Workshop with Coastle Communities at Sindh, Pakistan http://struggleforchnge
SOCIAL MOBILIZATION
The Concept of Social Mobilization
The concept of social mobilization emerged from the recognition that a genuine participatory approach to development is essential for success and sustainability. Civil society participation in development efforts is therefore increasingly recognized by development agencies and governments as essential for promoting good governance - improving responsiveness of national policies and programmes to citizens’ needs and ensuring transparency and accountability in policy making and implementation processes. Genuine participation of citizens however, goes beyond dialogue with or contracting a few non-governmental organizations. It must engage all citizens (women and men, in their various capacities, socio-economic status, affiliations and locations) beyond elections to active participation in making decisions that affect their lives. Engaging people requires efforts and mechanisms that can empower all, but most especially the disadvantaged members of society, to participate effectively in development processes.
Social mobilization is an approach and tool that enables people to organize for collective action, by pooling resources and building solidarity required to resolve common problems and work towards community advancement. It is a process that empowers women and men to organize their own democratically self-governing groups or community organizations which enable them to initiate and control their own personal and communal development, as opposed to mere participation in an initiative designed by the government or an external organization.
Effective social mobilization goes beyond community organizations, harnessing the potential and efforts of government, non-governmental sector and citizens to work towards sustainable social, economic and political development. The benefits of social mobilization to community organizations and its impact locally and nationally can be best sustained within an enabling political, policy and regulatory environment and where mechanisms for linking experiences and lessons at the community level to policy are developed.
Key Elements of Social Mobilization
From worldwide experience there are four basic elements of social mobilization:
Organizational development – a process in which community members and, especially the poor form their own groups or organizations based on common development interests and needs that are best served by organizing themselves as a group. “Before one becomes a member of a CBO, the individual struggles against a harsh environment. Once s(he) is organized in a broad-based group, the individual has the leverage with which to address and tackle problems which s(he) could not have done alone” (Pandey 2002).
Organizations can be created with a specific focus (for example, a tenants’ association, a credit union or cooperative) or as broad-based, multi-purpose groups or community organizations with an overall aim to improve the situation of their members and the community in which they live. Organizations with a holistic focus are more inclusive of the poor, (who have a much broader array of needs), and can be effective vehicles for poverty alleviation, community-wide development and establishing strong links with local government. Mobilization can start with small groups, as the first step for participation in larger community wide organizations, which are in some cases, associations of small groups. In other cases, community organizations mobilize the poorer members of their organizations into small groups in order for them to work on alleviating their poverty. In both cases, the larger organizations serve as a support network for small groups and an important link to local government (Atwood 2001) and external organizations that provide various forms of services and support (e.g. microfinance, marketing, business development support, matching grants for local infrastructure rehabilitation and social service delivery, etc.).
In countries with a longer history of civic engagement, social mobilization can involve working with existing community organizations to boost their capacity and power in engaging with government and other actors in addressing their common needs and promoting their interests. So whilst the basic principles of social mobilization are universal, the approaches used must be appropriate and relevant to the local context.
Lessons learned have indicated the following factors as essential in promoting effective organizational development:
· Homogeneity to the extent possible is important, an essential factor for group or organizational survival
· Building organizations that are ran on democratic principles, based on a group or organizational constitution (developed and agreed by all members), reflecting the objectives of the organization and the norms, values and principles by which the group or organization will function . Promoting norms and values such as tolerance, inclusion, cooperation, equality and good practices (e.g. applying principles of effectiveness, efficiency and sound financial management) early on in the organizational building process builds longer-term commitment and prevents diversion of the organization into activities that can destruct the common good.
· Building leadership capacity within the organization – beyond one individual to several members, to avoid dependency and capture.
· Building incentives into the early stages of development to create interest among community members for organizing, especially in communities that are very passive or skeptical about organizing
· Ensuring an inclusive approach (involving all or most community members) in the social mobilization activities to promote equal opportunities and prevent conflict. A community organization must leave room for new membership.
· Promoting self-reliance, especially of the poor members of the organization which would in turn enhance their ability to participate in the organization’s affairs on an equal basis.
Capital Formation for development through Community Savings
Capital formation (through mobilization of savings) enhances a community organization’s power to realize its full potential. “Savings generated by individual members are the assets of the community organization and are the first step towards their self-reliance” (Pandey 2002). Accumulated savings can be used for internal credit with interest, to enable individual members to engage in income generation activities whilst at the same time, accumulating the organization’s capital base. They can also be used for enterprise development at the community level. Savings can serve as the basis for access to external services, for example, micro-finance. They can also form the basis for community organizations’ contribution to local development initiatives, which is essential in localities where government capacity to address all social needs of a community are very limited.
Training for Human Resource Development
Community members can maximize their potential not only by organizing themselves but also by upgrading their existing skills to better manage new inputs – business and community initiatives and establish effective links with local government and other actors. The Change Agent (i.e. the organization or individual facilitating the social mobilization process) can support direct training, exchange visits and other capacity building activities based on needs identified by the members of the community organizations. These can cover: organizational development, leadership, savings and credits programmes, agriculture, natural resource management, and other key areas. Local human resource development can best be promoted when trained individuals take up the responsibility to train other community members.
Socio-economic development
Socio-economic development initiatives are a great incentive for community members to organize themselves. It is important, therefore, that an initiative which includes social mobilization provides support in the form of matching grants or access to credit, marketing and other services that will lead to tangible improvements in social economic conditions within the community. The process of identifying community priorities, participatory planning, implementing and monitoring of community projects and managing partnerships with local government, private sector and other actors helps not only to improve local conditions but also to empower people and their organizations. If well facilitated, this process can result in increased institutional capacity, enhanced social status and voice (especially for disadvantaged people, including women, the poor and youth). These results in turn motivate people to remain organized as they begin to enjoy the benefits of collective action and recognize its potential to create or influence change in their communities.
Facilitating the social mobilization process
Whilst there are grassroots or social movements that have emerged from within communities, the isolation, poverty and resulting passivity or powerlessness of citizens, particularly in rural areas in developing countries, calls for external support at the initial stages of the social mobilization process.
In practice, social mobilization is usually an element within a broader strategic framework or development programme/initiative. Since such programmes or initiatives are time bound (in most cases due to donor funding cycles), a clear exit strategy is needed right at the beginning of the initiative, to ensure that the national capacities are created for replication and sustainability. Experience in Central Asia suggests a minimum donor commitment of five years (with gradual withdrawal) and continuous commitment of central and local government to supporting social mobilization initiatives.
In countries with limited experience of social mobilization, a combination of international and national community mobilizers brings to bear international experience and local knowledge which are both essential factors for success. Selection of the right people for this work is critical – emphasizing good attitudes and behavior and the ability for one to work on an equal basis with community members as critical. Knowledge of participatory development concepts and approaches is essential but can be gained through an effective training strategy.
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