II INIIRII 111111111111 3 ACKU 000 THE AGA KHAN RURAL SUPPORT PROGRAMME Shoaib Sultan Khan

This article is re- printed from MIMAR, Architecture in Development, Number 34, March 1990. Published by Concept Media Ltd. 13 -17 New Burlington Place, London WIX 2JP, Great Britain.

RURAL DEVELOPMENT THE AGA KHAN RURAL SUPPORT PROGRAMME Shoaib Sultan Khan

The Aga Khan Rural Support Programme The founders of the Aga Khan The Conceptual Package (AKRSP) embracesthethreenorthern- Rural Support ProgrammeWe were quite clear in our minds, as most districts of Pakistan - Gilgit, Chitral (AKRSP), started in 1982, had taught by our mentor and teacher in rural and Baltistan - and addreses the problems two objectives in view, namely, development, Dr. Akhtar Hameed Khan, for families in these remote mountain valleys to increase the incomes of the smallthat the theoretical framework of the withlimitedcultivatableland and poorfarmers of Northern Pakistan and develop Programme should be clearly spelled out. communications.Localdecision -making a replicable model of rural development. Designing a rural development program- village organisations are used as a vehicle The AKRSP did not confine itself to only me withoutthisframeworkislike forcreativedevelopment;thevillage a few villages. It is an NGO but by its building a crooked wall. We knew that organisations are asked toidentify small sheer scale of operations,itaimsat capitalist and socialist models of rural income generating projects - to be carriedinfluencing government thinkingto development were not relevant to our out by themselves - and in return they reorganise its administrative infrastructuresituation. It was the Raiffeissen model of receive financial and technicalassistance torespond more effectivelytothe cooperation which heldthegreatest from AKRSP. The obligations of the village demands of a genuine rural development promise for the smallholders of Northern organisationsincludemaintaining each programme. The Pakistan NationalAreas of Pakistan - and, we believe, for project, holding regular meetings and saving Commission onAgriculturehas on a regular basis to establish village credit. emphasised the need for an institutional The programme has now benefited 800,000 framework of village organisations for Opposite: Essential for cutting link roads rural peoplein Northern Pakistan. An rural areas and has also understood the or channels, pneumatic drills are purchased independentWorld Bank evaluationin importance of a support organisation to with the PPI subsidy. 1986 (the first time the Bank had everfoster the village level institutions. agreedtoevaluatea Non -Governmental Below: Map of Gilgit and Chitral province Organisation's project) concluded that the in Northern Pakistan, with indications of programme had "produced outstanding results" The AKRSP identified two essential the productive physical infrastructure (PPI) and recommended that it be used as a model components for its rural development subsidy - the investment in village for rural development. The following account programme: 1, the conceptual package organisations made by the AKRSP as of is a summary of a report by Shoaib Sultan and 2, the programme package. The con-June 1987. Khan, General Manager of the AKRSP. ceptual package comprises fundamental Courtesy of the Aga Khan Foundation, EDITORS principles of rural development. Geneva.

