The Rural Support Programmes Network (RSPN) is the largest

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development hell, when a project is stuck in development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting *Development (music), the process thematic material is reshaped *Photographi ...

network in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

with an outreach to over 34 million

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...

Pakistanis. It consists of a network of 12 Rural Support Programmes (RSPs). The RSP’s rely on a community driven model of

. Communities are

mobilised Mobilization is the act of assembling and readying military troops and supplies for war. The word ''mobilization'' was first used in a military context in the 1850s to describe the preparation of the Prussian Army. Mobilization theories and t ...

around their

need A need is dissatisfaction at a point of time and in a given context. Needs are distinguished from wants. In the case of a need, a deficiency causes a clear adverse outcome: a dysfunction or death. In other words, a need is something required for a ...

s and organised to stimulate more effective demand for services.

Philosophy and approach

The centre piece of the RSP approach is social mobilisation of the

poor Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little

income< ...

in order to enable them to participate directly in decisions that affect their lives and prospects. Communities are mobilised and asked to indicate their priorities through a process of dialogue,

catalysed Catalysis () is the process of increasing the reaction rate, rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the ...

by the programmes. They are then encouraged to assume responsibility for implementing and maintaining the projects, reflecting their own priorities, with technical and financial support being extended by the programmes. The model upholds

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.causes of poverty The causes of poverty may vary with respect to nation, region, and in comparison with other countries at the global level. Yet, there is a commonality amongst these causes. Philosophical perspectives, and especially historical perspectives, includ ...

. It also subverts the conventional model of social development, which assumed that either

central government A central government is the government that is a controlling power over a unitary state. Another distinct but sovereign political entity is a federal government, which may have distinct powers at various levels of government, authorized or del ...

or outside agencies would lift people out of

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse < ...

Role of RSPN

The RSPN is a strategic platform for the RSP's. It provides

capacity building Capacity building (or capacity development, capacity strengthening) is the improvement in an individual's or organization's facility (or capability) "to produce, perform or deploy". The terms ''capacity building'' and ''capacity development'' ha ...

support to them and assists them in

policy advocacy Policy advocacy is defined as active, covert, or inadvertent support of a particular policy or class of policies. Advocacy can include a variety of activities including, lobbying, litigation, public education, and forming relationships with parties ...

and

donor A donor in general is a person, organization or government which donates something voluntarily. The term is usually used to represent a form of pure altruism, but is sometimes used when the payment for a service is recognized by all parties as rep ...

linkages. Although all the RSP’s are said to be federated under the Rural Support Programme Network. Each RSP is an

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived fro ...

that develops programmes tailored to local needs, with each RSP having an independent board of directors.

Network

The Rural Support Programmes Network is a network of 12 RSP namely #

Aga Khan Rural Support Programme The Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) is a private, non profit organization, established by the Aga Khan Foundation in 1982 to help improve the quality of life of the villagers of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral. It is a Non Governmental Organi ...

(1982) #

Sarhad Rural Support Programme The Sarhad Rural Support Programme (SRSP) is the largest NGO, non-governmental organization working to Poverty reduction, alleviate poverty in North West Pakistan. It was established in 1989 with the aim of reducing poverty and ensuring sustainab ...

(1989) #

Balochistan Rural Support Programme Balochistan Rural Support Programme (BRSP) was a project funded by the German technical cooperation agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in the early 1980s which was converted into the Balochistan Rural Support Pr ...

(1991) # National Rural Support Programme (1992) # Institute of Rural Management (1993) # Ghazi Barotha Taraqiati Idara (1995) # Lachi Poverty Reduction Programme (1997) # Tardeep Rural Development Programme (1997) # Punjab Rural Support Programme (1998) # Sindh Graduates Association (2001) # Sindh Rural Support Organisation (2003) # Azad Jammu and Kashmir Rural Support Programme (2005)

References

{{Reflist, colwidth=30em Non-profit organisations based in Pakistan Rural development in Pakistan Community-building organizations