The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative
As of March 15 2025, The Communication Initiative (The CI) platform is operating at a reduced level, with no new content being posted to the global website and registration/login functions disabled. (La Iniciativa de Comunicación, or CILA, will keep running.) While many interactive functions are no longer available, The CI platform remains open for public use, with all content accessible and searchable until the end of 2025. 

Please note that some links within our knowledge summaries may be broken due to changes in external websites. The denial of access to the USAID website has, for instance, left many links broken. We can only hope that these valuable resources will be made available again soon. In the meantime, our summaries may help you by gleaning key insights from those resources. 

A heartfelt thank you to our network for your support and the invaluable work you do.
Time to read
4 minutes
Print
a- a+
Published 22 years ago
Last updated 1 year ago
Read so far

Mapping Competencies: Appendix C-3: Training Opportunities - Latin America

0 comments
Summary

- from Mapping Competencies for Communication for Development and Social Change: Turning Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Into Action


Appendix C-3: Training Opportunities in Communication for Development & Social Change: An overview of the situation in Latin America




Alfonso Gumucio-Dagron

Bellagio, January 2002

Development Failures

  • Several decades of failures in development projects
  • Vertical planning and implementation
  • Donor driven priorities
  • Corruption in governments and development organizations
  • No understanding of local cultures
  • Lack of participation from beneficiaries
  • Little use of communication strategies


Lessons Learned

  • Critical review of development assistance to Third World countries
  • Changes in discourse (World Bank)
  • Criticism to top-down planning
  • Need to promote horizontal dialogue among stakeholders
  • Sustainability depends on participation
  • Decentralization & democratic representation as key issues


Communication, Participation & Development

  • Knowledge recognized as essential for development (WB)
  • Community as a valid partner for planning & implementation
  • Successful programs use participatory communication strategies
  • Acknowledging the need of empowering the voices of communities


New Development Paradigm

  • Bottom-up approach in planning
  • Recognizing indigenous knowledge
  • Establishing dialogue with communities
  • Empowerment through participation & community organization
  • Sharing decision making power
  • Amplifying the voices of communities


Human Resources Gap

  • Aid & development organizations lack of staff to deal with new paradigms
  • No specialized professionals for Communication for Social Change (CFSC)
  • Development organizations perceive communication as merely information or even propaganda
  • Much improvised staff, thus failures
  • No specific training for CFSC


Budget Gaps

  • Contradiction between discourse and funds allocated to participation
  • Small percentage of budget to address communication for development
  • Few professional posts in development programs for CFSC specialists
  • Vertical use of resources for DevCom: advertising, image, PR


New Communicator

  • Currently, the most qualified are "self-made" through field experience
  • Complex profile, defined by the participatory process
  • Combination: a) direct experience in the development process, b) cultural sensitivitytowards communities, & c) knowledge of communication tools, d) creativity

    • Conceptual & practical strengths

  • Process more important than products


Offer & Demand

  • Two poles - offer & demand, don't meet
  • Lack of communicators in development programs: aid agencies hire journalists
  • No established offer from universities: lack of employment opportunities
  • Only short courses where main axe is not communication, but narrow sectoral issues
  • Self-made communicators for development are few and dispersed


Profile of Current Studies

  • Most are studies on journalism

    • "Social communication", just a name for old faculties of journalism

  • Contents: mass media, advertising, public relations
  • Addressed to feed private sector
  • Expansion of private media in the 1980s
  • Short courses in US & Europe


Latin American Overview

  • More than 500 "Social Communication" Faculties - journalism (FELAFACS)
  • Standard curricula, mass media focus
  • Only 5 or 6 have incorporated Communication for Development studies
  • The contents of curricula varies

    • Difficulties to get experienced professors


Opportunities in L. America

Main universities with Com&Dev studies:

  • Pontificia Universidad de Lima, Perú
  • Universidad de Tucumán, Argentina
  • Universidad Andina S. Bolívar, Bolivia
  • Universidad Diego Portales, Chile
  • Universidad Rafael Landívar, Guatemala
  • Brasil - "self contained"


Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú

  • Perú, 2 nd largest private university
  • Faculties: Administration, Anthropology, Political Science, Archeology, Law, Education, Economy, Philosophy, Sciences & Arts of Communication, Science & Engineering, Social Sciences


Description of Studies

  • Specialty on Communication for Development within the Faculty of Science and Art of Communication
  • Five years (Bachelor degree plus specialization in Comm&Dev)
  • Professors, some of the best Peruvian communication specialists
  • Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú website


Content of Studies

  • Theories & policies for development
  • Citizenry and human rights
  • Institutional development
  • Environment
  • Gender issues
  • New communication technologies and networks
  • Strategic planning of communication
  • The new media
  • Research in the communication society


Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar

  • Created in 1985 under regional "Cartagena Agreement"
  • Operates in four countries: Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador & Colombia
  • Only post-graduate degrees: Business Administration; Law & Social Sciences; Integration & International Trade, Health, Education, Environment, etc.


