Sarhad Provincial Conservation Strategy - IUCN

8
8 . 1
N O N - G O V E R N M E N T A L O R G A N I Z A T I O N S
COMMUNITIES PA RT I C I PATING IN
D E V E L O P M E N T
Pakistan continues to be a society characterized by
tribal and feudal norms and traditions. Until the middle
of nineteenth century, self-help and mutual cooperation
were the only ways to endure life in an area
with an extreme climate, scant rainfall, and little
means of communication. Land and other natural
resources were the only means of subsistence, complemented
with modest internal and external trade.
People had to get together to dig irrigation channels
and to log forests. Social life centred around the
community rather than individuals. Weddings, funerals,
and indigenous festivals were occasions when
the entire village pooled resources and participated.
Agriculture was largely a community activity irrespective
of who owned the fields. These traditions
were more pronounced in northern Pakistan, where
the tall and rugged mountains made life even more
difficult. When the British occupied the sub-continent
in the eighteenth century, the Government began to
assume a paternalistic role, resulting in increased
dependency on the state.
This dependency continued to increase after the
creation of Pakistan in 1947. Bureaucratic control
over public funds for development made the
Government vulnerable to abuse, and caused an
inequitable distribution of benefits. With the increase
in population, the pressure on Government resources
increased and the availability of public funds for
development decreased significantly. This, together
with political instability and fragmented policies,
resulted in erosion of public trust in state mechanisms
and increased corruption. In their efforts to alleviate
poverty and maintain a benevolent image, successive
governments heavily borrowed from banks and
secured substantial bilateral grants. While this
helped in raising funds, the efficacy and eventual
impact of the investments on the quality of life
remained questionable. Consequently, there is now
a renewed interest in self-help initiatives and in new
partnerships between communities, non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), and the private sector to
share the responsibility for sustainable development.
82 SARHAD PROVINCIAL CONSERVATION STRATEGY
Joint communal work is taking several new forms
due to the influence of external factors. The possibility
of receiving funds is motivating communities and
groups to organize themselves into formal structures
to be registered under a variety of laws. Donor
interest in diversifying the mechanisms for the use of
their funds has provided an added incentive to form
alternative institutions for community work.
Structured community participation in development
in the North West Frontier Province began in
the 1980s when forestry and integrated development
projects helped to organize village groups that could
play a role in meeting projects’ development goals.
There are now several such programmes and projects
working through community organizations, either by
helping to create new ones or by reactivating old
ones. These community-based organizations (CBOs)
and village organizations (VOs) play a significant
role in the successful implementation of projects.
There are also several NGOs that were formed in the
1990s and now work with CBOs, playing important
roles in their respective fields.
NGOs in the NWFP have a lot of initiative and
motivation that, when tempered by local wisdom, can
produce good results. They are flexible and prompt in
response, and are effective at the grassroots level.
They are a catalyst for change and are a source of
empowerment for local communities. They can telescope
the cycle of development. Above all, they are
very effective at advocacy, at raising awareness of
different matters, and at highlighting human rights
issues. They also sometimes act as a check on ill-conceived
Government policies.
The weakness of the NGO sector lies in its relative
immaturity. Many groups are still going through growing
pains. Some suffer from a lack of clarity in their
mission and objectives, which leads them to work in
too many different fields. Some suffer from difficulties
in getting donor support. Like NGOs in other developing
countries, groups in the NWFP are also predominantly
donor-dependent. Most lack experienced managers.
Due to the financial insecurity and the lack of
experienced personnel in the province, NGOs find it
difficult to attract and retain highly competent staff.
Involvement of NGOs in development is still a relatively
new concept in Pakistan. In the 1980s only