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all subsistence agriculturalists throughout over 50 million rupees as savings, kept in Left: A local village organisation meeting the third world. scheduled banks. An army of rural cadres where the principal decisions are made The Raiffeissen Model depends onwas trained comprising 2000 villageconcerning the development projects to be establishing a development partnership, managers, over 4000 villagelevel undertaken collectively. making collaboration and assistance specialists in livestock, plant protection, dependent on villagersfirstfulfilling marketing, poultry, forestry etc. - half ofRight: Women have been involved actively obligations, and then entering into a series whom are women. The VOs also in the development process, but on terms of dialogues through village organisa-responded to the call for evolving a and conditions mutually acceptable: women tions, to identify their needs. Every villageprogramme package by identifying the are contacted by women AKRSP staff management group of AKRSP visitedfollowing: 1, organisation and collective members, as shown here during a VO was offered a partnership encompassingmanagement 2,land development3, meeting. the obligations of the villagers to:1, increasedproductivity4,credit and organise and cooperatively manage their banking 5, marketing 6, reduction in thedoes not lend itself to a distant planning affairs2,generate their own capital workload of women 7, coordination withprocess. The productivephysical through savings and 3, upgrade their social sector. infrastructure (PPI) is the investment in skills. The villagers were offered assist- organisation necessary for community ance in meeting their needs, as perceived Catalyst for Organisation participation. by them, in return for fulfillment of the Our experience has shown that, left to terms of the development partnerships. themselves the villagers are capable ofConcept of Self -Help identifying a need, fulfillment of which Another feature of this subsidy is payment The Programme Package would bring VO together and serve as the of wages to villagers. To many purists this In six years of our work in the district of glue to bind them ina continuing amounts to complete negation of the Gilgit and over three years in the district relationship. This portfolio of needs has concept of self -help. Our experience has of Chitral and Baltistan, the villagersto be identified through a process ofbeen that to expect subsistence holders to respondedtothetermsof thediagnostic survey, entailing a series ofcontribute their labour free day in and day developmental partnership by organising dialogues with every VO. There is no out,isreally asking for the moon. 993villageorganisations(VOs),shortcut to this process, in view of the AKRSP, therefore, redefines self -help as embracing over 50,000 households (nearly micro variations between the villages and villagers'willingnesstoorganise,to half a million people), and generating identification of the development needs generate their own capital through savings (they agree to allocate 25 per cent of the wages as savings), to upgrade their skills, to take full responsibility for manage- mentincludingrecordkeeping, implementation,completionand maintenance of the PPI. The wages paid are negotiated and are normally 20 -25 per cent less than the market wage, for the simple reason that work is provided at the doorstep of the villager and his ultimate objective of self -help is to establish a self - reliant and self -sustaining system of management at the VO level.

Left: Perhaps the most vital infrastructure of the local environment are the water channels that bring water down from the mountains to the valleys. Here villagers in the Mastuj region of Chitral build a retaining wall to ensure the solidity of the channel (above) is maintained. RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Investment in Organisation above the level of subsistence. TheirOver 80 per cent öf the, villagin The amount of subsidy is determined on biggest handicap is their smallholding. To Pakistan have less than 2,000 population the nature of PPI assurveyed andovercome this handicap, they must pool and over 90 per cent less than 3,000 (Rural estimated by the Engineering Section oftheir resources to get economies of scale, Pakistan at a Glance: Ministry of Local AKRSP and is not an ad hoc figure. In fact to cut down overheads and to get the best Government and Rural Develöpment the only criteria applied to determine aprices for their produce. publication). PPI is the capacity of the VO - what it can manage, implement, complete and Size of Village Organisation Equitable and Democratic maintain. The VO is forbidden fromThe VO is an interest group and therefore, Development employing contractorsor employing there can be more than one VO in a village. A VO must meet as a general body labour from outside unless VO members However, to qualify to be a VO there regularly and not leave the affairs of the find it necessary. Since the critical factor, should be,besides common interest, organisation to be managed by a few as a first step in ameliorating the condition geographical proximity of households and members. The VO does elect a President of therural poorisfostering anwillingness of over 75 per cent of the and a Manager as its office bearers, but institutional framework or an economicpopulation to form an organisation. The it does not elect a committee to manage and social infrastructure, AKRSP uses the membership of the VO depends on the the VO. It may elect committees of subsidy in achieving the twin objective ofsize of the interest group and varies frommembers for specific activities, such as responding to the identified need of the 8 households to 130. The majority of the management of a VO tractoror VO and strengthening the organisation. VOs comprise more than 50 householdsmachinery, resolution of disputes, The small, one -time subsidy has provenor 450 people. The 8 households form a enforcement of decisions of the general a high pay off None of the 770 VOshabitation geographically isolated andbody on free grazings etc. It is through where PPI subsidy was given came back sustaining an autonomous agroecosystem. the regular meetings of the general body, for a second grant but nearly 300 VOs It would have been unfair and unrealistic which may be weekly or fortnightly but obtained loans, by providing savings to force them to merge with a bigger VO not less than monthly, that the supremacy collateral,to undertake productive adjoining them because oflack of common of the members is assured. The role of the schemes, suchasland development, interest and difficulties in communication. laymembers in keeping the VO on the acquiring agricultural machinery, nursery In many cases after the completion of arighttrackhastobe continuously development, fruit processing units etc. A PPI and thus attainment of their common emphasised. The members are urged to number of VOs also undertook self - objective, VOs split off to form separate make sure that the office- bearers keep the financed PPIs. We feel that our trust in organisations, in the interest of regular members informed of VO accounts, villagers that they are capable of acting meetings, savings and participation in responsiblyonceresourcesand other packages of AKRSP. The doubts as Below: Bridges are very often the only responsibility is handed over to them, has to whether VOs can be formed in other means for establishing contact outside a been well placed. Without organisation parts of Pakistan because of the larger size village; they are built with community the smallholders and the poor cannot rise of villages, is not borne out by the facts. participation.

