Strengthening Participatory Organization
Encyclopedia
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
working since 1994 to strengthen and support community organizations and public interest institutions for promotion of democratic governance, social justice, peace and social harmony. SPO engages civil society networks, faith-based organisations and groups representing a wide range of stakeholders.
SPO focuses on capacity building of community institutions and nurtures civil society networks at the grassroots. SPO has so far worked in 77 districts out of 110 across four provinces and trained more than 3000 community-based and local government institutions, strengthened 56 rights-based advocacy networks and undertook special projects for girls’ education and humanitarian relief in case of natural disasters. All special projects are run with the help of community partners.
SPO envisions a democratic, socially just and tolerant society guided by participatory principles, which realizes the full potential of its people and their aspirations for sustainable and self-reliant development.
The mission is to strengthen and support community organisations and public interest institutions of Pakistan for the benefit of poor and disadvantaged sections of society for sustainable development through a participatory approach.
History
Strengthening Participatory Organization began its life way back in the early 1990s as the Small Projects Office (SPO)of Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) programme in Pakistan. On January 15, 1994, the Small Projects Office was transformed into an indigenous NGO. The decade since that inception has seen many more transformations and developments.From its humble beginning as a small and very new NGO in 1994, Strengthening Participatory Organization has grown to become one of the leading NGOs in Pakistan - in terms of its size and resources, the scope of its activities, its reach across the country, and the impact of its work.
Achievements at a glance
It is estimated that some 1,500,000 people have benefited directly through SPO’s training programme and projects and another one million indirectly.A few achievements of SPO’s programme are listed below:
Empowering Women
Increased number of women organisations have been strengthened, providing a platform to women to play an active role in integrating their own concerns in the overall planning process. The confidence of women has increased and their involvement in decision-making ensured. Women have been especially sensitised for good governance and provided political education so that they can play a role in the local government. Choti funding has also spurred economic activities that benefit female community members.Promoting Development
SPO’s partner organisations demonstrated maturity in planning and undertaking development activities--over 300 CBOs and WOs designed development projects that addressed key needs of their communities. They were able to secure funds for these projects from SPO as well as other donors such as Trust for Voluntary Organisations (TVO), The Canada Fund and other bilateral donors. At least 30 percent of the beneficiaries of these projects hailed from the poorest segments of the target communities and no less than 30 percent were women. The POs also involved a large number of the intended beneficiaries in project needs’ assessment, design and management. Environmental safeguards were built in.Changing Attitudes
Through SPO’s interventions, an attitudinal change in society was observed where people demand that their basic needs are fulfilled and seen as their rights, rather than taking the fulfilment of such needs as a privilege. In order to strengthen advocacy for change, civil society organisations were linked with regional and sectoral networks to play a leading role in representing grass root communities. This further increased the participation of communities in decision-making.Promoting Policy Debate
SPO has grown as an institution with the ability to develop linkages among grass root communities and policy-making institutions. Until now, SPO has engaged local communities to assist government in policy development processes including devolution of power plan, youth policy, education policy and repealing Hudood Ordinances. These networks gave their input at the policy level in provincial and national forums. Wide-ranging consultation processes were initiated by SPO across Pakistan. Representatives of government, NGOs, CBOs and the communities extensively attended consultative workshops.Rights-Based Political Education and Supporting Democracy
The POs played a vital role in order to provide women leadership in the first two phases of local bodies elections and the last two general elections. In order to ensure effective participation of women, the minimum female participation of 33% was achieved in Punjab through advocacy campaigns in collaboration with other agencies. SPO's local resource persons were also actively involved in 46 districts. 781 members of SPO partner organisations contested the elections, out of which, 536 were elected from all over the country. After reduction in seats more than 400 got elected in the second round. A larger number of activists participated in the process through campaigning, canvassing and bringing the development agenda to the fore. SPO can justifiably claim to have acted as a catalyst for smooth implementation of the new local government system.SPO has established a mechanism through its local partner networks to collect feedback on government policies, review performance and propose alternative solutions. During the last year, SPO partner networks conducted research based studies in the areas of health and education.
