enhancing food security and physical activity for maori, pacific and ...

Enhancing Food Security and Physical Activity for Māori, Pacific and Low-income PeoplesMethodsA brief review of the international and national literature on developing capacity wasconducted using Scopus. The literature scan was undertaken in March 2009. TheScopus bibliographical database was searched for papers since 1990 with combinationsof keywords: capacity, building, development, workforce, research, indigenous, Māori,Pacific, and culture. A Google search was also undertaken. Titles of articles werescanned for relevance. Grey literature reports were also used for the national reviewonly.Four key informants well placed to comment on this issue (three Māori and one Pacific)were also interviewed to supplement the literature review. These were healthpractitioners and/or researchers who have experience in establishing, planning,delivering and evaluating capacity development initiatives for Māori (n=3) and Pacific(n=1).International Literature Review/ScanThe literature consistently highlighted the need to develop capacity building inindigenous people, minority and disenfranchised groups. In particular, the developmentof a culturally competent workforce to provide services or implement programmes forPacific 6 7 and indigenous people was recommended. 6 8 9 The concept of buildingcapacity is common in international development literature. 10The terms ‘developing capacity’ or ‘capacity building’ are frequently used and,depending on the context, can have numerous meanings. Capacity has been defined as“the abilities, behaviours, relationships and values that enable individuals, groups, andorganisations at any level of society to carry out functions and tasks and to achieve theirdevelopment objectives over time” (p.37). 11 In relation to public health change, capacitybuilding has also been defined in terms of interventions which have changed anorganisation’s or community’s ability to address health issues by creating new structures,approaches and/or values. These will be ongoing without the need for further funding. 12The latter definition overlaps with typical definitions of sustainability. With respect to thischapter, both these definitions suggest that successful capacity building will result inchanges to the organisation’s “structures, approaches and/or values”. This implies thatsuccessful efforts to develop sustainable programmes will only result from a dynamicprocess of organisational change in response to the new programme. 13Building capacity involves micro (individual), meso (organisational), and macro(systemic) level changes over time. 11 Long-term changes are required to supportsustainable systemic or structural improvements. 14 Thus, building capacity should beconsidered a process rather than a single action or intervention. Central to this processare notions of time, human agency, social structures, change and sustainability. 10 Withinthe international literature, capacity building has often been examined in the context ofdeveloping countries in which technological and infrastructural improvements arenecessary to support human capacity building. These various components of capacitybuilding will now be discussed.How do you build capacity?At a practical level, suggestions have included working with counterparts, creating strongpartnerships, attending to training, empowerment, and policy development. 10 Based onprevious reviews of literature two relevant theoretical content areas have been identified151