Case Study

In July we had to write a case study encompassing our work trials and tribulations. My case study was chosen to share with the newly arrived Environmental Health group, so I thought I would share it with you all too. Sorry, it´s a bit wordy, but I am a US government worker now.

Title: Working with Panamanian Agencies while Keeping the Community Involved
Country	Panama
Date	31 de Julio 2011
Submitted By	Carolyn Purington
Contact Information
Keywords	Potable Water, Water Committee, Government Agency

Abstract:

The community has been waiting for 1 ½ years for a government funded water project, of which funds have already been deposited to the institution PROINLO. Upon arrival the community expected me to use my connections to get the project started immediately, and since then I have been working with the community to capacitate it so that when the project does finally arrive, the water committee is active and understands how a gravity water system works. At times it has been difficult motivating the people, as they know a funded project will be arriving eventually for the first 16 houses. From the beginning with community analysis to surveying and doing fundraisers with the water committee, the water group is finally becoming functional.

Background:

During my first three months in site, Proyecto de Amistad, I realized that the community of Sabanita had already received $10,000 of funding through the Representante of the corregimiento (local politician of the county), and had already been waiting a year for the project to commence. The community expected that I would be able to use my connections to enable the project to initiate at once. I tried to use my community analysis and FREESOPP as well as SWOT analysis to help the community understand why water is the primary need, and the need for the community to work through family divides in order to work together. The community mapping exercise helped community members realize which houses are lacking potable water in the community, and why it will be harder for water to reach some houses than others. The annual calendar made it clear that some parts of the year are busier than other in terms of work (and seasonal labor) and other engagements.

Implementation:

Using the SWOT analysis, it was determined that water is the primary necessity of the community. However, the community had been waiting for the government funded project to arrive, and had an inactive water committee until December 2010. The community mobilized in January 2011 and decided to restructure the water directive because the President worked full time in Bocas del Toro. Since then, the new water directive and the community have been meeting fairly regularly. The committee realized that it needs to take a more active role in the government, and has been inviting the Representante to all of the meetings. It has been a challenge to maintain communication between the community and the Representante. He informs me of updates and has taken me to visit the agency PROINLO which is in charge of project execution, but he does not attend the community meetings or communicate with the water group directly.

Meanwhile, after several visits to PASAP in San Felix I acquired a copy of the aqueduct design for the community. I have been working with community members to check the design by surveying using the Abney Level and Water Level. We also measured the output at the water source during the dry season and wet season, and determined that the water source is not sufficient during the dry season to provide for 250 people.

Based on this, the community met with the owner of another water source and after much negotiation, bought it for $50. The Vice President of the water group and I met with a PASAP technician to explain why the storage tank placement needs to be changed to accommodate the future annex of the newly purchased water source. However, the new water source spring capitation will not be included in the government project, so the community has been fundraising to be able to complete the second phase of the project.

Results:

Approaching the one year point in my service, the functionality of the water committee has greatly improved. The water group holds meetings fairly regularly to inform the community about news, and has become more transparent with money matters. Technically, community members have been trained to measure flow rate from the spring source, and use the Abney Level and Water Level for surveying. The community is also mobilized to work through the second stage of the project with minimal outside assistance. Through open conversations, the community is more aware of the connection between clean water and health, and the different methods of purifying water.

Conclusion:

At the one year point, the major success is the improved functionality of the community water group. A challenge that I would like to work on is that the group still prefers to wait for me to plan meetings, hold work days, and to be the communicant between the agencies, representante, and the community. My goal is to make the group more independent in decision making and executions, and in order to do this I will have to be more careful to ensure that I do not let tasks fall on my lap which should be the responsibility of community members.

I have personally gained much leadership experience through my experiences with the water group. I no longer get nervous getting up in front of a group and speaking in Spanish. I have also learned that the communications outside of the meeting setting are just as important as the communications during the meetings, as many people are too shy to say what they are actually thinking in front of others. Gaining the community’s trust has been extremely rewarding, but I still feel like I have a lot of weight on my shoulders to make this government project, as well as the second phase, a success, although many factors are outside of my control.