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Whose voice? Participatory research and policy change

1998

Abstract

Participatory policy analysis questions conventional policy-making procedures, challenges the behaviour and attitudes of policy makers and influences the style and substance of policy itself. This book examines the implications and issues of participatory policy-focused research through case studies and discussions. One section concentrates specifically on participatory poverty assessments as a means of bringing local poverty and policy analysis into the policy process.

Publisher

Who changes? Insitutionalizing participation in development

1998

Abstract

The book explores the main issues and concerns of development professionals about adapting PRA from micro to macro organisations. It includes a checklist of practical considerations on training, taking projects from pilots and scaling up, changing institutional cultures and procedures and introducing participatory monitoring and evaluation.

Publisher

The rapid appraisal of a knowledge system: the health system of Guarani indians in Bolivia

Authors: 
Laurent Umans
1997

Abstract

Local leaders in south eastern Bolivia identified a rapid decline in the number of traditional healers (payes) and concluded that their indigenous health system was at risk. They commissioned an appraisal of indigenous health knowledge to improve understanding and come up with a plan of action. The article describes the methodology used, including how the people moved from analysis to action plans, and also some of the outcomes of the exercise.

[Introduction to Participatory Poverty Assessments (PPAs)]

Authors: 
Grant, Ursula
Pratt, Garett
1997

Abstract

This paper argues that there are ethical problems raised by the current extractive manner in which PRA has been used in PPAs. The authors suggest that action planning needs to be linked to PPAs to resolve these ethical problems and that this will also improve the quality of the information taken out of the community for policy-making purposes. A case study of the PPA conducted in Shinyanga, Tanzania is presented as an example of where an attempt was made to combine these two objectives. However, an inherent bias towards the objective of extracting information was still present. It is argued that there should be a focus on participatory research linked to local action at all stages of planning, resourcing and implementation of a PPA project.

Roundshaw participatory well-being needs assessment : final report.

Authors: 
Cornwall, Andrea
1997

Abstract

Report of a participatory health needs assessment carried out on the Roundshaw Estate by a team of residents, health, housing and youth service workers, which focused specifically on residents views on well-being on the estate and their suggestions for improving the quality of life there. The report includes a section evaluating and reflecting on the process used, which examines amongst other aspects, reactions of the community members and also the Participatory Appraisal Team to the process.

Political anthropology of Italy in action

Authors: 
Pero, D.
1996

Abstract

In this short article, an anthropologist discovers that a rigorous search for knowledge is better served by participatory action research in which the researcher takes sides in political disputes rather than participant observation in which the ethnographer attempts to be neutral.

The poverty experts : a participatory poverty assessment in Tanzania.

Authors: 
World Bank. Social Policy and Resettlement Division
World Bank. Environment Department
1996

Abstract

This video explores numerous issues surrounding participatory poverty assessments (PPAs), using the example of a PPA in Tanzania. A key issue is the identification of the poor, about which appropriate information is needed to inform government policy. In contrast to traditional surveys of income-poverty, the PPA provides a way to understand poverty from the perspective of the poor and to enable this perspective to influence policy. The importance of the involvement of policy makers in the PPA is stressed at several points in the video. This involvement contributed to chantes in attitudes to the poor within government and a recognition of the need for a corresponding change in government development tactics. The findings of the PPA were presented at policy workshops and contributed to changes in thinking about the nature and characteristics of poverty in Tanzania, as well as more specific policy reforms. The PPA primarily used PRA methods and visual materials developed by local artists in the PPA. The methods shown include, mapping, discussion of well-being, wealth ranking with villagers and district officials, 'story with a gap' and seasonality analysis. Among the highlighted findings of the PPA are that: indicators of poverty are location specific; intangible indicators of deprivation are important; strong gender differences exist in the prioritisation of problems; the poor adapt to seasonality through complex coping strategies. The PPA also revealed that participatory methods could be used to construct time series price data for rural Tanzania, which had not previously existed. The links between the PPA's findings regarding the causes of poverty and the implications for policy are highlighted, including access to land, agricultural policy, lack of production inputs, environmental degradation and access to credit and savings.

Publisher

World Bank

Washington D.C., USA
http://web.worldbank.org

Pages