaU,. to the loeio-econoaJc develov-ent of theIr lociety .
Beaid.1 the traditional NCO, lbi.lnl, according to a re c e nt .urvey. there are at leaat 143 fo,..l CO. I" the country . In the .urvey , NCOI vi r . con.lde red a.
or,anlzltione lch provide a,atltance or contribution to developaent Independently of whIt the loyernaent doe.. 111 The areas of operltlon of the s e NCO• • r. v.ried but the ~t pre f e rred one. are: ellth, cot U le Industry, alrlcultural Ictlvltle., adult educat ion, and the pra.otton of ee-epeeetIve••
On e of the NCOa 11 the Rvand e s e integ r . te d devel o pae n t pro_tioD ••eoc la ti on (ARDI). It va. let up In 1985, afur a lo nl leet atl on period: to encourage tbe fu ll pa r t l ci pa tion of tbe population. The Intende d resu lt v•• ppople'. aanageaen t of tbelr devel o pment ac ti vl t i e.. Ce ne rall,. . wh r n the gr.,.-root' popul at i on tak es t.he Initiat ive to car r y out an e et Lvt t y , which eee re i t s felt ne ed and whi cl'l. requ i r e s external support, In this case support trOl! an NCO, participation I. cons i de r a b l e from tbe beginnIng to tbe end. To iUultrat e, water su p pl y or sprI ng unagreen t ecbeees , In whic h the people bave been involved fr om tbe beginning to the wa t e r de li ve r y atage a. wel l •• 10 the •• tntenance of activities , veee aucce aaf u I in contralt to tbe Coveraaent-iapoled Ueusanda work .,.tea, vbicb il largely a fatlure; et eee It wa. i.posed froe .bove and participation . .de obl1g8tory •
.!l/
- 11 -
The ba is of other grou ps
t on of an
uk Tee
01 e tive in o r age , nt group •
help. So to the fo
1ryan 0 uz roup inc Iud fore try. r RD
C
our
r 0
ot in
i fac .0 it u ing 0 t ie and
ri g i d r quire n 0 co Banque Popu aire led
he p an roup 0 for t o n nga an credit
oci ty, c lied So ida-ity Ban . This ocl y plays an 1 por ant e In he nage en of eternal fund f r Group ac t i vi Ie. 1 he Groups as u e respon bil ty for the s e fu d ch ser e both as a guara te to donor and generate collectt e 0 ligation to repay funds by each group. Seve ral group h ve vo ved into ult1-purpo co-operative .
Z r : Z ir has four approch 0 rura l de velopment. In the first approach , the projec ide a, the d i ion to i p l e nt I and he actions neede are formulated by the il1ag r the elve only. In the seco d approach, he project idea co es fro outs de b t he d cision 0 imple ent it and the anner of i p e ent 10 are decided by the v i g e r . In the t ird approach, e 0 ect Ld and
2 -
deciaion to i.ple.ent co.e from outaide the vil lage but the local people auu. . responsibility for carrying it out. In the leat approach, the outsiden live the project Idee , the deciaion to i.pl••ent it and the atepa to be taken for
i.pIe.entation.14/
In tbe li'N province of Zaire , a .is of tte U rat and s.cond appr o.c ~ e. Yaa tried out in v ich the "lociatioD for the lauluted Develop.eDt of the ~iVtl Province (ADI-lIVO) , ao 1ndlle nou fo~1 !GO. pI"Jed a!'l iaporunt rol e. T~
inltlaton of the pro e ct firat ....sited ever per of the provi Dce and .et I crola-sectioD of 091• • a.anllt vha. the
!a~r. ver e pt Inent. Only aft~r n.vlng dialolua vith the.
and ha.i cc.pfled all inventory of t eLr felt ~ed., t 1.1VO proc r I e operationaL It bPl.a on a . . .11 l e a Ie vtth ac.e .iero-"l11la ge ee ewla initiated by local develop.eat coaaltteea. ":'h1 • .aden k , lnn.1ft1 v•• crucial fo r ach1e f q d. elopetot rith loc a l re ee e, ta a cat.lytlc dri •• , th tl approach aade it po.lible to icit l coaaltae nt of t e pe pIe for al l t electoral .ub-prOlr..-e1 conducted to Ir ~w cofter. rice . eat and otber cro s.
