Section 3: Reference Materials

Reference #1: Concept of Community Development

Community Development

The concept of community development includes two elements: the element of “community” and the element of “development.”

A community is a group of people that are connected by common ties or interests. These common ties may be geographic (e.g., people live in the same locality or district), economic (e.g., the farming community), or social (e.g., the dalit community).

The term “development” encompasses three fundamental elements: 1) change; 2) improvement; and 3) sustainability. (See Gender and Development Module, Module #3 of Training Package #1).

• change, i.e., something new or different is introduced
• improvement, i.e., the change is for the better
• sustainability, i.e., the change or improvement is ongoing, not a one time occurrence.

Community development is thus the process of improving, on a sustained basis, the economic and social conditions for a group of people that form a community.

Participatory Community Development

Participatory community development emphasizes the participation of community members in the community development process. It focuses on the effective participation of both women and men in order to develop local capacity for sustainable, self-development. This includes learning to analyze and mobilize local resources, and to identify, explore and create opportunities that improve the quality of life for all community members.

Gender and Community Development

Incorporating gender issues into the community development process is now widely recognized as essential for sustainable development. Both women and men are seen as the primary focus and real owners of the development process. Therefore both men and women, including disadvantaged groups of men and women, must be actively involved in making decisions about development activities. This requires organized efforts to bring disadvantaged groups of women and men into the development process.

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