| dc.description.abstract | The focus of this study was on communication in development projects. The study sought to investigate the role communication played in the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme (KENS UP) Kibera Soweto East Zone 'A' pilot housing project. The specific objectives of , the study were to identify the channels of communication and message strategies used to communicate, analyze the effect of the communication in the pilot housing project of Soweto East, examine the communication approach used, and assess the effectiveness of a different communication approach in facilitating development of housing projects. The study assumed that the government used inappropriate channels of communication and message strategies to mobilize project activities, that the slum beneficiaries had negative perception of the project due to the communication approach used, and that the government used the top-down centralized communication approach that excluded the poor. To achieve these objectives data was collected from 94 residents of Kibera Soweto East Zone 'A', eight Key Informants, and eight KENSUP Officials, using interview method. The study. used the descriptive survey design. The study used the modernization theory comprising of two essential frameworks: the Modernization framework and the Empowerment framework to illustrate the role of participatory communication in development projects.
The conceptual framework was developed which concentrated on five communication roles: advocacy, collaboration, prioritization, participation, and persuasion that promote development of community projects. Findings of the study confirm the three assumptions that the government used inappropriate communication approaches to mobilize project activities, the slum beneficiaries had negative perception over the communication approach used in the Kibera Soweto East Zone 'A' pilot housing project, and that the government used centralized power whose objective was to control the development process and to exclude the poor. The study therefore recommends changes from the project inception phase to the implementation phase in the Soweto East Zone 'A' pilot housing project to include bottom-up communication. The participatory approach to communication with the community is proposed to fill the current communication for development gap. This will ease the burden on the government, and facilitate targeted development process goals through the concept of popular action with empowerment based on beneficiary needs and choices. | en_US |
