Participatory Communication : A Practical Guide

Abstract

Many communication practitioners and
 development workers face obstacles and challenges in their
 practical work. A participatory communication strategy
 offers a very specific perspective on how to articulate
 social processes, decision-making processes, and any change
 process for that matter. Participatory approaches are
 nothing new. However, what is new is the proliferation of
 institutions, especially governmental but also
 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that seek participatory
 approaches in their development initiative. This guide
 concerns to provide perspectives, tools and experiences
 regarding how to go about it with participatory
 communication strategies. It is conceived as a guide to be
 of relevance and utility for development workers in the
 field. It is targeted at both at government and their
 officials, the World Bank staff, and at civil society. The
 particular relevance of this guide is three-fold: 1) placing
 the practitioner debate about participatory communication
 within a conceptual framework, allowing the practitioner who
 reads this to position him or herself conceptually,
 understanding some of the possible implications of opting
 for one or another strategic approach in their use of
 communication; 2) providing an introduction to the use of a
 participatory communication approach to specific development
 projects as well as illustrating the use of participatory
 communication in broader social change processes; and 3)
 drawing generic lessons learned from the experiences with
 participatory communication.