Public Good or Private Gain - 11 November 2004

Dr Vishaka Hidellage

Public involvement in decision-making

Stories of encouragement from South Asia and challenges

Background

The importance of public participation and the need to institutionalize participation to move towards sustainable development had been highlighted internationally through various declarations. Rio Declaration (1992) on Environment and Development for example, was signed by more than 100 heads of State. Communities act to elect, and then are governed without active interaction with their representatives seems to no longer adequate to the concept of modern representative democracy. Participation is expected to energize the democratic system and result in more transparent government actions, clarified responsibilities of people involved, reduced corruption etc.

Democracies in South Asia hold 22% world population who have voting rights but little or no voice in between elections. The poor are usually severely marginalized, remain outside mainstream of development and face hardships due to lack of pro-poor policies, priorities and institutions. The countries have internal and cross border conflicts and saddled with criminalized politics, ineffective political parties, local governments, national parliaments, civil society and civil service which pose barriers to disciplined economy and accountable governance. Participation is generally taken as a "politically correct" add-on to counter international pressures.

The countries have prioritised macro economic and infrastructure improvements to attract large foreign investment needed in their struggle to adopt internationally competitive production systems. The needs of poor & marginalised have little or no influence over their national science and technology priorities. Scientists and technologist themselves who spend years of achieving academic excellence are not oriented to respect people's technologies and their knowledge systems, therefore place no value on consultation/participation. Poor powerless, continue to struggle to meet their basic needs. Technologies, knowledge systems and resources that helped them to survive years are gradually removed and replaced with modern and "efficient" systems which they have little control over.

Stories of encouragement

1. Watershed management experience from India

Common property resources (CPRs) has multiple use and competing users. Water, for instance is an economic importance, but it also has social and religious sanctions and incentives for management. The farmers gather before the Goddess Chandi built near the head of the canal to decide on maintenance chores and rotation sequences. Any violation of the rules fixed in the Temple is unimaginable. The claim over resources through rights is not static or stable, but is negotiated by a combination of social, political, and ecological claim-making strategies. Community-based resource management systems were efficient in that they followed rules and patterns of behaviour geared towards self-sustainability.

Water scarcity, land & soil degradation, floods and droughts and related of productivity that devastate India forced looking for alternatives. Participatory watershed management (PWSM) emerged as a new paradigm for planning development and management of land, water and biomass resources with new watershed policy passed in 1994 Ministry of Rural Areas and Employment. Government was responsible for the programme delivery, and NGOs were development facilitators. The National Watershed Development Programme and Farmer Managed Irrigation System programme of the government have moved significantly from a traditional bureaucratic to a participatory style of functioning. Encouraging results of PWSM projects in India point to technical, economical, social and environmental viability of the approach. Analysis show that participation and social mobilisation, more decentralisation and community empowerment etc. need to be explicitly included in government policy for continued success of future programmes.

2. Revival of Traditional Agricultural Systems in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has a strong tradition of paddy farming and valuable knowledge base which took care of the country's economy and food security. Green revolution and associated improvements in agriculture technologies made farmers shift from traditional to modern methods of cultivation. Today, farmers suffer from chronic problems such as low profit margins, land and soil degradation due intense cultivation, contamination associated unregulated chemical inputs over past few decades etc. This made donors World Bank recommend removal of rural communities from farming and divert them to alternative urban commercial sector employment (PRSP 2001)

An initiative by civil society organisations in late 90s identified handful of farmers who continued to engage in traditional cultivation systems and facing crisis well. In 1998/9, 30 farmers who were keen learn and adopt farming based on traditional systems, were put in touch with the practitioners. Today there are about 20 farmers who changed their practice to from modern traditional have shifted to a viable livelihood but are catering to an unlimited demand. This is due to the high nutritional basis of traditional varieties and organic and environmentally friendly nature of traditional practices. More farmers who are keen to join this practice and informal learning and sharing experiences are taking place. Expansion of this could contribute to overcome problems of the sector and may even force government to recognise alternative. The farmers' network requested ITDGPractical Action to help them scale up this experience and currently strategies are being formulated.

3. Community-managed off grid electricity options for rural Sri Lanka

About 50% Sri Lanka was not electrified in early 1990s. Extending main grid to remote villages was non viable and therefore no plans for communities in these villages were in place. Access to electricity was a priority need by communities and they depended on local politicians' election pledges which never realised. Since early 90s ITDGPractical Action worked with rural communities to seek solutions to this problem. Viable decentralised energy options, that build on their knowledge and technical capacities, such as micro hydro, wind energy and bio gas systems was demonstrated to meet their aspirations. By the late 90s private sector moved into disseminating solar energy systems to rural Sri Lanka. Community participation was a mandatory aspect of currently accepted rural electricity generation and distribution options. There is a wide recognition of usefulness of the approach to meet the needs of rural communities at national level. Provincial governments have formalised the approach readily, and has been a key driving force in wider replication.

4. Community centred rural roads in Sri Lanka and India

Low connectivity and barriers to access/mobility are priority issues of rural communities. ITDGPractical Action with the community was able to highlight their effectiveness as a stakeholder in rural road building due to their extensive knowledge about local weather, geography, dynamics etc. Demonstrations in Sri Lanka and India showed that community can plan, construct and mange contraction and maintenance in coordination with respective local government. Earth and gravel roads they mastered the technology of, meet their basic transport requirements. There is increasing recognition of this technology based approach in Sri Lanka and its complementing nature to other options available at national scale. The ministry of local government train their technical officers and test the technology. Yet, there is a long way to recognition and extensive use such methods while paying community participation, the seriousness it deserves.

Conclusions

Use of science and technology in a decentralised system has responded to the needs of communities and its appropriateness has been determined and enhanced by building on community knowledge and their skills. It brings new actors (including more marginalised like women), new resources, both human and financial, such as the people's contribution, attitude of ownership that contribute more sustainable end result with enhanced accountability and transparency.

Decentralised governments can play important roles in promoting participation. Local and provincial governments are closer to communities than the national and being small bureaucracies, they have more flexibility to adopt pro-participatory changes and become regulators for communities. Their capacity to lobby with national governments can contribute to create positive national institutional framework for participation.

Scientists and technologists (in South Asia) are not used to the concept of community knowledge and skills. Scientists and technologists rarely work on problems of poor and even when they do, the identification of problems and arriving at solutions happen without much dialogue with the users they are oriented to work in isolation and have difficulties in working in participation. An orientation for scientists and technologists to understand the value of participation is required.

Attitude change within the society as a whole is needed if the participation to work for South Asia. Through the education and value systems this needs to be built into the minds of people. Respect for local technologies, knowledge systems of the communities, and methods of dialogue and communication for positive change should be part of curriculum of schools and higher education institutions.

Civil society organisations too should be more capacitated to organise local, provincial and national dialogues as appropriate, but these have to be separated from party politics that dominates in South Asia with the support of professional bodies. Dialogues should aim at moving towards appropriate solutions, rather than criticising government or blaming some party as it currently happens.

It well known that governments do not take this very seriously and use it as an "add on" to comply with international requirements. The donor community too must be serious in respecting pro-poor agendas. Moreover, it has also become necessary that the poor countries of the world be given a space for decision making at international global governance.