Community Engagement Strategies and Sustainability of Advanced Citizen Engagement Project in Gicumbi District, Rwanda
Blandine Igiraneza, Francis Ssali and Jubilee Kakwezi
Mount Kigali University
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-1911-6481
Email: igiranezablandine2@gmail.com
Abstract: The goal of this research was to evaluate the impact of community engagement tactics on the sustainability of rural development initiatives in Rwanda, specifically the Advanced Citizen participation Project in Gicumbi District. The research focused on how different types of engagement including participatory, collaborative, and consultative affect the sustainability of projects. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, descriptive and correlational research was conducted. The 303 participants in the Advanced Citizen Engagement Project in the Gicumbi District made up the major demographic for this research. To make sure that every category is sufficiently represented in the final sample based on their proportions, the research used stratified random sampling. In order to minimize selection bias, 172 respondents were selected using simple random sampling. The quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. With B = 0.319, t = 5.230, and p < .001, the regression results demonstrated that participatory involvement significantly improved the Advanced Citizen involvement Project’s sustainability in Gicumbi District. Both collaborative and consultative involvement positively and significantly affected the outcomes (B = 0.393, t = 6.661, p < .001 for collaborative engagement and B = 0.359, t = 6.527, p < .001 for consultative engagement). According to the research, rural development initiatives were far more likely to be sustainable when participants took part in decision-making, shared responsibilities, and received ongoing feedback via participatory, collaborative, and consultative involvement. The study recommended that project authorities should institutionalize community engagement mechanisms throughout planning, implementation, monitoring, and post-project sustainability processes.