Left: A water channel, often many factionalism and power games of the VO. input in the initial stages, sustainability of kilometers long carries water from the These disputes have to be resolved by the VOs would be highly vulnerable. glaciers down to the valleys to sustain life VO, as no outsider can do so. The Another aspect of this technical input and to irrigate fields in Bombagh. Programme staff have to be patient. Infor sustainability of VOs is grafting of some cases,it takes years before such scientific and technological improvements Top left: Near the town of Booni, in issues get settled. Decisions or solutions on to existing traditional activities in such Chitral, it was decided that protective forced from above, however, do not standfields as engineering, agriculture, forestry, barriers were needed to help avert further the test of time. processing of fruitsand orchard erosion of the river bank and the risk of development and the overall management losing cultivatable land above the river. at the village level. Sustainability of Village Organisation Top right: In the village of Parwak, it was Why should the VO stay organised once The Role of Village Activists necessary to bring the water from the its identified need, namely the PPI, has It is the village activist who helps the VO channel across the valley in order to been fulfilled? There is an element ofunderstand the vision of development; irrigate more fields. Frequently it is only sustainability inherent in the PPI as the takes programme messages to the general the pressure of gravity on the water falling catalyst for organisation. If the PPI has to body of the VO; brings about changes in from very high on the mountainside that be maintained, to ensure continuing gains, the management system of the village; suffices - no pumps are required. the VO has to survive to perform thismakes services provided by AKRSP function. However, what is more essential accessible to the VO members. His forum savings and other matters. The generalfrom thesustainabilityangle,isthe is the VO. Our experience has shown that body meeting ensures public knowledge development of a programme package for it is not impossible to find activists in the of the affairs of the VO and acts as a implementation by the VO. It is here that villages but they do need an institutional deterrent against corruption. It also acts the real challenge lies for the experts and framework to come in bloom. The success as the most effective mechanism againstspecialists. The responsibilityfor or failure of a VO is directly attributable hijacking of the VO by vested interests. developing viable packages lies with the to the VO activist, usually the Manager It also takes away the burden of resolving management group (MG) in AKRSP. of the organisation. In most cases he is VO disputes from the Programme staffAKRSP has attemptedto meet the supported by the President. In addition, and puts it fully and squarely in the court challenge by recruiting high calibre staff there is a cadre of village level specialists, of the VO. This helps the Programmeat the management level and by drawing trained by Programme staff and personnel to devote their time and energy on outside expertise within and outside remunerated by the VO, who help in to substantive matters of programming,the country, to help MG in developing implementing programme packages. Thus instead of getting involved in internalpackages in different fields. Without this the actual responsibility for implementation of packages, is borne by the VO through its cadre of trained specialists. By way of illustration, a social organisation unit (SOU) of AKRSP (the lowesttierofitsadministrative infrastructure),comprisingasocial organiser (social scientist), a satellite social örganiser and an engineer, has the support of nearly 350 -500 ruralcadresto implement and monitor programme packages in 75 -100 villages. Phasing Out The issue of when to phase out the administrative structure supporting the VOs requires very careful consideration. The functions performed by the support

Left: Many areas have adopted a productive physical infrastructure project that involves reforestation in areas that were centuries ago covered with trees. RURAL DEVELOPMENT structure are of an ongoing nature and would not disappear.Itis difficult to predict what form these entities would take; however, one could analyse the development in this direction and identify the trends to make plausible proposals. An important development has been the realisation by VOs of their capacity and strength to manage supply of inputs and credit, at the supra village level or VO cluster level, and formation of 24 clusters of 223 VOs to undertake these functions, instead of dependence on AKRSP staff. The cluster would generateits own income through a service charge from the VO members, to pay their cluster and VO activists. This is the first step towards self - reliance, on terms of independence from the support structure of AKRSP. A second and more important step now inRs 194 million including administrative