Resources

Describes the use of PRRA (Participatory Rural Research on AIDS) to mobilise communities against HIV infection in Kenya. PRRA is a modified form of PRA to which were added other techniques. The approach is intended to reveal gaps in knowledge, attitudes, risky practices and beliefs which villagers have the potential to change without a huge resource input. It is used to assist villagers finding out what stops them from protecting themselves and others from becoming infected with the AIDS virus, so they can look at solutions and plan to prevent the spread of AIDS within the community.

This article shares the author's experiences in promoting gender equality in the æSupport to Generation and Transfer of Agricultural Technology ProjectÆ (PRODETEC) in Nicaragua. They represent important lessons for gender sensitive participatory diagnosis and are applicable to other organisations. The article presents the background to the project, and its two main approaches: farming systems and gender. Rapid gender analysis was carried out at the start of the project and this explored the broad differences between male and female production systems. This is followed by a participatory diagnosis during the planning process phase. The article stresses the need for gender equality in the project, especially in participation in decision making. It offers practical tips on when and how participation may happen. It also offers a clue to increasing female participation as discussion by separate men and womensÆ groups. In conclusion, the article advises that a high or low profile gender approach should be adopted according to what is appropriate and sensitive to the context.

The paper is on using participatory action research to identify the research needs of street children. The paper mentions the difficulty faced by the authors in starting research with children, since prior to that there had not been any research in which children had been actively involved in all stages of research. The authors started a series of workshops and seminars that helped in setting goals and priorities for the research programme with street children. Also, a dialogue was started with people who were in constant dialogue with children. It was realised that there was a huge gap between children and the experts who work with them, and that this could only be closed through on-the-job training of street educators. The paper discusses the design of a project to meet this need, and the training of the street educators. It mentions that children and educators are sources of knowledge and have their own tools which they use in understanding the world.