1.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Mid term
DEFINITION AND DESCRIPTION OF COMMUNITY
What is Community?
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality
such as norms, Religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may
share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country,
village, town, or neighbourhood) or in virtual space through communication
platforms.
The term community denotes almost uniformly and permanently shared
lives of people over a region. It may be considered as a local aggregation of
people. Often when we think of community, we think in geographic terms.
Our community is the city, town or village where we live. Communities can
also be defined by common cultural heritage, language, and beliefs or
shared interests. These are sometimes called communities of interest.
Definition
“a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together
within a larger society”.
Types of community
There are three main types of communities; urban, suburban and rural.
Urban community are most population densities, while rural areas are the
least populated. Suburban neighbourhoods land between the two. They are
less populated than urban areas but are more populated than rural areas.
Development
Social development is about improving the well-being of every individual in
society so they can reach their full potential. The success of society is
linked to the well-being of each and every citizen. Social development
means investing in people.

What is Community Development?

Community development may be defines as " the process by which the
efforts of the people themselves are united with government authorities to
improve the economic , social and cultural condition of communities to
integrate these communities into the life of nation and enable them to
contribute fully to national progress. Community development is a process
where community members come together to take collective action and
generate solutions to common problems, Community well-being
(economic. social, environmental and cultural) often evolves from this type
of collective action being taken at a grassroots level. Community
development ranges from small initiatives within a small group to large
initiatives that involve the broader community.
Effective community development should be:
● well-planned;
● initiated and supported by community members;
● benefit to the community;
● grounded in experience that leads to best practices.
Community development is a grassroots process by which communities:
● become more responsible;
● organize and plan together;
● develop healthy lifestyle options;
● empower themselves;
● reduce poverty and suffering;
● create employment and economic opportunities;
● achieve social, economic, cultural and environmental goals.

Definitions of Community development

"a process where community members come together to take collective
action and generate solutions to common problems.”
“ Community development is a process where community members are
supported by agencies to identify and take collective action on issues
which are important to them. Community development empowers
community members and creates stronger and more connected
communities”.

OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

The community development programme has for its objective's economic
development, social change and democratic growth. These three
objectives are to be promoted jointly and in such a manner that they
support one another. The objective behind the community development
programme is to develop the resources of the people and to assist each
community in planning and carrying out the integrated production. Like this,
the major objectives of this project are:
● To change the outlook of all community people.
● To improve existing community crafts and industries and organizing
new ones.
● providing minimum essential health services and improving health
practices.
● Providing required educational facilities for children and adults as
well as recreational facilities.
● Improving housing and family living conditions of community.
● To develop a responsive community leadership, organization and
institutions.
● To develop community people so that they become self-reliant and
responsible citizens.
● To help people that they can increase their income and quality of life.

PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Principle No. 1
Promote active and representative citizen participation so that community
members can meaningfully influence decisions that affect their situation.
Principle No. 2
Engage community members in problem diagnosis so that those affected
may adequately understand the causes of their situation.
Principle No. 3
Help community members understand the economic, social, political,
environmental, and psychological impact associated with alternative
solutions to the problem.
Principle No. 4
Assist community members in designing and implementing a plan to solve
agreed upon problems by emphasizing shared leadership and active citizen
participation.
Principle No. 5
Seek alternatives to any effort that is likely to adversely affect the
disadvantaged segments of a community.
Principle No. 6
Actively work to increase leadership capacity, skills, confidence, and
aspirations in the community development process.
Moreover, these principles present a frame of reference for successful
practice of community organization.
● Acceptance
● Understanding of felt needs and resources
● Individualization
● Community self determination
● Freedom within limits
● Empathy, not sympathy
● Flexible functional organization
● Progressive program experience
● People participation
● Meaningful relationship
● Resource mobilization
● Evaluation.

