<p>The Peruvian society is one of the most unequal in the world and despite the growing economy the centralised political tradition impedes the trickling-down of wealth down to the people who need it the most. In Arequipa in southern Peru an initiative called the Programme for Rural Development (PRD) was commenced in the beginning of 2007 with the purpose of consolidating democracy and promote economic development, foremost for women. The programme was developed by Svalorna together with their cooperation organisations at location in Arequipa.</p><p>This investigation is both descriptive and explorative with a purpose of both describing the current economic and social situation in these departments as well as in a more normative manner explore the possible ways to go forward and issues that need further attention in regard to the PRD. The investigation has been realised as a qualitative field based study with the aim of emphasising on the views and opinions of the women in the different departments with the purpose of putting the women at a grass root level in focus. Therefore the methodological approach which permeates the entire study is a ‘bottom-up’ implementation analysis. The process of collecting information has implied field studies, where observation, interviews and interaction has been used as techniques, as well as a vast collection of background to the current socioeconomic situation which also has been necessary.</p><p>Conducting this investigation has lead to many interesting and useful conclusions regarding the contemporary and future sustentation situation for women and youth in the rural parts of Arequipa. This study will emphasise the importance of invisible actions within rural development, such as strengthening the common identity and objectives, considered to be the foundation to organising, both in regard to democratic participation as well as economic activities. In regard to entrepreneurship or the initiation of small scale businesses, components such as involvement from the rest of the family, sharing of skills and experiences within the group, access to capital, follow up and evaluation, are vital. Overall, the inhabitants need to participate in their own development process and receive assistance from a holistic programme that takes in consideration all elements in the life of the women.</p> / <p>Klyftorna i det peruanska samhället är några av de största i världen och trots att ekonomin för tillfället växer så att det knakar, så hindrar den starka traditionen av politisk centralisering att överskottet kommer alla människor tillgodo. I staden Arequipa i södra Peru inleddes i början av 2007 Programmet för landsbygdsutveckling (PRD) med syfte att förstärka demokratiska processer och främja ekonomisk utveckling, framförallt för kvinnor. Programmet utvecklades av Svalorna tillsammans med deras samarbetsorganisationer på plats i Arequipa.</p><p>Denna undersökning är både deskriptiv och explorativ. Den har som syfte att både beskriva den nuvarande ekonomiska och sociala situationen i de aktuella områdena kring Arequipa samt att mer normativt beskriva möjliga vägar framåt och problem som behöver ytterligare uppmärksamhet från PRD. Studien genomfördes genom en kvalitativ fältstudie med målet att vara lyhörd för, samt främhäva, kvinnornas egna åsikter och synpunkter som grund för resultat och analysdel. Detta för att sätta kvinnan på gräsrotsnivå i fokus och därav har det övergripande metodiska angreppssättet bestått av en botten-upp implementationsanalys. Insamlingsprocessen av information har inneburit både en fältstudie där observationer, intervjuer och interaktioner har använts som tekniker, men också en omfattande litteraturstudie har varit nödvändig. Detta för att erhålla bakgrundsmaterial till den nuvarande socioekonomiska situationen i landet.</p><p>Genomförandet av denna studie har inneburit många intressanta och användbara slutsatser vad gäller den nuvarande och framtida försörjningssituationen för kvinnor och ungdomar på landsbygden i Arequipa. Undersökningen betonar betydelsen av osynliga handlingar inom landsbygdsutvecklingen, så som stärkandet av den gemensamma identiteten och sammanställandet av gemensamma mål att sträva efter, både gällande demokratisk deltagande och ekonomiska aktiviteter. Vad gäller entreprenörskap och uppstartandet av småskaliga affärsverksamheter så är komponenter som engagemang från resten av familjen, delandet av kunskaper och erfarenheter inom gruppen, tillgång till kapital, uppföljning och utvärdering helt avgörande för projektets framgång. För att konkludera så behöver invånarna delta i sin egen utvecklingsprocess och delta med assistens från ett holistiskt sammansatt program som tar alla delar av kvinnornas liv i betraktande.</p>

