The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative
After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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PAPER The Drum Beat - 24 - Ohio University - Structural Adjustment Programmes

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The Drum Beat - 24 - Ohio University - Structural Adjustment Programmes
Additional Information and Commentary - Please contact the student identified for a full copy of their paper.


By Patrick Mwanza
International Student of Ohio University
July 1999
pm339692@oak.cats.ohiou.edu


20. Use of Communication for the Creation of an Enabling Environment for the Implementation of Adjustment Programs

The paper explores the role communication can play in the implementation of structural adjustment programs (SAPs) recommended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and sister institution, the World Bank. The market economy recipe, according to the financial institutions, is aimed at curing the countries' ailing economies. But under SAPs, the African condition has been viewed as taking on more frantic and frightening forms as economies decline, social and physical infrastructures decay, ecological problems and disasters intensify. At the same time, political and social order and legitimacy progressively degenerate. Secondary sources provided the bulk of information for this project-research is both qualitative and quantitative-which asserts that communication has not been accorded its rightful place in SAPs. The development program carries with it the criticism of the old dominant paradigm model of communication in development, where the developing countries are perceived as requiring an outside incentive to push them into the future. This out-dated top-down approach is not only at the level of the financial institutions and government but also between the government and the people. Sub-Saharan African countries have effectively used development communication in agricultural, health and environmental programs but not in SAPs. The paper contends that an effective communication component, that allows people to participate, define who they are, what they want and how to get it, should be built into SAPs to cushion the shocks caused by the programs. Communication can create a climate in which discussions and dialogues take place and lead to the understanding of the ramifications of SAPs and promote the full and active participation of the people.