ABSTRACT
PRA originated in East Africa and India as Participatory Rural Appraisal. It has been described as a family of approaches, behaviours and methods for enabling people to do their own appraisal, analysis and planning, take their own action, and do their own monitoring and evaluation. It often involves people in groups developing their own visuals such as diagrams and maps, drawing on the ground with sticks or on paper with pens, and using counters like beans, seeds or stones. Following the lead of Pakistan, the letters PRA have increasingly been taken to stand for Participatory Reflection and Action. Other practitioners describe what they do as Participatory Learning and Action (PLA) to stress inclusive methodological pluralism. PRA/PLA has spread to many countries and from South to North, with applications in many domains.
