Community development, as a policy model, a working method, a field, and even a profession, originates from a period before the specialization of government functions and the scientific differentiation of public affairs. Different countries, rooted in tradition, have varying emphases. While the community development approach or concept emerged around the early 20th century, after World War II, under the pressure and needs of post-war reconstruction, UN affiliates vigorously promoted the community development approach in Asia and Africa, leading to a preliminary convergence of community development approaches.
Under the advocacy and promotion of international organizations such as the United Nations, community development approaches simultaneously emphasize national policy and technical guidance, financial assistance, and the organization and mobilization of residents to jointly achieve public infrastructure or projects set by the government and residents. These public infrastructure or projects are often universal and basic, presented as comprehensive programs. It's undeniable that before the division of state functions and the specialization of public services, comprehensive community development plans and resident mobilization were feasible.
However, by the 1970s, the general, basic public needs of each community or neighborhood had been met, and different development needs emerged, each characterized by its own demographics, geography, and industrial conditions.
On the other hand, the differentiation of various disciplines and the development of professions have led to a high degree of division of labor and specialization in the administration of many countries. Community-based plans and public service delivery, tailored to each political theme, replaced integrated community development plans. Various government departments now independently promote community-based plans, implementing them through funding subsidies to communities.
When community-level projects shift from comprehensive to specialized, politically-focused projects, three further changes occur.
1. Traditional community development projects focus not only on planning and implementation but also on organizing and mobilizing residents. However, specialized, politically-focused community-based projects, due to their specialized nature and the involvement of a single government department, focus on project implementation or service delivery without prioritizing community organization and not necessarily utilizing residents' resources.
2. Thematic community-based projects, due to their specialized nature, are not easily accessible to residents. When focusing on project implementation or service delivery, they often bring in experts to provide guidance, even having agents implement these projects on behalf of the community, or having specialized personnel stationed in the community to implement the projects.
3. Community-based projects, due to their specialized nature, hinder resident participation. Furthermore, under the agency model, community residents cease to be project leaders, participants, or service providers, and instead become service users. They can even be alienated from the project.
When community-based projects focus solely on project implementation—meaning they are essentially providing public services and rely on specialized personnel for implementation—and community residents become service users, or even consumers, ambitious and enthusiastic nonprofit organizations actively participate in such projects. They achieve their mission, expand public service provision, and receive government funding, making them naturally eager to participate in such community-based projects. At this point, community-based projects, often under the guise of community development, transcend the boundaries of community organizations and community volunteers. From the perspective of various professional services, they are essentially no different from outreach projects.
When specialized personnel replace residents as the core workforce for community-based projects, not only do nonprofit organizations participate through outreach, but some disciplines or professions accustomed to profit-making are also willing to participate. While agents and professionals profit from this, they also become collaborators in promoting government projects, and residents are happy to use public services as users and beneficiaries. Contracting out government community-based projects is a business, although, in these combined operations, integrity and accountability are no longer a priority.