Training Courses

Training Course on Participatory Rural Appraisal

Participation is an essential key to sustainable community development. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) is a way of learning from and with community members about their life and community as an integrated system. It tackles development issues in partnership with the communities involved, and it most often used to access community  needs, priorities, attitudes and behaviours. It aims to investigate analysis, and evaluate constraints and opportunities, to create sustainable solutions that involve all the key stakeholders, and enable informed and timely decisions regarding development projects.

PRA has been adopted by several international organisations such as the World Bank, the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the united Nations Development Programme, the United States Agency for International Development. Similarly, in Nepal NGOs, INGOs and Governmental organisations have been applying PRA in their day to day activities. A network of PRA professionals including institutional members called Nepal Participatory Action Network (NEPAN) has already been established.

PRA/PLA (Participatory Learning and Action) is a widely accepted approach in sustainable community development processes. Its main aim is to empower local people to share, enhance and analyse their knowledge and life situation in order to plan, act, monitor, evaluate and distribute the results in an equitable basis. We have developed PRA training module/package to enable participants to understand and apply PRA.

Training Courses

1. Orientation Course – 3 Days
2. Basics on PRA – 6 Days
3. Advanced Course on PRA – 10-12 Days

Objectives of the Course

The main of the PRA training is to enhance and improve conceptual and practical understanding of PRA of the participants so they can apply it in their own area of expertise.

Participants

We organise all the three module. The orientation and basic course are geared mainly to decision makers, managers, development workers and the people who can not afford much time in field. The advance course is the detailed course with 4-6 days of field visit. In each course, a maximum of 20 participants can participate.

Flexible Contents

Each course can include a combination of the following modules. The level of detail of each segment depends on the duration of the course.

Module 1

Conceptual Understanding on Development of the following modules. The level of detail of each segment depends on the duration of the course.

• Present development process and PRA/PLA
• Poverty and PRA
• Philosophy of Participation

Module 2

Basic Understanding of PRA and Important Qualities of Development Workers

• Development paradigms and history of PRA/PLA
• Differences between PRA and PLA
• Definition and basic principles of PRA
• Participatory attitude, behaviour and change
• Rapport building
• Qualities of PRA practitioners or development workers
• Limitation of PRA practitioners or development workers
• Dangers of PRA

Module 3

Theoretical Understanding and Class Room Exercise on PRA Tools and Technique

• Time Line
• Mobility map
• Resource Map
• Venn Diagram
• Well-being ranking
• Daily schedule
• Seasonal calender
• Seasonal calender
• Problem trees (cause-effect analysis)
• Livelihood analysis
• Focus group discussion
• Time trend
• Social map
• Transect walk
• Flow diagram
• Preference ranking (pair-wise ranking and matrix ranking)
• Ethno history
• Pie chart
• Semi-structured interview
• Direct observation etc.

Module 4

Field Visit to observe PRA in action followed by group reflection (not) or orientation course, 1-2 days for basic course and 4-6 days for advanced PRA training )

• Intensive field exercise of the selected tools and techniques
• Reflection of the field exercise
• Evaluation
• Analysis and presentation of the information in the field.
• Action plan/commitment of the trainees

Fees

Each three day course costs US$ 50/participant for Nepali Citizen and  US$ 80/participant for Non -Nepalese Citizen. The six day course costs  US$ 90/participant for Nepali Citizen and US$ 150/participant for Non-Nepalese Citizen. The ten twelve day course costs US$ 190/participant for Nepali Citizen and US$ 280/participant for Non-Nepalese Citizen. The cost for field visits includes lodging, food and travel. The fees also include a comprehensive workbook, snacks, and program instruction.

Training Course on Facilitation Skills

Public participation is a critical component of any development activity. People are the resources of Knowledge, capacities, ideas and action. It cab be difficult to tap individual creativity in an effective way, because we are often caught up in our usual patterns of behaving. However, if we can clearly understand group process and master the skill of effective and facilitative leadership, we can utilise the individual’s resources fully for better group results.

