MODULE ON FACILITATION

INTRODUCTION Local officers serve as guidance in the development process. To effectively discharge their duties, they must play facilitation role in the process. This module will help improve the knowledge and skills of local officers in facilitation. It will show the differences between facilitation and mediation.

OBJECTIVES At the end of this module, elected and appointed local officers will be to: Discuss the concept of facilitation Apply facilitation techniques to guide local people Know the differences between facilitation and mediation Mediate in disputes arising from community activities

LEARNING POINTS Definition of facilitation Attributes of facilitation Facilitation – mediation dichotomy The art and craft of mediation Team building concept

METHODOLOGY Lectures Group exercises Cases studies DURATION Power point presentation – 30 minutes Group exercises & presentation – 30 minutes

DEFINITION OF CONCEPT Facilitation is defined as: Make easier Is a neutral person intervention in a dispute. Is a process where a person, who is acceptable to all the members of the group, substantively neutral and has no decision making authority, intervenes to help the group improve the way it identifies and solves problems and makes decisions.

ATTRIBUTES OF FACILITATION A Facilitator should possess the following attributes: Honesty - a facilitator acts on conviction Consistency - a facilitator can be relied upon to do what he says Accepting - a facilitator holds individuals in unconditional regard

Caring - a facilitator is concerned about the well being of others Objective - a facilitator has no vested interest in one action over the other Flexible - a facilitator is always ready to change when the situation calls for it

Responsive - a facilitator is responsive to all points of views Knowledge - A facilitator understands and appreciates the importance of: * cultural, ethnic, and gender qualities and contributions * group and interpersonal dynamics * adult learning principles and methods

_ Interpersonal skills An effective facilitator is skilful in * active listening * Giving and receiving feedback * Asking questions that will stimulate discussion

FACILITATION-MEDIATION DICHOTOMY Facilitation and mediation are similar, for the fact that both are efforts geared towards improving the quality of thinking and acting among parties involved in a situation and getting them to reach acceptable decision. In most cases, both processes involved third party intervention. According to Carl Moore, mediation is the intervention into a dispute or negotiation by an acceptable, impartial, and neutral third party who has no authoritative decision making power to assist disputing parties in voluntarily reaching their own mutually acceptable settlement of issues in dispute. In short, Mediation is designed to help the parties negotiate a settlement to a particular conflict. Facilitation – is to help a group improve its methods of making decisions and solving problems.

Mediation is a tightly controlled process Mediation is a tightly controlled process. The mediator determines who to talk based on agreed procedures. That is, there are ground rules to follow. Facilitation is a process where the facilitator and the group jointly agree on how to they function together. In this case, the facilitator manages the group’s process to help group members focus on the content or task. The facilitator works with the group while mediator walks back and forth between conflicting groups, holding consultations .

STAGES OF MEDIATION Stage one: Pre-mediation planning - this involves gaining a mutual understanding of how the process will work; understanding guidelines for engagement. Selection of venue that provides privacy and rooms to hold discussion. Stage two: Beginning the Mediation heads of parties to the mediation introduce members of the group., ground rules for the mediation are agreed upon.

Stage three: Defining the Issues - parties in dispute are given opportunity to tell their side of the story.

Stage four: Exchange time At this stage, the mediator sets the dialogue into motion. The mediator now helps all concerned to better understand the nature of the conflict. Questions ask to explore assumptions behind the conflict and search for common ground. Each party should have equal opportunity to contribute to the discussion. The mediator could explore the possibility of hold separate meetings with the parties.