Capacity building project for central region poverty reduction
projects ( CACERP)

Application of PRA tools in village
development planning and
Commune development planning
( VDP & CDP)

(Training manual for district and commune staff) model_sard_annex3_en.doc 2
Foreword

were organized in all of 8 pilot communes. The method of training is mainly learning
by doing the practical exercise . The trainees of each training course are Province
representatives , District staff, commune staff and informants at village level.
Training material used in the course includes 2 kinds: (i) Detailed PRA material
including all PRA tools and (ii) Basic material including simplified PRA tools.

The contents presented below have been used as a referen document for
both trainers and trainees during the courses in 8 pilot communes. After courses
have finished, it had been improved for wider use of other courses in next phase of
the project

model_sard_annex3_en.doc 3
Table of content
Foreword 2
Chapter I - Analysis methods, rural appraisal 5
1. Traditional Method 5
2. Changed by another methods 5
3. Method “Rapid Rural
Appraisal” (RRA) 5
4. Method “Participatory Rural Appraisal” (PRA) 6
5. Principles and application of PRA 6
6. What are the main characters of PRA 7
Chapter II – Techniques of PRA tools use 9
Tool 1: Time line 9
Tool 2: Village mapping 10
Tool 3: Transect walks and Transect map 11
Tool 4: Season calendar 13
Tool 5 : Time line diagram 14
Tool 6: Priority ranking 15
Tool 7: Venn diagram 16

ADB: Asian Development Bank
CACERP:
The Capacity Building for Central Region Poverty Reduction Project
CDP: Commune Development Plan
CRLIP Central Region Livelihood Improvement Project
DFID: Department for International Development
RRA: Rapid Rural Appraisal
PRA: Participatory Rural Appraisal
VDP: Village Development Plan
MPI : Ministry of Planning and Investment
development work is raise productivity of crops, making much of uniform environment, enrichment
resources and checkable. After that they take care of poor farmers problems and difficult
economic conditions. Hence there is a need to learns the working systems of farmer and
developappropriate technology for various agricultural systems.
Method “ Research of farming system ” was set up from those understandings. The general target
of method is to describe cultivation, livestock, awareness, and extension activities. These
developed by many forms, research plans and extension activities. Many different forms including
rural research centers of Consultant Group International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and
national institutes develop it. General of that office is repeating.
At the beginning the method “ Research of farming system ” used many old ways to survey farmers
and experimenting in the fields. But RFS also was encourage to have new techniques are faster
and more exact
3. Method “Rapid Rural Appraisal” (RRA)
The term “ Rural Rapid Appraisal” in agricultural field can be described by any new method that
using researcher group in many fields to work together with farmers and community leader in order
to develop quickly and systematically.
The following activities can be used by RRA method

1) To evaluate the demands of rural development and other common development of
community
model_sard_annex3_en.doc 6
2) To determine the priority tasks for developing work
3) To assess capacity of implementation (by social aspect and technical aspect)
4) To find out priority characters in developing activities
5) To implement development activities.
6) To monitor development activities
RRA operated in 1970, with FSR movements. Among the persons to contribute to the first of
creation were Robert Chambers, Peter Hildebrand, Robert Rhoades and Michael Collinson. They
were the first persons to apply RRA to have a workshop in development research institute of
Sussex University in England dated Oct. 1978 and Dec. 1979. At that time documents and the

5.2 Objectives of PRA

PRA assist participants to be able to

- Understand methods and be able to could plan and implement local development
activities
- Get aware more about community capacity
- Use participatory methods in real activities (by independent group)
To support community people to make VDP, based on taking maximum advantage of existing
local resources
model_sard_annex3_en.doc 7 5.3. Principles

- Observation
- Semi-structured interview
- Group discussion by subject
- Assign tasks to farmers to do
- Cross checking
- Suitable information reliability
- Living with community

PRA is a continuous process which using the tools, Its result is total dependent on behaviours
method or attitude of implementman.

6. What are the main characters of PRA

6.1. Triangle



Carry out combination of appropriate technology In order to help you to use a package
of PRA techniques quickly and correctly , We would show a package of PRA tools.
These tools have to be used harmoniously in the PRA process.
model_sard_annex3_en.doc 8
6.2. Flexibility character of PRA

The research plans and methods are not fixed, they could be modified to to fit real condition

6.3. Community character

- It is useful for analysis of collected information
- To evaluate the community difficulties correctly and to create the main elements for
VDP, CDP process
- Members of PRA group should consist of rich, medium, poor households and , female
and male

6.4, Quantitative character

Request ourselves always:

• What information is needed
• What information must be collected
• Who will analyze and use these information , What the objective is
• What level of accuracy of these information,

6.5. Analyze in the field

• To be acquainted, increase good acquaintance between PRA staff and villagers
• Help villagers to remember historical events in the village, through that villagers can
review village development process correctly and encourage the solidarity and support of
each villager to others in coming time.
1.2. Methodology :
• Select a village informant group consist of 5-7 villagers ( Elders who have been living in the
village for long time and understanding village history, should be selected)
• A comfortable place for group discussion is selected to do the tool
• PRA staff facilitate villagers to discuss amongs themselves the time when historical take
place in the village. The collected information is noted on Ao size paper to help villagers
easily to discuss or add other necessary information.
• During discussion process, PRA staff could make open questions to help villagers
remember and adding events of village.
• Selected information is written on A4 paper.