Elements of community development

Community Development is an evolutionary way of change from the
traditional life to the progressive way to life. According to Sanders there are
four elements of community development.
1. Community Development as a Process
2. Community Development as a Method
3. Community Development as a Program
4. Community Development as a Movement
1. Community Development as a Process
Community Development is a process form one condition to another. It is
an evolutionary state of change from lower point to the upper. It is the
process of total development of man in a community is the motivation of
people towards change in their behaviour and mental growth.
2. Community Development as a Method
Community development as a method of practical work in the community
people is involved in it to bring change and development in the community.
It is a method of improvement and progress in which the social organizer
play an important role. Social worker goes to the communities met with
people and aware them about the socio economic backwardness and its
causes in the locality.
3. Community Development as a Program
It is a set of procedures and having its rules and regulation in the form of
programs. Different programs are working to achieve a variety of specific
change and development in community. The community program tries to
meet the basic needs and requirements of the people. Basically community
development program activities are as under:
1. Physical improvements, such as roads, housing, sanitation,
drainage, system and farming etc
2. Functional activities are health, education, protection, recreation etc
3. Social activities including group discussion cooperation, work
together, self-reliance etc
4. Community Development as a Movement
It is the gradually change in behaviour, belief, and motivation towards
change in human life. This movement is imposable without the help,
cooperation and coordination and also active participation of the people in
community programs. When the people identify the need of program as
their own, then the process of development starts with full zeal and
progress.

Limitations of community development

Development projects operate in challenging environments, where
uncertainties about the future increase the risk to the project.
Managers need to deal with extremely complex social, economic, and
political factors that affect the delivery of goods and services. Development
projects are implemented in some of the most remote and difficult
locations in the world; additionally, projects operate in areas of high
personal risk and high security threats to project staff. The lack of proper
infrastructure, limited resources, and a changing environment put a strain
on project managers who need to deliver the project outcomes. The
constant changes in the social, economic, political, and natural
environment.
From extensive observation and experimentation through working with
development agencies for years, we have seen the following limitations in
development projects:
● Poor project planning
● Inadequate management skills
● Lack of accountability
● Lack of stakeholder involvement
● Unrealistic plans
● No measure to evaluate quality
● Poor, inconsistent project management discipline
● Duplication of efforts
● Poor risk management strategies
● Unmotivated project staff
These limitations can overcome if Development organizations can benefit
from a standardized and flexible approach to deliver their projects not only
on time and within budget, but in the quality expectations of the
stakeholders. Project management processes and techniques are used to
coordinate resources to achieve predictable results. The value proposition
for project management results by implementing a common set of project
management processes, competencies and tools.

Early community development programme in Pakistan:

[Link] Village Agricultural and Industrial Development (V-AID) Program
(1953-1962)
The idea of “community development” development through community
based village organizations on popular participation was much in vogue in
the early 1950s. In Pakistan, after the visit of a group of the Pakistani
government officials to the United States to study the rural extension work
in 1951. It was suggested that Pakistan needed an organized effort to
provide for various needs of the villagers, to identify things that villagers
needed, and to bring the different nation-building government departments
together to meet the needs. All of these ideas were packaged into the,
Village Agricultural and Industrial development (V-AID) Program in 1953.
Objectives:
The officially stated objectives of the V-AID Program were to:
1) Increase the output of agriculture and village industries for higher rural
incomes
2) Provide more water, schools, health care centres, and other social and
creational facilities.
The V-AID organization was put under the control of appointed government
officials, as Development Officers, Supervisors, and Specialists to support
and supervise the work of the front-line Village AID workers. In each district
villages were organized as a Development Area to be administered by a
Development Officer. The activities included in the Program were;
● Improvement in crop and livestock production
● Building roads, bridges, culverts, schools, wells, and drains
● Planting trees
● and removing health hazards.
Role of Workers of V-AID Programme
The village councils were appointed and not elected by the villagers. The
most important link between the government organization and villagers in
each Development Area was the Village AID worker – a multipurpose
extension agent trained for one year in a government V-AID training
institute. Each Village-AID worker was expected to supervise 5-7 villages.
The Village-AID worker was supposed to act as a guide, philosopher and
friend to the villagers and his functions included education, organization,
motivation, formation of all purpose village councils, modernization of,
agriculture, improvement in health facilities, building roads, giving credit,
arranging marketing and generating self-help.