ADI-1IVU .110 ~uppor t ed the la l t i . l t ve of the n to provide theaae l el with dri nking vater and to build &aterait7 he• • aod clinic.. The work vu car ri t'd out • • longo tea •• : .en du e the fou nd a t i on s, we .en and 1o u n ~ peop l e gathered atonea fro. the hills. the elder1 fetche d water and prep.red food fo r the volunteer worhn . Trat era .ent thei r trucka free for car r y i ng building . .teriale to the .ite. Th voeen' . .ub-coea1ttee collected con t r i but i on. fro. 10, 000
inhabitant. or the area. Their IIOdcst c.ontribution of 50 Zairel per adu lt v.s required since the ~J vu progra ••e tnet sted that the people ought to help the _elves i f the programmt va. to help them.
In this .pproach, the people par ticipate la r ge l y due to their con f i de nce in ADI-KIVU. In each of the village micro- ac he me 8 local par tner is secure d :
"a NCO. a vUt-,e co_it tee, a rel1ltou.
atlelon, a producer co-epe r at tve , a la,..n'.
a••oclation. These partners vere indt.pen.able tor the Kivu prolr...e to undertake S6 ~cro-.che"l in 1988 •••"]1'
Htcro-.ch~. ace leaecally of i..ediate celewance and ea.ler to co.prehend. Hence. they generate enthu.ta•• of the local peopl.. tn I.iwu prodace, ae1lhbouchood aDd vUhle co.lltttee. work .peedUy for iaph.enttog thele ecbe. . .. A .elf-rell.at deYelo~nt process h.al, therefore, Itarted on the ba.ll of .utual co-operation and co.plt.entarlty of Inter••t ••
TheM Culdellne. ...intain that African tcedltional .ssocbtlon. in the rural are •• , ewen 1f tbe, do not have
fo~llaed .tructure. elected office-bearera and ace Dot re,lstered to be le.al entit,. ahould be relarded a. the core of the rellon's "indigeDOt.l8" NCO 8Oye_nt. The l.pllcatioD of thh arguaent is that what eyer t e people eeae tde r l.portant In their lives, et eve e the, telard a. an authentic ezpre.lion of the ••elye. and of their ovn 1.
lndilenoul. AfrIca should build on ita ova fora and content of deyetopee-Dt .trate.,. which require. beelde. et be r s ,
(i) participatory dewelopaenti
(it) correction of a _ltuation In which "deyelop.ent"
lead. to a process of alienation; and (iii) support for grass root organization.
tn this Itrategy the recently established for.al NCO. can. of course. and indeed should play a role of partner. In participatory rural development .. ~AHO of Itenya. for eza.ple, continues to play, as we shall note at the end of
thtl Part.
1.1mbabwe: ~ wa s started by a group of concerned people of Hat.beleland province in Zimbabwe in 198J to Initiate a new approach to their development problems. tt is e.sentially a suppe rt; organization for lelf-reliant develop. .nt in rural are.s. Its first priority 1s to support r he autono.cUI organizations aaongst rural people and their abtlity to ana lyse their own situation. ORAP aha re Hea on
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traditional group' , which federate higher up to ••• ociations and final l y of ORAP.
in to ..u.b r e ll . ... and to the Advis o ry aoard
After . pe r i od of deliberation and .n.l1a1s. the group' unde r take a .arlety of ecooa.dc and aoel I activ itle.,
coab l ~ inl the i r .kill . and labour .itb . . terial and financ!al a. , l,t.nce fr external donors t~rou,h ORAP. he activities ccapelle c.rpe~'ry. avin,. hail tng. elet.~le ,.tdentrog.
poultry-k epics and ,riDding allIs. ~on . l de r a bl e eapha.i. 1, put on traioing and. deYdop.ent e catloo. The prolo led drou,ht In t e re,ioa led ORAP ~o ,lye priority to food production lth It reI. on tr adition'" seed. and f@rtillzere. dlver alt y
at
foed ercdueed, etcr age and eer .1 banks in t"l.t"village a and i.proYed wate r I~orage and local lrtl1at1 n .ch e. e.. ew e. ph••la has recent l y bee n put on organi zing ac tivit ies at the f aU, units - .s col1ec t1ve of S to 10 fsallie . - to _ e t the ir l-.ed l at e r.eeda such as we I • r drinUng wat er•••nlta ry latri ne s , iapr"ved kitcheal, as J<.11
•• food produ c t on. Another rece nt i novatIon ha!' en construc tion of develop. eat centres on .elf hel p bas: • • Th·e.e are aulti -pu r pos e cent r es foe aee tlngs. rk.sho r s , or gani za tion of tra i n1ng coars e s in vari ous techn!cal f eld. , .uch a. bake ry . bui ld ing . bla cks a ithlng and . . rket l n••
TanzanI a : In Tanzaut a .cs t of the foc.a l NCO. are:
(i) young and orle nt za t io na lly ve~k and
(11) they re portedly tend to be elitla t and exc lude the _ jorlty.
