With many global development practitioners working with rural communities across Africa and Asia to improve access — through planning, construction and maintenance of rural roads and transport services — it’s important to know where research comes in. When it comes to engaging local populations affected by transportation plans, incorporating the opinions, skills and knowledge of community members is key.
In this webinar — titled “Research to practice: Engaging local communities in the future of transportation,” sponsored by ReCAP, the Research for Community Access Partnership — Devex talked to three experts with extensive experience in the road and transport sector about how development actors can better work with local communities in rural road and transport research.
ReCAP, a six-year program that supports research into low volume rural roads and transport services in Africa and Asia, is funded by a grant from the U.K. government through the Department for International Development. For more information, visit the ReCAP website.
Tony Greening, an independent transport research consultant, Gina Porter, senior research fellow at Durham University, and Caroline Barber, head of programs at Transaid, shared their experience. They discussed a diverse range of topics — from how mobile technology is making road and transport service research more accessible for local communities, to the issues associated with engaging women in communities, giving their unique insight into the impact of different kinds of research.
How do we take community-based research and translate that into information that is seen and heard by governments and donors? Click on the webinar above to find out more, and share your thoughts below or on social media tagging @devex and #devwebinar.
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