[Link] Basic Democracies System (BDS), 1963 – 1973

It came on scene in 1959 it was designed to bring the elements of
community development and political development together, especially at
the local level. The government administrative and development tiers were
organized into five levels. The lowest tier was a union council, a group of
villages comprising 12-15 village councillors. Such a union council covered
a population of 8,000. The councils carried out social and economic
development work in their respective areas. The problems that the union
councils tried to solve were related to education, infrastructure, agriculture
and sanitation.
The BDs went a long way in developing awareness and local leadership
among the rural masses but the change in the Government in 1970 saw the
abolition of the BDS and the introduction of a new rural development
approach – the Integrated. Rural Development Program (IRDP).

[Link] Rural Works Program (RWP) 1963-1972

The Rural Works Programme (RWP) had its origins in a pilot project for
community development undertaken by the late Akhter Hameed Khan as
Director of the Pakistan Academy for Rural Development (PARD). He
experimented with a pilot project in which the rural communities with the
assistance of government completed capital works, link roads, subsidiary
irrigation channels, etc. to promote agricultural growth and provide rural
employment.
Purpose of the programme
Its basic purpose of the pilot project was to assess the capability of the
village people, basic democracies and the local government officials to
undertake sizable development programs in their respective areas.
Another important purpose was the working out of the procedure for
implementation and maintenance of the project works. By the middle of
1961, the pilot project had demonstrated that the basic democracies
institutions and government officials were capable of executing the
program.
Objectives
The officially announced objectives of RWP were to:
● Provide increased employment in rural areas on local projects not
requiring large investments and their benefits can be easily
recognized by the workers.
● Create infrastructure such as roads, bridges, irrigation .channels,
etc. in rural areas.
● Create an effective nucleus of planning and development at the
local (Union Council) level and associate increasing segment of the
population in the development effort.
● Mobilize human and financial resources for the implementation of
local projects through taxation and voluntary labour.
While it was decide to execute RWP primarily by the basic democracy
institutions, the overall administrative control and supervision of the
program was exercised by the government with the close association and
guidance of concerned officials at all levels. In the provinces, the
governments created Directorate of Projects for RWP in the Departments
of Basic Democracies and Local Government (BDLG). In the field, the
Deputy Commissioners were designated as controlling officers to organize
and supervise the execution of the program in the districts.
Some experts have regarded the program as a “successful innovation in
rural development” because it:
Led to the completion of over 60,000 projects in a variety of rural
infrastructure and services; the average cost of these projects was much
lower than those constructed by the government departments.
Mobilized local contribution, in labour, land, cash, to the extent of about 15
per cent of the total cost of all projects.
Provided jobs right where the people lived and reduced underemployment
or seasonal unemployment in rural areas.
Improved the village infrastructure like irrigation channels, drains and
embankments created awareness among the people about the
development needs and induced them to prepare plans.

