The document discusses participatory planning in community development, emphasizing the importance of involving local stakeholders in decision-making processes. It outlines definitions, types, advantages, and disadvantages of participation, as well as the levels of citizen participation and steps for effective community engagement. Successful participatory planning not only fosters ownership among community members but also addresses challenges such as time consumption and unequal influence in the decision-making process.

1. LOCAL GOVERNMANT TRANING
INSTITUTE (LGTI)
CDT 06212 :PARTICIPATORY PLANNING
NTA LEVEL 6
FACILITATOR :Ms. BETRIDA .P SINDANO

2. CONTENT ONE:
PARTICIPATORY PLANNING IN
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
INTERVENTIONS

3. SUB TOPICS:
Define the terms planning and participation
Explain the concepts of participatory planning
and participatory development
Explain the evolution of participation in
community development
Explain the types of participation
Describe the levels of participation
Describe the steps of participation

4. What is planning?
Planning is ascertaining prior to what to
do and how to do
Planning is the predetermination of
objectives and course of action to be
taken to achieve defined goals effectively
and efficiently.

5. What is participation?
The term “participation” denotes a
voluntary process by which people,
including those who are disadvantaged
(due to age, poverty, gender, ethnicity or
education) can influence or control the
decision-making processes affecting them
through co-determination.

6. • Participation can also be defined as a process
through which all members of a community or
organization are involved in and have
influence on decisions related to development
activities that will affect them

7. Cont..
• The act or process of participation means
the state of being connected to a larger
whole and the process of participation by
which individuals, groups, partners,
governments, owners and organizations
contribute to a project or program of
activities have the opportunity to actively
participate.

8. Cont..
• Participation is an active process by
which beneficiary or client groups
influence the direction and execution of a
development project.
• Is the process through which local
communities are involved and play a role
in issues which affect them.

9. What is participatory planning?
Participatory planning means to involve
the entire community in the process of
urban or rural planning in order to foster
community development.
The participatory planning approach
emphasizes the participation of local
stakeholders that is, those people who
live and work in the communities that
will be directly affected by the

10. Cont…
Participatory planning empowers local
stakeholders by directly involving them
in the planning process.
A true participatory approach is one in
which everyone's perspective is
considered.

11. During participatory planning everyone's
participation should be welcomed and
respected, and the process shouldn't be
dominated by any individual or group, or
by a single point of view.

12. Cont…
• Participatory planning harmonises views
in a constructive way and deals with
conflict between opposing parties with
the aim to foster ownership by all
participants.
• Unlike other planning processes,
participatory planning makes sure that
marginalized groups have a seat at the
table and can participate in the process on

13. Participatory development
• Seeks to engage local populations in
development projects or programs.
• A process through which stakeholders can
influence and share control over
development initiatives, and over the
decision and resources that affect
themselves

14. PD cont….
• PD seeks to give the poor a part
initiatives/programs designed for their
benefits.
• In the hope that development projects
will be more sustainable and successful
if the local populations are engaged in
development process

15. Advantages of participatory planning
• Participation carries with it feelings of
ownership, and builds a strong base for the
intervention in the community. If people are
integral to the planning of a community
intervention, then that intervention will be
theirs. They have a stake in it not only as its
beneficiaries or staff or sponsors, but as its
originators. They'll do what they can to see
their work succeed.

16. Cont..
• It can bring together and establish ties
among community members who might
normally have no contact. Such
relationships - between low-income
people and business leaders, for instance
- are not only supportive of the
intervention, but may help to create long-
term relationships and break down
barriers in the community.

17. Cont..
• Builds skills and enhances people's
capacity for action and for enriching
their lives. PP teaches skills which last far
beyond the planning process, and can help to
improve the community over the long term.
People learn to run meetings, to analyze
data, to construct strategic plans - in short, to
become community resources and leaders

18. Cont..
• A participatory planning process builds
trust, both between your organization and
the community and among the individuals
involved. This trust can serve as a
foundation for future community
development and community action.

