Public participation

An important indicator of the results of community development. The parallel processes of public participation and community development mutually reinforce and generate one another. The current level of public participation is a good indicator of the success of community development processes, e.g. of the processes of planning and decision-making based on community participation. Based on the five level participation scale of International Association for Public Participation (IAP2). [1] The basic values and fundamentals of public participation: transparency, humility, openness, respect for others, honesty, trustworthiness, reliability, flexibility.

According to the IAP2 model, consideration of five public participation levels helps in involving the community in the decision-making.

These are:

  • inform
  • consult
  • involve
  • collaborate
  • empower

See figure for the five levels of participation with their description.

Public participation scale, IAP2 model.
Public participation scale, IAP2 model.

 
References:

[1] International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) – IAP2’s Public Participation Spectrum. http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.iap2.org/resource/resmgr/Foundations_Course/IAP2_P2_Spectrum.pdf
http://www.iap2.org

 
This article based on the following document: Community development methodological guide

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