nature of the work, it is important to recognize the service of community
management committees, especially given the greater demands of their
work. This provides a valuable opportunity to celebrate their efforts and
at the same time, motivate others to find other opportunities to express
their own leadership potential in benefit to others.
13. Reinforce work quality messages
Management Committee members must be empowered with the
authority to dismiss participants who produce poor quality work and
make no effort to correct unsatisfactory performance. Tolerance for poor
quality work creates conflict and perpetuates sentiments of dependency
and entitlement.
14. Prioritize spending on tools according to project’s food security and
natural resource management objectives
Beyond a minimum amount of tools, it is up to the community to optimize
their use and organize their schedules in a way that will facilitate access
to the appropriate tools at needed times. Message reinforcement may
be needed to explain that the objective of the project is not to equip the
village with tools, but to give the community an opportunity to address
their food security and natural resource management needs.
15. Recognize the long-term value of educational messages
Although Cash or Food for Work represent short term interventions,
add longer-term value to the initiative with educational health and
environmental messages during the payment events that have the
potential to contribute to lasting solutions.
16. A witness system facilitates identity control when paying workers
While individual identity cards may not be a reality in the project
intervention zone, at a minimum, management committee members and
community leaders must be present at each payment event to witness
that the people paid are the same people who have done the work; or
alternatively, the local authority can attest they have been authorized by
the worker to collect the payment.
17. Eliminate risk in the work environment
In the Niger land recuperation activity context, it is appropriate to
provide a sufficient number of masks to protect against dust and first
aid kits for injuries.
18. Authorize early spending.
The instrumental factor enabling CRS to implement quickly was the
authorization CRS received from OFDA to begin using $300,000 of
the $1 million grant to initiate project activities. This practice is much
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