The case here presented falls under Topic 2 "The participatory process of organizing effective community groups" and seeks to show the process of qualitative changes within the Social Investment Fund which, as part of its institutional responsibility, took up the challenge of restoring the active role of the community in social investment, and the most important results that have been obtained from this process.

The signing of the peace agreement in Guatemala created special conditions for increasing social investment and supporting community organization in order to foster empowerment of the communities, which amounts to nothing more than having them assume an active role in their own development. In addition, the peace agreement raised expectations among the population of achieving changes which were not formerly seen as being possible.

The case relates specifically to the Community Organization Program (POC) of the Guatemalan Social Investment Fund (FIS), which was established in 1996 with financing from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), for the purpose of supporting the self-management processes of communities so as to improve their quality of life, and the Environment Department, which was set up following an internal reorganization of the FIS, and the results obtained in the coordination and combining of efforts in the sphere of community organization and conservation and rational use of natural resources.

In its initial stage, the POC commenced operations in February 1997 in the Chortí region, which is made up of the municipalities of Jocotán, Camotán, San Juan Ermita and Olopa in the Department of Chiquimula, located in the northeast of the country and populated predominantly by the Chortí ethnic group, who have their own language, customs and way of life. The selection of this area was based on the relevant poverty indicators and the very limited presence of agencies or organizations active in social development.

Participatory planning methodologies were tried out in this area. To start with, the government institutions, NGOs, organized committees and other organizations were invited so that the members of the communities could identify their needs as a basis for setting up priority projects. These priority projects were then converted into a local development plan, and the local development plans were next all merged into a Municipal Development Plan.

The projects identified by the communities seek to meet basic needs connected with education, health, basic infrastructure, productive products and the environment with special emphasis on agroforestry (forest and land resources).

It is important to note that one of the results of the participatory planning workshops was identification of projects that are not included in the Catalog of Programs. In view of the need to respond to these demands, creation was accordingly proposed of an Agroforestry Program designed to bring about a harmonious relationship between the conservation of natural resources such as forest, soil and water, and agricultural production. Since the region is economically depressed, there is a need to support production in order to generate new income for the people. The new program will make it possible to efficiently channel resources for raising agricultural productivity while at the same time conserving the region's natural resources.

Seventeen specific agroforestry projects aggregating some Q 17,000 were identified in as many communities, involving activities such as small-scale coffee sowing and fruitgrowing. The projects are currently being reviewed and will in due course be submitted to the FIS for possible financing.

This organizational process made it possible to strengthen the local-level organizations. The "Coordinadoras Municipales" formed initially were converted into rural development associations having permanent juridical personality and empowered to participate in a wider range of local development activities.

The participatory planning applied by the POC facilitators resulted in identification of potential financial, natural, institutional and human resources available at local, regional or country level, for meeting the needs identified. In this way, available World Food Programme (WFP) resources were found for starting to support certain productive and organizational training activities.

The "food for training" approach was used to compensate time spent on acquiring new skills needed for strengthening the community organization and self-management process. The WFP resources made it possible to support the creation of nurseries, soil conservation work, reforestation and improvement of local roads. Two hundred and thirty-five tons of food was used to support these activities. The food was received stored and distributed by the municipal associations.

The importance that environmental aspects began to assume in the POC's activities with the communities served led to the establishment of close coordination with the Environment Department. Joint activities were planned and carried out, which included the Participatory Environmental Planning Workshop conducted with support from the National Environment Commission (CONAMA) and using bilateral cooperation funding. The purpose of this workshop was to bring together the different local players so that the main environmental problems and possible solutions could be identified from the local standpoint. The intention was also that the workshop should validate creation of the Participatory Environmental Management System (SIGAP) as a special component of community organization for the purpose environmental monitoring and audit.

In its second stage, the program encompassed ten microregions in which the FIS focused social investment as a strategy for serving the most depressed areas identified from updated poverty map data.

In one of the ten microregions, the upland plateau zones occupied by the municipalities of Ixchiguán and San José Ojetenam, on account of the seriousness of the deforestation problem the communities identified, by means of the POC-supported participatory planning workshops, ten reforestation projects for reforesting some 300 hectares. The projects are currently being formulated with the help of local NGOs and technical assistance from the FIS. The plan is to start the projects in March of this year.

