Advisory & Technology
Participatory community & social sector development
DMC delivers participatory community and social sector development: institutional strengthening and capacity building, community development and mobilisation, gender development and women's economic empowerment, socioeconomic and household surveys, social assessment, participatory planning with logical frameworks, and studies, monitoring and evaluation including benefit monitoring, mid-term and post-project evaluation and third-party validation.
DMC's strength in this field lies in a multidisciplinary resource base and an integrated approach to preparing multi-sectoral projects in social, institutional and community development. Our specialists have hands-on track records in their respective fields, and we apply proven methodologies rather than importing templates.
We are particularly well placed to involve communities directly in identifying and formulating demand-driven projects — the difference between infrastructure that is used and maintained, and infrastructure that is abandoned within five years.
Institutional strengthening & capacity building
Our professional staff have conducted numerous assignments, from the design and development of comprehensive policy programmes to strengthening institutions against their own assessed needs. Work includes:
- Designing and conducting workshops and seminars
- Training needs assessment of institutions
- Preparing training plans and modules
- Arranging training programmes and identifying suitable training institutions
Community development
Our specialised social sector division delivers the full range of community development activity and consultancy, including:
- Awareness campaigns
- Community mobilisation and motivation
- Formulating and organising community groups
- Training
- Capacity building for planning, monitoring, implementing, operating and maintaining assets sustainably through a participatory approach
Gender development
We deliver gender development programmes with particular emphasis on women's development and economic empowerment, through:
- Awareness programmes
- Training programmes
- Micro-credit linkage development
- Skills development centres
- Informal schools
- Appropriate household technology programmes
- Health, hygiene and medical camps
Socioeconomic surveys
Studies, surveys and assessments using tested methodologies and participatory approaches:
- Household surveys
- Community socioeconomic surveys
- Social assessment
- Community needs assessment
Studies, assessment and evaluation
- Environmental assessments
- Environmental impact assessments
- Natural and man-made disaster assessment studies
- Case studies
- Benefit monitoring and evaluation (BME)
- Post-project evaluation
- Mid-term evaluation
- Third-party validation
Participatory planning
Our specialists have a long record of participatory planning that involves people from grassroots level up to senior decision-makers, identifying and prioritising demand and translating it into a detailed development plan. Each plan carries a logical framework with both tangible and intangible indicators for monitoring and evaluation, and a feedback mechanism that improves the next planning cycle. Services include:
- Community participatory plans
- Community action plans
- Development of indicators for monitoring and evaluation
- Project planning
- Financial management and planning
- Land use planning
- Social planning
Also in Advisory & Technology
Talk to the participatory community & social sector development team.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Does DMC carry out third-party validation?
Yes. Third-party validation sits alongside benefit monitoring and evaluation, mid-term evaluation, post-project evaluation, case studies and disaster assessment studies within the studies and evaluation service.
What does participatory planning involve?
Involving communities from grassroots level upwards to identify and prioritise demand, then translating it into a detailed development plan carrying a logical framework with tangible and intangible indicators and a feedback mechanism that improves the next planning cycle.
Does DMC design gender development programmes?
Yes, with emphasis on women's economic empowerment through awareness and training programmes, micro-credit linkage development, skills development centres, informal schools, household technology programmes, and health and hygiene camps.