8 oct 2004

The role and place of social institutions in the development of rural communities (2004)

At present, special attention is given to creation and establishment of various institutions of civil society, as one of the major factors of democratization of society and strengthening the processes of development.

The newly established institutions include such organizations as the action groups, water user committees, school committees, women's clubs, teams, self-help groups, etc. Most often such organizations arise as a result of implementation of various social projects supported by international organizations. Communities of people are integral part of the ongoing project and the prerequisite for donors to support this project. This contributed to a significant number of the most diverse forms of social institutions.

The purpose of this study is to examine the place and role of modern, traditional and legitimately elected institutions in the life of the rural community and in accordance with local and national context.

The study showed that there exist different understanding of the purpose of creating social institutions among the donors and program staff. On the one hand, the pluralism of opinions - it's good, because it assists the advancement and constant adjustments to their actions, but on the other hand, the implementation of what is not fully convinced, not the best way to achieve success.

These different views on the need to build institutions once again suggest that any intervention in the community should be designed and implemented taking into account the context and the gradual change in thinking of the population, especially in rural areas