The Covern..ent is supposedly wiI Ung to aUow con&1derable amount of autonomy to elite NCO. but are "quite reluctant to do the same to potential gra ss- r oot organizatLons like the co-operative unions, the trade union . For example, the Ceneral Secretary of the Tan7.Bnl~l. Trade Union is at the salle time a Hinhter of Labour1 It 111 al so quite ins tr u c t i ve on the other hand that the reng nyi ka Farmer. As s oci a t i on - an 3880c 1a t l on or we al thy farmer. - 1~
not subo rdinate d to party at rue ur es SI the offtc l dl NCO "of"
the "peas ant sn is" 16 / Let us be clear that there is no suc h thing a8 offici al~. An NCO. by def i nit i on , ~i pl y cannot be official. It c.nnot be subsid1ar y or 8uhaerv1en t t.o the
- 15 -
Cov~rn.ent o If It Is. it is no longer an NCO. Th~ Tanzani an cau only prov ide. evidence that {oraaUsed NCO. need an enabltng cli . . ee of plural is. and tolera nce at ~tiona l l~vel
to function unle.. they 1i.it the..el v. a to .inor and aon-ca.batlve role and also Ii . it theaae lvea to leola t ~d
local are •• a. the nine een halUn of th~ Kauu v11la ge
di~. wit h aoae aaount of ben fit to t~eaa el yeao 171 Or el s e .
I t _at.. the fate o! rbe ildvuu Deyelopaeat Aa aociation.
wh i c h, de.pit~ fta yery good perf or ance and de .o ~ r a t l c
. .na e nt"..,.. dia solye d by the Go e r t In 1~68o ~I Iserh: In Afric. .e conat itute SO.] per ce nt of the o .1 population nd 47 per ee e e 0 the ac rl cult ura i labour force. Ttl.y produce .1m3-5t 8!t per cent of H . food cr ops . M••• aiera t i on fra. rur.l area. ob1lse. V~Q to beco. . de fact o head. o! the faail1es aad producer. of food. Th;
nuabe r of de ture teule-beaded hou.~hoUa ia .a high a. 60 per cent. It will t • be appreciated that vo-en of ruul Africa playa . l&Diflcant role in the .oclo-ecoaoaic life of the eee t teeee, This is particularly true 1a Hile ria, vbere vo-en°. . • he e been ve ry actfye.
Nieeria ia the aos t po pu l ou s atate In Afric a . It. population . . ke op for 20 per cent of the COntinent" •• Renee, any orlanll:ed aove to facilitate conac1entiEation of voaen and their integr at ion in deYdopaent in Nile ria i.
lOlieally exp~cted to have an iapact in the regton - jus t a. an i.proveaent in the Uatu8 of woaen in China wll l have 8illllar i.pact in Aaia. Cive n the potential , the initia tive of woaen in ~lgeri. to for . NCO. for edueattoQ and training ia re.arkable. Education lapartl knowledge about lif. and re a l i t y and thus helps the gradua l proce . s of empower.ent of tho. e, who, eit he r by tr adi tion or insti tut i onal ar r a nge me nt , suffe r dilcriml na t ion and dent ed of oppo rtunlty to realise the i r pot enti al talent. TrainIng givea a perlon expertise In
• specif ic area of activity and quali fi e . to compete for a job on merit . Hence, at least for t y-fi ve women NCOa are actively engage d in Nigerta to prov i de educa t i on and trainlnl' They hsve one IIll li o n me ab e r . all ove r the eountry.!!1 Theae NCOs have an umb r ella organization called the National Council of Wome n Societies.