Technology of Participant (TOP) or Facilitation Skills, are tools that enable individual’s ideas and capacities to come forth, leading to enhanced group results. They consist of different methods for creating shared awareness, shared decisions and shared action in groups. These methods have proved effective for organizations and community groups large and small.

Five day long facilitation course will train you to be competent in using the facilitation tools that are taught and practised in all over the world. The core of the course consists of four tools: Focused Conversation Method, Workshop, Workshop Method, Action Planning Method and Participatory Strategic Planing Method.

Focused Conservation Method (ORID)

The Focused Conservation Method enables group member to reflect on an event or commonly shared experience and derive common meaning. It provides a structure for effective dialogue in groups, gently leading the conservation from individual observations, to feelings and ideas, and eventually to a shared understanding and group response.

The method is based on the natural process of human mind, which takes group members through four levels of awareness, from a superficial observation of an event to an in-depth understanding of what has happened and how to respond. These four levels are called: objective level, Reflective level, Interpretive level and Decisional level.

Have you noticed how often a group discussion can go around in circle and never come to clear conclusion ? The Focused Conservation Method provides a highly structured and productive approach, which gives all individuals a chance to express their feelings and ideas and always ends in some kind of decision and conclusion.

Workshop Method

The workshop method helps a group to be creative and to reach consensus quickly about issues which are important for the group. It taps each individual’s ideas and brings together them all together into a shared group result, which will form the basic for action.

Through this process, individual’s capacities and ideas are tapped fully and are integrated into the group’ end result. It is a very active process, in which people feel empowered and appreciated and will be motivated to participate actively in group’s activities.

Action Planning Method

Through this method, a group can design a very detailed implementation plan for a their common activity or project. The group is guided through a process of creative thinking, realistic analysis of the situation and finally making a well-thought out plan of action, including a timeline and division of tasks. The process involves identifying the types of activities needed, a vision of the ‘victory’ key actions, calendar and assignments and concludes with reflection.

Participatory Strategic Planning Method

Planning is like the steering-wheel of an organisation, and this method enables long term planning to be done successfully. It takes the group through a process of building a shared vision for the future, looking at problematic issues that are challenging the group and identifying strategic directions for tackling these issues. As an end result, the group divides into task forces each with a shorter-term goals.

This tool provides groups with a clear framework of where they are heading, ensuring everyone is aligned on the vision, and motivated to participate in making it happen. It helps them to make strategic decisions and to translate these into a practical implementation plan.

Course Overview

Day 1

• Introduction to the Course
• Role of Teacher/Trainer/Facilitator/Animator/Coordinator etc.
• PRA/ZOPP/Animation/Appreciative Inquiry/ TOP Method
• Focused Conservation Method
• ORID

Day 2

• Workshop Method
• Action Plan Method
• Victory
• Key Actions
• Calender and Assignments

Day 3

• Participatory Strategic Planning
• Course intro, Overview and Focus Question
• Vision Workshop
• Contradictions
• Demonstration

Day 4

• Strategic Actions and Directions
• Implementation

Day 5

• Practice
• Applying Facilitation Skill
• Course Evaluation and Reflection etc.

Fees

The fee for this course are US$ 80/participant for Nepali Citizen and US$ 130 for Non-Nepalese Citizen. This includes tea, snacks, training manual and stationery.

Training Course on Project Proposal Writing and Fund-raising

Nepal’s communities need sustainable and effective development activities. For the financing of these development projects, organizations are usually dependent on foreign donor agencies. The quality of development projects is of the prime importance for Nepal’s future and at the same time competition for funds is growing. Therefore, the art of project proposal writing and fund-raising becomes a more and more important skill for development organisation.

Although the main focus of this three day course is on development projects and NGOs; the basic structure of a project proposal is also suitable for different types of projects or activities, e.g. for seminars or commercial activities that require funding.

• How to plan for an effective development project ?
• What are trends in development aid ?
• How to describe a problem situation clearly ?
• How to present project ideas clearly?
• How do I know my project proposal is good ?

These and other question will be addressed in Training course on Project Proposal Writing and Fund-raising.

Objectives

The general objective of this course is to develop capability in to:

• Sessions of different topics are as practical as possible. Most of the training sessions will be carried out in the whole group. Some activities will be done in small groups.

