Skip to main content

The Communication for Development Approach and Challenges

Image
By
The ComDev model aims to deal with the imperative problem of lack of participation of the poor in their own development. ComDev involves comprehending the culture and beliefs that shape the life of people…







Communication for Development (ComDev) involves a participatory communication approach that aims to harness the goals, effects and sustainability of development projects, allowing for knowledgeable decision making, information sharing, stakeholders awareness and engagement. ComDev is needed to introduce more inclusive communication services by associating participatory approaches that employ media and digital solutions that can be used by farmers and rural communities.

The ComDev model aims to deal with the imperative problem of lack of participation of the poor in their own development. ComDev involves comprehending the culture and beliefs that shape the life of people, their values and immediate surroundings. The ComDev approach also involves engaging communities and its members as they identify problems, propose solutions and participate in undertaking development projects that may improve their life and the community as a whole [1].

In most developing countries, this lack of participation is mainly due to a combination of factors, one of which is the inadequate flow of information on problems that affect the poor. Lack of information, caused by inadequate Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) infrastructures specially in remote areas of developing countries, which may lead to lack of capacity and chance to express the people and the community’s views on public policy discussions.

Some scholars, however, have expressed the need for trained facilitators for the ComDev method, claiming that trained facilitators are key in spreading the success of participatory methods. These facilitators may be village or community leaders who have developed the necessary knowledge to catalyze community members to address a specific issue and to develop collective measures. Trained facilitators in the participatory planning processes can likewise be able to smooth out the progress of the planning of community development projects [2].

Other scholars [3,4,5] underscored another challenge that is being faced by the ComDev approach in developing countries: the influence of politics in the identification and, most specially, in the prioritization of projects. Thus, even if a particular community has been able to use the participatory approach in planning a community development project, its implementation may depend mainly on the priorities and biases of the local and national politicians.

Another important concern that needs to be addressed by the ComDev approach is the need for more effective decentralization reforms that may allow substantial functions and powers to local government units (LGUs) in order to facilitate and widen the LGUs access to national level resources that may, in turn, allow them to fund and coherently sustain development projects that are undertaken using the participatory processes. 
 


Web References:


[1] UNICEF .org. (n.d.). Communication for Development. UNICEF https://www.unicef.org/cbsc/

[2, 3] Imperial Jr. D., (n.d.). Introducing Participatory Planning Practices with Local Governments: A Philippine Case Study. In FAO Corporate Document Repository. Decentralized Rural Development & the Role of Self-Help Organization. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/docrep/004/ac158e/ac158e0f.htm

[4] Ravanera Jr. D., (n.d.). Introducing Participatory Planning Practices with Local Governments: A Philippine Case Study. In FAO Corporate Document Repository. Decentralized Rural Development & the Role of Self-Help Organization. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/docrep/004/ac158e/ac158e0f.htm 

[5] Alicias, M. D., (2011). Decentralization and Local Participatory Development Experiences from Cambodia and the Philippines. Paper for the ‘South to South Forum on Sustainability’. Lingnan University, Hongkong. Retrieved from http://commons.In.edu.hk/cgi?article=1066&context=southsouthforum







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

4 Basic Types of Communication

By
Communication is a constant part of everyday life and when it occurs it is always one or a combination of the four basic types of communication… It is always a must to bear in mind that whenever you are writing a verbal report on malnutrition to be disseminated among local government officials or doing fieldwork among farmers in the rural areas, communication is always a combination of the 4 basic types of communication. Knowledge of the types of communication can facilitate you in planning a communication campaign, its implementation and most of all, in the evaluation of how communication efforts are going. Mastering these can also prevent misunderstanding and can help build strong personal and professional relationships with other individuals. The four basic types of communication are the following: . Verbal communication - it happens when an individual talk to another individual or a group of people. With the onset of the information and communication technologies (ICTs) verbal com...
Post a Comment
Read more

Definition of Communication in the 21st Century

By
Communication is the “exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or information by two or more people”. This exchange can happen via the written word, verbal or even by gestures… Communication came from the Latin word “communicare ” meaning “to share” or “to be in relation with”. “Communicare”  is a derivative of the word “commune” (“cum” = common or of the community and “munies” = office, appointment or task, responsibility) which means “someone who takes responsibility for the community”.  The Latin word “communicare”, therefore,  denotes more than an exchange or transmission of information between one person to another. It is a social expression, which main goal is to prioritize values at the service of the community or for a cause. It is not enough to express, write or produce audiovisual media to communicate, but communication only happens when the information or message being transmitted is understood and is used to create knowledge among people. In the modern world, Willia...
Post a Comment
Read more

Importance of Communication Models in Communication Campaigns

By
Communication models, approaches and theories are valuable because they are employed as a framework in the design of a communication campaign… Communication models are conceptual models used to explain and describe human communication . Communication models, approaches and theories are the foundation around which communication practitioners build ideas on how to effectively transmit the message they would like to convey to the target audience. Communication models and approaches facilitate the work of communicators because they provide ideas on how individuals react to different types of communication stimulus, and they offer ideas on possible consequences that may result when participants in a communication process employ a communication style or shift to another communication style. Communication models and approaches likewise provide practitioners an idea on how to obtain engagement, collaboration and participation from the target audience in order to achieve communication goals. ...
Post a Comment
Read more