An article found online this morning, written from the perspective of the Sudanese government, calling aid groups in Darfur profit mongers who were only there to serve selfish economic needs, initially repulsed me. ""For some (NGOs) the saddest day would be when the conflict is over because they are benefiting from it,' he (Sudanese Ambassador to the UN Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem Mohamad) said."
I have also just finished reading Michael Maren's The Road to Hell: The Ravaging Effects of Foreign Aid and International Charity. Maren is a former Peace Corps volunteer who spent many years working in aid relief in the Horn of Africa; he paints an extremely unflattering picture of the aid industry. It is important to see both sides of every story, as every story does indeed have more than on angle for viewing, more than one facet for inspection; the world is rarely black and white. And this area is very gray. Many aid agencies do exist for the purpose of existence; they are self-perpetuating monsters who benefit none on the ground, implementing white elephant projects only to draw more funding from naive donors. And often, it is worse than this-the aid money or food aid that is brought in is often the fuel for violent conflict and corrupt regimes. Michael Maren used the case study of Somalia for this fascinating book; this is certainly not the only case of NGO and UN incompetence leading to the net worsening of a civil society after years of experts and billions of dollars. All we need to do is look at the state of Somalia today; a failed state, through and through. One can hope that we have learned from the past; that present and future operations have better oversight, better implementation, and more transparent donor relations; it is hard to believe that the situation is perfect.
One clip from The Road to Hell, a letter written by Maren to USAID administration in Somalia:
At the risk of being labeled politically naive, I submit the following. I cannot in good conscious leave Somalia without expressing these opinions to the US government in writing.
My experience in Beledweyne during the last few months has confirmed my growing suspicion that the Somali government is deliberately taking part in the diversion of refugee food, has deliberately inflated refugee figures in order to facilitate these diversions, and is now simply humoring donors by submitting itself to the impotent inspection and monitoring of these donors.
Our involvement in the refugee relief operation is a participation in a political ploy to gain support for an unpopular military government. I do not presume to influence the policy of the American government in this regard, however I believe that the situation should be recognized for what it is. Our continued support for the refugees makes possible continued activity of the WSLF in the Ogaden, which in turn results in more refugees...
There is a festering resentment among the general population towards the expatriates and the refugees. An old man stopped me on the streets of Beledweyne and demanded to know why he was not entitled to the rations and health care just because he had decided to settle in town instead of the refugee camp.
A man with four children working in Beledweyne for 800 shillings a month (an extraordinarily high salary) could not supply his family with the amount of food the refugees receive for free.
The future for refugees in the camps holds only years of relief. The efforts of the international community should be aimed at solving the problem-getting the refugees out of the camps. "
Might Magazine Interview with Michael Maren:
http://www.netnomad.com/might.html
