As a follow up to the discussions we’ve been having on this e-list on community participation in building social accountability, I suggest you take a look at the report arising from a meeting held in Zimbabwe in October, facilitated by TARSC, COPASAH and EQUINET on Participatory Approaches to Strengthening People-Centred Health Systems in the east and southern Africa (ESA) region. See http://www.copasah.net/training-workshop-on-participatory-methods-for-a-people-centred-health-system-in-zimbabwe.html
The meeting drew on a very useful toolkit called Organising People’s Power for Health: Participatory Methods for a People Centred Health System. The toolkit, produced by TARSC Zimbabwe and IFAKARA Tanzania through the Regional Network on Equity in Health in east and southern Africa (EQUINET) shows how participatory methods can be used to raise community voice, both through health research and by training communities to take effective action and become involved in the health sector. Topics covered in the toolkit include Understanding Community, Understanding Health, People Centred Health Systems, Community Actions in Planning and Organising Health Systems, etc . Discussions are interspersed with description of particular methods, including the wheel chart, resource pockets and others, all of which I think you’ll find most useful in your work. See http://www.equinetafrica.org/bibl/docs/EQUINET%20PRA%20toolkit%20for%20web.pdf to access this toolkit.
Barbara Kaim
TARSC
