Katine: a lesson in development

For the last decade the debate about aid has been dominated by figures. Whether it's the politicians at the global summits or the activists on the streets outside, the talk has been all about millions - even billions - of pounds' worth of debt to be cancelled and of aid to be delivered.

What has been lost in translation is the gritty detail of how development works. The assumption is that poverty can be solved by simply moving the right number of zeros around the global economy. Just get the money into the right bank accounts and the millennium development goals will be achieved in 2015; there will be schools for children to go to, health attendants to help women through childbirth, food for hungry families. But, of course, development is about far more than money. It is a complex process that involves people, their relationships, communities, institutions and systems of government.

The Guardian has undertaken a three year project to report on the progress of one development project in a remote rural area of northern Uganda. The aim is to engage readers with the complexity of the development process through telling the story of one sub-county.

As it happens

We are reporting on the project as the boreholes are drilled, as the school latrines are installed and as the health clinic opens. We are aiming to give a real insight into how lives in the community change by telling the stories of some of the 22,500 residents of the sub-county; filming and recording them as they describe their daily lives. In time, some will start blogging on our site, describing directly how they are contributing to the Katine Community Partnerships Project. Already, photos taken by villagers can be found on guardian.co.uk/katine.

The Guardian is offering an insight into a complicated process, as the teams from Amref (the African Medical and Research Foundation) work to deliver the project in Uganda with support from FarmAfrica. Another partner, Barclays, is matchfunding donations from Guardian readers, and is also delivering plans for microfinance and financial inclusion in the sub-county. The £2.5m three-year project aims to deliver improvements across five areas: health, education, water and sanitation, governance and livelihoods.

At the heart of the project is the ambition to put the experience of Katine's residents at the centre in a website that can engage a global audience.

Across the world, problems about solar power, water resources and education delivery are being tackled in areas where resources are limited. Our aim is to open up a new forum where ideas can be exchanged on the relative merits of power pumps or solar power or how to reduce maternal mortality.

As part of that effort the Guardian is launching a UK schools focused section of the Katine website for schools that want to learn more about Katine, with articles, films and curriculum-linked lesson activities for primary and secondary schools. But perhaps one of the most radical features of this project is its transparency.

Amref's documents - its budget, its baseline surveys - are published on the site and are available for comment and discussion. This is an exercise in global citizenship with donors to the project and critics able to discuss and question how the project is being developed and proposing what should be changed and why.

Weblink

Katine project:
www.guardian.co.uk/katine