[Link] Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP) 1972-1977

Pakistan went through a turbulent period of about three years from the
beginning of 1969 to the end of 1971. The new government launched
several programs of reform keeping with its populist platform that
promised roti (bread), kaprra (clothing) and makan (house) to the rural and
urban poor.
Two major programs were targeted at broadening its popular support in the
rural areas, namely, land reforms and a rural development program that
included the Integrated Rural Development Progamme (IRDP).
At the level of theory, IRDP takes a comprehensive and systemic (holistic)
view of rural life. But it combines disparate postulates (different
suggestion) mixes means and ends, contains theoretical inconsistencies
and operational confusion. In practice, IRDP was used as a technocratic
approach within the confines of the traditional roles of the technocrats and
the rural elite. The impetus(motivation) to IRDP in Pakistan was provided by
three major forces, two of which were indigenous:
Objectives
The officially publicized objective of IRDP was to improve the welfare of
rural people with the partnership of public officials and the intended
beneficiaries. The program would, therefore, focus on the following.
● Increase agricultural output by using modern methods, including
farm planning and management, on small and medium size farms,
and providing credit, storage, transport, and marketing facilities.
● Improve the physical and social infrastructure to deliver economic
inputs and social services for better quality of life.
● Slow down the migration of people from rural to urban areas by
creating labour-intensive non-farm jobs and spreading urban
amenities in rural areas.
● Create viable local institutions based on popular participation
(village cooperatives and councils, etc.) and encourage the growth of
local leadership.
But the program was closed in 1977. It confronted with following major
problems.
The response of the Line Departments was very poor in terms of providing
the services of competent officials and adequate facilities. The posted
functionaries were often low-level officials who lacked authority, skills and
resources to undertake the development work. It became quite obvious
that the remoteness of public services was not the primary cause of their
non availability in rural areas.
[Link] Peoples Works Program (PWP)
The populist government launched the PWP as part of its much publicized
land reform and rural development programs. PWP was different from RWP
in several respects. It included both rural and urban areas; targeted at a
much larger number of activities and involved a wider mix of people
(groups), and was based on adhoc groups of public officials and local
influential elite at the village and district validations, established an
elaborate administrative structure to implement the PWP. In most of the
projects (schemes) 60 per cent of the wages were paid in cash and the rest
in kind. Voluntary work was paid at 80 per cent in kind and the rest in cash.
The Planning Commission of Pakistan evaluated the People’s Works
Program in 1975 and found several serious problems in the concept and
implementation of PWP.
Philosophy of Community Development
The philosophy of community development is rooted in the belief that
communities have the capacity to identify and address their own needs
and challenges. It emphasizes the following principles:
Asset-Based Approach: Focuses on identifying and leveraging
( investment) existing strengths and resources within the community.
Social Justice: Aims to address inequalities and promote fairness and
social inclusion within the community.
Self-Determination: Respects the autonomy and self-determination of
communities in defining their own development priorities and strategies.
Partnership and Solidarity: Emphasizes the importance of building
partnerships and fostering solidarity among community members and
external stakeholders.
Sustainability: Strives to create sustainable, long-term solutions that build
on the community's own capacities and resources.
Cultural Sensitivity: Recognizes and respects the cultural diversity and
heritage of the community in the development process.
Community development is driven by the belief that sustainable change
and development can only be achieved through the active involvement and
empowerment of the community itself.

Functions of Community Development Worker

What does a community development worker do?
Community development workers help individuals, families or whole
communities to bring about social change and improve the quality of life in
their local area. They act as the link between communities and a range of
other local authority and voluntary sector providers, such as the police,
social workers and teachers
What skills does a community development worker need?
● Good listening skills
● Advocacy and networking skills
● The ability to interpret, analyse and present data
● Excellent communication, interpersonal and team building skills
● Researching skills and the ability to write reports
● Knowledge and understanding of social issues and how public
sector bodies work
● A non-judgmental and positive attitude
● Creative thinking and the ability to solve problems
● Political, social and negotiating skills
● Compassion and empathy for others
● Creative thinking and you may need the ability to identify and pursue
sources of funding
● A motivating approach to work to encourage others to take action
● You may also need the ability to manage budgets.
Community development worker specialisation
There are a number of specialisations you can choose, such as:
Group facilitation - they help communities organise themselves and provide
a platform for community groups to share and express their views and
ideas.
Fundraising - assist non-profit organisations, businesses and governments
in raising money for their project. They also work at fundraising events to
raise money for charities.
Food security - help communities by connecting them with various sources
of food such as food banks and public feeding programs.
Business development services - work with small companies to grow and
facilitate new business opportunities that are essential for the local
economy. 

Final term course

Introduction to Community Organization Meaning & Definition

Introduction to Community Organization
The concept of community organization was developed in the
United States to involve various organization and institutions to
meet the basic needs of the community people.
Community organization as a method used to make efforts and
directed towards community needs. It works in the community
to develop the living standard of people through their own
resources and activities. They motivate the people and
inculcate the idea of promotion and progress is community.
Meaning of Community Organization
Community organization means the adjustment of resources
and needs with one another Or these organizations are those
welfares which are undertaken by the members of that
community for the use of resources and needs fulfilment.
Aims and Objectives of Community Organization
The main aim and objective of community organization is to
bring adjustment between the resources available and felt
needs of the people. Special objectives of community
organization are following:
● To get information about the resources and needs
● To arouse the people to work for the welfare of the
community
 ● To create sound ground for planning and action
● To create a sense of cooperation integration and unity
among the people
● To motivate the people to take better participation in the
developing community programs
● To highlight the causes of various problems affecting the
community and hinder the way of progress and
development
● To implement programs required for the fulfilment of
people basic needs
● To develop better understanding among the people about
the issues and needs.
● To mobilize the resources to create a suitable ground for
the basic needs completion and eradication of problems.
● To develop the idea of ability and better thinking to work
for the betterment of community.
● Last but not the least, the main aim and objective of
community organization is to organize the people to
identify their resources and try to solve their basic needs
through mobilization.

