Citizen Engagement Framework.

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INTRODUCTION

Citizen participation is now officially recognized as a way of improving service delivery in local
government. There has been varied interpretation of what citizen participation is and what it is
not. A number of engagement initiatives have sometimes be misconstrued as citizen participation
when they are essentially decorative or manipulative. In addition, there has been no accepted
mechanism of dealing with citizen participation and emerging issues. However the practice of
citizen participation in Zimbabwe has been marred by a number of challenges. The challenges
include these;

In light of these challenges the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National
Housing, Ministry of Rural Development, Promotion and Preservation of National Culture and
Heritage, Urban Council Association of Zimbabwe (UCAZ) and the Association of Rural
District Councils Zimbabwe (ARDCZ), with support of the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) initiated the
development of the Citizen Participation Handbook.
The first step towards the development of this handbook was a country-wide survey to capture
the current practices of citizen participation in 2015. This was followed up by consultation
workshop in 2016. In 2017, another workshop was organized to develop the structure and
contents of the handbook. This was followed by a write-shop that eventually came up with this
handbook.

The absence of a shared understanding and a common framework that guides citizen
participation has thus triggered the development of this handbook. This handbook is thus
expected to streamline, standardize and harmonize citizen participation efforts in local authorities
in Zimbabwe.

Background to civic participation

Preamble
This section builds up on the previous introductory note by giving a historical, legal and
contextual background to citizen participation. The reasons that have given rise to the
development of a shared understanding of citizen participation programs among local authorities
are given in this section. Finally the objectives of the handbook will highlight the focus areas for
local authorities towards an organized citizen participation strategy.

Tracing the history of citizen participation

Citizen participation is a long accepted traditional practice dating back to the pre-colonial era.
Customary practises such as Dare/Inkundla, Nhimbe/Idale Zunde ramambo/Isiphala senkosi and
Mukwerera/Ilima reflected a conscious and structured effort to involve communities in
development matters of their community. The colonial era, however, disturbed the systematic
participation forums. Repressive laws, the pressure brought by formal employment and other
restrictions made it very difficult for communities to mobilise each other. The period during the
war of liberation made the situation worse as community mobilization meetings were
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criminalized. This made it impossible to pursue any meaningful community participation
programs.

Post-independence citizen participation thrust

After independence, the government of Zimbabwe resuscitate and re-energies citizen
participation. Initiatives were taken to allow for socially sustainable and accepted models of
community development. The Prime Minister’s directive of 1984 made it a requirement to
establish participatory structures from the grass roots level to champion community
development. This resulted in the establishment of representatives’ groupings such as the village,
ward level and district development committees and assemblies. Although the directive became
the guiding framework for community programming, citizen participation has remained
fragmented in Zimbabwean local governance. Initiatives taken have largely been individualistic
with no common institutionalized approach on citizen participation.

The legal and policy background on citizen participation

Citizen participation is grounded primarily on the Constitution of Zimbabwe in which
participation rights are firmly elaborated. The Preamble to the Constitution highlights the need to
entrench democracy, good, transparent and accountable governance and reaffirms commitment
to upholding and defending human rights and freedoms. The power to govern by any tier of
government is derived from the people of Zimbabwe, an indication that they should be active
participants in governance and development issues in their jurisdiction.

In addition, citizens have inalienable rights (access to information, freedom of expression, being
heard among others) which only a well-defined citizen participation agenda can satisfy. More
specifically, the supreme law of the land confers powers to the citizens of Zimbabwe, for which
citizen participation is the only conduit to enjoying such powers:
 give powers of local governance to the people by enhancing their participation in the
exercise of the powers of the state and in making the decisions that affect them;
 promote democratic, effective, transparent, accountable and coherent government;
 to recognize the right of communities to manage their own affairs and to further their
development;

There are also statutory provisions captured in the primary and subsidiary legislation governing
local authorities. The Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15,] the Rural District Councils Act
[Chapter 29:13] and the Public Finance Management Act [Chapter 22:19] lay out minimum
conditions for citizen participation in critical local government processes not limited to:
 Development of local authority by-laws
 Consultations on the budget proposals and estimates
 Participation of citizens in Council meetings
 Periodic village and ward development committees feedback and planning meetings
 Solicitation of citizens’ views on some key local authority functions
 Composition of citizens in some local authority development committees eg School
Development Committees, Health Centre Committees and other Special Committees

