This book examines the conceptual foundations of the participatory approach to local development, assesses the evidence of its efficacy, and draws key lessons for policy.

Presents case studies resulting from participation in the World Bank by developing countries such as Chad, Brazil, and Nigeria

What do we mean when we say participatory communication? What are the practical implications of working with participatory communication strategies in development and social change processes? What experiences exists in practice that documents that participatory communication adds value to a development project or programme? The aim of this user guide on participatory communication is to provide answers to some of these questions. Many communication practitioners and development workers face obstacles and challenges in their practical work. A participatory communication strategy offers a very specific perspective on how to articulate social processes, decision-making processes and any change process for that matter. Participatory approaches are nothing new. However, what is new is the proliferation of institutions, especially governmental but also non-governmental, that seek participatory approaches in their development initiative. This guide seeks to provide perspectives, tools and experiences regarding how to go about it with participatory communication strategies. It is conceived as a guide that hopefully can be of relevance and utility for development workers in the field. It is targeted at both at government and their officials, World Bank staff and at civil society.

Participatory development is an end and a means. It is an end because participation builds skills and enhances people's capacity for action and for enriching their lives. It is a means because participation contributes to better development policies and projects. As a development agency, the World Bank is primarily concerned with exploring how individuals, communities and public and private institutions can contribute to making development prospects better and more lasting. This report reflects the outcome of a workshop intended to explore some difficult issues, such as whether the Bank is approaching the idea of participation in the right way; how and to what extent external agencies can encourage participatory development. This book is a guide to the learning process. The main messages of the introductory chapter reflect further thinking of the learning groups since the workshop.

This book provides rigorous and provocative understanding of the art and practice of participatory budgeting for those interested in strengthening inclusive and accountable governance.

This paper reviews the World Bank's experience with community participation (CP) in a sample of its projects selected from three different sectors; urban housing, population, health and nutrition (PHN), and irrigation. The sample was chosen on a judgmental basis and consisted of forty projects which were known to have the potential for the use of CP or incorporated it in their strategies, and ten successful projects from the same sectors which did not make use of CP. The focus of the paper is on the approaches to participation employed by the first set of projects and the lessons to be learned from their experience. An analysis of the second set of projects sheds light on the reasons why community participation was neglected by them.

'Local and Community Driven Development: Moving to Scale in Theory and Practice' provides development practitioners with the historical background and the tools required to successfully scale up local and community driven development (LCDD) to the regional and national levels. LCDD gives control of development decisions and resources to communities and local governments. It involves collaboration between communities, local governments, technical agencies, and the private sector. Since the 1980s, participatory approaches have received new impetus via participatory rural appraisal, the integration of participation in sector programs, decentralization efforts of developing countries, and greater space for civil society and the private sector. This book traces the emergence of the LCDD synthesis from these various strands. 'Local and Community Driven Development' provides the theoretical underpinnings for scaling up, guidance on how to adapt the approach to the specific institutional and political settings of different countries, diagnostic tools, and step-by-step instructions to diagnose the national context, adapt policies, and expand programs. It will be a useful guide for rural and urban development practitioners, public administrators, and policy makers who wrestle daily with the problems the book addresses.