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Local Dialogues
The WD-SA convened local dialogues in five of the case study areas to share its research findings with community members, municipal officials and councillors, and private sector stakeholders (if any). These one day events provided a space to engage in dialogue between the local stakeholders to move toward change and development, and ultimately, improved delivery of water and sanitation. |
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Local dialogues were participatory, however the goal was not necessarily to reach consensus. Instead it was to openly share experiences and to explore openly new possibilities, so that ideas and solutions may emerge. The facilitator provided simple guidelines for dialogue:
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In general, community members’ interest in the meeting centred around getting answers to their questions (WD-SA had assisted by convening community meetings in each of the four research areas in each case study area) and finding out when and how various problems would be addressed. Municipal officials sought to learn from communities and research findings, while clarifying and explaining their position.
Local dialogue teams convened preparatory community meetings and local dialogues, presented research findings, facilitated discussions in local languages, and recorded agreed upon actions. A general statement on the outcomes of each local dialogue appears in the DVD on each case study. Although the teams varied, all local dialogues were facilitated by the WD-SA Facilitator, Warren Banks. His reflections on the overall approach to local dialogues and his analysis of their usefulness and wider application is captured in the Local Dialogues Analysis Report.
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"Many people died in the cholera outbreak. This outbreak cannot be blamed on the poor people coming from neighbouring countries – it was due to lack of proper water provision and sanitation services."
Belfast community member, Bushbuckridge Local Municipality |
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"We do not believe that anything will change as a result of the research; nothing will happen now or in the near future. When there are problems, we make sure that we report them, but we do not expect much. Who are we to keep complaining?"
Etete community member, Ilembe District Municipality |
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