Local Authorities have been facing a number of challenges that have necessitated the increasing
drive towards an organized citizen participation approach. From the turn of the new millennium,

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local authorities have battled crippling resource challenges because of the declining economic
environment. As a result they have been a target of criticism by their stakeholders, citizens
particularly, for poor service delivery. The criticism has been heightened due to the absence of
defined platforms where information is shared and challenges and solutions are discussed. As a
result, conflict between local authorities and residents has been a common phenomenon.
Governance and civic society groups have also increased their advocacy on governance, citizen
engagement and social accountability which has brought pressure to bear on local authorities to
realign the space for citizen participation. In addition, declining support from central government
and development partners has created obligations for local authorities to create structures for
meeting of minds between citizens and government tiers.

From a service demand point of view, accountability issues and increased push to meet service
delivery needs from ratepayers are key triggers to stakeholders’ involvement. The functionality
of the local government systems has also been affected by citizens who have not taken a keen
interest in matters of their local area development. Residents have largely been disengaged and
taken a back seat in service delivery matters of their local authorities. Many residents have also
withheld payment for consumed local authorities’ services, making it difficult for the latter to
offer meaningful services. The absence of critical and elaborate interface platforms between
citizens and their local authorities has also forced this re-think on remodeling the design of the
approach to citizen participation. Where some local authorities have pioneered platforms for
engagement in different media, it would also appear that usage is still low, presumably as a result
of non-participation of citizens in their development.

Purpose of the handbook

This citizen participation handbook creates space for residents to find one another and appreciate
that only a sustained participation effort can achieve win-win results. The framework is designed
within the context of Zimbabwean realities and particularly that our democratic values place
citizen participation at the centre of national development and governance. The overall goal of
the handbook is to provide a more systematic and standardized way of engagement between local
authorities and their citizens for the purpose of enhancing local development and improving
service delivery.

Specific objectives of the handbook

This manual assumes that the citizen participation process is ongoing throughout the local
authorities’ budgeting, planning and service delivery cycles. The specific objectives of the
handbook are:
 To sensitize citizens and local authorities on the rights and responsibilities on
participation in local area development
 To provide guidelines on how to design embracing citizen participation programs in local
authority areas;
 To assist citizens, residents and local authorities to find one another and work together
for the mutual benefit of their local authority;
 To establish the institutional arrangements, roles and responsibilities of different actors
for stakeholder engagement and citizen participation in local governance and
development

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Conclusion
The section has reviewed the background to citizen participation and the current provisions for
its implementation. It also reviews the challenges facing local authorities for which citizen
participation has become an absolute necessity. The next section will unpack what citizen
participation is and the various lenses through which it is viewed.

“Democracy is not just a question of having a vote. It consists of strengthening each citizen’s
possibility and capacity to participate in the deliberations involved in life in society.” Fernando
Cardoso

"No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that
continue to evolve over a lifetime. Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts
off from its youth severs its lifeline." Kofi Annan

WHAT IS CITIZEN PARTICIPATION?

Citizen participation is a process which provides citizens, individual or groupings, an opportunity

to influence public decisions. It aims at ensuring that citizens have a direct voice in public
decisions. In some instances, citizen participation is often interchangeably used with citizen
engagement yet they are very different partnering approaches with the citizens. The two have the
same goal of improving service delivery and policy projects. However, both are not initiated by
the same actors. Citizen participation is a bottom up initiative whilst citizen engagement is a top
down initiative. The diagram below illustrates the differences between the two

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BENEFITS OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
Citizen participation is in many cases minimized in planning efforts as it is viewed to be too
expensive and time consuming. Yet, many citizen participation programs are initiated in
response to public reaction to a proposed project or action by government agencies including
Local Authorities. However, there are several tangible benefits that can be derived from effective
citizen participation and these include the following:

a) Information and ideas on public issues

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 Citizen engagement provides a platform for Local Authorities and stakeholders to have
dialogue, share information, expertise, knowledge and skills. Eventually, Local
Authorities will have a better understanding of stakeholder’s needs and expectations.

b) Public Support for planning decisions

Citizen participation improves and enhances a sense of ownership in Local Authorities
plans for example Strategic plans and annual budgets. The production of people centered
by-laws, policies and regulations also wins public support and responsibility in
implementation.

c) Avoidance of protracted conflicts and costly delays;

Improved public knowledge and understanding of LA responsibilities and the citizen’s
rights and obligations reduces conflicts between Councils and Citizens.

d) Reservoir of goodwill which can carry over to future decisions.