- 16 -
lenya: 20/ Sinc e independe nce one of the lel . one whi c h kenya learnt h tha~ the proje c u , vhi c h ver e eoncetve d and planned with full participation of the co.~nit, throu gh the i r HCOI luccel!'d betre r and beeeee IUlulnable. The lenya va t er and Real h Or c .ni u t t o n (niAHO). a Nnn-Gove r n-e nt a l Orlani.ation• ..t.ocatea t e prov i l ion of •• fe vet e e for the rural poor nd be.lt I!'duca t loD to erad1c a t e "ater-borne dileaeel. It function.. 00 the pre.ile that therl!' eJll:iltl a potentIal drive for develo .en t in the c ni t ie l It repre s . ntl. The co••untt i es can f i n d 101u t ioD to t~ et r
proble. . . aDd ith inst i t u ti o nal . ppor t . L.ple-.n t proj ec t s, whi c h ar e re l e va nt to their felt ne ~dl. 'ABO aleo bel t. ~
heal th and h,.Len e pro gra.-e s sbo u d be bui l t around ac(e.
to cle a n ~ter and follow not precede itl avall.buit,. In accordance vi th thele principles, aaong other. , J:WARO took the lead to prOVide vet er for all tbroulh co.-.J.n i ty -ob i t z . t t on and inter-agency co l l a bo r a t i o n.
The ro l e of ntARO tn th e ve e er project va. to pr~vtde
the l1nll. bet.eeen the technolo gy and the people. ' re-v au.
efforts tn hand- puap projec ts , wh ich ver e par t of the 110 1
DRDP/Worl d aa n k Rand Pu.p Te s ti ng PrO l r _ . fall e d. It Ir.dually bec .-e obvioul that the- Rand Pu p coaaltteel. wh i c h vere conltitut e d by the techniciane , veee not baled on an underatandlna of local lociel orleni z atl on. The. . eo.-tttee l we r e controlled by land ovner. and were not clea r about their re.ponaibilitiel in project i.ple~ntatioa. The proble. of cc..un1ty participation e~rged. The project . .nage. .nt acknovledled this proble. and decided to al.ociate ItWARO. wh i c h had exper i e nc e in co• •mity organization . The wor k of ItWARO .atlyated village rl to organize th e . l e l ve l into va e ee co.altteea. rail. . .ney fo r . .Lnt enenee of pu.p. and bec cee trained in pump re pair s. It shoved that co••unity in volveme n t wa . not only possib le bu t economic. The lvale ex pa nded prcgree ee conseq ue n t ly now ecver e an area of 8,250 klD' w~th a popula t io n of 46.75 0 people. The new vete r 108 t a l 1at i on include 146 boreholes wi t h hand pumpa, 23 spring
"eapcures ,n 17 rain water tanks, 1 dl. and 96 de-anltration
latrinel. Evidence sho ws that. bel id e a building water sy.tems and deao nstr a tion latrines. the proj e c t ha d flvourable- iepact It the vi llage, gove rnaent , NCO and donor leve ls.
- 17 -
In areas ere puaps have en in,talled and ue beinl utL1 zed. .en expre •• relief at or hav!na to walk 10nl dht nee to fetch vater of quea !Qnable quality.
Dccoraled and upported by AHO exteneion workers,
Q ge jtilized Incre••e~ a.al1abl·~ty of ti.e and .ater for oortlcultur . ece r &coup. ~ t-, rea.i:tlly branched into a vari
t,.
of ee c. act! tetee , Dcl~lna poultry keepiDl: and production of k anaa clot). thia. in eue e , inc'. ,~d ~. c tribution. t ard. ~18P ..inte ce and the"r .' t10t it OCliI-tera urv :tal.. ,p te proble. . t.
chl.vinr c ple. ."t,dty of ... e e e d . . U, Lor.. , drautic
~.~ 1n .n ~rbld ty •• be~D :eportcd.
lot .en and . .n lained co i tc In theuelve. and n ea c h other. Th s I, ciear by increa.ed ceepeet for voaen and th.~r sceepta~ce 1n decislon-..kins. Young f~. . le extenlion rk~r. are .eclI!!p~ed add 1 .tened to eve D by older .en 10 a predoai nantly Huslia socLety. Th e i_po r ta nc e of woeen a. puap caretakers and on deci.ion-..ki ns c~ ttee . la 18inina recopl1tion. Croupe have fraaed their ova rule. to aol•• pro b l e• • and re50l y e conflict. . Deci .ion s of th e co eree e ha ee: been followed ap.. This Inc lude , 10 c U n i . p of puap. for oon-payaent . aU ing aeaben to pay 1n kSnd.
drop pi nl inef f e c the co-aittee ae.ber•• denying ee ee. . to non- pa,Sng • • en .nd pena l h iftl household . that do not carry out lIUtuall y asreed upo n du t 1es auc h a. cha n i na pu.p lurroundinls OIl an ••sign@d day. NABO' s ,ucc. . . Sn in wolyicg people and abilIt y to wor k with lovern.ent tec h nic ian s have increased gove rnae nt .nd donor support for It. nvolve.ent In wat er prograll.e. , The 11in18t.ry of Vater Developaent ha. de. i lnat e d XllAHO •• the principal NCO with whic h it wor k••
The Kwale experience shows th e inappropriateness of the
•blueprint' approac.h. a fra mewo r k wh i c h aSlUllle. that III i.
