Issues around the provision of aid to less developed regions of the world has been quite prominent in current affairs lately. Turbulent financial circumstances within donor nations has prompted sectors of the public to query if the needs of their own countries should not come first. The future of projects like The build school in Africa have a important place in this debate.
Some people fear that financial support sometimes will not get to the people for whom it is meant. The causes for this vary considerably depending on the type of charity and where in the world it is operating.
Corruption is top of the list for many people. People are influenced in their giving by allegations that money or material aid is being syphoned off by corrupt officials for personal gain. Cases of donated food like flour or cooking oil being sold on the black market are well documented. Alternatively where money changes hands, there is always the potential for theft, corruption and fraud. The comparison between people walking for days to beg for meagre rations or medical care and the image of a corrupt leader being chauffeur driven in a luxury limousine is a stark contrast.
Military conflict is sometimes occurs within and between poorer countries. In such periods international aid materials have been known to be hijacked by one party and literally used as a means to blackmail others in the conflict. Natural phenomena such as earthquakes, floods or hurricanes also severely impact against getting aid to where it is needed.
The question that frequently also gets asked is why, after countless years of providing aid, do things never seem to get better. One solution can be found in the old proverb that says if you give a man a fish, then you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. If there is not a serious educational thrust at the center of our aid programs, then the cycle of dependency will never be broken.
It is true to say that simply educating people will not immediately change things and the need for food programs and medical care during times of crisis, will still continue for some time. Similarly the amazing efforts of those conducting inoculation programs will probably still have to continue for some time to come.
If the objective is to get people into a position whereby they can help themselves then clearly educating them has to be the solution. Not much attention is given to this theory and regularly the budgets of defense departments exceed those of educators. The aim of these is often just to prop up illegitimate regimes. Military personnel have neither the intent or the skills to provide a nation with the medical, engineering, agricultural, IT and critically, the teaching personnel so desperately needed. These are some of the occupations needed by countries intent on changing their circumstances.
There is no quick or easy fix to these problems and the solution is certainly far off in the distant future, but the solution lies undoubtedly in the many tiers of education. This is the only means by which enlightenment, vision and inspiration will occur and why The build school in Africa initiative is so vital.
Some people fear that financial support sometimes will not get to the people for whom it is meant. The causes for this vary considerably depending on the type of charity and where in the world it is operating.
Corruption is top of the list for many people. People are influenced in their giving by allegations that money or material aid is being syphoned off by corrupt officials for personal gain. Cases of donated food like flour or cooking oil being sold on the black market are well documented. Alternatively where money changes hands, there is always the potential for theft, corruption and fraud. The comparison between people walking for days to beg for meagre rations or medical care and the image of a corrupt leader being chauffeur driven in a luxury limousine is a stark contrast.
Military conflict is sometimes occurs within and between poorer countries. In such periods international aid materials have been known to be hijacked by one party and literally used as a means to blackmail others in the conflict. Natural phenomena such as earthquakes, floods or hurricanes also severely impact against getting aid to where it is needed.
The question that frequently also gets asked is why, after countless years of providing aid, do things never seem to get better. One solution can be found in the old proverb that says if you give a man a fish, then you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. If there is not a serious educational thrust at the center of our aid programs, then the cycle of dependency will never be broken.
It is true to say that simply educating people will not immediately change things and the need for food programs and medical care during times of crisis, will still continue for some time. Similarly the amazing efforts of those conducting inoculation programs will probably still have to continue for some time to come.
If the objective is to get people into a position whereby they can help themselves then clearly educating them has to be the solution. Not much attention is given to this theory and regularly the budgets of defense departments exceed those of educators. The aim of these is often just to prop up illegitimate regimes. Military personnel have neither the intent or the skills to provide a nation with the medical, engineering, agricultural, IT and critically, the teaching personnel so desperately needed. These are some of the occupations needed by countries intent on changing their circumstances.
There is no quick or easy fix to these problems and the solution is certainly far off in the distant future, but the solution lies undoubtedly in the many tiers of education. This is the only means by which enlightenment, vision and inspiration will occur and why The build school in Africa initiative is so vital.
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