Capacity-Building: An Approach to People-Centered Development

Capacity-building is an integral part of development theory and practice. However, aid agencies that ignore people’s existing strengths may create dependency, and so make people more vulnerable than before. This book considers specific and practical ways in which NGOs can contribute to enabling people to build on the capacities they already posses. It reviews the types of social organisation with which NGOs might consider working, and the provision of training in a variety of relevant skills and activities. The particular importance of using a capacity-building approach in emergency situations, and of the dynamic and long-term nature of the process, is also emphasized.