PARTICIPATORY DEVELOPMENT IN THE SA CONTEX AND ITS CRITIQUES

Participatory development is one of the alternatives theories to development, which involves the participation of beneficiaries from the establishment stage to the implementation of the development intervention. 

It takes places in two forms:

• Participatory Organizations- where community groups themselves to initiate and take part in the development. In SA the community policing forums(CPF) works together with the SAPS and discuss the problems and solutions of the crimes that take place in their respective areas.
• Participation as Empowerment- participation comes in form of structural changes and access to resources as an empowerment strategy. POWA is a feminist, Women's right organization that provides with both services and engages in advocacy to ensure that the realization of women's rights and improve women's quality of life.

Its critiques are:

the culture of poverty in SA makes it difficult to engage in meaningful development

anti-participatory structures hinder the process of participatory development.