This ensures good relations, continuous engagement and project sustainability. In
addition, this improves sustainable utilization of natural resources and shared
responsibility to protect the environment and implementations of agreed areas of co-
operation

e) Spirit of cooperation and trust between the agency and the public.
Citizen participation drives cultural change, builds trust and community ownership of
decisions. This inevitably increases credibility and confidence in Local Authorities

CHALLENGES
Whilst citizen’s participation has its merits, poorly defined and crafted participation frameworks
have their downside. The following are some of challenges that are presented by poorly planned
participation frameworks:

 Citizen participation if not carefully crafted can be manipulated for personal benefits.
 Coverage might not be exhaustive
 Institution might lack capacity to do engagement due to lack of skills, and resources
 Undue political hijacking
 There is a policy dilemma in terms of role clarity which breeds conflict and tend to
subordinate the citizens
 Lack of Knowledge, information and education on citizen participation.

Guiding against the possible shortfalls of poorly organized participation frameworks requires
development of frameworks which meet minimal standards. An approach to identifying these
minimum standards is to look at common attributes of successful frameworks.

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There are several approaches and methods used to achieve citizen participation. The different
approaches differ depending on the extent of participation, levels of participation and techniques
used in implementing the citizen participation.

FACTORS TO EFFECTIVE PARTICIPATION

TECHNIQUES OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

Below are the five classes and their definitions. All the classes are equally important but can be
employed depending on the situation.

 Publicity — Publicity techniques are designed to persuade and facilitate public support,
relating to citizens as passive consumers.
 Public Education — Public education helps citizens to draw their own conclusions.
 Public Input — Public input techniques call for ideas and opinions from citizens.
 Public Interaction — Public interaction facilitates open sharing and exchange of
information and ideas among citizens, and decision makers.
 Public Partnership — Public partnerships offer citizens an opportunity to contribute
towards the final decisions. This builds trust and a spirit of obligation towards citizens.

A way to illustrate the relationship between technique of participation and activeness of the
citizen is the table below

PUBLICITY PUBLIC PUBLIC PUBLIC PUBLIC

EDUCATIO INPUT INTERACTION PARTNERSHIP
N
Building public Disseminating Collecting Two-way Securing advice
support information information communication and consent
<----------------- PASSIVE           ACTIVE------------------>

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LEVELS OF PARTCIPATION

Another way of classifying citizen participation methods uses the levels of participation as
illustrated in ladder of citizen participation, see fig --.

ACTIVE PARTCIPATION:
These methods prodive citizens toaprtcipate as partbers in projects and
programs of LAs.There is assuarnce on their inoput being part of the decions as
decions are made through concensus.

PASSIVE PARTICIPATION:
Entails methods which provide citizens platforms to advice on projects and
programs. However the power to to make finaldecisions is left with LAs.

NONPARTICIPATION:
Serves to eductae citiczens on about LAS projects and programs. Public support
is achieved through public relations.

PLATFORMS OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

Commonly used mechanisms include elections, surveys, town hall meetings, public hearings,
hotlines, direct community involvement, participatory planning and budgeting, and monitoring
and evaluation.
Elections
Surveys
Town hall meetings
Public hearings
Hotlines, direct community involvement
Participatory planning and budgeting
Monitoring and evaluation
Social media Platforms

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ATTRIBUTES OF EFFECTIVE CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

Whilst there are several approaches to developing participation frameworks it is recommended

that any framework has to meet certain minimal standards and attributes for it to be effective.
These attributes mainly serve to assure that the developed participation programs meet specific
goals, objectives and circumstances as defined by the local context in which it is designed. Key
to defining the attributes is the understanding that citizen participation is an important
component to the planning and implementation processes of government agencies in fulfilling
their mandates. In this case, citizen participation should be framed as a continuous process rather
than stand alone events. Literature suggests common elements of most successful and effective
citizen participation programs include:

a) Adherence to existing legal provisions.

An effective framework should be guided and premised on existing legal framework.

b) Inclusivity.
Local government is an arena of multidimensional conflicts including, class, gender,
religion and politics. Developing an effective frame work should therefore be sensitive to
dynamics of different contestations and aim to be inclusive to all groups. Important to
achieving inclusivity, it is important to have a clear identification, mapping and
understanding of all concerned publics together with their interests.

c) Be an integral part of the decision-making structure.

