‘Sustainable Community Development: Giving Back to Communities’

Naga Scholars’ Association members with the guest and others during the Special Talk organized at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University on October 19. (Photo Courtesy: NSA)
 

Naga Scholars’ Association holds Special Talk

Dimapur, October 21 (MExN): The Naga Scholars’ Association (NSA) Special Talk on “Sustainable Community Development: Giving Back to Communities” was organized on October 19 at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) by Prof. Murari Suvedi, Michigan State University, USA.

Prof. Murari Suvedi shared his action research work on community development in a mountain community in Nepal. He illustrated the participatory process followed in identifying community needs and shared how the development work was carried out with strong engagement of the people in the community. He also articulated the pluralistic approach to the timely delivery of services. Although he lives in the USA, he sensed the disparity at his native village which put burden in his heart for which he decided to give back to his community. 

In response to the appeal from the community, he undertook the challenge of organizing six different developmental projects one after another. The projects were chosen based on urgency of the need, instrumental value to address higher level needs, and their indispensability towards the livelihood of the community. The projects included building an elementary school, providing clean drinking water supply, building high school and community education center, addressing the health needs of rural women, initiating off-season vegetable production for income generation, and promoting environmental and climate-change friendly agriculture. 

However, the underlining theme of the talk was on how the success of a project depended to a large extent on how one could generate enthusiasm and ensure community participation. The idea of partnership should not be only limited to funding agency, as the local ownership is critical to sustainability. For instance, the role and participation of local women as one of stakeholders cannot be ignored and has to be accounted.

Some of the fundamental principles of sustainable community development he derived from his work that we often overlooked includes the following points: Farmers are not used to cooperative marketing since managing cooperative requires social and cultural change. However, local farmers can be empowered to manage improved production as well as marketing of farm products. The idea of development involves change and one of the key elements of sustainable change is to detect community's readiness for change. Particularly, people respond better when we address their felt needs and they are open to learning and change if their expressed needs are addressed.  A grassroots worker of any developmental project must center her/his efforts on the felt needs or more accurately the expressed felt needs. Participation of the beneficiary is inevitable and collaboration with the development partners is essential. Capacity building requires teamwork and takes time. Local capacity building work should be pursued by respecting the local culture.

Prof PVK Sasidhar, SOEDS, IGNOU challenged the audience as to whether we can help and pay back to our communities through the principle of engagement and participation to address issues of health and sanitation, education, agriculture and clean drinking water that especially caters to the needs of our children and women. 

The special talk was followed by discussions, questions and answers session, stated a press release issued by the NSA President Dr Zuchamo Yanthan and General Secretary Dr Lungthuyang Riamei.

The lecture was chaired by Prof PVK Sasidhar, School of Extension and Development Studies, IGNOU. Dr. Zuchamo Yanthan, President, NSA opened the session with a prelude to the theme by stressing on the relevance and the urgency of giving back to our communities.

The rapportuer of the session was Dr Phuireingam Hongchui, PhD scholar in JNU. In closing, Dr. Lungthuyang Riamei, General Secretary of NSA, proposed Vote of Thanks.