19. • Ensures sustainability of a project/programme
• Important in need assesment.

20. Cont…
• It involves important players from the
outset. If the intervention needs the
support of a particular individual, or that
of a particular agency or group, and
they've been part of the planning from the
beginning, their cooperation is assured

21. Cont…
• It brings effectiveness. The fact that it
includes the views and perspectives of
everyone affected by the intervention
should work to assure that all assets and
needs are identified and addressed, and
that unintended consequences are
minimized

22. Disadvantages of participatory planning
 A participatory process takes longer. A
diverse group always takes longer to
make decisions and come to conclusions
than does an individual or small group
 Some people's opinions may be listened
to more carefully than those of others
which may lead to conflict.

23.  One determined individual can wreck
the whole process if he's not handled
well. Someone who has a particular axe
to grind, or who's convinced that only he
knows what's right for the community can
make a participatory process very
difficult. Handling this situation can take
both tact and toughness.

24. • Education may be needed, for
community members and the
organization. Members of the target
population and the community may not
have important technical knowledge or
experience, and may need to understand
some theory or past practice in order to
see what the organization is trying to do.

25. • Some may need new skills in order to
participate fully in the planning process.
The organization, on the other hand, may
need to learn more about local culture,
political issues, and community history in
order to tailor the intervention to the
community and avoid past errors.
Education takes time.

26. • It may be difficult to assure that all the
right people get to the table. Some key
people may simply not want to
participate.

27. • This may be due to a history of failed
attempts at communication or at dealing
with problems, ignorance of which
groups or individuals are important, or
just basic mistrust may complicate the
task of creating a participatory planning
process.

28. • May be difficult to express feelings.
People have to maintain their
commitment over time, remain civil
while discussing issues about which they
may have strong feelings, and be willing
to compromise. A few misplaced words,
or one or a small number of key people
losing interest can upset the whole
process.

29. Types of participation
Passive Participation (compliance):
• People participate by being told what is going to
happen or has already happened.
• It is a unilateral announcement by an administration or
project management without listening to people’s
responses.
• The information is being shared belongs only to
outside professionals.

30. Cont…
Participation in Information Giving:
 People participate by answering questions
posed by extractive researchers using
questionnaires/ surveys or similar
approaches.
People do not have the opportunity to
influence proceedings as the findings of the
research are neither shared nor checked for
accuracy.

31. • Such a consultative process does not concede
any share in decision-making, and
professionals are under no obligation to take
on board people's views.

32. Participation by Consultation:
• Communities participate by being consulted
or by answering questions.
• Local opinions are asked for, and outsiders
analyse and decide on a course of action.
• External agents define problems and
information gathering processes, and so
control analysis.

33. Participation for Material Incentives:
• People participate by providing resources, for
example labour in return for cash, food or other
material incentives.
• Much on-farm research falls in this category as
farmers provide the fields but are not involved in the
experimentation or the process of learning.
• It is very common to see this called participation, yet
people have no stake in prolonging activities when the
incentives end

34. FunctionalParticipation(co-operation):
• People participate by forming groups to
meet pre-determined objectives related
to the project.
• This can involve the development or
promotion of externally initiated social
organisation.
• Local people work together with
outsiders to determine realities;
responsibility remains with outsiders for

35. • Such involvement does not tend to be in
the early stages of project cycles or
planning but rather after major
decisions have been made

36. • These institutions tend to be dependent
on external initiators and facilitators
but may become self dependent

37. Interactive participation (Co-learning):
• Local people and outsiders share their
knowledge to create a new understanding,
and work together to form action plans,
with outsiders facilitating
• It tend to involve interdisciplinary
methodologies that seek multiple
perspectives and make use of systematic
and structured learning processes

38. • combining two or more academic
disciplines to meet certain objectives or
goals.
• These groups take control over local
decisions and so people have a stake in
maintaining structures or practices.

