Abstract
This study accessed the extent of community participation in development projects within the Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam District of Ghana. Development projects selected were water systems, market structures and KVIP’s. This was a descriptive survey research design which used semi-structured interviews, a focus group discussion guide and observation checklist to gather data from 72 respondents from six selected communities within the districts. The findings indicate that both Development Agencies and beneficiaries ‘participated’ in the development projects as a means to an end. The end to the Development Agents was to meet externally induced welfare targets and to the communities, the end being meeting immediate socio-economic deficiencies. Both choose a course of action that best suited their interest, as explained by the rational choice theory. Participation in the district is functional. It is recommended that the District Assembly should sensitize the communities on their roles as channels in the decentralization process to encourage them to fully participate in the development process. Additionally, development Agents empower the communities to make project sustainability a possibility.
Highlights
The number of poor people, the world over, is on the increase despite years of development work
Rational Choice theory is chosen because it vividly helps in identifying the reason for community participation in development projects; 2020, Vol 8, No 2 how far members of the community are willing to commit themselves to the project after adding up the benefits and cost of their action
The main design employed for this study was the descriptive survey as it seeks to assess the opinion of community members on their participation in development projects in the district
Summary
The number of poor people, the world over, is on the increase despite years of development work. The focus of international development discourse still hinges on social development (Atal, 1997). According to Atal (1997), countries the world over have adopted their own methods in eradicating poverty as a result of the multidimensional nature of poverty. According to Fox and Brown (1998), the failure of the World Bank to reach the poor and even causing social and environmental damage through its structural adjustment programmes is generally condemned (Battikha, 2002; Pender, 2001). On hindsight, the World Bank has adopted the Comprehensive Development Framework (CDF) to promote a more all-inclusive, participatory, and state-owned approach to the reduction of poverty and development (The World Bank, 2003)
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