Community-Based Associations and Rural Development in Rwanda: A Local Perspective on the Contribution of Social Capital to Human Capabilities

The post-World War II political discourse around development has stimulated academic debates in recent decades. While some of these debates simply aim to transform the development mainstream, many others among the post-colonial thinkers are more critical of and even reject mainstream development ideologies. Despite the valuable academic debates, most development practitioners seem to have remained unresponsive to some of the allegations. Their concept is incorporated in much of the contemporary political narratives and programs. Development has become a project targeting economically challenged places and people with the goal of bringing them a better life or positive changes.

Drawing from the various strategies to achieve the development goals, the present research was undertaken with the intention of analyzing grassroots cooperation in relation to local people’s development narratives and achievements. I based my analysis on the practices of communitybased associations (CBAs) and individual achievements in rural areas. With the help of Constructivist Grounded Theory research methodology (Charmaz, 2014), the empirical data I collected from the Gakamba cell in Rwanda led me to Bourdieu (1986) to conceptualize social capital and the role of the CBAs and then to Sen (1979; 1992; 2012) to conceptualize development as the expansion of human capabilities.

During the data coding, the categories that emerged led to three major empirical chapters: Chapter 6 highlights the major reasons for starting and joining associations, Chapter 7 highlights the key components of the CBAs’ practices as I observed them and Chapter 8 sheds light on the Gakamba people’s conceptualization of their achievements within the framework of human development and the capability approach. In addition to this, I also described people’s contextual opportunities for development connected to their idea of the CBAs. Connecting people’s development narratives, the country’s political development discourse and the mainstream development narrative, I expanded on revitalizing Ubudehe through the community-based associations, a combination I describe as ‘indigenous development cooperation.’ I observed that despite some constraints within the Gakamba CBAs, people’s cooperation ultimately enhances their “capability” to function.