Role of a Community Organizer

A community organizer is an individual who networks with and
mobilizes the community to support a cause, develops
programs or initiates any other positive social impact.
You can find employment as a community organizer in the
government, churches, non-profit organizations, health
organizations, social services agencies and more.
1. It is easier for the community organizer to help the
community achieve solutions to their needs if they focus
 on specific objectives.
2. A community organizer acts on people's right to come
together to influence policies and advocate for their rights.
3. Identifying the structures and people that can help the
community achieve the appropriate solutions
4. Negotiating with these people to solve the community's
problems
5. Establishing an institution that the community controls
democratically with a purpose and capacity to face future
problems
Community organizer skills
● A community organizer may need the following skills to
execute their duties and responsibilities effectively:
● Leadership
● Interpersonal
● Public speaking
● Community engagement
● Research
● Analytical and cognitive
● Reporting
● Listening
● Communication
● Time management
● Critical thinking and problem-solving
● Management
● Self-awareness
● Multitasking
Techniques of community development
Social mobilization
2. Social mobilization is the primary step of community
development for recovery from conflicts and disasters. It
allows people to think and understand their situation and
to organize and initiate action for their recovery with their
own initiative and creativity. Through mobilization, people
can organize themselves to take action collectively by
developing their own plan and strategy for recovery rather
than being imposed from outside.
Definition: “Community Mobilization is a process of empowering
local communities and combining awareness, creation, self-
organization and action”.
Barriers in social mobilization:
In particular there will be challenges associated with extreme
poverty, informal settlements and slum areas, migration,
governance issues and also disaster and emergency
conditions. There may be huge variation in culture and habits,
as well as in attitudes and awareness and language issues.

Social Organizations
Social organization refers to the network of relationships in a
group and how they interconnect. This network of relationships
helps members of a group stay connected to one another in
order to maintain a sense of community within a group. The
social organization of a group is influenced by culture and other
factor
the system of relationships between persons and among
groups with regard to the division of activity and the functional
arrangement of mutual obligations within society
Definition:
“the broad institutional interrelationships in a society”.
“A network of relationships among individuals and various
groups in the community that are essential for several purposes
is called social organisation.”
A political party, church, factory, and college are examples of
social organisations. Slavery permeated many civilizations and
countries in the previous era.
What are the 5 Types of Social Organisation?
Organisations are needed for the maintenance of any society.
There are five different types of social organisation as follows;
● Economic organisation
● Financial organisation
● Political organisation
● Educational organisation
● Religious organisation

What is resource mobilization?

Resource mobilization refers to all activities involved in securing
new and additional resources for your organization. It also
involves making better use of, and maximizing, existing
resources.
Resource mobilization is often referred to as ‘New Business
Development’.
Definition
“Resource mobilization is the process of getting resources from
the resource provider, using different mechanisms, to
implement an organization's predetermined goals.”
 It is a theory that is used in the study of social movements and
argues that the success of social movements depends on
resources (time, money, skills, etc.) and the ability to use them.
It deals in acquiring the needed resources in a timely, cost-
effective manner. Resource mobilization advocates having the
right type of resource at the right time at the right price by
making the right use of acquired resources thus ensuring
optimum usage of the same.

Why is resource mobilization so important?