39. Self -mobilisation (Collective action):
• People participate by taking initiatives
without the influence of external agency
to change systems.
• They develop contacts with external
institutions for resources and technical
advice they need, but retain control over
how resources are used.

40. • Self-mobilisation can spread if
governments and NGOs provide an
enabling framework of support.

41. The resources
of the whole
community
will be used if
community
mobilisation is
successful.

42. Reading assignment
Explain the evolution of participation in
community development

43. LEVELS OF PARTICIPATION
• Participation suggests some degree of
involvement in an activity or an
organisation.
• There are however different levels of
involvement, with some people being at
the centre of activity and decision making
whilst others take a back seat role.

44. • The level of participation therefore relates
to how much power or influence
participants actually have.

45. • Ladder of Citizen Participation was
originally illustrated by sherry arnstein’s
in 1969.
• The Ladder features eight “rungs” that
describe three general forms of citizen
power in democratic decision-making

46. • Nonparticipation (no power), Degrees of
Tokenism (counterfeit power), and
Degrees of Citizen Power (actual power).

47. LADDER OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

48. Levels of participation
I. Manipulation
• This is a form of participation where the
public is “manipulated” into thinking
that public participation is in progress.
• Eg. Having citizen representatives in the
citizen Advisory Committees they are
made to believe that the opinions and
views they give are taken into account
while in real sense they are not.

49. • Also, sometimes certain “advisory groups” are
set up in a neighborhood by Community Action
Agencies that want to demonstrate their
goodwill for the poor by actually letting them
speak
• This is often used when a certain organisation
has to prove that “real people” are involved in a
project which is not even discussed with these
people.

50. • The people are not informed and when
asked to sign their name for a noble
project, they undoubtedly will.
• Often these “noble projects” have
nothing to do with helping less
fortunate groups of people and more
with the (business) interests of official.

51. II. Therapy
• Participation as therapy occurs when
public officials and administrators
“assume that powerlessness is
synonymous with mental illness
• They create pseudo-participatory
programs that attempt to convince
citizens that they are the problem.

52. • When in fact it’s established institutions
and policies that are creating the
problems for citizens.

53. III. Informing
• Arstein’s acknowledged that informing
citizens of their rights, responsibilities, and
options can be the most important first step
toward legitimate citizen participation.
• Its one-way flow of information from officials
to citizens with no channel provided for
feedback and no power for negotiation.

54. • Information may be given through the
media, pamphlets, posters, the internet
• Citizens are forced to accept the
information provided as fact or endorse
the proposals put forward by those in
power.

55. • It is important that the public is informed at an early
stage because if they do not know about projects
and plans on time, it makes it harder to truly get
involved and exercise influence.
• If the citizen is not properly informed then they
cannot truly participate
• Drawbacks of this level of participation are low
quality of the information or superficial information

56. IV. Consultation
• This level is easiest described as “inviting
citizens’ opinions and therefore
“consulting” the citizen in the decision
making or planning process through
attitude surveys, neighbourhood meetings
and public hearings
• Consultation when not combined with
other forms of participation it is simply…

57. ……not enough because just by consulting the
public, there is no guarantee that “citizen
concerns and ideas will be taken into account.

58. V. Placation
• At this level citizens actually begin to
have some influence, though usually in
far from optimal situations.
• Participation as placation occurs when
citizens are granted a limited degree of
influence in a process, but their
participation is largely or entirely
tokenistic (only done in order to show
that you are including people but not in a

59. • citizens are merely involved only to demonstrate that
they were involved
• Eg. An example of placation strategy is to place a few
hand-picked ‘worthy’ poor on boards of Community
Action Agencies or on public bodies like the board of
education, police commission, or housing authority and
• If they are not accountable they can be easily outvoted.

60. VI. Partnership
• Participation as partnership occurs when
public institutions, officials, or
administrators allow citizens to negotiate
better deals, veto decisions, share
funding, or put forward requests that are
at least partially fulfilled.
• At this rung of the ladder, power is in fact
redistributed through negotiation between
citizens and power holders.