Some interventions with political parties in 10 districts of all four provinces have provided an opportunity to establish a mechanism to communicate priorities and expectations of civil society to political leadership.
Reviving Communities Affected by Natural Disasters
SPO is very much rooted in the local communities in at least half of the districts of Pakistan. In any situation of emergency or disasters, it stands by these communities through developing and implementing relief and rehabilitation programme. During one of the most severe earthquakes of human history, which affected the lives of people in northern Pakistan, SPO was the only leading organisation, which utilized its full potential to mobilize resources in a very short time. The resources both cash and in kind were worth 40 million rupees. A number of small initiatives were undertaken in collaboration with other partners for communities in the areas of education and health. SPO has also provided massive support to flood affected communities in Turbat, Bolan, Gwadar, Naseerabad, Jaffarabad, Thatta, Badin, Swat and Rawalpindi (districts across four provinces). SPO was the first organisation to train the implementing partners of Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA), including the army, in community mobilisation and the only national organisation to work at the policy level with the newly formed National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).Democratic Governance Programme
The Democratic Governance Programme emphasises on mainstreaming of marginalised communities in decision making processes by working towards the realisation of the basic human rights as described in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the Constitution of Pakistan. It ultimately leads to the next stage of claiming rights from policy and decision making institutions in a democratic manner. It is achieved through extensive political education through Civil Society Networks on regular basis. Enabling the people through education and training to participate fully in all forms of voluntary activities for social development is encouraged. Youth, the most vibrant section of the society is engaged and mainstreamed in social and political processes through this programme.Social Justice Programme
The Social Justice Programme is a mean to establish and expedite the community-rooted mechanisms in order to secure the well being of people, irrespective of caste, creed, colour or sex, by improving their quality of life. The programme aims to support mechanisms largely in the public sector and those devised by the civil society in the areas of basic education, primary healthcare, livelihood support to women and relief and rehabilitation after natural disasters in areas where SPO works.Peace and Social Harmony Programme
The Peace and Social Harmony Programme encourages civil society networks, faith-based organisations and groups, representing a wide range of stakeholders, to jointly participate in decision-making processes for the protection of basic rights regardless of religion, language, ethnicity and class differences. The programme is based on building social harmony among diversified groups to share and understand each other’s point of view and respect differences. The major challenges to be dealt with include the rising sectarian differences and inter-provincial harmony. ‘Politics of Consent’ is encouraged resulting in informed, thoroughly debated, and positive public and policy messages of awareness raising and advocacy.Geographical Coverage
SPO is presently working in following districts:Balochistan (18 Districts):
Awaran, Bolan
Bolan District
Bolan district Well known as Kachhi is in the centre of Balochistan province of Pakistan. The Bolan area remained under one district Kachhi until 31 December 1991...
, Chaghai
Chagai District
Chaghi/Chagai is the largest district of Pakistan and is located on the north west corner of Balochistan, Pakistan. It forms a triangular border with Afghanistan and Iran.Pakistan conducted a nuclear weapons test in 1998 at Ras Koh Hills Chagai District....
, Gwadar
Gwadar District
Gwadar District is a coastal district in Balochistan province of Pakistan. Gwadar city is the district headquarters of Gwadar District.-Administration:Gwadar District is subdivided into the following tehsils or subdistricts:* Gwadar* Jiwani* Ormara...
, Jaffarabad, Kech
Kech District
Kech or Turbat district is a district in Balochistan province of Pakistan.-Administration:The district of Kech is administratively subdivided into the following tehsils:* Buleda* Dasht* Turbat* Tump-Population:...
, Lasbella, Loralai
Loralai District
Loralai is a district in the centre of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Loralai district was created on October, 1903. Loralai town is the district headquarters...
