Youth led local participation as a means of community development in Lebanon
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This year, Human Concern International embarked upon an ambitious project to asses the needs of a particularly disadvantaged Beirut neighborhood, Nabaa. Working alongside our local partner, Dar al-Amal, and twenty local youths, we have conducted a Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) research which maps out the challenges faced by Nabaa residents. It is the first phase of a wider Youth Impact Project intended to train and empower youth in development practices. Throughout the PRA’s development process the lead was taken by the youth, all from the affected area, who conducted field research in coordination with specially trained development professionals to produce a comprehensive PRA research. The research engaged local residents, giving them ownership of the development process, as opposed to a traditional needs assessment made by those who do not reside in the affected area. As a result, it is a more accurate, inclusive, and effective picture of the challenges currently facing the residents of Nabaa.
Nabaa is a mixed, multi-confessional Beirut suburb which faces chronic unemployment, a lack of social services, and suffers from high levels of insecurity. Local residents are at risk of criminality, drug use, and sexual exploitation. The local youth who conducted the PRA were both male and female, Christian and Muslim, reflecting the diversity of the neighborhood in which they reside. Despite poverty, Nabaa has avoided inter-sectarian violence and as such is an example for others to follow. It was an ideal candidate for a PRA research. Our local partner, Dar Al-Amal, is one of the few non-governmental organizations which operate in the area. They are determined to improve the lives of local youth, and prevent them from entering into lives of crime or prostitution. Despite their dedicated efforts, one organization alone cannot change the fate of a community, and they need assistance. The PRA, developed by and for the people of Nabaa, will boost their capacity and be of significant help for all of those working towards community renewal and prosperity.
The first phase of the Youth Initiative Project has now been successfully completed; this phase included Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) training for a diverse group of twenty young men and women from Nabaa carefully selected to reflect the diversity in the area. The general purpose of the training was to provide the participants with conceptual knowledge and skills on Participatory Rapid Appraisal (PRA) techniques thus enabling them to utilize PRA techniques in determining local community needs and introducing community-oriented interventions and initiatives.
The ten-day training conducted by HCI’s experts in the field of development workshops presented participants with PRA theory and practice and was balanced between field practicum and in-class sessions that included brainstorming, working groups, interactive exercises, and reflections. The course began with basic concepts and principles of PRA and was complemented with field practicum where participants were provided with opportunities for hands-on experience in the targeted community guided by a multidisciplinary group of team leaders having backgrounds in social work, development and activism.
During the 5-day field practicum, participants used the PRA approach which utilizes different tools in order to reach the most accurate results on what the needs of the community are. The research team/Participants were disbursed among the targeted area and represented the different ethnic/religious groups residing in the community. The PRA team met with households from different parts of El Naba’a. In the meetings, open discussions were held on health, environment, economy, education, and social life. The meetings were convened in varied ways through focus group discussions, home visits, and open general meetings. Community members were given the opportunity to identify their perception of the challenges that most affect their lives and the needs that should be fulfilled to help their community move towards a better future.
On the last day of training, the main findings of the field were discussed comprehensively and summarized, and as a result the main problems identified by community members were as follows:
- The deterioration and insufficiency of health care services; especially for patients with chronic or critical health problems
- The poor quality of education at official (government) schools and the high cost of education in general (school tuitions, extra assistance classes, private tutoring, and other costs)
- The prevalence of illiteracy among married women (especially those with children)
- The lack of awareness among women about support services provided by official and civil society organizations in and outside the area
- The ineffectiveness of current institutional committees
- Increasing living expenses of households
- Weak economic contribution of women
- Population increase and lack of reproductive health awareness among married women in reproductive age
- Domestic violence and gender-based violence
- Absence of security in the community and existence of conflict between residents and foreign workers residing in the area
- Ineffectiveness of garbage collection mechanisms and environmental pollution
- Drug addiction and prostitution among youth
- Absence of safe open spaces and leisure activities for children and families
The development of a PRA is the first step towards brightening the future of Nabaa. Before a problem can be fixed it must first be recognized, and the PRA does just that by setting out clearly what the challenges are, and providing practical information to those who seek to alleviate them. This research reflects the work of development professionals, devoted local youth volunteers, and residents, all of whom have a stake in the future of the community. It is the first such appraisal to be performed in Nabaa, a place too often ignored and marginalized by traditional centers of power. Though a PRA cannot solve every problem, it is a powerful tool for those who work in the development field, and will help them to focus their efforts on the problems most acutely felt by local residents. By building capacity it will make HCI, and all those working towards the betterment of Nabaa, more effective community developers. We can be sure that it will serve HCI’s development interventions for many years to come.
HCI has made the PRA report available free-of-charge upon request for everyone, and as part of the Youth Impact project more young people from Nabaa are in the process of joining the initial youth group to have their capacities built in the field of developmental thinking, proposal writing and fundraising through a new series of workshops organized by HCI. The youth are using the newly acquired skills and the findings of the PRA report to design a group of youth-led/run interventions with the purpose of improving their neighborhood. HCI and a special committee made up of community leaders in Naba’a are evaluating the submitted proposals and selecting winning interventions, which are funded by HCI.