There is one hotel in Addis Ababa that volunteers from other parts of Ethiopia often use when they come to the capital. The manager in this hotel is very friendly towards all patrons, especially volunteers. It was during one of my medical check-ups that I had this funny and illuminating conversation with him.
“You look tired. Where have you been?” He asked politely.
“Oh, I went to the hospital.” I answered.
“You’re sick?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“You know, I have a cure for that. I can give it to you for free.” He enthusiastically informed me.
“Oh yeah, what is it?”
“Holy water.”
“I’m sorry?” I asked again, unsure that I heard him right.
“Holy water."
At this point I can’t help but laugh. I knew that he meant well and I did apologize for laughing.
"It can cure you of your sickness. It can cure anybody of any disease.” He insisted.
“But I don’t believe in holy water.”
“It’s true. I assure you.” He replied, with his right hand raised in the manner of taking a serious oath.
“Well, then you should probably boil it first before I can take it. We’ve been warned against drinking water that has not been boiled and filtered.”
“But that would take away its healing powers.” He answered, eyebrows raised slightly and eyes rounding in surprise.
I laughed again. My well-intentioned hotel manager was disappointed and aghast at the mere suggestion of boiling the holy water. But he and his staff laughed with me. They probably realized the futility of convincing me of their holy water’s powers.
Pardon my ignorance, but apparently, this holy water comes from a holy spring. The sanctity of the source is what makes the water holy. Thus, boiling it is out of the question.
Well, should I risk drinking the pure holy water for a possibility of being cured? Not a chance. But that conversation left me with a feeling of hope; that there are still some people who believe in miracles even if I don’t believe them myself.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Notes: Poverty and Development – Part 4
As a development worker working and traveling in developing countries, I noticed one common and disturbing theme: POVERTY. For me, poverty is THE development issue. It has been a perennial problem that majority of the world’s population faces. But the lack of impact of development efforts on developing countries, despite the years and the billions of dollars spent on programs makes me wonder if development programs helping poor countries as intended or are they fostering dependency on international aid, corruption within the government and consequently, furthering poverty and underdevelopment? This has led me to one major question: what have we not done right?
This is the last part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
WHAT HAVE WE NOT DONE RIGHT?
It is needless to say that capitalism prioritizes profit over everything else. Thus, it is only natural that capitalist-led development further encourages materialism and colonial mentality among Filipinos. Land conversions to give way to urbanization and industrialization went unchecked at the expense of food availability and environmental sustainability.
Despite warnings against natural resources depletion and degradation, indiscriminate logging and fishing for profit continues to destroy the ecological balance of upland, lowland and coastal ecosystems, leading to floods, soil erosion, siltation and endangerment, even extinction, of biological species. In their desire to join the export band wagon deemed to be more profitable, more farmers have turned to cash crop production oriented towards markets abroad, leaving the needs of the local people unmet and the local market weak.
The grassroots cooperatives, credit and livelihood programs implemented with funds from international donors were aimed at alleviating the financial situation of families and communities. Yet, development interventions somehow forgot to include the financial institutions’ regard for small debtors in the equation.
Despite evidence that poor people can also be responsible debtors as evidenced in the high repayment rates of credit programs, banks and other institutional lenders still ignore these people’s requests for loans to either start or expand a business. Poor people are left to the mercy of loan sharks who demand excessively high interest rates on loans which eventually lead debtors to either close and sell their businesses and other properties, or plunge them deeper in debt, or both.
The drive towards increasing access to education for all children indeed resulted to high literacy rate. But as illustrated earlier, this was not complemented with an increase in employment and business opportunities. The Philippine education system is basically employment-oriented, specifically urban employment. It fails to encourage rural occupation, environmental concern, entrepreneurship and diversification of capital.
Instead, it encourages Filipinos to put all their eggs in one basket – employment. It promotes the idea that employment, especially in multinational/international corporations within the country, or any other employment outside the country is the only way to ensure an income and bring them out of poverty. The swelling number of middle class comprised mostly of OFWs and professionals are helpless in the face of unemployment despite having some savings. This lack of initiative to invest in the country is further aggravated by the government’s ineptitude to encourage investment and promote business opportunities for the middle class.
Materialism and commercialism, both prerequisites and by-products of capitalism have bred greed and undermined positive Filipino values and traditions. Wealth became the sole measure of a man’s worth regardless of its source or the means by which it was acquired. Corruption in all levels and across all branches of the government is rampant. OFWs see each other as competitors for employment, leading to widespread distrust, skepticism, cynicism and conflict among Filipinos abroad. The Filipino value of putting the family’s needs and interests first still remains. Yet, the traditional values and practices of community cooperation (bayanihan), altruism and nationalism (pagmamalasakit sa kapwa at sa bansa), and even protection of the environment (pangangalaga sa kalikasan) are slowly deteriorating.
Donor-driven capitalist-led development in the Philippines for more than half a century has only made Philippine development highly dependent on external funding and markets. It has failed to ensure the sustainability of development. It has somehow made development as the goal in itself instead of treating it as an evolutionary process that needs to be sustained.
