COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IN THE THIRD WORLD: A LITERATURE REVIEW
Community development, as the term is used in this literature review, refers to societal development at the level of local communities. Within this context, such development may occur in either rural or urban settings. Encompassed within the concept of community development are the creation of economic structures, the establishment of systems to deliver services to the residents of the community, and the policy and support mechanisms required to assure the availability of the human, physical, and financial resources required to establish and maintain the economic and social systems upon which community development is dependent.
Community development is largely a product of public policy. Unfortunately, in many developing countries, public policies, however, commendable, cannot always be implemented fully with available resources. In contemporary society, prospects for community development are "determined by public policy, by those decisions which shape contemporary environments in communities, workplaces, homes, and schools (Milio, 1981, p. 3).
Community development is more than a contemporary crisis, and community development policies concern more than the programs required to deal with such crises. Community development is not a state to be captured, nor is it some achievement to be attained with finality. Rather, community development is the response of people to their environments (Korten, 1980, pp. 480 511). Community development, therefore, is concerned with both the status of individuals in a society, and all of the environmental and ecological factors that affect the well being of those individuals.
The Need for Community Development in the Third World
Economic, social, and health problems afflict most areas of the Third World. In the context of public health, malaria is particularly significant. Malaria "is the world's most important i...