Above: Thanks to the creation of roads the offing is the setting up of a financialcosts, from 1983 -88, the Northern Area and bridges where none existed before, institution to take over the credit andADP amounted to Rs 2250 million trained women health workers can visit banking functionscurrently being excluding administrative costs, for similar remote areas to treat but also to educate performed by AKRSP. This step has been period and geographical area. If there is the population about health problems. a will and commitment, there is no dearth made possible by the VOs, firstly, by inadequacy is further worsened because of savings and secondly, by presenting an of funds. The donor interest in AKRSP type programme offers another window the lack of accessibility of the majority of excellent track record of repayment of the rural population to the available loans (99 per cent). formobilising resourcesforsuch initiatives. AKRSP, in addition to Agagovernmentservices;butsettingup Khan Foundation network funding, was credit institutions or operating new bran- Availability of Funds ches of banks does not necessarily mean There are two ways to find funds for PPI able to raise money from donor agencies includingthe Canadian International that credit becomes accessible to all the investment - either from national smallholders and subsistence farmers. An resources as part of ADP or from outside Development Agency, the Government of theNetherlands, the Overseas AKRSP -type programme aims at rectify- agencies and donors. The last Prime ing the situation by firstly bringing the Minister's Five Point Programme had Development Administration (UK) and USAID. smallholders into an organised fold and envisaged a layout of Rupees 18 billion; thereby giving them access to existing the current Government plans to spend LinksandCoordinationwithgovernment services. The most spectacu- Rupees 2 billion in 1989 -90 alone on its lar example of this type of access is the Peoples Development Programme.Government, Social Sector Agencies Compared to the AKRSP outlay ofand Other Institutions availability of credit to 50,000 plus small What links with government institutions,farm familiesinthe Northern Areas local councils and existing developmentwhere five years ago only a few hundred Below: In Passu, Northern Pakistan new agenciesare envisaged or coulda had access to it. The number of credit arable land has been made available and programme survive without such links?institutions and branches of banks had new vegetable crops introduced. The' As the name indicates, the programme isremained almost the same in the area. Women's Organisations often participate in in support and not in substitution ofThe Agriculture Livestock and Forestry the growing harvesting and marketing of existing services. Existing governmentdepartments of government agreed to act crops to generate cash income. servicesareinadequate. Butthis as trainers for village level specialists and whenever possible pooled the supplies at their disposal with AKRSP supplies to increase availability to villagers. The VO, in fact,is a development forum for the whole village and any agency is welcome to go through it. The more agencies use it the stronger it will become. AKRSP welcomes therole of introducing the development agencies to the VO, and after the initial contact prefers directinteraction between the two without using the AKRSP conduit. A very good example of this advocacy has been theevolution of relationships between the VOs and the Northern Pakistan Primary Health Care Pro- gramme and toalesser degree bet- ween VOs and the Self -Help School Con- struction Programme of the Aga Khan Education Services. Both these examples also prove the efficacy and potential of RURAL DEVELOPMENT

VOs as forums for both productive andopposition to involving women in the However, there is_ =á continuous effp,rt at social sector development interventions. development process, on terms mutuallyinnovative and alternative approacheOto acceptable, for example, women should beexpand proven packages for women, The Role of Local Councils in Rural contacted by women staff, women should Development be trained in the village instead of beingDifficulties, Failures and Successes Attempts have been and are being madeasked to travel to training centres etc. The Itis too early to pass judgement on now to undertake rural developmentevolution of programme packages forsuccess or failure of AKRSP. However, we programmes through local councils orwomentookintoconsideration can discern trends which give indications elected representatives. No one decries the improvement of their existing situation, of the direction the programme is going. importance of local council structure innamely reduction of their traditional Our offer of partnership to the villagers political education, in planning, imple- work, for example, vegetable cultivation, has received a positive response. What mentation and maintenance of infra- poultry, fruit processing, spinning etc. We gives us hope and confidence isthe structure above village level, coordination