<p>The vulnerable social situation of the indigenous women in Bolivia is often on the agenda</p><p>of many organisations (CSOs and NGOs). Especially, the deep rooted socio-political</p><p>discrimination of this group has been addressed in several researches and during various</p><p>international development forums. However, few of these investigations have tried to</p><p>understand in what ways the Aymara women themselves want to be supported by</p><p>organisations in order to become socially empowered. In regard to this, the contemplation</p><p>of this Master Thesis has been to, in an inductive manner, increase the understanding of</p><p>the concept of social empowerment from the perspectives of Aymara women and</p><p>NGOs/CSOs. To do so a qualitative field based study, aimed at letting Aymara women</p><p>themselves explain the social situation, was conducted in Bolivia during the spring 2007.</p><p>The outcome of this research has also served as a foundation to a discussion, with special</p><p>references to the Swedish aid-agency Svalorna Latinamerika, concerning what NGOs and</p><p>CSOs ought to consider when working with social empowerment of Aymara women.</p><p>The overarching methodological approach of the study has been that of a bottom-up</p><p>implementation analysis. In order to retrieve information from the field techniques such as</p><p>socio-anthropological studies, observations, interactions and interviews have been applied.</p><p>Several interesting insights and conclusions have been retrieved from the investigation. The</p><p>primarily conclusion drawn is that empowerment can neither be received nor given as it has</p><p>the features of a learning process. Accordingly, in regard to this organisations must adopt</p><p>the role of 'supporters' rather than 'suppliers'. Secondly, it has been reasoned that any</p><p>undertaking aimed at supporting social empowerment for and of Aymara women must be</p><p>synchronised with the progression of the women's learning processes. This specifically</p><p>suggests that organisations must adopt long-run as well as holistic programmes rather than</p><p>ad hoc activities. The overall conclusion drawn is that if the social empowerment for and of</p><p>Aymara women is to benefit from the undertakings of organisations the planning,</p><p>implementation and evaluation of the activities must primarily be based on terms given by</p><p>the women.</p><p>4</p>

<p>The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the implications and challenges of intercultural communication. An in-depth study was performed of the perspectives from people who work within an international organization. How they experience cultural differences and how they handle them, in particular when it comes to communication. Also, their perceptions of communicative competence were explored. The study was carried out at Svalorna India Bangladesh, at the Swedish office in Lund. Svalorna’s staff was interviewed on their experiences of intercultural communication. Both employees at the Swedish office and employees on location in India and Bangladesh were interviewed. The method used in the study was qualitative interviews where the interviewees could expand their answers fully as the interview developed. The main theory used was Geert Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, presented in the thesis and considered in the study. It was concluded that being aware of cultural differences and having knowledge of other cultures but also your own is important for understanding the so-called non-verbal communication in an intercultural situation. There are also differences in to what extent a certain culture uses non-verbal communication. Both India and Bangladesh, according to the interviewees, are high context cultures whereas Sweden has a low context culture. All the interviewees had similar experiences when it comes to intercultural communication. A cultural difference in the perception of time is an example of when verbal communication can be inadequate, if one is not aware of cultural differences. Both India and Bangladesh use polychronic time whereas in Sweden monochromic time is used. This is indeed confirmed by all interviewees. Many of Hofstede’s cultural dimension theories are found to be coherent with the results of this study, for example the Individualism.</p>

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the implications and challenges of intercultural communication. An in-depth study was performed of the perspectives from people who work within an international organization. How they experience cultural differences and how they handle them, in particular when it comes to communication. Also, their perceptions of communicative competence were explored. The study was carried out at Svalorna India Bangladesh, at the Swedish office in Lund. Svalorna’s staff was interviewed on their experiences of intercultural communication. Both employees at the Swedish office and employees on location in India and Bangladesh were interviewed. The method used in the study was qualitative interviews where the interviewees could expand their answers fully as the interview developed. The main theory used was Geert Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, presented in the thesis and considered in the study. It was concluded that being aware of cultural differences and having knowledge of other cultures but also your own is important for understanding the so-called non-verbal communication in an intercultural situation. There are also differences in to what extent a certain culture uses non-verbal communication. Both India and Bangladesh, according to the interviewees, are high context cultures whereas Sweden has a low context culture. All the interviewees had similar experiences when it comes to intercultural communication. A cultural difference in the perception of time is an example of when verbal communication can be inadequate, if one is not aware of cultural differences. Both India and Bangladesh use polychronic time whereas in Sweden monochromic time is used. This is indeed confirmed by all interviewees. Many of Hofstede’s cultural dimension theories are found to be coherent with the results of this study, for example the Individualism.

