Microplanning

The Need for Microplanning

The need for microplanning arose as central planning alienated local people from local assets and resources. In general, when people are alienated, they will use the services as long as they are available but will not invest time, labour or resources to maintain the system or services. To fill this gap, planning at the local level with the participation of people was tried out. The microplanning recognizes the need to involve people in the process of development through a microlevel planning process.

Focus of Microplanning

Microplanning can be used in the following circumstances, to name a few:

• To build the capacity of people
• To increase the information base of the area and its people
• To use available resources
• To identify the root causes when problem-solving
• To increase decision-making capacity
• To improve the socio-economic and legal environment of the predefined local area
• To enhance negotiation abilities of the community

The Process of Microplanning

The microplanning process empowers a community to arrive at their action agenda by engaging all stakeholders such as government functionaries, elected representatives or other key resource providers of the predefined local area. Microplanning processes essentially build the capacity of a community to analyze their own situation and to work on it. The duration and timing of each process differ as the common goal for each practising microplanning community is different.

The Phases of Microplanning

The three phases are pre-planning, planning and post-planning.

In the pre-planning phase, the central theme is to lay the foundation for the microplanning process. It begins by identifying the parameters of the area for which the community wants to find a solution. An orientation workshop or face-to-face meetings with key stakeholders are useful to clarify doubts, generate curiosity and build consensus.

The planning phase starts by collecting data from each of the smallest units of the identified area. This is followed by prioritizing of the problems of the area. The community analyze the data and strategies for resource mobilization and prepare the microplan, including the budget.

The post-planning phase consists of the implementation of the microplan and the review of the implementation from time to time.

Microplanning and Community Development

The three phases will help with community development. The phases organize the community and local key members to go through the stages of mapping resources in the area. Together, the community analyze the cause and effect of the problems and motivate all to think of workable solutions. They prepare the microplan and the budget together. The microplan is then [Page 537]formalized and sanctioned by the appropriate authority or relevant departments.

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