Resource mobilization is critical to any organization for the
following reasons:
● Ensures the continuation of your organization’s service
provision to clients
● Supports organizational sustainability
● Allows for improvement and scale-up of products and
services the organization currently provides
● Organizations, both in the public and private sector, must
be in the business of generating new business to stay in
business

Planning
Definition: Planning is the fundamental management function,
which involves deciding beforehand, what is to be done, when is
it to be done, how it is to be done and who is going to do it.
It is an intellectual process which lays down an organisation’s
objectives and develops various courses of action, by which the
organisation can achieve those objectives. It chalks out exactly,
how to attain a specific goal.
Types of Planning
The four main plans of business are strategic, tactical,
operational and contingency.
Strategic planning looks at the long-term issues of the
organization, and helps develop a plan for growth or change of
business function. Goals developed at the strategic planning-
level are often increased by dividing them into tactical and
operational levels.
Operations planning focuses on day-to-day issues, such as
staffing levels or inventory quantities. Operational-level planning
includes more detailed objectives with concrete deadlines and
task assignments.
Tactical planning is used to reach the goals set out by strategic
and operational planning. Tactical planning includes short-term
objectives and tasks designed to create specific results within a
limited time span. Tactical plans often include operational level
plans, and make way for the development of contingency level
plans.
Contingency-level planning includes more detailed action items
with specified responses in case of unexpected events or
emergencies, such as natural disasters or extreme weather
events that disrupt business operations.
Importance of Planning
● It helps managers to improve future performance, by
establishing objectives and selecting a course of action,
for the benefit of the organisation.
● It minimises risk and uncertainty, by looking ahead into
the future.
● It facilitates the coordination of activities. Thus, reduces
overlapping among activities and eliminates unproductive
work.
 ● It states in advance, what should be done in future, so it
provides direction for action.
● It uncovers and identifies future opportunities and threats.
● It sets out standards for controlling. It compares actual
performance with the standard performance and efforts
are made to correct the same.
Social planning
Social planning is a process of assessing and addressing social
needs and issues through the development of policies and
programs.
It involves the collaboration of individuals, organizations, and
government entities to identify, analyse, and respond to social
challenges facing a community.
The goal of social planning is to improve the well-being and
quality of life of individuals and society as a whole. Today, social
planning is an important tool for creating more just and
equitable societies. It involves a set of principles, steps, and
tools that guide the planning process and help to ensure that
policies and programs are effective, efficient, and sustainable.

Steps in Social Planning

The process of social planning involves several steps that guide
the development and implementation of policies and programs
to address social issues. Here are some of the key steps in
social planning:
Find the problem: The first step is to figure out what the
problem is. This means talking to people in the community,
doing research, and looking at data to understand what the
issue is and how it affects people.
Set goals: Once we know what the problem is, we need to set
clear goals and objectives for what we want to achieve. This
helps us stay focused and measure our progress.
Check resources and obstacles: Next, we need to look at what
resources we have and what obstacles we might face. This
could include things like funding, staff, and regulations that
could affect our ability to implement our plan.
Come up with ideas: We need to brainstorm different ideas for
how to address the problem. This means considering different
approaches and interventions that could be effective, and
evaluating them based on how practical, feasible, and
sustainable they are.
Put the plan into action: Once we have a plan, we need to put it
into action. This means implementing the strategies we've
developed and monitoring our progress to see if we're achieving
our goals.
Evaluate and improve: Finally, we need to evaluate how well our
plan is working and make adjustments as needed. This means
looking at data, getting feedback from the community, and
making changes to improve the plan and achieve better
outcomes.

What is an NGO/CSO?
NGO stands for non-governmental organization and CSO stands
for Civil society organisations
While there is no universally agreed-upon definition of an NGO,
typically it is a voluntary group or institution with a social
mission, which operates independently from the government.
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a group that
functions independently of any government. It is usually non-
profit. NGOs, sometimes called civil society organizations, are
established on community, national, and international levels to
serve a social or political goal such as a humanitarian cause or
the protection of the environment.

What are the main features of an NGO’S and CSO’S?