An effective citizen participation framework should go beyond tokenism or fulfilling
requirements. Rather it should be made an integral part of the decision-making structure
within local government. This in many ways will ensure that LAs programs are married
to the needs and priorities of its citizenry thereby increasing a locative efficiency.

d) Delineated roles and responsibilities for stakeholders.

An effective framework should have clearly defined parameters for engagement. In other
words, there should be a clear separation of functions, roles and responsibilities for the
different stakeholders. The elected representatives should particularly not be in charge of
the participation process but should play a policy formulation and oversight role. It
remains of interest and importance for the framework to define how different
stakeholders relate and work independently yet collectively for the development of their
areas.

e) Receive adequate funding, staff, and time.

Participation cannot be left to chance and convenience of the actors involved. It needs to
be planned for in terms of time and resources. Consequently, for any citizen participation

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 framework to be effective it should define clear plans that provides mechanisms for
funding, staffing and timing of specific events.

f) Stakeholders Capacity.
Capacity of stakeholders (citizens) to participate effectively is a key attribute to the
success of any framework. Thus, in addition to resource allocation for service delivery,
there should be allocation of resources for awareness rising and capacity building of both
the local government officials and citizens on their joint role in the participatory process.
Empowerment of the citizens should be seen as an equally important aspect of improving
service delivery as it shows the value the local government places on its citizens. The
government officials should see their role as facilitators and not just implementers of
service delivery. It is this attitude of partnership that would be most beneficial in seeking
mutual cooperation in service delivery.

g) Clearly articulate goals and objectives.

Participation should be premised on both short-term and long-term development
framework that has clear goals and objectives. Strategic goals should be identified and
agreed with the input of all stakeholders. This would serve to provide a sense of direction
and continuity when participants or local government officials change.

h) Holistic.
It is important that participation be towards influencing all service provision in the local
government unit. In many cases the practices of citizen participation is to limited aspects
of planning such as resource allocation during budget consultation meetings and not other
aspects of LAs operations. An involvement in overall planning of the local government
services would serve to give citizens a clearer picture of what is happening in their local
government and could lead to their willingness to participate in meeting the costs of
service delivery. It would also lead to reduction of opportunities for corruption as all
resources are made known to the public. As such an effective framework requires citizen
participation to be institutionalized in all operations of government –national and local-
including planning, budgeting and social servicesprovision.

It allows citizens the right to be heard through forums, petitions and even referendum as well as
be responded to promptly. As such participation should be entrenched in a well-articulated
framework explaining key areas such as use of resources and allowing citizens a legal recourse
where their voice is ignored or their resources misused.

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AREAS OF PARTICIPATION
Citizens have a right to participate in local governance. Areas of participation include budgeting,
monitoring and evaluation, development planning, community initiatives partnerships, fostering
transparency and accountability.

These areas of participation are illustrated in the table below:-

AREAS OF CITIZEN PARTICIPATION

THEMATIC WHAT IS IT APPROACHES FREQUENCY
AREA

Planning and A process of coming up Participatory budget through Annually as and

Resource with estimates of consultative meetings, setting up when necessary
Allocation income and budget committees, public
expenditure for a hearings and budget feedback
particular period or a meetings
project.

Monitoring and It is the continuous Citizens can participate in Continuous

Evaluation assessment of progress monitoring and evaluation
on service delivery through observing full council
programs and projects meeting proceedings,
that involves all performance score cards, and
stakeholders and active participation in feedback
beneficiaries. meetings, citizen journalism, and
election promises tracking and
other methods through which
citizens can exert social
accountability.

Policy It is the development of Individual or stakeholder Continuous

formulation and courses of action for contributions, information
Planning addressing needs and sharing, lobbying and advocacy,
interests of citizens. consultation and cooperation and
consensus building. This can be
through strategic planning
sessions, village and ward
assemblies, community media,

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 community working groups, and
other community based
structures.

Community This is when citizens or Carrying out of community As and when

Initiatives and communities development projects on necessary
Partnerships voluntarily participate voluntary basis such as road
in the development of maintenance, environmental
their local areas. management, and construction
and maintenance of public
infrastructure.