Description of Studies

  • Master degree in Communication & Development
  • Specialization in Communication Projects
  • Third period in 2002
  • Duration: 15 months
  • Bolivian and guest professors: Rosa María Alfaro, Luis Ramiro Beltrán, W. Uranga, etc.
  • Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar website


Content of Studies

  • Social theories; communication theories; communication and democracy
  • Development theories; development communication; communication policies
  • Social research; cultural management; design of communication strategies; public policies
  • Strategic communication; cultural studies on communication
  • Intercultural communication; design, monitoring & evaluation of communication projects; development and ICTs


Universidad Nacional de Tucumán

  • Argentina, state public university in Tucumán (northern rural area)
  • Degrees: Agronomy, Arts, Architecture, Pharmacy and Chemistry, Technology, Law and Social Sciences, Philosophy and Literature, Medicine, Psychology, etc.


Description of Studies

  • Specialization in Communication for Development - post graduate studies
  • Under Faculty of Philosophy & Literature
  • One year duration
  • Emphasis in field practice - video as tool
  • Started two years ago, initial support from FAO
  • .Team of professors lead by Manuel Calvelo and Fernando Korstanje
  • Universidad Nacional de Tucumán website


Content of Studies

  • Communication, education and development
  • Production of multimedia pedagogic packages
  • Teaching & learning models
  • Introduction to cultural codes
  • Typology of messages
  • The new ICTs and development
  • Linguistics: communication & society
  • Strategies for training adults
  • Subjects of development: anthropological views
  • Analysis of mass media


Universidad Diego Portales

  • Chile, 2 nd largest private university
  • Faculties: Ciencias de la Comunicación, Ciencias Administrativas, Ciencias Sociales y Educación, Arquitectura y Bellas Artes, Ciencias Juridicas, Ingenieria, Salud
  • Ciencias de la comunicación offers: journalism, advertising and multimedia
  • Two years


Description of Studies

  • Under Ciencias de la Comunicación: a "Magíster in communication" - (master) -Two Years
  • Started five years ago
  • Guest international professors: Daniel Prieto, Manuel Castells, James Lull, John Downing
  • Universidad Diego Portales website


Content of Studies

Not specifically in Dev.Com. but offers an optional "shopping list":

  • Theories of communication
  • Keys about globalization
  • Intercultural communication
  • Communication and conflict resolution
  • Communication, development & culture
  • Strategic planning & evaluation of projects
  • Communication and education
  • Pro-social communication


Universidad Rafael Landívar

  • Guatemala, largest private university
  • Managed by Jesuits
  • Degrees: Psychology, Intercultural Bilingual Education, Philosophy & Literature, Agronomy, Environmental Engineering, Law & Social Sciences, Political Sciences, Architecture, Industrial Design, Engineering, Business Administration, Communication Sciences


Description of Studies

  • About to start in 2002
  • Bachelor degree - four years - with emphasis on Development Communication (among other three)
  • Received assistance from the program at University of Tucumán
  • Professors: no information


Content of Studies

  • Design & Management of Projects
  • Communication and Education
  • Communication for Health
  • Social Marketing & Persuasion Theories
  • Alternative radio & television
  • New Technologies & development
  • Design & Evaluation of Campaigns
  • Design & Evaluation of Educational materials


Other Training Opportunities

  • NGOs have their own training programs
  • CIMCA 50 workshops a year
  • Short courses in universities
  • Community radio - on the job
  • The role of catholic media organizations: OCIC, UNDA
  • European foundations and NGOs: Friedrich Ebert, CEBEMO, HIVOS


General Remarks

  • Two at Bachelor Degree (Perú & Guatemala)
  • Most are post-graduate studies
  • No standard curricula, diversity of conceptual frameworks and understanding ofCommunication for Development
  • Some share the same professors
  • No standard literature, readings
  • Few grants or aid for students
  • Only one has direct links with development programs (Tucumán)


Challenges in the Future

  • Establish "non-negotiable" key subjects for a curriculum of CFSC &development studies
  • Support universities & training centers with technical advice, appropriate publications and grants for students
  • Facilitate linkages between universities & training centers and aid & development organizations


Potential for Development

  • Academic centers recognize communication for development & social change as a discipline of study
  • Aid & development organizations include in their budgets & staff allocations for CFSC
  • New communicators capable of dealing with CFSC at conceptual, strategic and implementation levels