UNDP/OPS INTEGRATED ATOLL DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

RAS/88/014

OUTER ISLAND CAPABILITY ENHANCEMENT PROCESS (OICEP)
(AN INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR SMALL ISLANDS)

Prepared by

Nestor M. Pestelos and Jeff Liew

IADP OCCASIONAL PAPER NUMBER 6

January 1991

UNDP/OPS INTEGRATED ATOLL DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

Occasional Papers Series

The IADP Occasional Papers Series contains the original work of project staff distributed within and outside the Pacific region to stimulate discussion on small islands development. For more information, contact the Project Coordinator, Integrated Atoll Development Project, UNDP, Private Mail Bag, Suva, Fiji. Tel: 300-399, 314-155. Fax: (679) 301-976. telex: 2228 FJ. E-mail: 302-500.

Published by:

UNDP/OPS Integrate Atoll Development Project

(RAS/88/014)

First Edition: January 1991. ISBN 982-223-006-0

THE INTEGRATED ATOLL DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

The UNDP/OPS Integrated Atoll Development Project is a regional project aimed at the promotion of sustainable development by increasing the productive capabilities of the atoll environment ad its people. Project activities cover agriculture, marine resources, transport, resource management, human resource development and institution building.

The project has implemented an integrated programme in various remote atolls of the following participating countries: Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Tokelau, Tuvalu, all in the Pacific; and Maldives in the Indian Ocean.

To share the developments and experience gained from the various activities, the project is also mandated to disseminate information to countries in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The project’s publication programme is one activity towards meeting this objective.

For further information, please contact:

Project Coordinator

Integrated Atoll Development Project

UNDP

Private Mail Bag

SUVA, Fiji

OUTER ISLAND CAPABILITY ENHANCEMENT PROCESS (OICEP)

An institutional development

Strategy for small islands ¹

A. Introduction

Rural development in the context of small island states means basically the trust towards ensuring the balanced and sustainable growth of outer islands

Marginal communities. These islands have been traditionally at the periphery of overall development efforts on account of geographic, cultural or economic considerations, their existence acknowledged only in terms of their serviceability to the main island. They typify marginal communities in the Pacific and elsewhere which are target for development assistance. These islands are invariably described as remote, isolated, small and resource-poor.

In their remoteness and relative isolation, they have evolved institutions and practices which foster social harmony and mutual cooperation. Their subsistence economy, on the other hand, has been conditioned by the usual constraints associated with smallness and other limitations of the resource base. For centuries, their social organization, which is the sum total of their institutional and cultural responses to the uniqueness of their economic and geographic setting, has experienced constant onslaughts from external influences. Indeed the outer island has become virtually an arena for contending ideas on how best to develop the remote rural areas of small island developing countries.

Common problems. National efforts in various countries directed to focus attention and services to the outer islands have brought to the fore common problems encountered in developing remote rural areas.

First, on account of their location, the outer islands exact heavy costs in service delivery and project implementation;

Second, due to lack of local involvement and social mobilization, externally-assisted projects are bound to fail and thus fritter away scarce island resources and more significantly, erode community confidence to initiate and sustain development efforts;

Third, top-heavy and expensive planning process, as well as highly centralized administrative procedures, often plague attempts to draw meaningful participation from the island community itself and the sectors most affected by development plans and projects;

Fourth, the steady population drift towards the capital island or in increasing cases, out-migration to other countries, results in severe lack of manpower to carry out household and community tasks; and

Fifth, the linkages established by outer islands to the rapidly-urbanizing capital island, in addition to other external influences, have resulted in weakening traditional adherence to long-held values which contribute to the cultural instability of island communities.

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¹ The development approach described in this concept paper has been based on IADP experience during the last 7 years in 20 remote island communities of 7 atoll countries in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its replication in other countries will be sought for next phase.

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Observations. Efforts in each country to analyze the rot causes of these problems have led to more or less a general agreement on the following observations:

• Modernization trends both in the colonial and post-colonial periods have weakened traditional authority lodged in certain clans and indigenous institutions;

• The island community’s institutional pattern of social harmony, mutual cooperation and economic self-sufficiency is being gradually supplanted by a system of governance which fosters linkage to the external cash economy and to the requirements of a relatively modern island state;

• Development programmes have tended to reinforce such linkage at the expense of local values and institutions which can strategically provide, given adequate mobilization and training inputs, a sound planning and implementation base for sustainable local-level development;

• Efforts to establish complementary institutions to enable outer islands to cope with a rapidly-changing environment without painful loss of cultural integrity and local initiative have been fraught with difficulties, conditioned by both technical and attitudinal factors.

Local management for sustainable development. The Outer Island Capability Enhancement Process or OICEP seeks to address the need to evolve a more appropriate and truly representative local management system for the outer islands which will in the long term ensure the success of sustainable rural development efforts in the context of the current aspirations of small island states in the Pacific and elsewhere.

