_Famiy Planning Success Stories in Bangladesh and India_ _22_ for recruitment, promotion of internal cohesion among workers, training and supervision, management and information system, monitoring of performance, rewards and punishment, and interface with local social institutions. As discussed above, these are quite different<sup>from the</sup> government strategies which are usually resistant to any change.

While the replication of the total package of the Project's organizational system<sup>is not</sup> feasible in the national programme, some selected elements of it which are relatively cost effective are worth testing in a regional scale. In fact, with this objective in mind<sup>a new project</sup> in two districts of Bangladesh has been undertaken jointly by the ICDDR,B and<sup>the govermment</sup> of Bangladesh (Phillips et al. 1984; Banu et al. 1987). Its findings are<sup>not known. Selected</sup> strategies of the Matlab Project are worth testing in other developing countries<sup>with socioeconom-</sup> ic and demographic condition similar to Bangladesh.

The Matlab model should not, however, be considered as the only one for achieving in Bangladesh a contraceptive prevalence similar to that of the Treatment Area. The organizational system of the Matlab Project does not have a formal mechanism for sustained community participation in the Project. Villagers have extended their passive support to the Project<sup>activities</sup> mainly because of their appreciation for the ICDDR,B's excellent record of reducing<sup>diarrheal</sup> mortality in the area and their trust on the ICDDR,B's workers. There seems to<sup>have been no</sup> attempt in the Project to involve community leaders (elected as well as traditional) in the decisionmgakin process. Although records of successful community participation in family planning<sup>are</sup> rare in Bangladesh, the family planning success story in India described below indicates<sup>its</sup> potential in South Asian countries.

# The Kundam Project

Kundam block, one of the 13 blocks of Jabalpur district in the state of Madhya Pradesh (India) is comprised of 192 villages spread over 971 sq. kms. of hilly area. A major portion<sup>of</sup> the block is covered under forest and, except for a few villages on the highway, the accessibility to the block is difficult. Kundam, the headquarters vilage of the block, is about _45_ kms.<sup>away</sup> from Jabalpur city, and connected with it by the highway. About 70 percent of Kundam<sup>block</sup> population (total about 74,000 in 1981) are tribals compared to about 20 percent in<sup>Madhya</sup> Pradesh state. The Gonds who constitute the major proportion of tribal population of Madhya Pradesh are also spread over the neighboring states of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.

The Family Planning Association of India (FPAI) initiated in September 1980 a project in 65 contiguous villages of Kundam block with an aim to improve family<sup>planning and child</sup> health performance through active community participation. According to the records maintained by the Kundam Project, the proportion of currently married women using all contraceptive methods (including modern and traditional) in the Project Area comprising 65 villages increased from 20 percent in 1980 to 68 percent in 1985 compared to 20 percent in 1980 and 42<sup>percent</sup> in 1985 in the non-Project or Control Area of Kundam block. A sample survey of<sup>1000 eligible</sup> couples in 20 villages of the Project Area, however, showed a contraceptive prevalence<sup>rate of</sup> 61 percent. In any case, there was evidendy a significant rise of contraceptive prevalence<sup>in the</sup> Project Area during 1980-85.