Community Participation and Sustainability of Community Health Projects: The Case of Local Anti Malaria Programme Support in Bungokho Sub-County, Uganda.

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the extent to which community participation affects the sustainability of community health projects. The study specifically intended to establish the relationship between community participation in project problem identification, project planning, project implementation, monitoring and evaluation and sustainability of the LAMPS project. The study used a case study design using qualitative and quantitative approaches on a population of 1200 households, 20 fight malaria committees, 4 key informants of which 314 respondents were selected using proportionate random sampling and purposive sampling techniques. The data was collected using questionnaire, focus group discussion, key informant interview and documentary review checklist. The data collected was edited, coded and analyzed using frequency, percentages, mean, standard deviation, correlation and regression analysis. The study, found a significant relationship between community participation in project problem identification, project planning, project implementation, project M&E and sustainability of LAMPS project. Community participation predicted 73.6% of the variance in the sustainability of the LAMPS project. The study concluded that community participation through project problem identification, planning, implementation, M&E significantly contributes to sustainability of health projects. The study recommended the managers of health projects, donors, and others stakeholders to always ensure that community members are involved in problem identification, planning, implementation, M&E for enhanced enjoyment of project benefits, behavioral change empowerment and community empowerment. Other studies need to be conducted to establish the extent to which factors such as project funding, project human resources and project environment could have influenced the sustainability of the LAMPS project in Bungokho Sub County.