Participation In Social Development

The term of ‘Participation’ is generally performed differently depending on the context and the field which it is studied. In ancient Greece participation viewed as a matter of voting, holding offices, attending public meeting, paying taxes and defending the state. But in modern times participation becomes synonymous of ‘sharing’ (as cited in Mohammad, 2010:16). In the 1970s many top-down development projects and programs failed and poverty increased specially in developing countries. Likewise, people were identified as the missing element in development efforts. These problems resulted in stronger focus on bottom-up approaches and poverty reduction through people participation (Karl, 2000. Stilz and Herlitz, 2012. Oakley 1991).

The main emphasis in the late 1970s was, on popular or people's participation and on ways to involve the rural poor in development projects and programmes (Karl, 2000). As Pearse and Stifel (1979) define popular participation as:

“participation is concerned with the organized efforts to increase control over resources and regulative institutions in given social situations of the part of groups and movements of those hitherto excluded from such control”

Pearse and Stifel statement was the working definition of the United Nation Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) enquiry into participation. Here participation not seen as input into development projects but as process which should be at the core of all development interventions. People should be empowered through making them aware of their situation and helping them to address their own needs and problems because People are poor; they are excluded and do not have the political and economic power to influence the force which affect their l...

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...nd active involvement of all stakeholders in the formulation of development policies and strategies and in the analysis, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development activities. To allow for a more equitable development process, disadvantaged stakeholders need to be empowered to increase their level of knowledge, influence and control over their own livelihoods, including development initiatives affecting them” (IWG-pa. Web, 2014).

Brown (2000) argued community participation as the active process by which beneficiaries influence the direction and the execution of the project rather than merely being consulted or receiving the share of the benefits (Dzinavatonga, 2008). According to Lahiri-Dutt (2004) participation is that the state pays attention to local opinion about projects and plans. For this study the …………… definition is used as it………..