, Mastung
Mastung District
Mastung District is a district located in the north west of Balochistan province, Pakistan. Prior to 1991, Mastung was part of Kalat District. For administrative purposes Mastung was separated from Kalat and made a new district in 1991.-Administration:...
, Naseerabad
Nasirabad District
Nasirabad is a district in the centre-west of Balochistan, Pakistan. Nasirabad’s headquarters are at Dera Murad Jamali. The district was notified in 1974. For three years, from July 1987 to December 1990, it was known as Tamboo district. Tamboo is a small village 40 km west of Dera Murad...
, Nushki
Nushki District
Nushki District is one of the districts of Balochistan province, Pakistan. The administration of the Nushki district was taken over from the Khan of Kalat by the Indian government in 1896, and was leased from him on a perpetual quit rent in 1899....
, Khuzdar
Khuzdar District
Khuzdar district is located in the centre of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Khuzdar is the capital of Khuzdar district. Khuzdar was created as a separate district on 1 March 1974. Previously, it was part of Kalat District....
, Panjgur
Panjgur District
Panjgur is a district in the west of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Panjgur was one of the three tehsils of Makran District until 1 July 1977 when that district became Makran Division and Panjgur became a district...
, Pishin
Pishin District
Pishin was a part of Quetta Pishin district. In 1975 it was separated from Quetta for administrative reasons. It derives its name from the locality Pishin. Pishin is a modernised form of ‘Pushang’, which is old Persian for the Arabic Fushang. Myth attributes the origin of the name to a son of the...
, Quetta
Quetta District
Quetta is a district in the north-west of Balochistan province of Pakistan.It was part of Quetta Division until the year 2000 when divisions were abolished. The district is famous for its agriculture produce, most notably fruit orchards but also including apples and grapes. The Hanna Valley is an...
, Sibi
Sibi District
Sibi is a district in theBalochistan province of Pakistan. The main mountains range are Zen, Bambore and Dungan. The climatic and topography of Sibi District is quite varied compared to other districts of Balochistan. It is also known as the "Hot spot" of Pakistan where the temperatures in the...
, Washuk, Ziarat
Ziarat District
Ziarat is a district in the north of Balochistan province of Pakistan. Ziarat town is headquarters of the district of the Sub division, and also of the tehsil. Khilafat Hills are the highest peak with an altitude of in Ziarat district...
NWFP (9 Districts and FATA):
Charsadda, Chitral
Chitral District
Chitral is a district in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan that contains the town of Chitral. It has an area of 14,850 km² and a population of 318,689 at the 1998 Census, which had subsequently risen to about 378,000 people by 2004. It has one of the highest mountains of the world,...
, Dir
Dir District
Dir District was a district of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan between 1970 and 1996. It was part of Malakand Division.Dir District was created in 1970 after the princely state of Dir was abolished the year before. Dir District was 5,280 square kilometres in area and lay along the...
, Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan District
Dera Ismail Khan is one of the 24 districts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The capital of the district is the town of Dera Ismail Khan...
, Malakand
Malakand District
Malakand District is a district of the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan.The District was formed in 1970 as a Provincially Administered Tribal Area, It had previously been a Tribal Area known as the Malakand Protected Area, part of the Malakand Agency...
, Mardan
Mardan District
Mardan is a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The city of Mardan is the headquarters of the district. The district also contains the famous archaeological site of Takht Bhai, Jamal Ghari and Sawal Dher.-Administration:...
, Peshawar
Peshawar District
Peshawar is a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Until divisions were abolished as part of local government reforms in 2000 it was part of Peshawar Division. The city of Peshawar, as well as being the provincial capital, is the capital of the district...
, Swat, Shangla, FATA
Fata
The FATA or FC-ATA is a type of computer hard disk drive. FATA is simply the low cost ATA or SATA disk drive equipped with a small external converter, that changes the interface to Fibre Channel...