Participants

A maximum of 20 participants who are directly or indirectly related with project proposal writing and fund-raising activities are expected to participate in the course.

Trainers

There will be 2-4 trainers. The trainers are highly trained in the field of project proposal writing and fund-raising activities and have several years of training experience in Nepal and around the world.

Course Overview

According to our tradition, the training methods are varied and participatory. The course is conducted using various methods such as lectures, demonstration, brainstorm, role play, small group assignments, workshop, small group presentation and energisers. During each day there will be some room for working on your own project proposal. Participants can also bring a draft proposal to improve during the course.

Day 1

• Development Aid Introduction
• Proposal Format
• Proposal Assessment
• Contradiction with Donors

Day 2

• Needs Analysis
• Project Goal, Objectives and Activities
• Monitoring and Evaluation
• Project Budget

Day 3

• Development Concepts and Donor Jargon
• Improve your own proposal
• Logical Framework
• Presenting your organization
• Building Relationship with Donors

Course fees

Each three day course costs US$ 50/participant for Nepali Citizen and  US$ 80/participant for Non -Nepalese Citizen. The cost for field visits includes lodging, food and travel. The fees also include a comprehensive workbook, snacks, and program instruction.

Participatory Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation.

The training will be conducted by using various methods such as lectures, demonstration, brainstorm, role play, small group assignments, workshop, small group presentation, energisers, etc. All possible methods for OOME will be used in this course in such a way that facilitators learn how to use them in them in their own working areas.

Participants

A maximum of 20 participants who are expected to have experience  as a front line worker will participate in this course.

Tentative Contents:

The course will include different aspects of participatory planning, monitoring and evaluation. There will be ample opportunity for practice and hands on experience. The tentative content is as follows:

First Day

• Philosophy of participation
• Facilitation for PPME ( ORID, Workshop, Facilitation Skills )

Focused Conservation Method (ORID) allows group members to reflect on an event or commonly shared experience. It helps group members in sharing individual observations, feeling and ideas and in this way to reach a shared awareness as a basis for a group response.

Second Day

• Participatory Planning Cycle
• Vision based Planning

This method is a tool for a structured planning for the longer term. It takes the group through a process of building a shared vision for the future looking at issues that are challenging the group and identifying strategic directions for tackling these issues. As an end result of this planning process, the group will be divided into task forces with each a shorter-term planning, heading towards the identified long-term goals.

This tool will provide a group with a clear framework of where they are heading towards collaboratively. It helps them to make strategic decisions and to translate these into a practical implementation plan.

This tool will provide a group with a clear framework of where they are heading towards collaboratively. It helps them to make strategic decisions and to translate these into a practical implementation plan.

• Vision Workshop
• Contradiction
• Strategic Actions and Direction

Third Day

• Systematic Actions
• Implementation
• Development of Indicators
• Commitment

Fourth Day

• Participatory M&E: Intro

In every project, monitoring and evaluation play an essential role. Proper monitoring during the implementation of an activity or project is essential, in order to be able to see whether the project is still on tract towards the set objective and whether adaptations should be made. However, monitoring can be very powerful tool, not for improving the implementation of a project, but also as learning and empowering activity for project staff and project beneficiaries in itself. In participatory monitoring, the beneficiaries themselves monitor the project on the basis of indicators that they themselves find important. Participatory evaluation is a powerful tool realistically looking at the results and value of what has been done, as well for creating team sprit and motivation a group to continue working collaboratively in future.

• Tools for PME

Wall of wonder for Broad Evaluation

Interactive Interview

PRA Tools ( Thematic Group Discussion, On-site Observation, SWOT analysis, Self-evaluation, Venn Diagram)

Logical Framework Analysis

Fifth Day

• Practice

The participants will have ample opportunity to learn practical aspects of planning monitoring and evaluation.

Fees

The fee for this course are US$ 80/participant for Nepali Citizen and US$ 130 for Non-Nepalese Citizen. This includes tea, snacks, training manual and stationery.

Note: We follows tools and technique developed by ICA.