kno wn and predictable before a project beg Ine, The blue p. rint approach cannot be applied to participatory rural development projects. Instead. wha t is neede d In a low profile flexIble approach for the project to unfold and expand, which
- 18 -
gIves people and coa.unlty .anage.ent a centrsl place;
- IdentIfies an overriding .hared goal;
- integrateI one ove r r i di ng gOll with lupportive aanageaent and organ I zat i on ;
_ defIne. th e . . nager's role as one of a "t . a r nlng environaen t ";
_ke. two-wa y ioforaatlon flow a centr al _nage _ nt ta.ll; and
- facilita t e . inter -agency co-opera t ion and collaboration.
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nineteen of the. are clearl y African.241 They are evidently th e fo ~lt led one •• wh i c h enjoy le ga l entit y. have their avo Itatutel and are poalibly regiltered v1..th thei r ovn Covernaentl . A.t. he. in th e UN ROlter an "A. t a n NGO.
Coalitton for Acr arian Ref or• •nd Rural De elo pee n t' but A.frica ha. none. FAO ptf'pa r e d a dirertory of a s.lect Iht of lIGO. both indig e GOua (t. e•• with root. in the deyei o p i oi couatrle. ) and iateraat i onal (Le.. wi th or i l i a and headquarters 10 the \le.te rn world) . It l.i"a11y H . t ed 3.68 1 ttGOa of ""ie . oa ly 601 (Le •• 16.~ per C Dt) - til!
a . .lle l t &~t en co-pare d vit A..aia aDd La iD "-tiea - had a baae In Afr i e a. !!1 The fina l lia t inel ud •• 100 a.
of whic h It .~f" only 38 ar e e Ie ee y . Dd diu'et ly Inyo l ve d tn the ruta de ve lo~n t of Africa. 261
I f one ee to take t e figur.. a quot ed a ve •• d o usl,
•• repre.entative tDdlc.~ o r~ of the au . r of MCO t~ ~fri a.
then ooe uld cone lode tha t the NCO ~ve ae nt and i~voly aer.t In Hrte. rura l de.,elo ~n is, firat, 10 tta hf cy ad .eeond, a poet- 1960 phen~non . Sue t. th e con. .qu.nc~ or iapllcation of li a1 t i nl one.elf to the fo~ll .ed a, wi t h headquarterl iD or around the capltal . le t t l • of At r i ca. vtth tbe nand,rd paraphernalia. which aay ea . the proce•• of acqulrinl legal enttty . and of official recolnttton at ha.e and abroad but by th e • • • token sufftcient to b alienatf'd fro. the lar l ely illiterate rur a l Af r i can .. One need. to guard ala i ne t lueh ~.le.dtng. if not, .elf-d~preci .ttnl
eeee Iuetee,
Thele luide lin e . . .int a i n th at the NCO. in ru r a l Africa pre-date the eaerlence of sovereig n .tat e l , i nce the .i xtiel . with national bo undariel. flags, anthe. l. con . t i t u t ion and lIeabenhip of the United Nationa Organlutlon. Part I hal noted a ee l ec t lilt of ch e e , their act i v i t le l and contrlbutiona in the aurvival and development of the runl area. of Africa. they have different na.ea and
intereata/apeclality. but function on th e princi ple of reciprocity and loUdarity and of shared afflue nce and/or aUlurlty. They ha ve bee n and will con ti nue to reuln r he b.l . or backbone of the self-relia n t end IUltalneble part ic i pat ory rura l deve lopment of Afr ica. Thele
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n Lz 10 s n ed to be saved against possible erosion of r it it y in the face of re ur ge nc of t e unbridled
.i e cono ic phi 0 ophy.
itie provide t e
p elop ent, To illu
pIe:
n . ..
