Civil Society Organizations: The Link Between Development and Society

Alireza Ghasemi, Deputy Director of Investments and Resources of the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of Hamedan province wrote in a note: If cultural heritage, handicrafts and tourism are to be transformed from a purely administrative and governmental activity into a real development stream in the province, we must promote the role of people and popular organizations from a marginal role to a main partner in the development process.

For many years, a significant part of the responsibilities in the field of cultural heritage, handicrafts and tourism has been on the shoulders of government agencies; But the reality is that the government alone does not have enough resources to protect and revive all capacities, nor can it have a continuous and effective presence in all parts of the province, and basically, it is not possible to establish a sustainable development of tourism without the participation of the local community.

This is where the concept of "people for people" makes sense; It means that local people, economic activists, associations, organizations, local communities and specialized groups should be part of the solution and play a role alongside the government in identifying capacities, protecting heritage, creating business and attracting tourists.

organizations; From program manager to development partner

Our view of organizations must change. A popular organization should not be just a group that attends events or participates in the implementation of some cultural programs.

The organization can be a specialized, social and executive arm for managing cultural heritage; An arm whose capacity is still not fully activated in many villages, cities and less privileged areas.

Local organizations can play a real and effective role in areas such as identifying the historical, cultural and tourism capacities of the region, introducing and protecting cultural heritage, reviving local rituals, traditions and events, developing and marketing handicrafts, creating a value chain for local products, educating and empowering local communities, introducing investment opportunities, participating in the exploitation of tourism capacities, attracting tourists and providing tourism services, and even helping to maintain and revive historical monuments and textures.

Why should we support organizations?

The answer is clear; Because the development in which the local community has a share is more lasting, less expensive and more acceptable.

When the people of a village know that the prosperity of a historical attraction or tourism will generate income for them, they will become the custodians of that capacity. When the handicraft artist knows that the development of tourism can expand the sales market of his product, he will have more motivation to preserve local art and skill. They are also an economic, employment and development tool.

The need to move from rhetorical support to practical support

The most important issue today is that support for organizations should not be limited to slogans. If organizations are supposed to play a role in the development of the province, they should be provided with a clear mission, access to capacities, training, facilitation of licenses, financial support, market and the possibility of economic participation.

Specific projects can be defined for the capable organizations of Hamadan province; For example, a local organization can take responsibility for developing a tourism event, introducing a tourist target village, marketing handicrafts of an area or activating a historical capacity. In this model, the government is a policymaker and observer, and people and organizations are in the field of action.

organizations and investment; An underutilized capacity

One of the most important capacities of popular organizations is their role in facilitating tourism investment. A local organization can know the capacity of a region better than any outsider, identify native and non-native investors, introduce land and building capacities, and even play a role in the formation of collaborative projects.

From this point of view, organizations can be a link between the local community, investors and the executive body. This issue is especially important in areas where the investor does not enter the project due to lack of sufficient information.

In this system, active and capable organizations should be identified and categorized first; Then the capacities and projects that can be handed over or participated in should be introduced to them. A development mission should be defined for each organization; In such a way that its activity can be evaluated and has a specific output.

Organizations' capacity can also be used to identify investors, introduce investment opportunities, project marketing, develop rural tourism, and support handicrafts.