B. Lessons from the Integrated Atoll Development Project (IADP)

IADP experience during the last 7 years in 20 remote island communities of 7 atoll countries has indicated the need to formulate and implement a comprehensive outer island development approach based on concrete lessons learned, which include the following:

1. Mobilization and training of traditional leaders and indigenous institutions broaden the base for development planning and management and lay the groundwork for long-term project sustainability.

In Maloelap, Marshall Islands, the involvement of the Iroij (Chief, who is also the principal landowner) and the Wato (landholding) settlers provided impetus to the organizing efforts in support of projects, i.e. backyard gardening, construction of water tanks, latrines, and wells. Previous attempts to use mainly the extension agent and the appointed and elected officials were not enough to produce the critical mass needed for the atoll-wide implementation of the foregoing projects.

Non-involvement of traditional leaders during the early phase of water tank construction in Tamana, Kiribati led to unnecessary delays. Likewise, failure to plan with indigenous organizations and the local people led to technical design problems of both the boat building and passageway projects in Tamana.

2. Structures composed of traditional leaders and other sectors could be formed to share with as many people as possible development planning and management tasks.

Despite initial difficulties, the project has worked with national and outer island governments n replicating complementary structures designed to broaden popular participation in local-level development. Examples of such structures are the Island Development Committee (IDC) in Tamana which has just been replicated nation-wide; the Island Development Assistance Committee (IDAC) and Atoll Development Assistance Committee (ADAC) in Maldives; and the Mangaia Development Coordinating Committee (MDCC) in Cook Islands.

These entities support existing government bodies with the broad-based participation of both indigenous organizations and newly-formed sectoral groups. Prior to their creation, need assessment activities have been undertaken to ascertain the extent of local support to the structure proposed by most community organization in the island. Intensive training has been required in such areas as development planning, project formulation, and basic management to make them fully operational.

3. Government-mandated bodies at atoll/island level need to be primed up and adequately motivated and trained to generate and sustain popular participation in development planning and management.

Experience in Tokelau has indicated the need to provide intensive training to the Tokelau Public Service (TPS) based at the atolls to facilitate greater cooperation between government bodies and local institutions in project planning and implementation.

In Woleai, Yap, government personnel, such as teachers, agriculture extension agents, and health workers jointly conducted water and sanitation, as well as livelihood, surveys with volunteers from youth organizations. They received specialized skills on how to mobilize the community on the basis of the people’s own perceived needs and interests.

4. Project development at atoll/island level need to be linked to a participatory plan formulation process which takes into account the overall community situation, the collective vision and statement of local priorities.

Experience in practically all project sites showed widespread bias on infrastructure projects without regard to priority allocation of scarce resources or to prohibitive maintenance costs required. Projects are increasingly viewed as “national”, planned and implemented at the central level more to employ people rather than to solve local problems. Solicitation of voluntary work is getting more difficult with infusion of cash (on non-cash) incentives for project activities performed by island residents.

Lacking pertinence to the local situation, and with minimal participation from the island community, most externally-initiated projects are bound to fail.

5. An integrative, capability-building process implemented at the outer islands requires timely and effective guidance from a dynamic support mechanism at both national and regional levels.

In most participating countries (Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, Kiribati and Maldives), the project has formed and intensively trained an inter-agency core team of trainers at national level.

The project has sought to build national capability to identify and respond promptly to training needs at the outer island level. To fully institutionalize this project function, the capability to train and guide national training teams will have to be built in an existing regional institution.

C. Characteristics of the Task Environment

Major trends in the outer islands which influence the nature of activities to be undertaken to facilitate project implementation are as follows:

• The weakening of traditional authority due primarily to the further growth of the government bureaucracy has led to the dependence on top-down planning and centralized guidance on practically everything which affects island community life;

• The lack of profit orientation, as well as individual initiative and competitive spirit, remains a significant impediment to income generation and to the acquisition of skills required for achievement in a cash economy;

• Improvement in communication and transport, as well as relatively greater access to travel and jobs outside the outer islands, has led to new wants which a subsistence economy cannot provide and hence, this trend further encourages reliance on the external market economy;

• The presence of externally-funded development programmes and projects which almost always foster greater demand for services and technologies beyond local capability and resources to maintain.

Comprehensive approach needed. These trends require a comprehensive institution-building approach to better equip island communities with new skills and attitudes and facilitate effective management of such changes towards achieving rural development goals.

OICEP seeks to serve as a dynamic tool in enabling outer island governments and local communities to manage these changes, sift the positive aspects of their culture and utilize them as foundation values towards further enhancing the capability to initiate, direct and sustain development efforts.