n t th k.pellethe dl cu Ion of ny erlou the opinioD 0 th youDge nd pa se
unt 1 all opi Ion ve be n
r 1 u r of
I rue 1 S zi1. d ri ca Inde d ha £1
o ue atloD In d cision-
con equenti 1 activities . e a , t her ore, i intr odu ci ng a participator y concept of develo e t
feguardi g g in t t e ost > eve nti e s ' prop n in ect in cu ture 0 si lence an p s ve obe dience . org
th 1 I
Dis og fir s t and fore t ro l of Afric GO therefore, t actively c 1 iv e an nur e t e Afrl c n
ti on of di 10 The dialogue , lik. charit , beg i n at nd c n logi all y be ext de d to fa U y, vil lag nd o th • 30 / ialogue , in the pr sent cont xt h to be rply d ffer ent i ate fro t rLl e de ate or inte 1 c ual e Di og 1 construc t i v and inteDde 0 ener te 1ect tho ght, exper i e nce and ide s by encour ging no n- ie r rchi 1 disc asion or re f e ti n 0 ei her find an solut on to a g ven pr oblem or t ~en r t ideas ocle ta l pr gre or we l f a r e. Di og e, een and has 0 be sction-orie nte d.
To be action-orie te d , dial o gue , however pro l or t i e cons u ng , ust lead to consensu . In the initi al st ge of dialo gue , there may be conflic ting views 1 t er re g rding the ends propose d to be achieve d or the an intend to be adopt ed 0 both. But, in t e spirit of u u cc mod tio n and co promi e, it shou ld be pos ib l e to econcile the di f re ce s and ar rive at cons ens us. ons nsu , howe v r , should at e equated ith una i i ty or yrany 0 the jority. here y be ODes dif f renc e of op nion re g rding e end s a eans or both. r the r ay e agr e nt reg rding the ends b t di erence about the
- 22 -
propoled .ea nl. Such diff e r e nc e hal to be reapected In any pertlclpuory proce ' l of develo~nt. Sial larl,.~ the voice of dh l e a t -.a.at aho re.pec t the ",leVI of the . .jor lt y and le t it pre"" 11 . . II taplied in the rura l Liberia' , traditi on DOted u r-lier .
Priorit,: t i t e ej eeeee ry priaclDle 0' econoalci that natl are ualla1tet! t reaaurc•• ,re Icarce to . e t th Rence. oDe ed. to optia1ze ee eeure ut I l1zat on by elloeatins tb ea bet en coaflict1nc d. . . od, 10 that COlt and ret ural vtll equate at tbe . .rgin. In order to do ee , the vant l viLI have to be prio riti zed thin a t i _ f ra.. . 70 be able to do 10. It pr e,upol el Inter al la. luto n o . ~ of jod le. .ne , It 11 thh autonoay ru r d Atrlca - or rather 'frici - bot h r ral or urba n - waa rob~d of dur lnl Itl dar k da yl of colonial rule. A propen ll ty wa. in d u c e d in the continent to produce ~hat it doea no t co n .u~ and to conlU. . what i t doe. not prcd u c e, It 11 th ta pro penli ty , b-:l1de l other facto ra . which led to decl1 nl oa food lelf-au ! ft c l ..nc, In the contln~ t and ru ral de:ertorat i on In It
11 /
line ~he.Id-I,,"'eotlel. Clve n the price trend in the internAt 1l... 1a l aarket for Afric an prlury pr odu c ta , the pro.pect cf ' e continent'a rec o", e r y by tr.de of ltl tra ditio nal es ~o
productl . let alone d.velo~nt , in the cur :-e n t decade and pOllibly beyond, II Ilaply not eoc o u r a g l Rl.
Re n e e, the ·Af r l c a n NCO. have a relponalbUit,. to eort
ou t the continent'a development pri o r i t y. Let it be c1~ar a . tagnan t and aid-dependent Afric a starl, cannot provide the eeeeeere base and atabiltty for Its ru r a l developaen t . So, the Af r i c a n NCOa need to ask what we re t~e pri or iti e l of the continent in pr e - colo nia l dayl end, liven enligh ted environ. .nt, educ a t ion and opt i on , what the y will be for molt rural Afrlcanl of to- da y. the ans~e r to such questi on . .y be obvioua: satilfaction of basic need s, of whi c h hunger II the mo s t pressing and potentially exp Ios Ive, But, the obvi ous anawer hal not be en ao obvious and binding to thoae, who have been in charge of nat i onal economy and to thOle who ha . had ve.ted Interest . in the production of the esport crops at coet of the cere a l s.
