Module 09: Identifying Potential Partners

9.6 What are the key issues concerning the poor?

Capacity in relation to the poor

Which actor is best placed to work with the poor, to provide an interface between the service supplier and poor communities, to mediate and to resolve conflicts? In some cases this will be an NGO, in others it will be the municipality and in others the private sector may perform that role. The selection of the actor best suited to play this role should depend on existing local capacity.

Providers to poor communities

Who provides services to poor communities? Will a formal private sector actor come in and disrupt existing supply strategies, and hence marginalise poor communities or households? Often the poor are served by small-scale providers. This service delivery system may work well for the poor – or it may be exploitative. It is essential to understand what needs are fulfilled (these may not be service needs). Who presently serves the poor in informal areas? What is the potential role of these existing providers in a restructured service delivery approach?

Involving existing civil society organisations

Existing NGOs and CBOs provide an important vehicle for working with poor communities. Efforts should be made to draw them into the partnership. Evidence suggests that those partnerships that have included NGOs in the past, for instance, have targeted the poor more effectively. CBOs can play an important role in monitoring and in regulation.

End of Module 09

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