It also seeks to further strengthen current national efforts to provide timely technical assistance to outer island governments and local communities towards enhancing development management and project implementation capabilities. Thus the process involves building in such innovative role vis-à-vis national governments in an appropriate regional institution.

D. Guiding Principles of OICEP

Decentralized management. OICEP is committed to helping strengthening the periphery with the center providing timely and adequate support. The outer islands may be brought to the mainstream of the development process if the government bodies and traditional institutions are assisted to acquire new skills which will enable them to manage changes better in their social and economic mileau.

Flexibility to new conditions. OICEP fully supports the flexibility shown by local institution to adjust to new conditions. It encourages adherence to positive values, which reinforce the improvement of the quality of life in the outer island community.

Respect for traditions and culture as source of positive values. OICEP considers traditions and culture as basic sources of values to mobilize island communities towards effective action in solving common problems. It supports innovative approaches to understanding traditional practices as starting point to involve indigenous institutions in broad-based mobilization for sustainable outer island development.

Multi-sectoral approach and mobilization of all levels (policy; planning and programming; implementation) as support to rural capability strengthening. OICEP recognizes the efficacy of conducting development planning and implementation activities within a multi-sectoral framework. Such integration leads to cost-effectiveness in the long run as it maximizes the outputs of sectoral personnel. An integrated scheme also ensures pertinence as it seeks to address the totality of a community’s needs.

Integration of services and programmes, on the other hand, requires policy and programming support from national and regional levels. Hence multi-level mobilization is as important as intersectoral integration in ensuring the sustainability of capability enhancement efforts in remote rural areas.

Partnership with non-governmental organizations (NGOs). OICEP encourages NGOs to take advantage of opportunities left behind by government efforts primarily in field-testing and eventually replicating, innovative approaches in training and other activities. It seeks to make NGOs a close partner of government and the outer island community.

Social preparation and community participation as key strategy. OICEP considers the willing and substantive participation of all sectors and relevant entities and individuals, as well as of the island community itself, as the key strategy in building development management capability.

It seeks to provide training aimed at both imparting skills and remolding attitudes. Training will be linked closely to other project activities, resulting in specific outputs designed to improve task performance.

Service delivery, appropriate technology promotion, and other poverty alleviation measures initiated by government and NGOs shall be preceded by an educational campaign among the people to ensure their acceptance of vital roles in each project activity.

E. Process Outputs

The expected outputs from application of OICEP are as follows:

Development Management Capability (DMC)

• Traditional leadership structures and indigenous community organization able to redefine and perform new roles in the context of a rapidly-changing island environment;

• Government bodies better able to manage change and guide the island community towards the pursuit of relevant goals;

• Sectoral or project-based community groups able to plan, implement and monitor project and assess accomplishments in terms of the island’s collective vision;

• A participatory planning process able to draw up and periodically update the island development profile; assess resources; prioritize community problems; formulate projects relevant to these problems; implement and monitor projects; and prepare, review and revise the island community development plan;

• A community-based monitoring and evaluation system able to promptly identify specific problems and articulate needs for timely response from appropriate individuals and entities;

• An outreach mechanism or, at best, a live forum for drawing out those who are traditionally at the periphery of community life i.e. the socially disadvantaged, the marginally poor, the cultural or religious minorities, women and youth etc. which will encourage their sustained participation in the evolving development process.

Project Implementation Capability (PIC)

• Community groups better able to:

· Identify existing technologies and practices which provide for a family’s economic well-being guided by the age-old wisdom which considers traditional fishing grounds and other natural resources as a precious legacy held in trust for future heirs;

· Acquire and apply the skills to improve existing technologies or practices to upgrade livelihood status in ways that also protect, conserve and enhance ecological resources;

· Mobilize manpower support and other resources for projects identified by the community as socially beneficial;

· Develop the skills to identify opportunities for relevant actions in further improving project implementation and management;

· Identify innovative ideas to further improve project design;

· Identify areas for external or government assistance and utilize funding sources for development inputs, enhancing in the process local initiative and traditional distribution and resource allocation mechanisms;

· Assess ways to further develop the quality of life in the islands, progressively advancing to enjoy modern amenities in keeping with local culture and sensibilities.

• Government functionaries, i.e. extension agents, outreach personnel, field staff, etc. able to coordinate efforts and provide prompt, adequate, and relevant assistance to community initiatives.

Institutional Support Capability (ISC)

• A network of government and NGO entities at national and local levels able to coordinate efforts and provide timely, adequate and pertinent assistance to outer island communities.

• A community-based development officer or coordinator drawn from the ranks of government functionaries or project implementers, who enjoys the trust of both the traditional and government-mandated authority, and intensively-trained to motivate and coordinate efforts of all partner agencies and NGOs.

• And inter-agency national core team of trainers able to provide assistance to local institutions and handle training activities;

• A unit or entity within a department or ministry in-charge of outer island development able to facilitate policy and programme support to small island capability-building efforts.