And this is what we have not done right in all the years and efforts on development in the Philippines. What makes it more alarming is that this is still the kind of development that is being pursued in all developing and underdeveloped countries by international development movers from the capitalist nations.
This is the last part of the Notes on Poverty and Development post. I would like to clarify that these are just my views, and mine alone. You are welcome to comment on the topic and issues discussed herein...
This is the last part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
WHAT HAVE WE NOT DONE RIGHT?
It is needless to say that capitalism prioritizes profit over everything else. Thus, it is only natural that capitalist-led development further encourages materialism and colonial mentality among Filipinos. Land conversions to give way to urbanization and industrialization went unchecked at the expense of food availability and environmental sustainability.
Despite warnings against natural resources depletion and degradation, indiscriminate logging and fishing for profit continues to destroy the ecological balance of upland, lowland and coastal ecosystems, leading to floods, soil erosion, siltation and endangerment, even extinction, of biological species. In their desire to join the export band wagon deemed to be more profitable, more farmers have turned to cash crop production oriented towards markets abroad, leaving the needs of the local people unmet and the local market weak.
The grassroots cooperatives, credit and livelihood programs implemented with funds from international donors were aimed at alleviating the financial situation of families and communities. Yet, development interventions somehow forgot to include the financial institutions’ regard for small debtors in the equation.
Despite evidence that poor people can also be responsible debtors as evidenced in the high repayment rates of credit programs, banks and other institutional lenders still ignore these people’s requests for loans to either start or expand a business. Poor people are left to the mercy of loan sharks who demand excessively high interest rates on loans which eventually lead debtors to either close and sell their businesses and other properties, or plunge them deeper in debt, or both.
The drive towards increasing access to education for all children indeed resulted to high literacy rate. But as illustrated earlier, this was not complemented with an increase in employment and business opportunities. The Philippine education system is basically employment-oriented, specifically urban employment. It fails to encourage rural occupation, environmental concern, entrepreneurship and diversification of capital.
Instead, it encourages Filipinos to put all their eggs in one basket – employment. It promotes the idea that employment, especially in multinational/international corporations within the country, or any other employment outside the country is the only way to ensure an income and bring them out of poverty. The swelling number of middle class comprised mostly of OFWs and professionals are helpless in the face of unemployment despite having some savings. This lack of initiative to invest in the country is further aggravated by the government’s ineptitude to encourage investment and promote business opportunities for the middle class.
Materialism and commercialism, both prerequisites and by-products of capitalism have bred greed and undermined positive Filipino values and traditions. Wealth became the sole measure of a man’s worth regardless of its source or the means by which it was acquired. Corruption in all levels and across all branches of the government is rampant. OFWs see each other as competitors for employment, leading to widespread distrust, skepticism, cynicism and conflict among Filipinos abroad. The Filipino value of putting the family’s needs and interests first still remains. Yet, the traditional values and practices of community cooperation (bayanihan), altruism and nationalism (pagmamalasakit sa kapwa at sa bansa), and even protection of the environment (pangangalaga sa kalikasan) are slowly deteriorating.
Donor-driven capitalist-led development in the Philippines for more than half a century has only made Philippine development highly dependent on external funding and markets. It has failed to ensure the sustainability of development. It has somehow made development as the goal in itself instead of treating it as an evolutionary process that needs to be sustained.
And this is what we have not done right in all the years and efforts on development in the Philippines. What makes it more alarming is that this is still the kind of development that is being pursued in all developing and underdeveloped countries by international development movers from the capitalist nations.
This is the last part of the Notes on Poverty and Development post. I would like to clarify that these are just my views, and mine alone. You are welcome to comment on the topic and issues discussed herein...
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Notes: Poverty and Development – Part 3
As a development worker working and traveling in developing countries, I noticed one common and disturbing theme: POVERTY. For me, poverty is THE development issue. It has been a perennial problem that majority of the world’s population faces. But the lack of impact of development efforts on developing countries, despite the years and the billions of dollars spent on programs makes me wonder if development programs helping poor countries as intended or are they fostering dependency on international aid, corruption within the government and consequently, furthering poverty and underdevelopment? This has led me to one major question: what have we not done right?
This is the third part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
THE PHILIPPINE BRAIN DRAIN
The government’s inability to utilize local resources, knowledge and skills for the development of the country is starkly evident in the education-employment situation. The high literacy rate of the Philippines did not produce the long term impact on development as expected.
It is notable that government-run public schools offer free elementary and secondary education to all Filipino children, resulting to the high literacy rate. Only a fraction of high school graduates proceeds to the next level because college or university education is very expensive. Even subsidized state colleges and universities are still too expensive for poor people to afford.
But Filipinos value education so much that poor people would go to some lengths, such as selling or borrowing (as collateral) on their meager properties (land, house, livestock, others) just to send their children to college and university. Thus, there are still a considerable number of university graduates every year who need jobs that the government is unable to provide.