So, th e African NCOI' - both Infor. . l and for. . l one I - ro l e trill be not only to prioritize the deve lopDl'nt a l loa "
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but a1.0 to create and sustain an enab1ine c11 . .te to go by the orde r of priority. The info rw.ll l NCO. have an advantage In this ree a rd. their .eabers are ri.ht in the field and are eithe r direct beneficiaries or vicUa. of . . . y. food se l f - su f f i c ie nc y. b.cked by adequate purcha.ing power or lack of either or bot~. So. their act ton and re-action wtll han decislye i.pact sinc e they are the ones who are pri.ary produce r. . The offic e - bea r e rs of the (or. . l. st r uc t ur e d MCGs are leDerall, not Yilt.ger s or f.~r. the . .elves . vho ploulh the land and produce. 5ut , they . ., be able to enab lhh dialolue wit h Con'rnaen t u c h i ne r i ea at "ari ous Leve Ie and
their ite coll a r ch ll servants and con.,inc thea to eo aloas with the pr io r it ie s of the ru ral people .nd suppo n thea with .. coapliaentary pack.se of . aay. credit. tnputa.
storace and ~r\eting intelligence.
The aa.e appliea to other eleaents of baatc needs, viz•• ahelter. clothing. sah drinking vater, literacy and functional education. _dlcal hcll1tlel. ObI! could add on to the li.t. lut. at the Inittal .tace of rural de.,elo~nt
one has to be aelecti.,e keeping tn .lev:
(1) res uur ce constratnts.
(Ii) i.ple_atatlon capaci t, and (iii) the need for sust.inabilit,.
At thl. st.Ce of developaent . east of it wil l be car r ied out b, rural people thea s e l ves. It wi l l gen er a lly be labour intensive. Thi. has been the tradition anyway . Let us re c og ni ze developaent or soc ie t a l change in the rur a l sector ha. been taking place long before the eme r ge nce of post-sixties ecveref gn nat ton sta tel and Ua te et ruceue e e, Sel f He lp effor ts and Groups are vibrant in Africa and con t i nue to play , outside the Government st r uc t ure , a vital rol e in de vel oping the rural sect or eve n to-day. In fact, if one were to ta ke inventory of the rur al pe opl e in lt iated development of say, infrastruct u re like feeder road s, primar y schools. wells and recreational faclltties, one may be in for plessant surprise. So much has been done by the. unnoticed, unrecorded and without stretching and turning their pales up.
Thh 18 self-evident if one notices the t tee, collective labour. Indigenous techno logy and ri sk, which were involved
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in I~adual evolut ion f~o. hun t ing, to shi f ti ng cult i va tion to uttled .g~ i c u ltu r e and around it forsat i on of ha. l ets/vill a ge- a. The need to re s pond to the challe nge of the- change in un-l and ra t i o. inner de. ire to graduate f~o.
riaky, aho~t and luba l a t enc e-o ri e nt e d life to a hilhp.r level , the benefit of aceu_alat ed wi.do_. whi c h one generation pUlled on to anot h e r and the creatiwe ine enuity are aa.e of the f.acton ....hlc h contri :Ited are con t ri bu t i ng to the autona.ous develo~Q t of the rural sector.
In th i a autone-ous process of developaent . the rur a l peo pl e and their Info~l organ~z.tions re both the prlury , i f DOt ecte , acton and bene ftc fe rtee, The,. decided the ir ova pri o r i t y. They ha d no technica l aa s i. t a nce . fordgn aid or loveltarnt pr oj e c t s fr o. out dde. The word 'outlide' in the presen t context .eana and includes the follovlng:
(i) Ce n t r.l Covern.en t or an,. author i t y . aituated be old a ce rtaIn distance or boundary, de ..nd ing loya l t y ,od
•• kinl for ta x . The transport urdle va. great, .a .... a. the co••unic.t 1o n gap. The auth or ity of t~.
ce n t ral love rneen t hard
I,.
re ac ~ed. An extende fa.i l ,., a cla n or tr 1be vas the de facto authority or governee nt a~ it i. even to-day:(i 1) for ••li.e~ NCOa ....ith legal entity, eyeD if they ar @ indige nous. The y ai.ply did not exist 1n Africa until very rece ntLy, The H.a. gr ou ps , the Song-taa ba , tbe ~-t a aba of Burkina Paao, the tontines of Ca .~ roo~ . the lbi.in. of Rwanda, fo~
exaaple. were and a~e active, although info~l, NCOs of Africa, whIch symbolize ~ura l Africa's felt needs, pri o r i t i e s and the mec han is m to collect ively meet them;
(i l l) the multI-bilatera l technic a l alsi,t a nce or donor agencies. wi t h no roots in rur al Africa.
