MANILA, Philippines – A dictum from Dr. Moses Coady, the inspirational leader of the Antigonish Movement that led to the establishment of the Coady International Institute at St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia, Canada, goes: “Use what you have; communicate what you don’t have – your needs, problems, and deficiencies – to secure what you have not.” This means balancing what is ongoing today – the tension between empowerment and rights. This can be done by enabling communities to “recognize and thereby allow the growth of local residents’ capacity to define and accomplish development goals themselves, while still recognizing that support from governments, larger NGOs, and funders is essential, and in fact an obligation and a right.”

John Kretzman, in the Foreword to this insightful publication, “From Clients to Citizens,” (Alison Mathie and Gordon Cunningham, eds., 2008), raises this challenge: “How do local residents expand their capacity to act as ‘citizens,’ and avoid being identified as ‘clients’ of outside institutions which ‘know better’ and have the resources to press their own approaches?” Many leaders of development, he noted, agree that “strategies which combined the two approaches were the most effective – and that citizens must remain at the centre of the action.”

The book presents 13 community development experiences from 12 countries. One is a case study of SEARSOLIN, the Southeast Asia Rural Social Leadership Institute in Cagayan de Oro, which has been training development personnel in Asia for the past 40 years in such areas as strengthening citizen engagement with local government. The main thrust of the community building strategy used in these case studies of countries in the Global South – Egypt, Ecuador, Vietnam, Morocco, India, South Africa, Ethiopia, the Philippines – as well as in USA and Canada is one that starts with developing its own assets and local resources before seeking and utilizing outside assistance.

This strategy could as well apply to the controversial Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) which would allocate P21 billion to 23 million poor families. The latter are expected to receive from P500 up to P1,400 a month. It is conditional in the sense that they will only be given to families who can guarantee that their children are sent to school and regularly utilize the community health services. DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman, whose department will manage the program, explains that aside from the P21 B, an additional P1.7 B will go directly to poor community driven development, another P8 B to the supplementary feeding program, the Food for Work, and subsidy for farmers and fishermen. The 23 M beneficiaries for 2011 are being identified through the National Household Targeting System.

It worked in countries like Brazil; former US President Bill Clinton endorses the scheme saying it is one of the more successful development initiatives But critics are quick to point out to the limited carrying capacity of the department – that the human resources needed to monitor its implementation, are not yet available. The plan, though meritorious, could be abused by heads of households who may use the funds for illegal gambling or the like. It could also discourage them from taking on available employment and livelihood opportunities as they would rather remain perpetually dependent on dole-outs.

The House has endorsed the budgetary allocation, The Senate, according to Senator Frank Drilon, chairman of its Committee on Finance, is supportive, as long as it is assured of proper monitoring. Senator Edgardo Angara proposes inclusion of the Department of Education and the Department of Health in the management of the CCT, and a cut by P6 billion to give to research and development for state colleges, housing, and upgrading the forecasting system of DoST. What we hope would happen in the next few weeks, is convincing proof that the ingredients of success are present – a massive capacity-building strategy for the beneficiaries on asset resources management and local government engagement.

The Coady model would twin these two approaches – external and expert technical assistance with the focus on empowerment – upgrading people’s capacities to identify and develop their assets, monitor their performance, as they move towards a change in the course of their development. My e-mail is florangel.braid@gmail.com.