We need to plan on strategic approaches that will create good will enough to make resilience a culture rather than an alien science. How do we start? Advocacy needs more focus and at higher levels. We need a twin-pronged approach of advocacy as well as strengthening of the PRIs to make them more meaningful players and participants. - Annie George, BEDROC, Nagapattinam
Governance and the role of
PRIs: Going beyond
"community". I am going to be quite critical here because its way
past time for straight talking. We are all ready to jump on the bandwagon while
talking about "empowering" the communities and putting the onus of
all activities on them. may be because that is the easier of options for us as
implementers. The tougher aspects are swept under the rug or termed as the
"rights based approach" that the community should adopt. Haven't all
of us, at some time or the other during our various meetings, been stumped with
the one statement of "political willingness" calling the shots?
It is high time we took our own blinkers off and started looking at advocacy at
higher levels for long term disaster proof development. We need to plan on
strategic approaches that will create good will enough to make resilience a
culture rather than an alien science. How do we start? Advocacy needs more
focus and at higher levels.
While all of us agree on the important roles played by the first responders, ie
the local communities, we tend to overlook the importance of PRIs who are the
local communities with an added USP of administrative and financial powers.
There is a space provided at the village level DM bodies, but these are never
empowered enough. Again, we understand that it is the lack of "political
willingness" to give importance to the PRIs that is adversely affecting
the PRIs from playing a more important role in not only DM but also development.
Can we roll out a twin-pronged approach of advocacy as well as strengthening of
the PRIs to make them more meaningful players and participants?
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