Boy pulling in a fihsing boat from the sea
Step 2

Establish leadership

Overview 

For a large scale drowning reduction plan to be effective you must involve the right people and organisations.  Without their support it is unlikely a plan will be successful.  Stakeholders should be consulted and involved throughout the process and not confined to just the implementation stage.  For example, you may need to engage with researchers to help establish why people are drowning, government officials to develop policy, and donors to help fund activity.  It is also important to to assess how much effort should be given to each stakeholder, as some will hold more influence and power than others.

Identifying leaders is equally important when developing and implementing a drowning reduction plan.  To make lasting change you must have the right people with the right skills advocating and supporting the plan.         

Why it is important  

Engaging stakeholders and identifying leadership allows you to:

  • Distribute tasks/resources 
  • Provide ownership 
  • Determine who has influence 
  • Determine who has resource 
  • Identify challenges 
  • Provide guidance 
  • Allows you to get more people involved

Challenges and considerations:

  • Prioritising against other national/regional issues 
  • Identifying the right people to engage with  
  • Maintaining support 
  • Managing conflicts 
  • Providing incentives 

 Methods:

  • Stakeholder mapping
  • Stakeholder analysis
  • Key informant interviews