Indicators of community capacity building and mobilisation
| Increased stakeholder participation | People come together to define problems, analyse and decide how to act. |
| Improved capacity to do problem assessment | When communities take the lead in identifying problems, solutions to the problems and actions to resolve the problems, they can develop an increased sense of self-determination and capacity. |
| Local leadership | People in formal and informal positions of authority help to mobilise groups and community organisations. |
| Empowering organisational structures | Faith groups and community organisations that already provide places for people to come together and address problems. |
| Stronger links between people and organisations | These can be partnerships, coalitions or voluntary alliances between the community and others, which assist the community in addressing its issues. |
| Improved resource mobilisation | Resources include expertise of local people, environmental, financial or political, that are identified within communities. The ability of the community both to mobilise resources from within and to negotiate resources from beyond itself is an important factor. The capacity of a group is also dependent on opportunities or constraints (ecological, political and environmental) and the conditions in which people and groups live. |
| Equitable relationships with outside agents | Outside agents are an important link between communities and external resources. Their role is especially important near the beginning of a crisis, when the process of building new community momentum may be triggered and nurtured. The outside agent increasingly transforms power relationships between her/himself, outside agencies and the community, such that the community assumes increasing authority. |
| Enhanced stakeholder ability to ask why | The ability of the community to critically assess the social, political, economic and other causes of inequalities is a crucial stage towards developing appropriate personal and social change strategies. |
| Increased stakeholder control over programme management | Communities become more capable when they have people who can take control over decisions on planning, implementation, evaluation, finances, administration, reporting and conflict resolution. |
Source: Gibbon et al 9 and Laverack.10