Example: a completed time line.

Years Events affect life and production of villagers
1973 There are two households reside at village
1974 Local Government does settlement for minority ethnic group in the
village
1980 Slash and burn is a major production of villagers, productive risk
appears cause villagers are hungry.
1993 Epidemic disease of animal appear; livestock husbandry are facing
many difficulties
1999 Local Government does not allow to harvest natural forest, villagers
are supported budget for forest management and protection.
2002 The village is supported small scale irrigation system and electric
power.


• Form a group, at least consist of 5 to 7 villagers including men and women
• Village map, chart are used to discuss and identify transect direction ; chart, map,
compass, view and measure equipments, pen, papers are need to be prepared. PRA staff
explain clearly the objectives of this transect walks and suggest farmers to assist the group
to transect walk and discuss on the way.
• Walking is need to be done from low area to high area, at the convenient area of village,
the group can stop to discuss. PRA staff draw up topography and characters of each area
in the village to help farmers in group discussion. PRA staff could ask farmers more.
• Drawing transect map on big size paper or on land floor by chalk or local material
• The map can be copied on A4 papers
No application of
fertilizer, lack of tending
No people manage, bare
land with brush and
invaluable tree;
Difficulties Large area, located far
resident area, it
caused protection of
forest is difficult. Forest
has not been allocated
to individual
households yet.
Bad soil, lack of cultivation techniques Lack of valuable species and land use plan Lack of high yield
varieties, intensive
techniques.
Far from house, lack of
labor
Expectati-
on
Budget for protection
of forest, Forest is
allocated to
households.
Productivity is increased Home garden is used effectively Yield is increased Land to be covered by
forest tree species with high
economic value

PRA - VDP
13
Tool 4: Season calendar


Planting
Tending

Harve
sting

Disease Stem disease,
yellow leaf

Winter

Plantin
g

tending harvesting

Disease Stem disease,
yellow leaf

Maize Sowing seeds

Tendi
ng

− Population and household numbers
− Price changed
− Child-bearing and death ratio in village
− Rainfall
− The changes of natural forest, plantation forest and lad use situation.
− Disbursement of Project
−
Guide villagers to do the following issues
− square or normal paper are prepared
− Exchange with village informant about your thinking
− Let them have some time to think, remember and make comparison.
− Try to encourage them to collect the data changed of specific field within a last 10 years
− To combine 2 or more of variable data in one diagram.
− To combine the new reviewed information and base information
− The villages draw themselves the diagram changed by time on land floor or on board, big
size papers
For example: Diagrama of land use

60
9
55
5.7
13.5 13.5
11 11 11
55
42.2
5.5 5.5 5.5
23
28
35.6

- Double ranking
pripority ranking by using matrix
- Wealth ranking methods of Ranking for priority; Double ranking; Direction matrix ranking are
similar: Priority ranking allows PRA to determine major farmer needs or priority set by
villagers quickly, it also make comparison of villager ideas more easily Normally, a ranking
priority can be done by apply the following steps:
• Select some issues that need to be given priority . For example: crops, rice varieties,
firewood, fruit trees, or difficulties effected to community development. etc.
• Select some villagers who have proven experiences on village situation to collaborate with
PRA team
• Suggest the villagers show their point of views to give priority to selected issues and how
to give priorities. The villagers decide what categories can be used for ranking or giving
score to ask each villager, the questions should be " what do you think more" Continue to
ask other villagers for the same issues.
• To synthesize all discussed results on a table for making comparison .
See example:
Matrix ranking means that each criteria is given score, the villagers can use stones, maize seeds,
rice seeds to show score that they want to give. This way allows illiterates to be able for ranking.
Double ranking: There are 2 types or 2 issues compared each to other and rank by priority.

Double ranking of the wealth classification for villages in a commune
Ord 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
No of
appeara
nces
Priority
1 Village 1 X 1 1 1 1 1 1 8 1 1 1 1 10 2
2 Village 2 X 2 4 5 2 7 8 9 2 2 12 4 8
3 Village 3 X 4 5 3 7 8 9 3 3 12 3 9
4 Village 4 X 5 4 7 8 9 4 4 12 5 7

important organizations. Distance from center to circles show impact levels of organizations
to village ( a circle far from center show impact of that organization to village is weak and
opposite) After work is finished Venn diagram need to be copied on A4 paper.

