Philosophy of Community Development Programme
The philosophies on which the community development programme should be based are as follows:
1) Work based on “felt needs”
The programme should help the community to solve some of the problems which it feels are existent.
2) Work based on assumption that people want to be free form poverty and pain:
It is assumed that the members of the community want a standard of living that allows them to be free form pain caused by lack of sufficient social side it is assumed that the people have four basis wishes a) security b) recognition c) response, d) new experience.
3) It is assumed that people wish to have freedom in controlling their own lines and deciding the forms of economic, religious, education and political institutions, under which they will live.
4) People’s values given due consideration
It is presumed that co-operation, group decision-making, self initiative, social responsibility, leadership, trustworthiness and ability to work are included in the programme.
5) Self-Help
The people actually plan and work on the solution of their problems themselves. If the problems of the community are entirely ameliorated through the efforts of some outside agency, then the development of such things as group decision-making, self-initiative, self-reliance, leadership etc. will not be forthcoming and it cannot be said that the community is developing.
6) People are the greatest resource
It is by getting the participation of the people in improvement activities that they become developed.
7) The programme involves a change in attitude, habits, ways of thinking relationship among people in the level of knowledge and intellectual advancement of people, changes in their skills, i.e. practices of agriculture health etc.