Communication Strategies for Community Development: A Study of World Bank SEEFOR-CDDS Projects in Ukwa East Communities, Abia State, Nigeria

Communication strategies are very important in the effective implementation of community projects. This chapter investigated communication strategies for the implementation of World Bank SEEFOR-CDDS PIU community development projects in Abia State to see what strategies were used and how they improved project execution in Abia communities. The qualitative approach with an in-depth interview design was used on a purposive sampling of the population. The population was composed of 11 CDDS PIU personnel and 70,000 community members of seven communities of Ukwa East Local Government area. The samples were four personnel of CDDS PIU and seven representatives from the project communities. An interview guide was used as the research instrument to elicit data from the participants. The paper was anchored on the participatory and basic needs paradigms. The findings indicated that the project implementation unit utilized wide communication strategies involving both traditional African communication channels and modern media channels in mobilizing and ensuring the participation of the people in project implementation in the communities which have enhanced project execution. The recommendations suggest that well-trained communication professionals should be engaged for better communication strategies and that the state government should adopt the recommendations in project implementation across the state for better results in project management.