One of the greatest challenges facing many NGOs today is that they rarely hire professionals trained in development communication.
The focus is often placed on publicity and public relations, rather than on the deeper, more transformative role of communication in development.
As a result, communication is reduced to managing social media accounts, issuing press releases, and increasing visibility metrics.
What gets lost is the essence of development communication — listening to communities, amplifying local voices, facilitating dialogue, and ensuring that interventions are people-driven and sustainable.
Communication officers don’t speak for the community.
They speak about the work, not with the people — and that distinction matters. Without deliberate structures for community voice, feedback, and participation, development becomes a performance, not a partnership.
This trend weakens development outcomes. Projects become top-down and donor-focused, rather than participatory and inclusive.
Community knowledge is overlooked, cultural dynamics are misunderstood, and the learning that should shape future interventions is often ignored.
We need to reframe how communication is seen within development practice.
It should not be a branding tool but a bridge between the people and the process — a tool for empowerment, not just visibility.
It’s time we ask: are we communicating for change — or just for show?