61. • They agree to share planning and
decision-making responsibilities through
such structures as joint policy boards,
planning committees, and mechanisms
for resolving impasses.

62. • PARTNERSHIP with others means acting
together to provide a service.
• By ACTING TOGETHER not only do
different interests decide together what is
best, but also they form a partnership to
carry it out and are equally responsible
for the outcome.

63. VII. Delegated power
• Participation as delegated power occurs
when public institutions, officials, or
administrators give up at least some
degree of control, management, decision-
making authority or funding to citizens.
• At this level citizens hold the significant
cards to assure accountability of the
program to them.

64. • To resolve differences, power holders
need to start the bargaining process rather
than respond to pressure from the other
end.”

65. VIII.Citizen control
• Participation as citizen control occurs
when participants or residents can govern
a program or an institution.
• In citizen-control situations, for example,
public funding would flow directly to a
community organization, and that
organization would have full control over
how that funding is allocated.

66. LADDER OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

67. • 6,7 &8
• At the top rungs of the ladder community
participation is about empowering
citizens, and citizens have increasing
decision-making clout the further up the
ladder you go.

68. • At these levels citizen’s opinions are taken into
account and acted upon,
• They have a direct say in developing
alternatives and identifying preferred solutions
and, at the top of the ladder, they are in a
position to initiate or make decisions
themselves.

69. • Key features include partnership and
collaboration between communities (or
service users) and service providers at
each stage of decision making to ensure
that concerns and aspirations are
consistently understood and considered.

70. 3,4 &5
• At these levels participants have some
involvement in an organisation or
community but others still make the final
decisions. When participation is restricted
to these levels citizens may indeed be
heard, but they lack the power to ensure
that their views will be listened to by the
decision makers.

71. • There is a risk that this involvement may
be tokenistic, or designed to placate
communities, as while they may be
invited to give their opinions or advise,
the final decision is still held by those
who hold decision making power

72. • The bottom rungs are essentially non-
participation as, although people may be
members of an organisation or community,
their involvement is passive and they have no
real say or influence in how it operates.
• Members are expected to go along with the
decisions of others and are usually powerless
to make changes themselves

73. • The ladder of participation suggests that some
levels are always better than others.
• In practice however different levels of
participation are appropriate in different
circumstances and at different stages of a
process.
• What makes the difference is often the
motivation of those leading, or encouraging, the
participation

74. Steps of community participation
SP is a process to raise community’s critical
awareness on its actual situations as well as
self-recognition on its potential for
development and to organize the
community itself for collective actions so
as to fulfill their common need

75. • Identify the issue or problem:
The first step is to identify the issue or
problem that needs to be addressed.
This can be done by conducting a
needs assessment or survey to gather
information about the community's
needs and priorities.

76. • Establish a goal: Once the issue has been
identified and the stakeholders have been
identified, establish a clear goal or
objective for the community participation
process. This goal should be specific,
measurable, achievable, relevant, and
time-bound.

78. Community planning
• Under this stage community members set
goals, objectives and come up with
strategies to achieve them
• Community identify what they can do,
what they have (availability of local
resources and capability) and make plan
by consideration of available resources
• community set duration of the activity
and identify responsibilities of each
stakeholder

80. • It provide opportunity for local people
and other partners to influence different
strategies to achieve the community
objectives

81. Implementation
• This is the stage where the identified and
planed project(activity) is going in to
action
• Community members are main actor
during implementation stage
• People are expected to collectively

84. Monitoring and evaluation
• Monitoring is continuous checking and
reflection to ensure that the activities are
implemented as planned and make necessary
improvement in order to achieve the desired
goal.
• Monitoring is undertaken during
implementation of the project

85. • Evaluation is a process of identifying and
reflecting upon the effects of what has been
done in relation to the target
• M&E involve checking on how project
activities are progressing
• Also involve giving feedback about the
progress of the project to the stakeholders