Step 1: Definition

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What are Participatory Approaches?

Participatory approaches aim to involve the community – from start to finish – in interventions, with the minimum requirement for community participation lying in the recognition that the initiative should stem from the wants and needs of the immediate stakeholders, or in other words, the people concerned.

Ideally, the people involved have a voice in the decisions to be made and thus also take responsibility for – the realisation of – an initiative. Community participation thus goes far beyond asking for a financial contribution or a contribution in kind, such as labor or land.

By giving directing and decision-making authority to the direct stakeholders, you stimulate self-esteem and increase self-confidence. If the people concerned are allowed to set their own priorities and make their own decisions, they feel (more) responsible for realising the desired change themselves. This intrinsic motivation leads to active involvement and increases local ownership and is thus crucial for sustainable change in the long term.