For years teachers and parents of a kindergarten in Comrat, the capital of Moldova’s Gagauzian Autonomous Territory, have been searching for positive outlets to channel their students’ energy. Ana Panaitova, the kindergarten’s director, has led an effort that came with an ideal solution: a gymnasium. And an unused boiler room in the basement of the building provided the ideal venue.
Ana not only leads the kindergarten, but also Comrat’s Community Initiative Group (CIG), a program funded by USAID as part of IREX’s Citizen Participation Program (CPP) [7]. The CIG, made up entirely of women, convened to brainstorm how CPP resources might best be put to work to develop the kindergarten’s facilities (both indoors and out) and release all that pent-up student energy. The project development process, facilitated by CPP staff, culminated in the boiler-room-to-gym project, taking full advantage of the women’s visioning process.
Following its kickoff in 2005, CPP has always placed special emphasis on involving populations that are traditionally marginalized, including ethnic and religious minorities, youth, the unemployed, and women. In fact, the majority of projects under the auspices of CPP are managed by women—a sharp contrast to the staff make-up of local public administrations where women are overwhelmingly under-represented.
CPP support to the Comrat CIG came in the form of civic education trainings and facilitated community meetings. The participants “borrowed as many best practices as possible,” says Valentina Mikotina, director of a rehabilitation center for children with disabilities and a member of the CIG. The project was not only technically demanding, but also required complex engagement with governmental agencies to secure the necessary permits and authorizations.
The Comrat CIG members were under great pressure to live up to community expectations. Using advocacy skills obtained through CPP trainings (not to mention their natural charisma), the CIG members gained the trust of their media and their own community. This, in turn, produced increased levels of community participation.
“We applied what we learned from the CPP,” says Ana. “The key to efficiency is transparent project management, good relations with partners, and careful role distribution.” Valentina adds, “It is commonly accepted that women can’t manage construction projects. We showed that we are up to the challenge.”
The success of the gymnasium project is not the end of the road for the Comrat CIG. The group’s new advocacy and project-development skills are being put to the test to attract additional resources to the school and they recently won a grant to replace windows and doors in the facility.