• An existing regional institution able to document and provide other support services to the capability enhancement process being implemented in the outer islands.

F. Description of Process

The basic process consists of three interlinked phases:

Phase I – Social Mobilization

Objective/Facilitative Activities:

The overall objective is to involve all levels in setting the stage for participatory plan formulation at the outer island level.

The facilitative activities consists of:

• Linkage with a regional institution / project to assume tasks related to OICEP application;

• Formulation of criteria for selection of participating countries;

• Designation of the unit in-charge of outer island development;

• Recruitment of the national core team of trainers;

• Selection of initial outer island.

Major Outputs

• Framework/methodology for preparation of island profiles;

• Documentation plan;

• Information dissemination to create public awareness;

• Training modules for specific target groups;

• Assessment of local management capability at outer island level;

• Assessment of specific changes affecting island community life;

• Island development plan, identifying

· Community profile

· Collective vision

· Priority problems

· Goals

· Specific strategies

Key Activities

Phase	Regional	Country	Outer Island
Social Mobilization	· preparation of country profile	· training of national trainers	· social investigation and community profiling
	· preparation of a research and documentation support plan	· orientation of the ICC	· task analysis of traditional leaders and indigenous organizations
	· preparation of an information dissemination plan	· orientation of unit in-charge of outer island development	· assessment of local management capability
	· preparation of draft training modules	· orientation of key policymakers	· environmental scanning to determine specific changes which influence island life in all aspects
		· public information campaign	· review of existing service delivery mechanism · determination of socially disadvantaged groups · training needs assessment and formulation of training objectives · preparation and/or revision of training modules required for each soc mob target group · actual conduct of training and other soc mob activities

Phase II – Project Development

Objective/Facilitative Activities

The overall objective is to build the capability of the island community to identify and formulate/implement self-help projects and those requiring external assistance, taking into account priority problems and local resources available.

The facilitative activities required:

· Formulation of operating guidelines on project identification, selection, submission, and funding;

· Review of existing projects by the community and the government and dissemination of lessons learned;

· Resource inventory by the island community and the government;

· Determination of roles for donor agencies, government, NGOs, local institutions/indigenous organizations for sustained development efforts.

Major Outputs:

· Inventory of projects for outer island development

· IRD project proposals

· Self-help projects planned for immediate implementation

· Local development planning and management system linked to other levels

· Modules for specialized skills training

Key Activities

Phase	Regional	Country	Outer Island
II Project Development	· preparation of operating guidelines on how to utilize external funding assistance without adverse effects to local initiatives	· review of overall development strategy for the outer islands	· inventory of existing projects, technologies and traditional livelihood practices and assessment of their impact on household and community subsistence
		· preparation of training modules on project development	· revision of draft training modules
		· review of project development procedures implemented	· training needs assessment
		· specialized training of national trainers	· actual conduct of training
		· inventory of agencies funding projects in the outer islands	· refinement of outputs and classification into self-help projects and those requiring external assistance
	· prepare IRD project proposals and assist with identification of donors
	· orientation of donors on soc mob for sustained rural development

Phase III – Institutional Strengthening

Objective/Facilitative Activities

The overall objective is to impart relevant skills to all entities, organizations, institutions and individuals involved based on assessments undertaken.

The facilitative activities are:

· Technical support and possible funding assistance to the regional institution to enable it to assume greater responsibility at this phase;

· Provision of policy support to the consolidation of the evolving development planning and management system at the outer island level and the support mechanism at national and regional level.

Major Outputs:

· Evaluation tools to determine extent of capability building efforts;

· Documentation and research outputs;

· Training modules for specific target groups;

· Revisions of plans at all levels;

· Strengthened management of local-level development process.

Key Activities

Phase	Regional	Country	Outer Island
III Institutional Strengthening	· conduct of documentation and research to determine support to training and field operations	· intensive training of the unit in-charge of outer island development	· intensive training of traditional leaders and indigenous organizations
	· formulation of evaluation tools to determine extent of local capacity building efforts	· intensive training of in-country coordinator	· intensive training of island committees and other government entities
	· conduct of inter-country training for national trainers	· intensive training of national trainers	· intensive training of project implementers
	· preparation of relevant training modules or curricula for other target groups (i.e. island committees, atoll/island chiefs, “old men”, etc.	· conduct of assessment conferences to determine policy and programme support	· conduct of assessment meetings at various levels
	· conduct of relevant training activities for policymakers, planners, etc.
	· conduct of regional assessment conferences to share country experiences and refine methodologies

N. Pestelos, J. Liew ²

² Jeff Liew is Project Coordinator
while Nestor M. Pestelos is Community Development Specialist/Trainer.

10 21990 October

Suva, Fiji