Oversight These are actions taken Petitioning, integrate pacts, Continuous

by citizens to promote social contract, MOUs, citizen
accountability and charters and public interest
transparency in the litigations.
running of councils.

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ENABLERS OF MEANINGFUL CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
This section looks at the conducive environment that enables meaningful citizen participation to
take place. Among the factors that enables such participation are knowledge of citizenship
rights, obligations and responsibilities, conducive legislative and policy framework, political
will, access to information, positive attitude and capacity & knowledge.

KNOWLEDGE OF CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS OBLIGATIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Rights
 Citizenship rights such as the right to participate in decision making, right education,
portable water, right to shelter, civic participation and voting rights.

Citizen Responsibilities and Obligations

 Payment of levies and for services
 Keeping the environment clean
 Protection of public infrastructure

CONDUCIVE LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY PROVISIONS

In order for citizens to meaningfully participate in local government activities there must be a
conducive legislative and policy framework that guarantees citizenship rights and democratic
local governance

POLITICAL WILL
Effective citizen participation requires a situation in which duty bearers and right holders have
the intention or desire to carry through policies and programs that promotes citizenship rights
and obligations. Duty bearers and rights holders must also be committed to adhering to
principles and values that include transparency, inclusivity, accountability, gender parity and
team work.

ACCESS TO INFORMATION
Citizens are able to participate if given adequate public interest information on pertinent issues
pertaining to their participation and welfare. For an example, information must be provided on
revenue collected by councils from different sources, the actual status of projects being
undertaken, the actual state of services such as water provision

POSITIVE ATTITUDE
There must be an enabling attitude for participation which includes tolerance of other people’s
views, respect, willingness to learn and other attributes that facilitate and promotes

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developmental, perceptions, democratic and sustainable engagement between local government
stakeholders.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD PARTICIPANT

Having taken regard to the attributes needed for an effective citizen participation process, this
section looks into specific characteristics that will be expected from individual participants into
the participation process.

The Citizen Participation process requires a high degree of team work which itself calls for
participants who will be prepared to participate actively and positively in making the process
effective. The following are some of the characteristics and behaviors this handbook identifies as
expected from a progressive Citizen Participation participant.

WILLINGNESS TO PARTICIPATE
The Citizen Participation phenomenal strongly requires that everyone taking part in it be
genuinely willing to take part in the process be a team player and not be involved in it only by
obligation.

Participants who function actively take the initiative to help make things happen and volunteer to
do assignments in the process. Their whole approach is of a “can – do” nature.

POSITIVE ATTITUDE
Participants into the Citizen Participation process are expected to always have a positive attitude
towards the process. A positive participant cares about their work, the team’s work and the team
itself. The participant is expected to give a good effort into the process always wanting others to
do the same with no negative perceptions to the process.

SHARES OPENLY AND WILLINGLY

Good participants are people who are always willing to share information, knowledge and
experiences with other members of the process. Much of the communication in Citizen
Participation takes place informally outside organized discussions in meetings. Participants in the
process therefore need to feel comfortable talking with one another and passing along
information on a day to day basis. A good participant needs therefore to be active in the informal
information sharing to keep other participants in the loop that help get the job done and prevents
surprises. The participant is not a rumour monger nor a gossiper which destroys the smooth flow
of the participation process.

POLITICAL TOLERANCE AND ACCOMODATION

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A good Citizen Participation participant is one who is able to rise above their political and other
allegiances while being involved in citizens related affairs. Good participants work on this by
second nature abilities which helps them figure out ways to work together even with those they
least expected to work with.

The participant treats fellow participants with courtesy and consideration consistently. The
participant should always show a high degree of understanding of the needs of the process and
come in with the appropriate support to other participants without discrimination of any sort. The
participants does not offer conditions on when they will be participating in the process nor who
to work with at anytime.

Quite simply, a good participant deals with people and situations in a professional manner. The
participant looks beyond their own aspirations and care more about the successes of the Citizen
Participation process.

PROBLEM SOLVER
As highlighted in this Handbook the Citizen Participation process is not immune to encountering
periodic conflicts. A good participant in the process should be a person whom will be willing and
prepared to deal with all kinds of conflicts or problems in a solutions oriented manner. A good
participant must be a problem – solver person and not problem – dweller (those who rehash
problems) nor problem – blamer (those who through issues at others) not even a problem –
avoider (those who put off dealing with issues). A good participant brings problems out in the
open for discussion and then collaborate with others to find a solution and move forward.

