Income-Generating Activities - Action Against Hunger

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Field handbook • Scientific and Technical Department The beneficiaries were selected amongst the most vulnerable population who had lost their main sources of income as a consequence of the material damage provoked by the natural catastrophe. It was decided to work at a household level to support the way in which the population had been working to generate income before the tragedy, and to recuperate the level of food security previous to the crisis. The promotion of IGA involving group work offers certain advantages, within which the following can be mentioned: • Taking advantage of the knowledge, experience and various capabilities that different members of the group offer • In some cases, the activities that are developed require a labour force larger than that available in a household unit • Distribution of the tasks leading to specialization by members of the group • The strength and the capacity to negotiate in sales and purchases and to establish market relations are often greater for a group than for an individual. • Uniting a larger quantity of product can increase sales possibilities • Strengthening of social links, solidarity and integration between group members • Having a limited number of representatives allows the programme to work in more depth, for example, in training and education • Increases the impact of the programme by reaching a larger number of beneficiaries However, it is not always easy to benefit from these advantages, as risks for the success of group work also exist and should be evaluated. The following list includes some of these risk factors: • The group members do not share interests or objectives; they do not really manage to form a group • Members fail to assume responsibilities, a risk that is more common in large groups where it is possible to pass unperceived • Lack of transparency and democracy in group functioning • Internal dynamics that cause conflict and lack of ability to resolve conflicts • Unequal distribution of tasks • A reduced number of group members control the group, ‘control by elites’ • Lack of leaders, little capacity for internal mobilization. • Lack of efficiency in IGA management • Low cultural acceptance of group work, or of certain organisational structures (for example: cooperatives) • Creation of tensions and community conflicts between beneficiaries and nonbeneficiaries INCOME GENERATING ACTIVITIES: A KEY CONCEPT IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURTIY 41
➔ To make a decision, it is necessary to evaluate the advantages and inconveniences of all of the possibilities and try to prevent the occurrence of the identified risks. Support to household level activities as well as group activities can be offered within the same programme. One of the most important factors to be taken into account in defining the level of intervention is the usual social arrangements in the zone. Changes in the organisational system must not be forced, but instead pre-existing structures and relationships should be reinforced. Processes of social change require considerable time. Interventions that support and strengthen existing social organisations are better appropriated by the beneficiaries, use less effort in terms of resources and generally give better results. In the case of an intervention at the household level, systems for selecting beneficiaries can require community participation in the definition of clear and easily verifiable criteria, as well as in the actual selection of beneficiaries, in order to minimize the possibilities of conflict between the beneficiary and non-beneficiary population. However, for the promotion of IGA, the motivation of the beneficiary population is essential, therefore self-selection must also form part of this process. When a good attitude towards and successful experiences in group work already exist in the zone, it is possible for the programme to support groups that are already functioning. In any case, risks will always be present, but efforts can be made to avoid them through: • Establishing clear objectives held in common • Defining an appropriate structure • Adequate selection of leaders or representatives, using democratic and transparent processes • Clear definition of the responsibilities of the members • Promotion of the participation of all of the members • Establishing mechanisms for regular sharing of information and resolution of conflicts • Membership must be free and voluntary • Definition of management rules agreed upon and shared by all members • The group must not depend on external intervention for functioning Internal regulations for operation compile all the aspects mentioned above, and Chapter 4 presents this topic in more detail. Example 11: Results of group work in Sierra Leone In 2004, Sierra Leone entered into a period of relative calm after years of devastating civil war. ACF changed its food security intervention strategy in order to best respond to the new peaceful context. Part of the strategy entails the promotion 42 INCOME GENERATING ACTIVITIES: A KEY CONCEPT IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURTIY
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Page 5 and 6: ➔ Pages CHAPTER 4: INCOME GENERAT
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