avoided introducing radical ideas andmajority of VOs' determination to move with development departments ofconcentrated on helping women do things onwards towards the destination. The government and other agencies, taxation, theywerealreadydoingmore percentage of VOs falling by the wayside inter -villageplanningetc.buttheproductively. We have also been flexible has been very small. Of the 993 VOs only structure is not an economic unit forin allowing women to either form aone decided to disband itself becaue of undertaking rural development of theseparate group orto merge their internal discord and factionalism. Of the village.Thisrequiresabroad -based membership with the VO. As of770 PPI, initiated by VOs, only one was structure at the micro level, namely, an December 1, 1988, 248 women's groups a flop and one was abandoned and some institutional framework of village -levelwith 9667 members and a savings of Rs are taking much longer to complete than organisations. The conceptual package for 4.82 million kept their identity separate, what was originally stipulated. 514 PPIs rural development demands and requires within the overall umbrella of their re-have also been completed and are being involvement of every smallholder in thespective VOs. The initial obstacle of iden- satisfactorily maintained. 185 PPIs were process of development.Indirectortifying a PPI equivalent for women has started in 1988. 256 PPIs are awaiting remote participation through an elected now been overcome with the develop-completion. More than 300 VOs have local councillor (or an elected represent- ment of women's packages. Hundreds oftaken loans, on the strength of their ative) will not result in improving theVOs participated in the women's prog- savings, to initiate self -financed projects economic situation of the rural poor of aramme package directly. Thousands ofof land development, purchase of village. It is not possible for the councillor women were trained in poultry manage-agriculturalmachineryetc.The or the representative tofulfillall thement, plant protection techniques, de-cumulative savings of the VOs, kept in obligations of thesmallholders ofhydration of apricots, management skills scheduled banks, amount to more than Rs collective management, generation ofetc. The challenge now is horizontal ex-51 million. In terms of building, their capital through savings and upgrading ofpansion, for which the main constraint is achievements are impressive: human skill. Not only in Pakistan butwomen field staff. Although a cadre of even in India, with a highly developed NEW IRRIGATION CHANNELS: women workers is slowly building up, 206 measuring 633 km Panchayati Raj System, the record of local because of the need for staff well versed in WIDENING AND EXTENSION OF councils in undertaking rural development local languages, the progressisslow. has been dismal. The explanation that IRRIGATION CHANNELS: 192 measuring 576 km paucity of resources and lack of funds at Below: In Booni, Chitral located not far the disposal of local councils are the mainfrom the Afghanistan border, orchards of CONSTRUCTION OF LINK ROADS: reasons for this failure, is not wholly true. fruit trees have benefited from modern 131 measuring 409 km Women in Development techniques of pesticide control. PROTECTIVE WORKS: Women form half of the population and 98 measuring 26,956 m withouttheir involvementinthe RESERVOIRS AND TANKS: development process,littlecan be 48 measuring 505,912 (m3) achievedinalleviating poverty or increasing the incomes of the family. In Their most impressiveachievements, a conservative and traditional society any however, have been in bringing about attempt to reach the women directly is not changes in the system of management only met with resistance but proves atthevillagelevel.Other achieve- counterproductive. There' is,therefore, ments would not have been possible first a need to educate the men to involve without organisation and collective the women in development. The AKRSP management. experience has been that where men were willing to involve women, the goal was Shoaib Sultan Khan, General Manager of to bring more benefits for themselves. the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme, Many advisers and consultants advocategl was born in India and educated at the segregation of women through separate Universities of Lucknow, Egypt and programmes, but without first achieving Cambridge, Britain. His career in rural emancipation of women, segregation does development started in 1959 when he not work. In the case of AKRSP, which established the Daudzai Pilot project in is a product sector programme, it was Pakistan. In 1970 he was consultant to the difficult to visualise programme packages United Nations Centre for Regional which could neatlydividefamilies, Development from Nagoya, Japan, and because suchaunit works forthe from 1979 -1982 he worked in Sri Lanka common good of the members. Even in as a consultant to UNICEF, before joining the most conservative VO, there is nó the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme.