Community Development Driven
Projects
Since the collapse of Somalia’s central government in 1991, civil war led to chaos in the country, creating disintegration and devastation. This resulted in tribalism and brutal killing. Social institutions that served the nation vanished and local infrastructure was left neglected. Puntland has become relatively peaceful, which has attracted people into the region. For many years the Somali communities relied on aid agencies for humanitarian support. This created a dependence culture on aid and declined the notion of communities helping themselves. UNICEF led efforts to reduce this by introducing a pilot project called Participatory Integrated Community Development (PICD) in 2007 in the Bossaso of Bari region of Puntland. In June 2008, Tadamun Social Society (TASS) partnered with UNICEF and established the Community Driven Development (CDD) project.
CDD is aimed at empowering the community and involving them in decision-making of their local neighbourhood. We believe by working with the community and encouraging them to participate in consultation, they will be able to address and resolve issues concerning them. This promotes community cohesion and helps the people of Puntland to manage themselves. We were able to address issues of concern because of our past experience of working with the Somali community, who have developed faith in the work we do. We used the PICD approach across 27 communities with funding from the World Bank and UNICEF. This consisted of involving the community, raising awareness of outlying issues, collecting information of needs and the planning process of how these needs will be met.
Community Ownership Responsible Persons (Corps) Workshop
TASS organised a workshop for Community Ownership Responsible Persons (CORPs) in the regions. CORPs workshops elicited feedback but on development and implementation. Interaction between communities encouraged participants and attracted them more to the PICD process.
To push the PICD process to the next level (implementation), TASS had communities trained in the process form Community Development Committees (CDCs) - units that acted as the vehicles or engines to drive development at the grassroots. In total, 20 communities across three districts of Puntland formed 20 CDCs. To ensure efficiency of the CDCs, TASS organised training for rural and urban communities focusing on management to empower members on leading the development process. This training promoted equitable, professional and efficient project management, thereby ensuring proper funds utilisation. Training covered the following topics:-PICD overview; participation in development; committee roles; how to conduct meetings; monitoring and evaluation; financial management and; record keeping.
TASS began the Joint Program for Local Governance (JPLG) on 1st July 2009. This acknowledged the importance of community involvement in decision-making in their locality. It is being piloted in Bosaso, Garowe, Galakio, Gardo.
A timeline of CDD programme since 2008:
| June 2008 |
- TASS trained 17 PICD facilitators
- Conducted PICD training in 3 rural sites in Galkayo and 4 sites in Dangorayo.
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| Sept 2008 |
- TASS conduction community action plan review with follow up
- Trained 20 individuals in UNICEF sites
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| Oct 2008 |
- TASS collaborated with UNICEF to review work in 7 sites
- Conducted PICD training in Alola district
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| Nov 2008 |
- TASS trained 17 PICD facilitators
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| Dec 2008 |
- TASS conducted PICD training in 11 communities: 6 in Galkayo and 5 in Dangorayo
- Community development training provided in 10 sites that were previously covered by UNICEF
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| Feb 2009 |
- Refresher training for 22 PICD facilitators
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| April 2009 |
- Reviews of CDD programmes across 18 sites in Dangorayo and Galkayo.
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| May 2009 |
- TASS conducted Community Ownership Resource Persons (CORPs) training for 36 individuals across 18 sites
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| July 2009 |
- TASS conducted PICD training in 5 sites across Garowe and conducted review of existing programmes
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| Aug 2009 |
- TASS conducted PICD training in 10 sites across Garowe and conducted review of existing programmes
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| Sep 2009 |
- TASS conducted PICD training across 5 sites in Bossaso and Garowe
- Agreed Community Action Plans (CAPs) from the community including previous sites worked by UNICEF and DRC.
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| Oct 2009 |
- PICD training conducted across 5 sites in Garowe
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| Dec 2009 |
- Refresher training given to 20 PICD facilitators
- PICD training conducted across 15 sites in Galkaio and Gardo
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Challenges
The CDD project has faced major challenges. Initially, it was difficult to win the support of the authorities but persistence paid off. Budgets were limited, which impacted the motivation of PICD facilitators. Some communities failed to participate in training due to disputes or security concerns. The drought caused long-term damage and raised the expectations of the community on how Tadamun Social Society could help.
Achievements
- 67 communities have been trained and are working towards short-term goals
- Active women participation has been high
- Joint and frequent consultations have encouraged locals to sign community action plans
- Challenges were resolved swiftly and efficiently
Looking ahead
TASS is committed to promoting harmony and solidarity with the happiness of Somali people as the aim. We have identified several factors that will be considered in future CDD programmes:
- Expand PICD training across other rural areas in dire need of development projects
- Plan according to budgets, which include contingency spending
- Strengthen coordination with partner agencies to enhance the running of programmes
- Expand collaboration with other related agencies who are not yet involved with the JPLG