Example: An organization diagram (Vene) made by villagers Villag-
ers
Village
Managem-
ent Board
Farmers
associate
-on
135
progr
am
Agriculture
Bank
Commun


Category 2 Category 3 Category 4

• Prepare small paper cards with different colors, the number of cards is equal to the number
of households in the village, the name of each householder is noted in each card.
• Villagers discuss to categorize households base on criteria identified, households will be
categorized according to categories mentioned in above table
• Villagers put cards with name of households at type of category they want
• At the end of the process, checking the agreement of participants, whether they agree or
not.
• Prepare a similar table (as table 2) on AO paper and the result of discussion of all of
participants. After that, the result is noted on A4 size paper.
Table 2: Household wealth ranking
Ord. Category I Category II Category III Category IV
1
2
3

• Discuss main difficult issues that poor households are facing. What do villagers think?
Suggest discussion group to give scores according to the importance level of these
difficulties. The most important is 10 score and the scores are from 1 to 10, The result of
discussion is noted in model table (table 3).
-tive
Unit
2004 2005 2006
Plac
e
Estima
te
budget
village outside

school
Wealth ranking result made by villagers
1. A §inh
2. Y Ngäc
3. Y T©m
4. A Dòng
5. Y S¸o
6. Y Bóc
7. A Lîi
8. Y Bung
9. A Bin
1 A Ban
2 A Ph−¬ng
3 A D«n
4 Y Hå
5 A Ninh
6 Y Thu
7 Y Nai
8 Y Ch¨m
9 A Miªn
10 A Han
Y Lý
A Móa
A MÐa
A Man
A T¨ng
A Nhiªn
A Liªm
A PhÝt
A Hiªng PRA - VDP
21
Tool 9: Household economic semi-structured interview

9.1. Objectives :
• To evaluate, analyse current livelihood of households,
• this is a basis to be used for follow-up evaluation activities
9.2. Methodology :
• To form a discussion group consist of at least 4 persons
• The result of wealth ranking is used as a basis to select households for interview. Several
households represented each type of household category , will be selected for interview
• Discuss household economic status. Suggest households to analyze itself according to
model table prepared .
Note: Before household economic analysis, PRA staff need to and explain clearly objective of
interview
The discussion must be welcome, comfortable. To ensure that the farmers do not feel as if
they are being crossexamined .
During interview process, PRA staff should try to apply opening questions to discover
necessary information. The use of hard question will make interview boring and collected
information to be idea of PRA staff

Table 5: Example for household economical analysis
Head householder name : No of people :
Household category : No of labor :
Village : commune : district :
Income Spend Income resorces

• Appraise current situation of agriculture production including productively that can be indicated .
• Problems, obstacle which are facing by villagers then find out solutions
• Raising activities base on villagers' demands
1.2. Methodology
• Form a villagers' group consist of 5-7 people, male and female should be included ( People
who have proven experiences should be selected)
• The group visit field where activities are need to be appraised.
• Discuss and answer questions concerning situation, problems, obstacle of agriculture
production. Result of discussion is completed in to the following table
• Table 6

Table 6: Situation of agriculture production
Items Situations Problems Reason Methodology
Crops
Paddy rice
Plant protection
Livestock
Buffalo
Pig

Veterinary

Livestock PRA - VDP
23
2. Appraise , make plan on forest trees and fruit

2.1. Objective :
• Appraise current situation of forest production and management
• Indicate problems, obstacle and find out solutions for forest production and management .

2.2. Methodology
• Form a group consist of 5-7 villagers who have long experiences on forest production and
management, male and female should be included.
• Visit forest area which represent different forest types in the village.
• Discuse and analyze current situation and propose solution, discussion results completed
in the following table (Table 8)
Table 8: Situation of forest management and fruit trees .
Items Situation Problems Causes Solution
Forest planting


s
Ousider
s
Forest

Fruit trees
PRA - VDP
24
3. Appraise, make plan on rural infrastructure

3.1. Objective:
• Through analyses of situation of current
constructions in the village, to indicate
problems on both technical situation and
current use of contractions, propose
solution.
• Propose constructions need to be
updated or new built to reduce problems

of
beneficia
tes
Current
manageme
nt
Problems
Exiting works
I- Irrigation
1) Reserve
2) Dams.
3) Canal

II- Rural road
1- Inter-village
roads:
a) Road
b) Bridge
c) Culverts 2- Road inside
village:
a) Road
b) Bridge
c)

III School:
a) Primary
b) Nursery

Numb
er of
benef
iciarie
s in
future
Type
of
house
hold
catego
ries to
be
benefi
ciaries
.
Availa
ble
local
materi
als
Working
conditions
(Problems,
road access
to works)
Year
of
impl
eme