Self-reliant development: Africa. especiall y the di.advantaged .eg.~nt of it6 rural popul ati on, has been re a p i ng the bitter harveat of ita priority dtLe. . . and of loft opt ion in favou r of de pe nden t deveLcpeenr, The.cst
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i.portant leiIon of the eighties II that develop-ent hal to be aut hentic and .elf-reliant. This ee an. It r i c t adherence to prioritiel al der ive d by conl e n6U' . The NCO. - fo r aa l and inforaal - have a role to play In thtl di re ct i on.
The Inforaal CO. of Africa . .y re iad the rur . l population thet oat er Daae for de.elo~nt 11 deferred
•• tilfaction. One has to 'ow before ee e can reap the ha !'v e e• It h•• bee I long haul fa'" to progn •• froe Do. .drc teat life to ... UlagizatioQ . 04 thla v.. achieved folloving the prlaet~le of 10114arity and reclprGClty.
De.elo~nt did DOt end wit .UlalUaUoo doce i t i. a ee ve r-endinl path. t i. • Doruti.... Icenarlo of de .lo~nt, if rea l t se d , t5 a . . pertod ta-.or rov, to .ave forvard and iaprove t e qaalit, of Itf.. ural Africa al a 100' wl Y to Co elt er to atta i n aa.e parIty vith urban Afri ca or c parabUlt, vlt h rural OntarIo of C.nada . Helice, the rur a l population , vith theIr coll ecti.... eff ort•• h... to kee p 00 bulldlaa at • rare .ufficientl y hll er- than tha ute of grovth of popul. tiOG , which 11 rather hil aDd unli kel , to Itablli le 10 the &hort ruD.
Th. foraal Itructured NCO•• belDC leneral1, urban-based aad better inforM!d .y:
Ca) build up a lobb, aroulld ••rloul declaratlonl of intent by Covero. .nts, endorse-ent of resolutionl a~d reportl on rural develop.ent aad stated objectiv.1 in favour of development, vlth equity in National Planl. CThere i ' hard 1, an, . . .ber-State in Africa. which II not on record co-.itting itself to rural .tructural transforaation and developaent).
(b) au ch • lobby Ihould widely spread!dhse.inate In local languagea the substance of Ca) above in the rural areas And amonglt any other interested or ayepe thet Ic group (Uke Itudent., with rural background or parentage) to plead for tranlfer of re.ources In the rural .ector. Let u. remember knowledge 11 potential power. Host of tha rural popUlatiOD ai.ply do not know what their righta and antitle.ents are, what t. pledged or coamitted in their na.e and what is received (in grant) or borrowed ostensibly for their benefit.
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The, do not know wh, the, have a per capita foreign debt of
$480 or why they have to suffer adverse consequence. of the Iretton Wood-institution prescribed Structural Adju8t.ent or wh , the, nand effectivel,. disenfnnch18ed. The proposed activity at this point in tiae 8hould be educatloDal and Uaited to consclenthatioo for good reason. Rural Africa, t f educated . . .,. be psychologically and othervhe. read, to
"petition" but not agitate. The latter course needs, besidea knowledge. disclpUo.ed orgaol%atioo. with vide support and willingness to face the initial consequences.
(c) an enabling and info~d cli . .te Iradual ly build up In fsvour of austsin.ble develo~nt. wi t h transf oraa tion of the rural lector as the core.
(d) in the process of rura l transfor.ation there should be linkage and collaboration between iaforaal and fo raa ) ncos
for:
(i) transfer of appropriate technology to rsise far.
productivitYi
(11) provision of credit vtthout cohesive groups of rural inco-e -generatlng act i vi tie s and life; aDd.
ucurl ty to . . .U people both for for con ti ngenci es of
(iii) fo r. .tlon of se pa ra t e Or l801& 8t loo to dea l wit h con t en ti ous Je eues , like land relo na, vo-en'.
i nherlrenee righ t to l8nd and prope r ty and i .ple.entation of Afric an Charter on Baaan and Pe o p l e' s Rights , of the Uni ve rs al Declarati o n of Human Rights of 1948 and of ILO ' . convention No. 87
con cern ing Preedoe of Ass ociation and Protection of the Rig ht to Or gan i ze. However, caut i on is warranted in th is rega rd . One may have to mark for ti me. gai n economic strength and or gani za t ional spread ri gh t at the village level and amongst those, who have not hi ng to lose eK~ept their institutionalised ha ndi ca ps and chains. It is prud ent to bargain froc a position of strength.
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