(Khyber, Orakzai and Mohmand Agencies)
Punjab (14 Districts):
Bahawalpur
Bahawalpur District
Bahawalpur District is one of the districts of Punjab, Pakistan. According to the 1998 Census of Pakistan it had a population of 2,433,091 of which 27.01% were urban Bahawalpur district covers 24,830 km². Approximately two-thirds of the district is covered by the Cholistan Desert, which...
, Bhakkar
Bhakkar District
Bhakkar is a District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The district was created in 1981 with Bhakkar city as the capital. It is located between 31° 10' and 32° 22' N. and 70° 47' and 72° E. with an area of , most of it lies in the desolate plain of the Thal, but the Kachhi or strip of...
, Dera Ghazi Khan
Dera Ghazi Khan District
Dera Ghazi Khan is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The district covers an area of 5,306 m² and it is a long narrow strip of country, 198 m...
, Gujranwala
Gujranwala District
Gujranwala District is a district in Punjab, Pakistan.- History :The village of Asarur which has been identified as the location of Taki, an ancient town, visited by the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang contains immense ruins of Buddhist origin...
, Khanewal
Khanewal District
Khanewal is District of Punjab province in Pakistan. It most widely known for being the host city to the second largest Train Station in Pakistan...
, Khushab
Khushab District
Khushab District is a rural tribal district located in Punjab, Pakistan. According to the 1998 census, the population was 905,711 with 24.76% living in urban areas. The district consists of 3 tehsils: Khushab, Nurpur, and Quaidabad, as well as a sub-tehsil Naushera...
, Lahore
Lahore District
Lahore District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan that contains the city of Lahore, the district and provincial capital. The total area is...
, Layyah
Layyah District
Layyah District is a district in the Punjab, Pakistan. It is located in the southern part of the province. The capital is Layyah.-History:...
, Lodhran
Lodhran District
Lodhran is a district in the Punjab, Pakistan, located on the northern side of River Sutlej. It is bounded to the north by the districts of Multan, Khanewal and Vehari, to the south by Bahawalpur District, to the east lie the districts of Vehari and Bahawalpur; while district Multan lies on the...
, Mianwali
Mianwali District
Mianwali is a district in the northwest of Punjab province, Pakistan. It borders eight districts: Attock District in the north, Chakwal District in the northeast, Khushab District in the east, and Bhakkar District in the south, while Lakki Marwat lies to the west, Kohat and Karak districts to the...
, Multan
Multan District
Multan District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan it had a population of 3,116,851 of which 41.64% were urban. Its capital is the city of Multan....
, Muzaffargarh
Muzaffargarh District
Muzaffargarh is a district in the south of the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is part of Saraiki Waseb. It is spread over an area of 8,249 km². Muzaffargarh District lies in the strip between the rivers Chenab and Indus, which pass along the Eastern and Western boundaries respectively of...
, Sargodha
Sargodha District
Sargodha District is a district of Punjab province, Pakistan, the capital of the district is Sargodha. It is an agricultural district, wheat, rice, and sugarcane being its main crops. The Sargodha district and region are also famous for citrus fruit; kino is a newly developed variety...
, Vehari
Vehari District
Vehari District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan - the city of Vehari is the capital of the district. The district was created in 1976 out of the three tehsils of Multan District . The name Vehari means low lying settlement by a flood water channel...
Sindh (12 Districts):
Badin
Badin District
Badin District a district in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The total area of the district is 6,726 square kilometres, according to the 1998 census of Pakistan, it had a population of 1,136,636 of which 16.42% were urban...
, Hyderabad
Hyderabad District (Pakistan)
Hyderābād District , is a district of Sindh, Pakistan. It used to be an administrative division of the Sindh namely the Hyderabad Division, until the reforms of 2000 abolished the third tier of government. Its capital is the city of Hyderabad. The Kirthar National Park is located in Hyderabad...
