Stakeholders include anyone with an interest in the population to be served and the focus of your program. Each stakeholder or group of stakeholders comes from a different perspective and might have different goals; they may represent financial, distribution and delivery, target audience, or community interests. The multiple points of view of stakeholders can be useful in identifying culturally appropriate ways to recruit participants and implement your program, as well as potential obstacles and ideas for overcoming those obstacles.
When planning an alcohol intervention, stakeholders will be helpful in defining the alcohol-related problem to be addressed, will incorporate other points of view of the problem, and will ensure a more thorough situation assessment. It is important to involve all local stakeholders as early as possible in the correct identification of the needs, priorities, and desired outcomes for the target population.
There are two types of stakeholders, internal and external. Internal stakeholders are those directly involved with the planning of the project such as funders, a Board or Directors, or those carrying out the intervention’s purpose. External stakeholders are those on the receiving end of the intervention such as the target audience, community or religious organizations, police or other authorities, and the media. All of these stakeholders have equally important perspectives of the issue you wish to address.
