Chapter 9: Sonagachi Project: A case-study of applying principles of development communication

and participation to a community-based intervention in India

Chapter 9 Introduction

One of the objectives of development-based communication is to generate such an option for disempowered groups to gain control over their own destinies

The realm of development communication has evolved considerably, the current emphasis being on participatory approach in place of the diffusion strategy

Participation is noted to generate agency among disempowered groups by rendering them active facilitators in the process of development

The Sonagachi Project: A model of participation

Often incorporating a participatory process, development communication emphasizes community, interpersonal interaction, and understanding based on mutual regard

The Sonagachi Project involved participation-based communication intervention that was undertaken at three concurrent levels – community, group, and individual

At the community level STDs and HIV/AIDS were defined as a problem. At the group intervention level, the sex workers were mobilized as peer outreach workers. At the individual level, the intervention entailed the empowerment of the individual sex worker in multiple ways

The Sonagachi Project: Continued

An interesting aspect of the Sonagachi Project was the identification of stakeholders within the sex work industry

One of the objectives of the project was to emphasize the status of sex work as a labor industry and to focus on the losses of the stakeholders in case of a high incidence of HIV/AIDS infection among the work force

The Sonagachi Project facilitated relationships between the sex workers and the stakeholders; the project framed sex work in a way that it was deemed useful in maintaining the financial interests of the latter

The program was useful to sex workers for a variety of reasons such as reduction of HIV and STD incidence, free healthcare, credit opportunities, and vocational training facilities

Paradigms in development communication: Relevance to the Sonagachi Project

The history of development communication in the southern hemisphere comprises dominant theoretical paradigms, one of which is the modernization theory

The objective of Sonagachi Project was to disseminate awareness information about STDs and HIV/AIDS among sex workers in Calcutta

Empowerment communication intends to be a step further towards its development that gives control over their own lives to the very people who have traditionally been made passive, or partially active, recipients of those efforts by those in charge of development policies

Chapter 9 Conclusion

The Sonagachi Project appears to incorporate the guiding principles of participation communication paradigm and may serve as a relevant case-study for planning sustainable interventions among disempowered or marginal groups across the world

One of the drawbacks of the Sonagachi Project is the lack of data verifying the effectiveness of the project

It is not certain whether the effectiveness of the Sonagachi model was tested or not

Chapter 9 Conclusion Continued

The study does not mention whether the intervention in North-Eastern India managed to replicate the multiple outcomes of the Sonagachi Project that included empowerment of the sex workers within social, political, and economic realms

The Sonagachi Project may be termed as an example of “sophisticated epistemology” in the field of development communication that creates an understanding of social reality in between people, in material contexts and in communication