Literature review: community-based workers and service delivery. CDD Working Paper No. 1.
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to identify the potential and constraints of community-driven management and service delivery by tracking the evolution of participation, in selected projects as shaped by the interface between individuals, community workers and institutions.
In the first section, the paper discusses a working definition of CBWs, which will be specified and diversified throughout the text. The text moves on to a discussion of the historical development of the idea of the CBWs: from a 1970s 'community involvement' focus, to ideas regarding participatory development, to a partial cooptation of participatory approaches in neo-liberal reforms. In a second section, the paper examines various case studies as discussed in the available literature. This discussion is structured according to specific subjects: healthcare, justice, education, research, and the natural environment. In addition, we discuss the literature on the motivations of CBWs and on cost-effectiveness. In some concluding reflections, we examine the constraints and possibilities of service delivery through CBWs in developing countries. In doing so, we attempt to trace the interlinkages.
The research analyses case studies of community-driven development activity in relation to water and HIV/AIDS in Tanzania and South Africa.
Citation
Literature review: community-based workers and service delivery. CDD Working Paper No. 1., Bradford Centre for International Development, University of Bradford, UK, 36 pp.
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