Resources

As part of the special 50th issue of PLA Notes, this article reaffirms the fundamental value of participatory work in supporting people to gain the confidence and capacity to change their realities. The authors explore these issues through the perspective of sexual and reproductive well-being and rights, looking at lessons learnt and exploring ways in which practitioners are addressing the new challenges thrown up in changing environments. The key issues addressed in the article are participatory HIV prevention and case work in a time of crisis; sexuality, poverty and development; participation, sexuality and gender; and whose agenda counts in participatory planning. The authors conclude by looking at new directions and possibilities for sexual health and well-being, focusing on the potential of a rights-based approach to think about the importance of enabling everyone to enjoy the right to make their own sexual and reproductive choices, the right to safe and satisfying sexual relationships and the right to choose when and whether to have children. The challenge ahead appears to be how to use participatory methodologies to bring about the transformations in practice that can really begin to enable women and men to realize their sexual and reproductive rights. Recognising that participatory approaches need to be used sensitively and used well, such approaches can be a powerful weapon in the struggle for rights.

In a brief article, the author talks about an exercise used at a skills building workshop in Bangkok, on ethical guidelines for involvement of HIV positive women in research. The workshop had a wide mix of participants including people from NGOs and universities, HIV positive women, lawyers and pharmacy staff. The participants broke into small groups, and then discussed a set of quotes prepared by the facilitators. The exercise went well, and the author describes how several participants had "aha!" moments in talking through the quotes and the issues. Perhaps the quotes were successful because they could be adapted for different contexts, and because the quote spoke to experiences the participants themselves could relate to.

The article looks at the challenges and strategies of a partnership for health that was formed in 1998 in Saidpur and Parbatipur municipalities in Northern Bangladesh. Under the Child Survival Programme (CSP), a partnership was formed between Concern, 2 municipal authorities and 24 ward health committees. The overall goal of the CSP is to reduce maternal and child mortality and morbidity, and increase child survival by developing a sustainable municipal health service. The article looks at issues of partnership, and how a meaningful partnership was a difficult achievement in this case and had to be reconstructed after initial failures. The authors describe processes used to assess the capacities of the partners, to design the programme, and the overall achievements of the CSP. The article concludes by outlining future challenges, lessons learnt and implications for building sustainable health-promoting partnerships in development.

This report looks at participatory appraisal (PA) methodology that is designed to involve people, particularly from communities that are socially excluded, in decisions that affect their lives. PA was originally developed with rural communities overseas, and has only recently started being used in the UK. This report summarises the findings from an evaluation of the use PA in a series of workshops looking at health issues in Scotland. It also introduces PA and looks at what it is, is not, and what it can achieve. Taking examples from the projects themselves, and using the voices of those involved in the processes, the report demonstrates how PA can be used in community and agency decision-making. It also shows what is learned by the community, by the organisations involved, and by decision-makers. The report is grouped into 9 key areas: Scotland, health and poverty; introduction; what is participatory appraisal; PA in action in an urban setting; what difference does PA make; good practiceùit is didn't work, then it wasn't PA; ways forward; useful contacts; and a checklist for communities, organisations and decision-makers.

The HIV/AIDS epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa is disproportionately affecting and infecting women and girls who themselves face a host of cultural, social, economic and political factors that obstruct the realisation of their rights, further fostering their risk and vulnerability. This paper discusses two participatory learning and action methodologies that were used were used in a project working with Maasai communities in Northern Tanzania. Entitled æA Gender Issue: reducing the vulnerability of girls to HIV/AIDSÆ, it aimed to explore factors contributing to womensÆ and girlsÆ vulnerability to HIV/AIDS, facilitating discussions to create understanding in the community and identifying strategies to reduce risk and vulnerability. The majority of the paper is given over to the description of the gender matrix activity, describing itÆs six steps and how to adapt it for children. Drawing activities with children are also looked at and finally the author discusses the effectiveness of these methodologies.

This brief report documents the process of introducing participatory appraisal into the management of the La Verna Housing Association, which is based in central London and includes tenants suffering from AIDS. In preparation for a review of the services provided the association decided to adapt a participatory appraisal approach, considering that the association only has twelve tenants and four staff. Five workshops were undertaken defining what services are important to the users and why; which services to prioritize for re-assessment and improvement; and three sessions with joint planning and action. Participatory methods were applied to facilitate the workshops, such as Venn diagrams, matrix scoring and timelines. The report brings up some of the main lessons learnt from the process, non-tenant perspectives, staff-perspectives, and impacts. It is concluded that the approach was helpful in letting staff reaffirm priority areas of work in balance with tenant needs. It also brings up issues leading up to the appraisal, and potential problems of staff feeling that a participative approach could threaten their status as expertise.