, Ghotki
Ghotki District
Ghotki District is a district of Sindh Province, Pakistan. According to the 1998 census it had a population of 970,549 of which 15.69%. Mirpur Mathelo is the capital of Ghotki District.-Administration:...
, Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Matiari
Matiari District
Matiari District is located in Sindh, Pakistan, the city of Matiari is the capital. The district is administratively subdivided into three talukhas:* Hala* Matiari* SaeedabadThe district was created in 2005 out of Hyderabad District.History...
, Mirpurkhas, Nawabshah
Nawabshah District
Shaheed Benazirabad District is one of the districts in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. The district was renamed in September 2008 when most of MPAs of Nawabshah demanded renaming the district to honour the late party leader...
, Shikarpur
Shikarpur District
Shikarpur district is a district in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The city of Shikarpur is the capital. It is spread over an area of 2,512 km2, according to the 1998 census of Pakistan it had a population of 880,438 of which 23.51% were urban....
, Tando Allahyar
Tando Allahyar District
Tando Allah Yar District is a district of Sindh province, Pakistan, the city of Tando Allahyar is the capital.-History:The town was founded by Mir Allahyar Talpur...
, Tando Muhammad Khan
Tando Muhammad Khan District
Tando Muhammad Khan District is one of the districts in the province of Sindh province, Pakistan. It is located in the south of the province.In North of the district, Hyderabad and Tando Allahyar districts are located, Badin district lies on South and East, West boundary is shared by district...
, Thatta
Thatta District
Thatta District is located in the province of Sindh, Pakistan, however it is close to the contested disputed boundary of the Kori Creek. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan, it had a population of 1,113,194 of which 11.21% were urban.-Local government:...
, Umerkot
Umerkot District
Umerkot District or Umarkot District is a district of Sindh province, Pakistan.-History:After the 1843 invasion by Charles Napier, Sindh was divided into provinces and was assigned a Zamindars, also known as Wadaras, to collect taxes for the British....
SPO Offices
SPO currently manages and implements its programmes through nine permanent and three temporary project offices:National Center (Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
)
Balochistan (Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
and Turbat
Turbat
Turbat is a city located in southern Balochistan, a province of Pakistan. The town is the administrative center of Kech District and Turbat Tehsil, the town itself contains one Union council.-About:...
)
NWFP (Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
and Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan is a city in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. It is situated on the west bank of the Indus River, west of Lahore and northwest of Multan. The city is the capital of the district and tehsil of the same name. In Pakistan, its name is often abbreviated to D. I...
)
Punjab (Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
and Multan
Multan
Multan , is a city in the Punjab Province of Pakistan and capital of Multan District. It is located in the southern part of the province on the east bank of the Chenab River, more or less in the geographic centre of the country and about from Islamabad, from Lahore and from Karachi...
)
Sindh (Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
and Hyderabad
Hyderabad, Sindh
is the second largest city in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the seventh largest city in the country. The city was founded in 1768 by Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro upon the ruins of a Mauryan fishing village along the bank of the Indus known as Neroon Kot...
)
Project Offices in Azad Kashmir
Azad Kashmir
Azad Jammu and Kashmir or Azad Kashmir for short, is the southernmost political entity within the Pakistani-administered part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir...
(Muzaffarabad
Muzaffarabad
Muzaffarabad is the capital of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, Pakistan. It is located in Muzaffarabad District on the banks of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers...
, Bagh
Bagh
Bagh is the chief town of Bagh District in Azad KashmirBagh, the district headquarters of district Bagh is 100 Kilometers from Muzaffarabad via Kohallah & 80 Kilometers via Suddhen Gali, 205 Kilometers from Islamabad and 48 kilometers from Rawalakot. This town is situated on the confluence of two...
Neelum
Neelum
Neelum may refer to:* Neelum River* Neelum Valley* Neelum District* Neelum...
and in Sukkur Sindh)