Lessons learned from the low-income community management process during the covid-19 crisis : a case study : Bankrua Community, Ratchathewi District, Bangkok
Abstract:
In early April 2021, the COVID-19 rapidly spread throughout Bangkok, and slum communities were considered a particularly high-risk area. The Community Organization Development Institute, tasked with helping the community, found that the Ban Krua community was severely affected, yet it was one of the slum communities that had proper community management. The objective of this study is to extract lessons from the management process of the Ban Krua community during the COVID-19 pandemic by studying the characteristics of the Ban Krua community both before the pandemic and how the community was impacted during the pandemic. The study used a qualitative research method, studying information from documents and structured interviews with community leaders, volunteers, general community members, and experts representing relevant network partners. The impact of the COVID-19 crisis between May and October 2021 can be divided into 5 phases, with a total of 382 cases of infection and 18 deaths from physical conditions with crowded housing causing the rapid spread of COVID-19. In an economy affected by lack of income, social groups refrained from gathering for religious activities. The Ban Krua community had a 2-part process to manage the COVID-19 crisis: 1. activities arising from the community group itself by 1) establishing a community kitchen to distribute food and essential items. 2) announcing the closure of the entrance, 3) establishing a group of volunteers together with the Ban Krua Community Development Savings Cooperative Group to help themselves ; 2. the Ban Kua community was coordinated and received assistance and budget from government agencies and private organizations for the following activities: 1) disease investigation to find risk points and clean up housing, 2) organizing online meetings to educate the community, 3) analysis of community layouts to find weak points, 4) participation in sending quarantined patients to the COVID-19 quarantine center at Chao Phraya Commercial Bank, 5) arranging for proactive COVID-19 testing for residents of the Ban Krua community, and 6) establishment of a coordination center within the community. The reason the community was considered a success was due to various factors: 1) being a strong community with a long history of fighting, and through the Baan Mankeng process, they were ready in terms of information and self-management ; 2) the community leaders are strong and receive cooperation from community members ; 3) the community is able to communicate their needs and appropriately select and accept cooperation from various parties, with people in the community as the main management force ; 4) the need for halal food management by the community, which strengthened the community ; and 5) the occurrence of physical management activities of houses and communities with partners in the design process through participatory processes. Based on the findings of this study, recommendations for low-income communities in future crises include households improving their homes to provide more ventilation and light access as well as improving their bathrooms for hygienic use. Also, a community should set up space for a coordination center to serve as a space for volunteer groups to coordinate assistance. Food activities should be organized to help community members and prevent the spread of disease as well as empower the community. In terms of proposals to external agencies, there should be accurate basic information and coordination between each department. Regarding recommendations for policy makers on community management in the event of future crises, there should be a complete collection of basic information to be used in policy formulation and the implementation of policies suitable for each community, as each community is different in terms of human and social capital, and policy makers should create a heath literacy program for every community to have social immunity.