Resources

This paper describes the work of YAKSHI, a small NGO in Andhra Pradesh, with an independant tribal peoples' mass organisation. REFLECT was only introduced after suport was given to reactivate a declining indigenous system of community interaction known as the 'Gotti'. The Gottis facilitated the introduction of participatory methodologies associated with REFLECT and ten REFLECT circles started focussing on two issues identified as local concerns : challenging the cash crop economy and looking holistically at health. In each community only a certain number of adults chose to learn literacy which in many other circumstances would have been seen as a failure. However, the article describes how participants perceived it differently, saying that it was only necessary for so many people in the community to be literate, just as it was only necessary for a few households to be able to climb palm trees to tap valuable oil. Promoting participation of women in the Gottis proved difficult initially and the paper outlines the way in which this was addressed.

An assessment of the reproductive health education pack called 'Auntie Stella' used in Zimbabwe's secondary schools. The authors measure the impact of 'Auntie Stella' and draw on lessons learnt from its use and the use of PRA in reproductive health education.

The dominant and traditional view of the general public is that they have very little understanding of science and technical knowledge. In this brief article, the authors argue that this view should be challenged and participatory methods used, in order to involve the public in informing science policy and health care practice. Ideally, the divide between expert and lay knowledge should be eroded. The article focuses particularly on the new genetic technologies and describes a case study concerning the use of focus groups in investigating the 'social impact of the new genetics'. The potential of focus groups and the highly relevant 'lay expertise' that emerged is discussed as well as some of the obstacles to be overcome. The authors warn that, with citizen participation comes ambiguity, ambivalence and tensions that need to be explored rather than simply searching for the most straightforward 'yes' or 'no' answer.

The Uganda Participatory Poverty Assessment Process (UPPAP) is an initiative of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MFPED). Its overall aim is to bring the voices and perspectives of poor people into policy formulation, planning and implementation by central and local governments. A first participatory poverty assessment (PPA1) was carried out in 1998/99 in 36 research sites in nine districts. Its findings were used to inform policymaking. This book details the second PPA (PPA2) which has now been implemented, with two main aims: to deepen the understanding of poverty and poverty trends gained in the first PPA; and to investigate people's experiences with selected government policies. Research was carried out in 60 research sites in 12 districts. Work was undertaken in three phases, or 'cycles', between November 2001 and May 2002. The research was undertaken by seven partner organisations - NGOs or research institutions - working with local researchers, usually from the district administrations, and the overall coordinating and implementing agency was Oxfam GB. The book includes sections on: the Uganda participatory poverty assessment process; poverty, vulnerability and poverty trends; livelihoods and the plan for the modernisation of agriculture; environment and poverty; health and poverty; water and sanitation; education; taxation; and good governance and poverty reduction.

The article, as part of the special 50th issue of PLA Notes, provides a general reflection on participatory development from a gender perspective and looks to future challenges. The article begins by laying out the case for a focus on gender issues, and then discusses the tensions between gender perspectives and participation. Some of these tensions include the myth of community; space, time and opportunity for participation (these can often be limited or determined by gender roles within a community); gender and policy processes; womenÆs participation and the role of the facilitator or change agent. Some of the achievements in using participatory methods in a gender responsive way include sexual and reproductive health (such as the Stepping Stones program), literacy and adult learning (such as Reflect), and linking the local to the national (such as the Self Employed Women's Association in India). The author also identifies some of the challenges for participatory development if it is to be equitable: it fundamentally has to deal with gender-based oppression. Some of the key points addressed include the impact of liberalization and privatization on women's participation in the public sphere and the linkages and disconnects between individual values and institutional change. Overall, the author highlights, from a personal perspective, some achievements and lessons and discusses the common challenges ahead in the current global context, for advocates of both participatory development and gender equality.

This paper report a workshop of a child health programme in Honduras. Previous attempts to keep health diaries to record illness, and how illness was treated within families and communities had failed. Workshop participants were rural illiterate women. The aim of the workshop was to take a case history of children under five years and to record both illness and developmental milestones over the previous 12 months. The women were first asked to draw pictures to represent each month of the year. Below each picture they were asked to draw what happened to their child during that month. This was followed by a discussion to explain the drawings. The paper discusses some of the problems the women had in drawing these calendars, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the technique. One of the strengths is that the technique enables the women to explore patterns of illness and analyse them, drawing on the knowledge acquired by their participation in the programme.