EMRA conference: Animation of rural development-a new profession?

Chania,Crete, 7-9 June, 2012.

Rural animation: The Romanian case

Agnes Neményi, Enikő Veress,

Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

Rural animation: The Romanian case

How can we define rural animation in Romania?

– In Romanian literature (in our case for projects financed from external sources mainly after 2007):

facilitator, local promotor, community agent,community participation,community development, social capital, social engineering,community projects supervisor

Principles of community involvement and development in Romania after the EU accession (D. Sandu):

1. Access through diversity in local and international practices (to be able to learn from everything);

2. Reflexivity: the multiplicity of some practices;

3.To not accept prejudice ( do not judge by clichees);

4. Privilege of context (participation is not a neutral behavior)- do not lose the forest from the trees;

5.The dialogue between theory and practice;

6. Promotion of a social movement in community development.

Defining features of social capital: relation, network and norms that make easier the collaboration, co-operation inside or between groups;

Institutional facilitator: FRDS(Romanian Fund for Social Development):

Activity: based on a combination of local resources with external (governmental) resources: financed by grants and projects and through technology of animation and local organisation

Focus on: rural issues, with an emphasis on Rroma communities, mining regions,solidarity of social networks and NGOs activating in community development.

Facilitation:

as a community organisation process deals with:

-Solving specific problems;

-Planification of some projects;

-Development of local leadership

-Construction of community organisation that represent the community;

-Mobilisation in order to solute present and future problems);

-Revitalisation of local institutions.

Facilitation as a process aims to decrease of poverty (through

fast, large economic development), of modernisation of

traditional values, institutions and practices.

Tasks of community facilitator: evaluate local needs,

understanding and applying developmental projects, combining

the old end new( methods like mental and social map, diagrams,

focus-groups, participative observation).

Characteristics of the facilitator:

-to understand the power relations, the situation of marginal groups(social exclusion), ethnic relations, etc.;

-must have a holistic view and a dialogue with the community;

Culture in facilitation as a “traditional mentality” sometimes an impediment for the development culture (culture of poverty).

How to evaluate rural proverty?Through certain economic and socio-cultural indicators:

-level of poverty;

-level of isolation of a community;

-evaluation of co-operation networks;

-evaluation of institutional relations;

-evaluation of relations community-institution;

-participation of community members in the public decisions.

Phases of facilitation:

-Diagnosis of the community;

-Identification of local leaders;

-Choice of a group of initiation;

-Identification of priority needs;

-Legitimation of a problem that becomes the scope of the project,

-Monitoring the community for making the project.

Main tasks of the facilitator:To identify the local official leaders and other respected persons, members of the community and to stimulate the development of an organisation;To evaluate by participation the needs, to identify resources;To make partnerships with the local authorities;

To stimulate co-operation with the local community members;

To find solutions for the existing problems;

To organise the elaboration of projects;

To be able to estimate cost, prepare feasibility;

To solve the conflictual situations in the preparation, implementation of a project;

To find partners and financial resources;

To build networks between communities

Rural animation-the Romanian case

Functions of community facilitation:

To identify the local problem;

Legitimation of community actions;

Planification of solutions;

Execution of a project.

What is needed: a leader, a co-ordinating group, an executor group,beneficiaries.

The function of the facilitator

Construction an AG, making-up the ideology of participation.

Conclusions

The role of facilitation and the facilitator is very complex;

After 2000 facilitation in Romania has gained new emphasis based

on principles of EU community development;

Due to its complexity facilitation and animation needs to be

professionalised.

Thank you for the attention!Contact:

Ass.Prof. dr. Neményi Ágnes:

E-mail: anemenyi@socasis.ubbcluj.ro

SR. Veress Enikő:

E-mail: eniveress@gmail.com