PARTICIPATORY COMMUNICATION FOR ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF BUSINESS SECTOR ADVOCACY CHALLENGE (BUSAC) FUND GRANTEES

Participatory communication has now become the generally accepted view of how communication should be used to pursue development interventions. However, despite the increasing number of development projects claiming to embrace participation and participatory communication, only few meet the standards of genuine participation. Through a qualitative research methodology, this study was undertaken to determine the extent to which the nature, flow and channels of communication were participatory in the design and implementation of the BUSAC Fund Phase Two. 
The BUSAC Fund is an international development intervention in Ghana that seeks to build the capacity of the private sector to advocate for improved conditions of doing business. It is one of the projects that mark a shift of international development interventions from service and goods delivery to advocacy and empowerment. The challenges that militated against the use of participatory communication by BUSAC Fund grantees were also examined. Focus group discussions and an in-depth interview were used to collect data from 12 BUSAC Fund grantees or beneficiary groups and the Fund Manager of the BUSAC Fund.
It was discovered that even though the second phase of the BUSAC Fund was designed with a predetermined overall goal, the nature, flow and channels of communication used in the design and implementation of the BUSAC –II still satisfied the tenets of participatory communication. Majority of the study participants indicated that they had a voice in deciding among themselves, through dialogue, what their major problems were and what should be done to address the problem. Also, all communication activities related to the BUSAC’s advocacy goal were implemented directly by the beneficiaries with little involvement of project staff. 
The study found out that the grantees used business service providers accredited by the project as their facilitators, but some service providers ended up dictating the activities undertaken by the grantees. Consequently, the study recommends, among other things, the use of participatory development communication experts as facilitators by all projects seeking to promote community participation in their interventions.
CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION1.0 Background to the Study .............................................................................................. 11.1 Participation in Development in Ghana ....................................................................... 31.2 The BUSAC Fund and Economic Empowerment in Ghana ........................................ 61.3 Problem Statement ....................................................................................................... 71.3 Research Questions ...................................................................................................... 81.4 Scope of Study ............................................................................................................. 81.5 Significance of Study ................................................................................................... 91.6 Operationalisation of Key Terms ............................................................................... 101.7 Summary .................................................................................................................... 111.8 Organisation of the Study .......................................................................................... 11CHAPTER TWOTHEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW2.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 132.1 Theoretical Framework .............................................................................................. 132.1.1 Trends in Development Communication ............................................................ 132.1.2 The Participatory Communication Model ........................................................... 142.2 Related Works ............................................................................................................ 272.2.1 Relationship between Theory and Practice of Participatory Communication .... 282.2.4 Participatory Communication in Income-generation .......................................... 292.2.5 Empowerment ................................................................................................... 332. 3 Summary ................................................................................................................. 34viCHAPTER THREEMETHODOLOGY3.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 363.1 Study Site ................................................................................................................... 363.2.1 Overall Approach to Study ..................................................................................... 363.2.1.1 Population and Size .......................................................................................... 373.2.1.2 Sampling Procedure ......................................................................................... 383.2.1.3 Characteristics .................................................................................................. 383.2.2 Data Collection .................................................................................................... 393.2.3 Unit of Analysis .................................................................................................. 403.2.4 Data Analysis .................................................................................................... 413.3 Ethical Issues ............................................................................................................. 423.4 Summary .................................................................................................................... 42CHAPTER FOURFINDINGS4.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 434.1 Nature of Communication Flow ................................................................................ 444.1.1 Communication Flow between Grantees and their BSPs ....................................... 454.1.2 Setting of Agenda for Meetings between Grantees and BSPs ................................ 464.1.3 Gender and Communication Flow in Mixed-Sex Grantees .................................... 474.1.4 Role Played by BUSAC Project Officials in Implementing Grantees’ Activities .. 474.1.5 Communicating with the Media ............................................................................. 484.2 Group participation in the designing and implementation of BUSAC Fund ............. 494.2.1 Project management and beneficiaries’ understanding of participation ............. 494.2.2 Forms of Participation in the BUSAC Fund project cycle .................................. 514.3. Communication Channels Used in Implementing the BUSAC Fund Project .......... 534.3.1 Use of indigenous communication channels and methods.................................. 554.3.2 Preferred communication channels and methods ................................................ 564.4 Factors militating against the use of the participatory communication ..................... 564.5 Summary .................................................................................................................... 57viiCHAPTER FIVEDISCUSSION OF FINDINGS5.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 585.1 Nature of communication flow .................................................................................. 585.2 Communication channels used in implementing BUSAC Fund project ................... 625.3 Factors militating against the use of the participatory communication model .......... 655.4 Other findings ............................................................................................................ 665.7 Summary .................................................................................................................... 67CHAPTER SIXCONCLUSION6.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 696.1 Summary of findings ................................................................................................. 696.2 Limitations of Study .................................................................................................. 726.3 Recommendations ...................................................................................................... 736.4 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 74APPENDIX A ..................................................................................................................... 77BIBLOGRAPHY ................................................................................................................. 84