The dreams of a global village set up by World Leaders cannot be far from that of improving the quality of life of all peoples irrespective of race, tribe, affiliation or status. The truth is that hundreds of millions of people are suffering horribly across the world due to bad policies and irresponsible leaderships across the African Continent.
According to the code of ethics for International business transactions, it has been noticed that with increased globalization comes improved and polished international business ethics and the domino effect runs across institutions, companies and frontiers. The number of multinational companies and nonprofits which operate outside their home Country and taking advantage of diaspora engagements as a new window is increasing rapidly.
In the same vein, the active involvement of local communities in seeking, implementing and evaluating the impact of grants are also becoming both fundamental and imperative in moving communities forward within and without the periphery of the aid industry.
Today, we enter into communities with innovative ideals and strategies that has been scrutinized and applied by accomplished researchers in the field.
Appreciative Inquiry (AI) for example is a research-based technique that has been used successfully in a variety of settings in favor of moral obligation on the part of aid donors and aid workers alike. AI builds on the assumption that human systems are said to move in the direction of what they most frequently and persistently ask questions about. Questions about their well-being versus the role of outside players to improve on their lot. This also brings us to the concept of "local champions" once they are given an opportunity to co- run the show.
American poet, Robert Frost tried to allude to this phenomenon in his master piece poem, "The Road Not Taken" in the first two lines:
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry, I could not travel both."
Indeed, there are two divergent paths we can travel as we consider community action, community involvement and community change. But as Frost aptly observed, we just can.t travel both, rather we must choose one in a world symbolized by yellow wood which in itself depicts the idiosyncrasies of society. The choice of moral obligation in working with communities is now becoming a matter of necessity and even government officials are now being under constant surveillance by civil society organizations serving as checks and balances to ensure that they work in the interest of the population and if not, the process of natural selection that has been modernized today in the guise of democracy will invariably catch up with them.
For over two decades now, the process of globalization has been influencing the socio-economic environment in Countries especially in sub-saharan Africa. While globalization provides new opportunities for economic development to Countries through trade liberalization, foreign direct investment, capital flows, remittances, information exchange and technological transfer, it has inversely meant increased deprivation for those nations which have been unable to adjust to the new requirements of the global society. Thus, on one hand, while we witness rapid economic growth and prosperity in some regions, there remains more than a billion people who continue to languish in poverty with purchasing power of less than a dollar a day. In the poorest Countries like Sierra Leone, about one fifth of the children die in the first year of their birth, nearly half of those who survive are malnourished and a significant proportion of the population does not have access to clean water, sanitation, basic health services and education.
The harsh realities of increased global inequalities had been a major concern to the international community over the years , but as the new century opened with an unprecedented declaration of solidarity and determination to rid the world of poverty in the millennium declaration of September, 2000, the world has been waiting with cautious optimism.
Khadarlis for Sierra Leone, founded in 2007 is committed to championing the cause of vulnerable groups in remote communities in Sierra Leone in line with the shift in the development paradigm by working closely with volunteers, civil society organizations, professional associations, and other development partners to attract projects and programs in the south-east of Sierra Leone.
Collective awareness and consciousness about social responsibilities does not stop half way through. It signifies that all key players in the development journey attempt to consider the social consequences of their actions on behalf of vulnerable groups.
Bravo to the International Collective Commitment among World leaders and Philanthropist Community. Surely, your determination to rid the world of poverty will take roots gradually as we monitor trends on the ground. Surely, this theory favors decisions that have positive economic and social effect on developing countries.
Khadarlis for Sierra Leone is strongly on board and we even subscibe immensely to the US strategy for Africa as highlighted in previous posts on this blog. We are on board the ship of socio-economic change with a slogan that we would always follow with persistence: "Rebuilding Villages in Africa - one village after another."
Beautiful concept Aisha - may it all come together, as it should ... :o)
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