The Peruvian society is one of the most unequal in the world and despite the growing economy the centralised political tradition impedes the trickling-down of wealth down to the people who need it the most. In Arequipa in southern Peru an initiative called the Programme for Rural Development (PRD) was commenced in the beginning of 2007 with the purpose of consolidating democracy and promote economic development, foremost for women. The programme was developed by Svalorna together with their cooperation organisations at location in Arequipa. This investigation is both descriptive and explorative with a purpose of both describing the current economic and social situation in these departments as well as in a more normative manner explore the possible ways to go forward and issues that need further attention in regard to the PRD. The investigation has been realised as a qualitative field based study with the aim of emphasising on the views and opinions of the women in the different departments with the purpose of putting the women at a grass root level in focus. Therefore the methodological approach which permeates the entire study is a ‘bottom-up’ implementation analysis. The process of collecting information has implied field studies, where observation, interviews and interaction has been used as techniques, as well as a vast collection of background to the current socioeconomic situation which also has been necessary. Conducting this investigation has lead to many interesting and useful conclusions regarding the contemporary and future sustentation situation for women and youth in the rural parts of Arequipa. This study will emphasise the importance of invisible actions within rural development, such as strengthening the common identity and objectives, considered to be the foundation to organising, both in regard to democratic participation as well as economic activities. In regard to entrepreneurship or the initiation of small scale businesses, components such as involvement from the rest of the family, sharing of skills and experiences within the group, access to capital, follow up and evaluation, are vital. Overall, the inhabitants need to participate in their own development process and receive assistance from a holistic programme that takes in consideration all elements in the life of the women. / Klyftorna i det peruanska samhället är några av de största i världen och trots att ekonomin för tillfället växer så att det knakar, så hindrar den starka traditionen av politisk centralisering att överskottet kommer alla människor tillgodo. I staden Arequipa i södra Peru inleddes i början av 2007 Programmet för landsbygdsutveckling (PRD) med syfte att förstärka demokratiska processer och främja ekonomisk utveckling, framförallt för kvinnor. Programmet utvecklades av Svalorna tillsammans med deras samarbetsorganisationer på plats i Arequipa. Denna undersökning är både deskriptiv och explorativ. Den har som syfte att både beskriva den nuvarande ekonomiska och sociala situationen i de aktuella områdena kring Arequipa samt att mer normativt beskriva möjliga vägar framåt och problem som behöver ytterligare uppmärksamhet från PRD. Studien genomfördes genom en kvalitativ fältstudie med målet att vara lyhörd för, samt främhäva, kvinnornas egna åsikter och synpunkter som grund för resultat och analysdel. Detta för att sätta kvinnan på gräsrotsnivå i fokus och därav har det övergripande metodiska angreppssättet bestått av en botten-upp implementationsanalys. Insamlingsprocessen av information har inneburit både en fältstudie där observationer, intervjuer och interaktioner har använts som tekniker, men också en omfattande litteraturstudie har varit nödvändig. Detta för att erhålla bakgrundsmaterial till den nuvarande socioekonomiska situationen i landet. Genomförandet av denna studie har inneburit många intressanta och användbara slutsatser vad gäller den nuvarande och framtida försörjningssituationen för kvinnor och ungdomar på landsbygden i Arequipa. Undersökningen betonar betydelsen av osynliga handlingar inom landsbygdsutvecklingen, så som stärkandet av den gemensamma identiteten och sammanställandet av gemensamma mål att sträva efter, både gällande demokratisk deltagande och ekonomiska aktiviteter. Vad gäller entreprenörskap och uppstartandet av småskaliga affärsverksamheter så är komponenter som engagemang från resten av familjen, delandet av kunskaper och erfarenheter inom gruppen, tillgång till kapital, uppföljning och utvärdering helt avgörande för projektets framgång. För att konkludera så behöver invånarna delta i sin egen utvecklingsprocess och delta med assistens från ett holistiskt sammansatt program som tar alla delar av kvinnornas liv i betraktande.

The vulnerable social situation of the indigenous women in Bolivia is often on the agenda of many organisations (CSOs and NGOs). Especially, the deep rooted socio-political discrimination of this group has been addressed in several researches and during various international development forums. However, few of these investigations have tried to understand in what ways the Aymara women themselves want to be supported by organisations in order to become socially empowered. In regard to this, the contemplation of this Master Thesis has been to, in an inductive manner, increase the understanding of the concept of social empowerment from the perspectives of Aymara women and NGOs/CSOs. To do so a qualitative field based study, aimed at letting Aymara women themselves explain the social situation, was conducted in Bolivia during the spring 2007. The outcome of this research has also served as a foundation to a discussion, with special references to the Swedish aid-agency Svalorna Latinamerika, concerning what NGOs and CSOs ought to consider when working with social empowerment of Aymara women. The overarching methodological approach of the study has been that of a bottom-up implementation analysis. In order to retrieve information from the field techniques such as socio-anthropological studies, observations, interactions and interviews have been applied. Several interesting insights and conclusions have been retrieved from the investigation. The primarily conclusion drawn is that empowerment can neither be received nor given as it has the features of a learning process. Accordingly, in regard to this organisations must adopt the role of 'supporters' rather than 'suppliers'. Secondly, it has been reasoned that any undertaking aimed at supporting social empowerment for and of Aymara women must be synchronised with the progression of the women's learning processes. This specifically suggests that organisations must adopt long-run as well as holistic programmes rather than ad hoc activities. The overall conclusion drawn is that if the social empowerment for and of Aymara women is to benefit from the undertakings of organisations the planning, implementation and evaluation of the activities must primarily be based on terms given by the women. 4