Causes to Support - Integrated Slum Development

More than 200 million people still live in poverty. Delhi alone is home to some 8 million residents living in substandard settlements without basic facilities. Integrated development includes the needs of slum dwellers in the areas of health, literacy, awareness, nutrition, family planning, environmental awareness, waste management, sanitation, cleanliness and provision of some basic skills of employment.

Issues

1. Health Hygiene and Sanitation
2. Non Formal Education
3. Training and Skill Development
4. Computer Education
5. Micro- Credit
6. Advocacy and Awareness

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Health and Hygiene

Slum residents have little or no access to potable water and sanitation.The deplorable condition of the slum dwellers has prompted policy makers to coopt many NGOs for the establishment of 'Neighbourhood Committees, which are mandated to look into the location and provision of health facilities, Preventive health messages on general health/hygiene, malnutrition, immunisation, early cancer screening, HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and female infanticide are some of the issues being taken up. Involvement of community in sanitation and the role of women in this activity are being emphasised.

Some relevant websites:

www.careindia.org

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Non-Formal Education

Non-formal education became part of the international discourse on education policy in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It can be seen as related to the concepts of recurrent and lifelong learning. Tight (1996: 68) suggests that whereas the latter concepts have to do with the extension of education and learning throughout life, non-formal education is about 'acknowledging the importance of education, learning and training which takes place outside recognized educational institutions'. Four characteristics can be associated with non-formal education:

Relevance to the needs of disadvantaged groups.
Concern with specific categories of person.
A focus on clearly defined purposes.
Flexibility in organisation and methods.

In many countries the notion of non-formal education is not common in internal policy debates - preferred alternatives being community education and community learning, informal education and social pedagogy.

http://www.infed.org/biblio/b-nonfor.htm

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Training and Skill Development

Participation of slum dwellers in development programs /governance is important as it reflects the people's will and confidence. There is a need to sensitise and impart training to the personnel involved in city planning practices. Orientation and training on aspects like public health, hygiene and sanitation, leadership, communication skills as well as on group dynamics and personality development are needed.

PLA (Participatory Learning and Action) methods have been employed by local NGOs with communities to understand them, assess their needs, formulate goals /objectives based on the identified needs, and assess resources and constraints Training in micro level skills for generating income have yielded beneficial results.

Some relevant websites:

www.hudco.org
www.careindia.org
www.indiavisionfoundation.org

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Computer Education

Years ago, computer literacy was defined in terms of specific knowledge of computer technology and terminology. Today, it is regarded more as a continuum of awareness, skills, experience, and attitudes based on the age and capabilities of the individual.

A computer is a tool for learning-and finding out about things, and for expressing and creating things. Basic operational skills learned by immersion in a variety of software programs.
A body of successful experiences that over time develop within a individual an intuitive feel for dealing with new things that he encounters in a computer environment. Typical examples are how to navigate a new program and how to "trouble-shoot" when something isn't working.
An attitude of discovery, mastery, purposefulness, and pleasure in using computers.

http://www.indianchild.com/computers_blessing_or_curse.htm

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Micro-Credit

The field of Microfinance sector is both old and new - people have always been borrowing, lending and saving for as long as there has been money (and in kind before). They have done this within their own communities, using their own systems and methods, without any external 'assistance' or resources. The sector is new in that it has primarily developed as a response to the inability or apathy of commercial banks and the formal financial system to serve the needs of low-income households and micro enterprises.

http://www.gdrc.org/icm/

Advocacy and Awareness

Slum dwellers are engaged in the city in various informal sectors of the economy to earn a living. They provide a network of services that the middle and upper classes enjoy and have the power to bring to a halt the entire urban system. Their prevailing unsanitary living conditions and other social constraints compel a large number of this population to turn towards antisocial activities. NGOs have developed capsule courses focusing on social messages like industrial safety, suicide prevention, drug abuse, literacy and preventive health practices.

Some relevant websites:

www.sparc.org
www.sewa.org
www.hudco.org

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