Soft System Methodology in the Management of Agroecosystem Health and Sustainability Concerns of a Tropical Highlands Agroecosystem - Integrated Assessment of Health and Sustainability of Agroecosystems - page 138

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Key

Solid arrows = agreement; Dashed arrows = disagreement

fIGuRe 5.7 Perspectives of community leaders in the intensive study site on the inability
to act on problems affecting their agroecosystems. See CD for color image.

In Gitangu village, the community raised 800,000 Kenya shillings and pur-
chased a new pump. They obtained further financial support from Plan International
to purchase a booster pump, build a bigger tank, and rehabilitate the piping sys-
tem. Water kiosks are being built at strategic points in the village, while plans are
under way to purchase water meters and to provide piped water to most homesteads.
Plate 5.6 shows community members preparing the site for the new water tank. In the
background is the old water tank that was to be rehabilitated and used as the treat-
ment unit for the new water supply system. Plate 5.7 shows work being carried out to
rehabilitate the piping system.
Communities in all six villages organized meetings with extension agents to
discuss various topics. In most of the cases, the meetings were organized and funded
by the communities, but in some cases, the initiative came from the extension agents
following the presentation of community action plans to the divisional extension
staff. In all cases, topics to be covered were selected in consultation with the commu-
nities. Plate 5.8 shows an extension agent demonstrating the use of various energy-
saving devices in Kiawamagira village.
Plate 5.9 shows a group of leaders from the six ISSs at the end of a 6-day residen-
tial training workshop on leadership and community mobilization together with some
members of the AESH multidisciplinary team. At this workshop, leaders developed