Community outreach is one of the key components of the Sustainable Rural Development Project

July 24, 2023

On July 19-21, 2023, in the city of Urgench, Khorezm region, a training was organized for employees, social mobilization specialists and facilitators of the Sustainable Rural Development Project.

As a result of work with residents of 170 mahallas in 20 districts of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, Bukhara, Navoi and Khorezm regions in 2023, priority areas for improving local infrastructure were discussed and identified. Based on this, Community Development Plans (CDPs) were developed, which include a radical renewal of the architectural appearance of rural areas, integrated development of territories, improvement and construction of road and transport infrastructure facilities, engineering and communication networks and social facilities, as well as subprojects that contribute to an increase of incomes of the population.

As part of the "Sustainable Rural Development" project of the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan and UNDP an international expert Dace Gruberte has created a Manual for the development of an Integrated Community Development Plan, which will be useful for improving the effectiveness of community outreach.

To discuss this manual and the updated methodology with the project specialists, a three-day training was organized in Urgench city with the participation of the author of the manual, Ms. Gruberte.

As a result of this training, the participants were familiarized with the principles, methods and tools for developing the CDPs and the features of a facilitator's work. And now, thanks to the knowledge gained, they will be able to use the manual to improve soft skills and increase effectiveness in outreach.

"This training gave the team of facilitators an idea of what a Community Development Plan is and how it is drafted. The trainer shared with us international experience in this area. We discussed what can be used and adapted to the conditions of Uzbekistan, dwelt in detail on the skills and methods of working with the population that facilitators need. The acquired knowledge, new approaches and methods will be very useful in our work," said Zuhra Babazhanova, a facilitator from Khorezm region.

We remind that the training is organized within the framework of the "Sustainable Rural Development" project of the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan and UNDP and financed by the Islamic Development Bank and OPEC Fund for International Development. The IDB has allocated a total of more than 200 million USD for the implementation of the project for target communities of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, Khorezm, Bukhara and Navoi regions.