Lori Michau, Co-Director, Raising Voices, Uganda Mobilizing Communities to Prevent Domestic Violence: A Systematic Approach

Raising Voices Began in 1999 Develop Program Tools Provide Technical Support Run Learning Centers Coordinate GBV Prevention Network ( Advocacy Preventing violence against women and children

What is Community Mobilization? Moving beyond service delivery Awareness, Action, Accountability Activism not training Individuals are change agents not program recipients Horizontal emphasis Organic and iterative Builds social capital Process is essential

Conceptual Framework of Community Mobilization Sounds good, but how ?!

Concepts into Action Stages of individual change scaled up to community level Phased-in approach structures process of change Helps organizations be systematic and focused Facilitating Change: The Foundation of Community Mobilization

Concepts into Action (cont.) Holistic: cross section of community; multi- faceted and interconnected relationships Repeated exposure to ideas: multiple strategies Community Ownership: NGO guided, community run

M&E Challenges Creates fear! Dynamic, multiple influences Longer-term process Moving beyond tracking changes in individuals to community Establishing meaningful quantifiable indicators Skills and capacity of NGOs

Program Tool Evaluation Program tools can help structure and guide programs Relevant in diverse contexts Replicable Can be scaled up

Lessons Learned Multi-faceted programming challenging but possible Understanding how people change contributes to effective programming Benefits-based approach more useful Shifts responsibility from women to community

Doesnt fit neatly into donor timeframes Reflects life – is messy! Prevention is ultimately more sustainable