NGOs are diverse entities and their features are mostly shaped
by the socio-economic, cultural, political and legal situation of a
country. However, generally speaking, we can list out the
following features that are common among NGOs in most of the
countries around the world.
Non-Profit in functioning: An NGO is not meant for making profit
for personal gain. In case a NGO conducts some revenue
generating activity, the profit earned should not be distributed
amongst the board members, instead it should be used for
expanding NGO activities further.
Values: An NGO should address a social, cultural, economic or
political cause and should work towards public good. 
Voluntary: NGOs are voluntary associations. They have been
formed by a group of like-minded volunteers who have come
together to address a common issue. 
Legally registered: Although there may be unregistered NGOs
working for a cause, it is mandatory in most countries to get an
NGO legally registered. Besides, only legally registered NGOs
can access formal donations.
Non-criminal: NGOs do not indulge in anti-social and criminal
activities. 

Growth of NGO’s in Pakistan:

The extraordinary growth that NGOs have experienced in recent years in
their numbers, their outreach and their resources is unprecedented
(unmatched) even by Pakistani standards.
The number of active NGOs in Pakistan is, at the very least, anywhere
between 100,000 to 150,000, investigations by the Pakistan Centre for
Philanthropy ( desire to help /welfare) (PCP), a certification organisation for
NGOs and charity institutions, reveal. By this count, there is at least one
NGO for every 2,000 people. Way back in 2001, a Civil Society Index put
together by the Aga Khan Foundation in Pakistan, in coordination with
Civicus, an international alliance of civil society groups, put the number of
“active and registered NGOs in Pakistan” at “around 10,000 to 12,000”.
The phenomenal rise in the number of NGOs could be linked to the massive
injection of foreign money, especially donations and grants and sometimes
even loans into Pakistan since 2001 (the United States alone has provided
more than 10 billion dollars during these years).
A major part of this money came into Pakistan due to the political and
economic situation in the country. We have been through multiple violent
conflicts during the last decade and a half.
It is also during these years that the country has suffered its worst natural
disasters in decades an earthquake in 2005, floods in 2010-2011. Coupled
with long-term deterioration in the quality of environment standards and
the need to have a sustainable model of development.
These disasters focused the attention of the international development
community towards Pakistan like never before. And together these
political, economic and environmental issues have resulted in foreign
money coming into Pakistan in buckets and leaving in its wake an NGO at
every step.

Role of NGO in community development

The role of NGOs in society is to work on a mission or set of values that

guide them, and they can be involved in a wide range of missions, such as
advocacy, education, community development, humanitarian aid, and
protecting the environment for the betterment of the community. They also
serve as a medium between citizens and the government. They are
separate from the government and the private sector. They work for social,
cultural, and environmental causes that the government or the private
sector is not doing enough to help the people with. 
In general, an NGO is an organization that operates independently of any
government. The term was coined by the United Nations (UN) in 1945 to
differentiate between government and private organizations, and it is
relatively new. NGOs are typically formed by any individual with a specific
mission or service in mind, and they use their platform for non-profit
advocacy.
It’s worth noting that NGOs can fit into more than one of these categories,
depending on their mission and activities. NGOs have proliferated and
expanded their spheres of influence over the past decade.
The role of NGOs is not just to work at the grassroots level, they also serve
as advisors to governments, international organizations, and even the
United Nations.
Role of NGOs in Society
Advocacy and activism: NGOs work to raise awareness of social, economic,
and environmental issues, as well as to advocate for policy changes that
benefit the public good. They act as a voice for marginalized communities,
promoting human rights and social justice.
Service delivery: NGOs frequently provide direct services to communities in
need, such as healthcare, education, and disaster relief. They work to
improve the quality of life for individuals and communities and to fill service
gaps.
Accountability: NGOs monitor the actions of the government and other
actors and hold them accountable for their conduct. They work to ensure
that policies and practices are in line with citizens’ needs and aspirations
and that they promote transparency, accountability, and good governance.
Capacity Building: NGOs work to strengthen the capacity of individuals,
communities, and institutions to address social, economic, and
environmental issues. They provide training, resources, and technical
assistance to assist in the development of the skills and knowledge
necessary for bringing about lasting and sustainable change.
The role of NGOs in society is essential in supporting low-income
communities and promoting their overall well-being and development. By
addressing societal needs and problems and working toward sustainable
and inclusive development, NGOs can help build stronger, more resilient
communities and contribute to a more just and fair society.