'If no one else stands up, you have to': a story of community participation and water in rural Guatemala

Autor: Kjerstin Dahlblom, Miguel San Sebastian, Anna-Karin Hurtig, Ana Lorena Ruano
Přispěvatelé: This work was undertaken within the Centre for Global Health Research, at Umeå University, with support from FAS, the Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research (grant no, 2006-1512)
Rok vydání: 2011
Předmět:
Male
Rural Population
Community participation
Community organization
Water projects
Guatemala
Social Development Councils
Economic growth
Water supply
Participant observation
Public administration
Interviews as Topic
Water Supply
Political science
Humans
Social determinants of health
Developing Countries
Publich Health
Global HealthM
Sociology
Anthropology
Local Government
business.industry
community organization
Health Policy
Social change
Public Health
Environmental and Occupational Health
Community Participation
Citizen journalism
Public Health
Global Health
Social Medicine and Epidemiology
water projects
Middle Aged
Folkhälsovetenskap
global hälsa
socialmedicin och epidemiologi
Local government
social development councils
Original Article
Rural area
community participation
business
RA
Zdroj: Global Health Action
Global Health Action; Vol 4 (2011): incl Supplements
Scopus-Elsevier
ISSN: 1654-9880
1654-9716
Popis: Background: Access to water is a right and a social determinant of health that should be provided by the state. However, when it comes to access to water in rural areas, the current trend is for communities to arrange for the service themselves through locally run projects. This article presents a narrative of a single community’s process of participation in implementing and running a water project in the village of El Triunfo, Guatemala. Methods: Using an ethnographic approach, we conducted a series of field visits, participant observation and interviews. Findings: El Triunfo has had a long tradition of community participation, where it has been perceived as an important value. The village has a council of leaders who have worked together in various projects, although water has always been a priority. When it comes to participation, this community has achieved its goals when it collaborated with other stakeholders who provided the expertise and/or the funding needed to carry out a project. At the time of the study, the challenge was to develop a new phase of the water project with the help of other stakeholders and to maintain and sustain the tradition of participation by involving new generations in the process. Discussion: This narrative focuses on the participation in this village’s efforts to implement a water project. We found that community participation has substituted the role of the central and local governments, and that the collaboration between the council and other stakeholders has provided a way for El Triunfo to satisfy some of its demand for water. Conclusion: El Triunfo’s case shows that for a participatory scheme to be successful it needs prolonged engagement, continued support, and successful experiences that can help to provide the kind of stable participatory practices that involves community members in a process of empowered decision-making and policy implementation. Keywords: community participation; community organization; water projects; Guatemala; social development councils (Published: 28 September 2011) Citation: Global Health Action 2011, 4 : 6412 - DOI: 10.3402/gha.v4i0.6412
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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