Despite the fact that the POC has only been operating for one year in the selected microregions, some very important results have been posted and significant lessons have been learned that are worth sharing with other persons and institutions involved in community organization and promoting rational resource use. Specifically: (a) communities are fully able to identify their needs themselves and to prioritize them; (b) the organizational and monitoring work done by the POC has aroused a sense of community ownership concerning the projects done by the FIS; and (c) there are leaders in the communities who are capable of assuming responsibilities, they only need opportunities to participate.

To begin with, the FIS was no different from other social investment funds operating in other Latin American countries, and had as its aim the deployment of projects in rural areas in order to meet the population's priority needs.

Participation by the community members was considered essential for the execution and operation of the projects. The legal framework of the FIS required establishment of Social Investment Fund Enterprises as the legal entities for receiving the nonreimbursable investment and executing the projects. It also required that these enterprises be converted into permanent organizations. With certain changes, this legal framework helped to produce results.

The Fund's initial emphasis was to execute as quickly as possible and at lowest cost the greatest possible number of education, health and basic infrastructure projects; although its menu of projects included three programs connected with natural resource conservation: Wood-Saving Stoves, Reforestation and Public Laundries, only the first of these programs was heavily promoted.

The changes in the political, social and economic context of the country forced acceleration of institutional changes in order to meet the provisions of the peace agreements and the growing demands of the most vulnerable population groups, which had not been able to obtain satisfaction because of the disruptions and draining of resources caused by the internal war that dragged on for over thirty years.

These institutional changes affected not only the FIS but also other institutions as the policies on decentralization, modernization of the state and support for local governments began to be implemented.

The internal changes in the FIS, spurred by the new vision of its role in the country's development, resulted in a greater emphasis on aspects which, while included in the previous organizational structure, had not in practice been generating satisfactory results. Although there were in fact a number of institutional changes, for the case here presented attention must be focused on the following: (a) the creation of the POC, which was a qualitative change in the FIS that made it possible to try out new methodologies for working with the communities and instilled in the Fund a new approach based on community participation; and (b) the establishment of the Environment Department, which created within the institution a unit responsible for emphasizing the environmental components in social investment.

The approach described has been successful and has produced a variety of outcomes that can be listed as follows:

• Participatory working methodologies validated.

• Community organization facilitators made better aware of issues.

• Specific projects identified.

• Projects financed by the FIS and dother funds. The FIS will invest US$100,000 in the microregions in 1998.

• Local and municipal plans for the Chortí region.

• Involvement of women in the organization and execution of the projects.

• Channeling of funding from other sources, especially from the World Food Programme and from the National Peace Fund for Community Banks, a program that supports groups of women in productive or service activities.

• Strengthening of existing organizations and creation of new ones to stimulate execution of programs and projects of community benefit.

• New programs in the FIS Catalog that will make it possible to meet needs felt.

• Reassessment of the methodologies and approaches in the formulation of the PRO ORIENTE program, which will be funded by the IDB and will cover the department of Chiquimula, Jutiapa, Jalapa, Zacapa and Izabal.

• New modalities for executing projects to support their sustainability and foster greater community participation.

• Development of 447 integral development plans.

• 32 permanent legal entities representing groups served by the POC and already functioning as development partners in the Chortí region.

The lessons learned are varied in nature and can be summarized as follows:

• There is a diversity of local organizations, even where there is an apparent lack of any community organization, and they are interested in participating in the local development processes and only need appropriate guidance to become responsibly involved in their own development.

• Community participation is key for social investment to achieve its objectives.

• Organizing the women, especially in areas inhabited entirely by indigenous groups, is a major challenge to the program in view of the prevailing cultural and local circumstances.

• Participation by women is being promoted by means of activities carried out in each of the communities. If the women had to go outside their communities, difficulties of access and local customs and ways would prevent large-scale participation.

• The community groups are completely open when technical specialists come in as part of the group and not as institutional personnel.

• The local governments have an important role in development and show interest in participating in the community organization process and in the contribution of municipal resources.

• Training is important for supporting the change processes; however, the type of training and methods used must be carefully selected and accompanied by related actions.

• Coordination is basic for ensuring the success of the projects and for preventing duplication of efforts. The clearer the common objective pursued, the greater the possibility of effective coordination.

• Utilization of local capacities must be a basic premise for supporting local development.

• It is important not only to invest but also to strengthen the local capacity to formulate, execute, supervise and operate projects that meet the communities' priority needs.

• The transfer of resources and skills helps to create appropriate conditions for the empowerment of the communities.