Rural development
Working with a whole village on what it decides it needs, rather than delivering one programme into it.
420
Villages engaged
38
Integrated villages
11
States
3 yr
Planning horizon
What the problem actually is.
Most of our work arrives in a village as a single programme - a water point, a lab, a health camp. That is efficient and it is also how villages end up with five disconnected projects and no plan.
In our integrated districts we do the opposite: sit down with the panchayat, agree a three-year plan across every area we work in, and fund against that plan rather than against our own programme targets. It is slower and harder to report on, and the results last longer.
The condition is that the panchayat leads. Where a village decides its priority is a road we do not build, that is a legitimate answer and we say so rather than substituting our own.
Who this is for: Whole villages in our integrated districts, through their elected panchayat.
The work, specifically.
Each of these is funded with its running costs included - stipends, repairs, follow-up - because that is what decides whether it survives past the first year.
Village development plans
Three-year plans agreed with the panchayat, covering every area we can support.
Integrated district work
Coordinated delivery across connectivity, health, water, education and livelihoods in one place.
Community infrastructure
Shared assets the village prioritises - lighting, meeting space, storage, drainage.
Panchayat capability
Support for local government in planning, budgeting and accessing existing schemes.
Scheme access
Helping households claim government entitlements they already qualify for.
420
Villages engaged
38
Integrated villages
11
States
3 yr
Planning horizon
Three things that would make a difference here.
- Adopt a village development plan as a CSR partner.
- Fund the unglamorous shared infrastructure a village has prioritised.
- Support panchayat capability building.
Contributes to
- SDG 1 No poverty
- SDG 11 Sustainable cities and communities
- SDG 17 Partnerships
Related programmes
Fund it, staff it, or send us your old laptops.
Tell us which programme interests you and roughly what you have in mind - money, equipment, time or expertise - and we will come back with something specific rather than a brochure.
