| 4. In which ways is the initiative creative and innovative?
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The development of human capital is based on the belief that everybody has the potential for development. Such belief sparks the idea of an Innovative Process Management. Such idea is based on the need for developing impoverished and disadvantaged in the communities in Saraburi province and neighboring provinces. Such development requires a readjustment of the training process that involves setting up a committee that is responsible for actively seeking and engaging those who are disadvantaged and invite them to participate in the training based on their interests and preferences. The training must conform to their respective social context and available resources.
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| 5. Who implemented the initiative and what is the size of the population affected by this initiative?
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The career and development promotion is an integrated effort between public, private and people sectors that come together to promote impoverished and disadvantaged who are unemployed, without income and unable to sustain their own livelihood and their family members. Community Development Department is one of the public agencies that promote the idea of career development and the use of the technology in such development. The Saraburi Administrative Office also provided support in such idea, while private sectors provided materials and equipment to be used for career development of impoverished and disadvantaged. The people sector provided land to the government to use as the Saraburi Phukae OTOP Complex and OTOP Academy. As for the participants, there are over 10,000 impoverished and disadvantaged selected from 965 villages in 13 districts in Saraburi, with 1,000 staffs and trainers to help provide necessary development trainings.
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| 6. How was the strategy implemented and what resources were mobilized?
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In order to implement the guidelines, Saraburi Phukae OTOP Complex Committee started out by searching for impoverished and disadvantaged in the communities with the belief that “we must give before we receive, the more the better”. Our development processes are as follow:
1. Providing knowledge and objectives on providing vocational training to impoverish and disadvantaged that desire to train and improve and their livelihood;
2. Saraburi Phukae OTOP Complex Committee provides work suggestions on the field that the participants are interested in. Their habits and interests will be monitored for 1 month. After that, they will be inquired other fields of interest or assign other appropriate tasks and to find proper career development approach. Such training is free of charge. Apart from the training in the Complex, there are field studies and off-site training which would add value to their social capital and to live in the society with pride;
3. In terms of finance, finance management is merely the management of budget used in the Complex for providing training to impoverish and disadvantaged;
4. Raw materials use in career training came from the budgetary support of the Complex to promote career opportunities and skill enhancement for impoverished and disadvantaged;
5. Environment and sites from constructing training facilities were donated by the committee members who saw the importance of development quality of life to impoverished and disadvantaged. Construction budget was procured from Community Development Department while additional budget was given by government sectors in Saraburi province;
6. Follow-up on the career training involves satisfaction evaluation of service receivers and stakeholders based on 1) number of graduated participants that received invitation to be guest lecturers in community schools and surrounding areas; 2) inviting graduated participants to become guest lecturers more than once; and 3) participants who, after completing the training, have stable careers and incomes, and better livelihoods;
7. Administering OTOP School involves the selection of representatives from the committee members whom are part of the OTOP Network, District Level. 2 persons are selected per district, for a total of 26 appointees. There are administration regulations to abide by.
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| 7. Who were the stakeholders involved in the design of the initiative and in its implementation?
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There are many public sectors that participate in the development of Saraburi Phukae OTOP Complex and career training of impoverished and disadvantaged. One of them is Community Development Department (CDD) who provided support in the knowledge on how to build careers. Alongside CDD are the Office of Non-Formal and Informal Education (NFE), Department of Rural Roads, Saraburi Provincial Office whom provided construction budgets. As for the Local Administrative agencies, they will collaborate with local schools to bring students to the Complex to learn about life lessons and aware of the importance of preserving local wisdoms and resources. Private sectors contributed 6 Rais (approx. 5.7 acres), worth 2 million Baht, of land to build the Complex and OTOP Academy as well as necessary tools and equipment for training the impoverished and disadvantaged. The process of providing career training to impoverished and disadvantaged must involve meetings to find a collaborative approach to reduce unproductivity of resources, be they materials and equipment, as well as the development of quality of life, the ability of live with the society with pride and becoming role models.
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| 8. What were the most successful outputs and why was the initiative effective?
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Participants who joined the training revealed that, prior to the training, they felt inferior to people around them and afraid to publicly take actions as they are unemployed. After the completion of the training, they are now equipped with skills, competencies and potential to earn income and receive further knowledge on their own, and that they possess valuable human capital that they, their family members, and their friends that take pride of.
The training serves as a barrier that expels poverty because participants will be knowledgeable and can use their training knowledge as a stepping stone to develop themselves even more, or even transfer their knowledge to others as they see fit. Furthermore, the training has change the perspective of the public towards impoverished and disadvantaged for the better. The constant urge for development and a systematic approach on searching what one’s good at and interested in helps increase human value. Using this in the training allows the training graduates to become self-confident and a good role model to youth, women and other impoverished and disadvantaged. They can act as inspiration and motivation to others to develop themselves and earn quality and honest living through their tacit knowledge. Such knowledge can then be further transfer to new generations and would protect them from poverty by means of employment. This success will then be expanded to development networks who can learn and adapt from this project into their own development approach.
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| 9. What were the main obstacles encountered and how were they overcome?
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Issues and obstacles encountered are target groups who are impoverished and disadvantaged who are unable to regularly commute to their respective groups due to their expense limitations. The practical approach is requesting OTOP Network in 13 districts of Saraburi province to select their target groups to participate in the project that will develop their career capabilities. Another issue is the difference of interests, competencies and skills of impoverished and disadvantaged and the need for the committee to equally provide proper and suitable training based on these differences. As such the committee held an informal interview to inquire participant and observed and noted their habits and interests. After the training has been completed based on said approach, it is found that the training graduates have the capability to take care of themselves and their families. With this success, the Complex continue will full devotion into finding more and more impoverished and disadvantaged individuals inside the province or surrounding areas to provide them with opportunities to create income and career development.
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