Spreadsheet Tool User Manual for Planning MSW Management

Strategic planning should be a participatory process because:
Spreadsheet Tool User Manual for Planning MSW Management
• Solid waste management is not possible by one or two institutions. It is a shared
responsibility;
• Participation means shared responsibility for the strategy and its joint undertaking;
• Participation by stakeholder groups is critical for decision making. The result will be a
realistic strategy with a broad base of knowledge, understanding and commitment from
the groups involved;
• Participants bring information to the strategy, ensuring that it is based on a common
understanding of purpose, problems and solutions;
• Participation is the most effective way of communicating information on which the
strategy is based, its goals, and tasks to be undertaken;
• Participation should be expanded as the strategy develops.
In the present context, strategic planning could assist in:
• Developing institutions and organisational arrangements that are better equipped to
cope with uncertainty, rapid change and the need for more integrated decisions;
• Developing institutional and technological skills in solid waste management;
• Developing multi‐agency networks: Incorporating the public, private and the informal
sector;
• Setting in motion analysis of the main constraints to more integrated management.
With a goal as broad as ISWM, it is tempting to try to do everything. Planning must ensure that a
strategy concentrates on a few priority issues while retaining a broad purview. Such a strategy is
more likely to be implemented successfully.
Strategic planning seeks to answer questions such as:
• "What is our vision?"
• "How should we be organized?"
• "How should we allocate resources to our programs and services?”
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