PLA Notes CD-ROM 1988-2001 16 Children and participatory appraisals: experiences from Vietnam

Document begins: PLA Notes CD-ROM 1988­2001 16 Children and participatory appraisals: experiences from Vietnam Joachim Theis Child, family and society consideration to the external factors that impinge on the lives of the people. It is easy to In conventional development projects children overlook the relevance of laws, institutions and are largely `invisible' (not seen and not heard) power structures for the lives of villagers when and are regarded just as part of the family. such issues are not mentioned by the There is a general assumption that children will community members during a participatory benefit automatically from project activities, appraisal. If anything, the risk of being blind to the broader context appears to be even greater since parents, in particular mothers, will ensure when involving children in an appraisal. Any that benefits accruing from a project are passed on to the children. However, this `trickle -down- research on children's lives needs to understand in-the-family' theory has not always been the political, cultural and historical realities that substantiated in practice, and experience shows form the context in which children, their that children do not necessarily benefit from families and communities live. Children are otherwise successful projects. In some cases part of ...