RELIABILTY
The Citizen Participation process is highly dependent on a participant who gets work done and
does their share to work hard meeting all set commitments. A reliable participant follows
through on all assignments at hand and remains consistent and delivering good performances all
the time not just some times.

FLEXIBILITY
In its process, Citizen Participation often deals with variably changing conditions. Good
participants in the process should therefore be persons who will be able to roll with the punches.
They adapt to the ever changing dynamics of the process without complaining or getting stressed
that something new has cropped in the process and a new direction is being taken.

COMMUNICATIONS CONSTRUCTIVELY
Citizen Participation requires participants who speak up and express their thoughts and express
their thoughts and ideas clearly, directly, honestly and with respect for others. A participant who
communicates constructively does not shy away from making a point but makes it in the best
way possible in a positive, confident and respectful manner.
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ACTIVE LISTENER
A participant who is good in listening to others contributes greatly to the effective functioning of
the team. Citizen Participation requires participants who can absorb, understand and consider
ideas and varied points of views from other people without debating and arguing at every
contribution made by others. Such a participant can also receive criticism without reacting
defensively. An actively listening participants has the discipline to listen first and speak second
to foster for a meaningful dialogue.

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

Participation involves bringing individuals or groups together to achieve one objective. Each
member will hold his/ its own view on an issue tabled for discussion. More often than not each
member would want their view/ position to be accepted by others.

WHAT IS CONFLICT
- Conflict exists where people hold different views, perceptions and opinions.
- This is a disagreement through which parties involved perceive a threat to their needs,
interests or values.
- This is a process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or
negatively affected by another party.
- Conflict is a normal part of any healthy relationship.
- Conflict is an unavoidable aspect of everyday life is it with others, yourself or an
organization.

EFFECTS OF CONFLICT
When conflict is mismanaged it can:-
- Cause harm to relationship
- Negatively affect production / service delivery
- Be costly
- Hurt individuals
- Make people anxious
- Affect one’s ego/ confidence
- Lead to death.

When conflict is handled respectfully in a positive way, it can:-

- Create new relationships
- Strengthen the bond between individuals or group
- Foster change in an organization
- Bring divergent views which are healthy for organizational growth

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 - Help individuals see the potential results of their views through those who disagree.
- Improve quality of decisions
- Be the pillar of democracy
- Make people appreciate one another knowledge.
- Bring people closer

AREAS OF CONFLICT IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT

For effective participation to occur, it is important that those involved know the potential areas of
conflict in their partnerships. This will enable them to engage in a manner that will reduce the
negative effects of conflict while increasing the positive

The areas are many and varied with some being specific to some areas. A few have been
identified below and you are expected to identify more in your area.

- Interpretation of policy directives

- Differences in priorities (Men, women, youth and the aged. This could also be along
economic or political lines.
- Unclear roles leading to perceptions of interference, neglect or any such
- Unrealistic needs and interests
- Shortage of resources
- Poor communication
- Employment of staff
- Acquisition and development of resources
- Differences between individual and organizational goals

MANAGEMENT OF CONFLICT

Because individuals and groups will forever hold differing views, perceptions, opinions and
priorities yet use the same resources there will be a lot of competition to have one’s position
prevail.

If care is not taken, disaster will prevail and nothing will be achieved.

The process or practice of reconciling all the different views, opinions and priorities to achieve
one objective is “CONFLICT MANAGEMENT”

This process will achieve “PARTICIPATION” as it means different efforts brought together to
achieve one objective.

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We have known of schools never built even when funds were available because the community
could not agree on either the site or the name. Generations have thus suffered and continue to
suffer because conflict was not managed.

POINTS TO NOTE IN CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

- Everyone has a view/ opinion on everything and that this is God given.
- Everyone has got pride
- Everyone sees his/ her position as the best
- Everyone would support a view that best suits him/ her
- People are generally reasonable
- People are sympathetic and empathetic ie. They feel for others
- People are rationale animals
- People want to be associated with good things / achievements.
- People behavior, attitudes and perceptions are shaped by what they know.
- Levels of conflict depend on the differences of individuals in the partnership:-
i. Their level of knowledge
ii. Their individual attributes
iii. Their language differences
iv. Their economic levels

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