Stakeholder Participation - With a difference
There is a growing consensus on the need for participation of stakeholders in order to progress towards sustainable development. However, what precisely is meant by the term 'participation' varies greatly. Palabora Foundation, the social responsibility investment arm of Palabora Mining Company (PCM) is leading the way in actively promoting real and meaningful participation in decision-making in issues concerned with community development projects, which are sponsored by the foundation. Palabora Foundation strives for an inclusive and participatory approach when engaging with the local community. Palabora Foundation have several levels at which the community is encourage to participate in the social investment programmes introduced in the local communities. This is particularly true when it comes to the project selection procedure as discussed above. The communities through their elected Community Development Committee take active part in;
- Memorandum of Agreement
- Budgeting Process for the proposed community projects
- Tendering, Constructing and Commissioning
- Mentoring of project and final Evaluation of the Project
- Lastly when the project is handed over to the community then they participate in all levels of managing the project without the foundation.
This allows the communities to come together and decide what are the priorities in their specific community and how development should take place. It is the communities' responsibility to be proactive and come up with ideas and research the feasibility of these bearing in mind the Palabora foundation selection criteria;
- Result in wealth creation
- Job creation
- Community self-reliance
- Community involvement and ownership
- Sustainability and withdrawal period not to exceed 3 years.
By following this process community stakeholders have an active role in deciding which community projects should be put forward as candidates to recover funding. Furthermore by demanding communities to put together business plans and present them at a yearly community forum it promotes real ownership to the project and a clear understanding of how to successfully run and execute projects. The skills and experience gained by the community through this process will facilitate the communities when applying for other types of funding. Furthermore this inclusive and participatory stakeholder engagement and capacity building of the local communities results in improved governance, negotiation, management and communication skills, all contributing towards local sustainable development.
Back to top