Summary of Study Session 6

In Study Session 6, you have learned that:

1. Community engagement is a process of working with a community to address issues affecting their well-being, involving them in problem-solving or decision-making activities. Urban communities are diverse, which creates challenges for community engagement in the urban WASH sector.
2. The purpose of community engagement in WASH is to improve the success and sustainability of WASH projects, and thereby promote the health and well-being of the community.
3. There are several guiding principles for community engagement that emphasise the need for an open process that includes all members of the community.
4. There are different levels of community engagement from simply sharing information through to community-directed projects.
5. The appropriate method of community engagement varies for different situations. All methods depend on providing clear and relevant information at the start.
6. Schools and WASH clubs are important agents for change in WASH.
7. Community engagement presents many challenges, both to the community and to the practitioner trying to promote it.