An important article in this week's Economist on poverty alleviation and social development in Bangladesh, "The Path Through the Fields," (http://tinyurl.com/azttbnl) which has debunked some of the common myths of developmental economics, such as the primary fallacy that growth brings poverty alleviation (since disproved by such economists as Pranab Bardhan, who has shown that in India and China, most poverty alleviation occurred, in fact, not as a result of increased economic opening, but in fact, as a result of agricultural policy changes and other social factors). We must examine the analysis through an enlightened lens, that of social development over economic development, that of understanding the myth of economic growth as the end all for development, that of understanding the role of a functioning government as a mechanism for redistribution, not for wealth creation for the entrenched few.
What Bangladesh has, indeed, shown, is that poverty alleviation can occur with strong grassroots institutions, with the crucial role of a bold and innovative civil society, and with a focus on women's empowerment and women's advancement playing a fundamentally key role.
A fundamental question that I have raised previously that goes unanswered, however, is just how important the makeup of these civil society organizations is, and how this makeup effects their role in a country's transformation.
South Asia is home to the largest, best organized, and most progressive indigenous NGO's on the planet, which have pioneered the route of social development for millions. Organizations such as Pratham in India and BRAC and Grameen in Bangladesh have developed incredible breadth and depth, and have acted as true agents of change for their nations. My question is: why have the majority of African nations NOT developed their own transformative"super-NGO's," and what is the connection between host country ownership/development of NGO's and their actual, on-the-ground effectiveness?
What Bangladesh has, indeed, shown, is that poverty alleviation can occur with strong grassroots institutions, with the crucial role of a bold and innovative civil society, and with a focus on women's empowerment and women's advancement playing a fundamentally key role.
A fundamental question that I have raised previously that goes unanswered, however, is just how important the makeup of these civil society organizations is, and how this makeup effects their role in a country's transformation.
South Asia is home to the largest, best organized, and most progressive indigenous NGO's on the planet, which have pioneered the route of social development for millions. Organizations such as Pratham in India and BRAC and Grameen in Bangladesh have developed incredible breadth and depth, and have acted as true agents of change for their nations. My question is: why have the majority of African nations NOT developed their own transformative"super-NGO's," and what is the connection between host country ownership/development of NGO's and their actual, on-the-ground effectiveness?
