COMMUNITY
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms,
religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share at sense of place situated in a given
geographical area (e.g., a country, village, town, or neighbourhood) or in virtual space through
communication platforms. Interest and aspirations of a particular group been a common characteristic
of the particular group irrespective of their place of residence makes such a group a community.
Examples of such community is; the youth, drug addict, handicapped persons etc.
A community can also be explained in terms of its leadership: an acephalous community where
authority is vested into one person and has no single head. Its political power diffused to the degree
that it lacks institutionalized political leadership roles such as chiefs and kings. Centralized
community: Thus is a second type of community depending on leadership and this community is
headed by one person whose authority is recognize by the entire area. This community according to
power hierarchy starts from the paramount chief to the town or village chief then to the clan or lineage
head and finally to the family head as the beginning authority.
Other types of community include traditional community that deals with a group of persons that
maintain livelihoods, beliefs and values, knowledge, languages and institutions in some continuity
with the past. Mostly the settlements are old mainly has people with same ethnic group, same language,
similar employment etc.
Solidarity community: People in this community live due to common heritage such as religion,
language, nationality, ethnicity and also have an interest, objectives, standards and sympathies for each
other creating a psychological sense of unity.
Neighbourhood community: Here, people live in vicinities together and begin to develop familiarity
as loyalty grows. Places for this neighbourhood community are; bungalows, SSNIT, flats, nurses’
quarters.
GATEKEEPERS
Gatekeepers are persons who guard or controls the entrance or access into something. Relating to
community, gatekeepers are really influence. They have the power to grant one the access into and
out of a particular community. Community gatekeepers can strongly influence the value systems of
those around them. Examples of gatekeepers talk about chiefs, family heads, assembly man. Taking
this as an instance, if researching education and wishing to research in a school, they will need.
permission from the headteacher. In this situation the headteacher is acting as a gatekeeper: she/he can
facilitate or block the researcher from carrying out their research.
Importance of Gatekeepers in a Community
Supportive community gatekeepers enable better Adolescents and youth sexual and reproductive
health (AYBRH): When community gatekeepers better understand SRH issues facing youth, they can
help address misinformation around contraception, reduce stigma and shame around contraceptive use
among adolescents and young people, and address ambiguous policies that result in service providers
acting on personal bias. Acceptance of youth sexuality results in greater access to preventive health
services: Community acceptance of youth’s SRH needs and right to access services allows them to be
more proactive in protecting their own health.
AIDE
This is an assistant to an important person, especially a political leader. Community aides are
indigenous; however, they are very knowledgeable about issues concerning the community.
Community aides work under the supervision of licensed professionals, such as nurses or teachers,
and are responsible for carrying out tasks such as personal care, medication administration, and help
with daily activities. Aides provide emotional support and companionship to their clients. They must
have excellent communication skills and be able to work well under pressure.
STAKEHOLDERS
With regards to community entry and organization, stakeholders are persons, group or organization
with a vested interest, or stake, in the decision-making and activities of a business, organization or
project. A stakeholder can be a wide variety of people impacted or invested in the project. For example,
a stakeholder can be the owner or even the shareholder. But stakeholders can also be employees,
bondholders, customers, suppliers and vendors. A shareholder can be a stakeholder. A stakeholder has
a vested interest in a company and can either affect or be affected by a business' intervention or
operations and performance.
Typical stakeholders are investors, employees, customers, suppliers, communities, governments, or
trade associations. The public or the community members may also be construed as a stakeholder in
some cases. Stakeholders can get involved in the decision-making process to find the need of the
community. Engaging stakeholders help to create sustainable change. It also helps to build
relationships and increases project success.
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