This surplus of skilled labor consequently led to the Philippine “brain drain” phenomenon as more and more Filipinos seek employment abroad. The low salary rates in the country pushed even those who already hold jobs to seek employment in other countries that offer higher wages, even if it meant having to work at a much lower level than their qualifications or previous positions. Coming from the biggest English-speaking nation in Asia, with relatively cheap labor, Filipinos were the preferred choice in non-English-speaking countries.
The first to go were the teachers, midwives, accountants and secretaries to work as domestic helpers initially in neighboring rich countries like Hong Kong and Singapore. The geographical coverage eventually included Saudi Arabia and other gulf countries as the type of work also expanded to include other service-related employment, such as nursing, entertainment, hotel, restaurant and construction, among others. The recent batch of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) was mostly comprised of medical practitioners in response to the increase in the demand for health care workers in Europe and the USA.
As gender equality spread in developed nations in the west during the last quarter of the 20th century, more jobs became available to women. Nursing, which was predominantly a female occupation became the least preferred work as women in these countries chose less demanding jobs with higher pay. Registration in nursing schools dropped, consequently leading to inadequate labor supply in hospitals and other health care institutions. Thus, by the start of the 21st century when European countries and the US found themselves needing more health care service providers to cater to the baby boomers of the 60’s, they were forced to look for labor supply outside their own territories.
Having a surplus of nurses, the Philippines became one of the first, if not the biggest supplier of health care service providers to these countries. The English language skill of Filipinos, coupled with other Filipinos characteristics and values have boosted the demand for Filipino health care workers. Enrollment in nursing and health care courses in colleges and universities increased. New training institutes specifically offering short courses on health care sprung around the country. Some of these short courses are bundled with promises of immediate employment abroad after completion of the course.
The salaries of these health workers in Europe and the US are higher than employment wages and income from professional practice in the Philippines. This encourages licensed doctors and qualified professionals from other fields (education, engineering, accounting, etc.) to go back to school to study either the four-year nursing course (for those who can afford the time and tuition) or the short health care courses.
The migration of skilled workers caused more problems other than the brain drain. It has divided families, leaving children with at least only one parent (sometimes even none). Many of the husbands and wives left behind have become dependent on their spouse’s remittances. The absence of the spouse led husbands to seek other women and wives other men. The children experienced emotional issues, resulting to delinquency and other social problems. A number of husbands and wives are known to squander their spouse’s income on alcohol, gambling and luxury items. Thus, many OFWs find that they have no savings when they come home, pushing them to work abroad again. And this becomes the OFW cycle that traps them.
The brain drain phenomenon however, also had positive outcomes especially at the national and household levels. Overseas jobs have absorbed a considerable percentage of unemployed Filipinos. The remittances of OFWs comprise a sizable percentage of the GDP. It has lifted many families from poverty, allowing them to buy properties and send children to good schools.
Yet, the positive gains from the brain drain are precariously anchored on the economies of other countries. The current economic recession in Europe and the US has already affected much of the world’s economies, including Japan, one of major export markets (along with the US) of Philippine products. Being export-oriented (labor and products), the Philippines is expected to be gravely hit. The rising industry of customer service call centers in the country, which has somehow slackened the brain drain, is also expected to take a beating. These companies are mainly US and Europe-owned. As the recession continues, the companies will be forced to shrink their customer service employees in an effort to save the business from total collapse and bankruptcy.
The effects of the recession are already being felt. Many OFWs, along with call center employees find themselves unemployed. Those in cash crop production have to contend with the shrinking export market. At present, employment rate is increasing and there is a surge of OFW returnees who lost their jobs and consequently leading to a drop in remittances. All of these only prove the superficiality of Philippine development.
Please wait for the last part of this 4-part post...
This is the third part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
THE PHILIPPINE BRAIN DRAIN
The government’s inability to utilize local resources, knowledge and skills for the development of the country is starkly evident in the education-employment situation. The high literacy rate of the Philippines did not produce the long term impact on development as expected.
It is notable that government-run public schools offer free elementary and secondary education to all Filipino children, resulting to the high literacy rate. Only a fraction of high school graduates proceeds to the next level because college or university education is very expensive. Even subsidized state colleges and universities are still too expensive for poor people to afford.
But Filipinos value education so much that poor people would go to some lengths, such as selling or borrowing (as collateral) on their meager properties (land, house, livestock, others) just to send their children to college and university. Thus, there are still a considerable number of university graduates every year who need jobs that the government is unable to provide.
This surplus of skilled labor consequently led to the Philippine “brain drain” phenomenon as more and more Filipinos seek employment abroad. The low salary rates in the country pushed even those who already hold jobs to seek employment in other countries that offer higher wages, even if it meant having to work at a much lower level than their qualifications or previous positions. Coming from the biggest English-speaking nation in Asia, with relatively cheap labor, Filipinos were the preferred choice in non-English-speaking countries.
The first to go were the teachers, midwives, accountants and secretaries to work as domestic helpers initially in neighboring rich countries like Hong Kong and Singapore. The geographical coverage eventually included Saudi Arabia and other gulf countries as the type of work also expanded to include other service-related employment, such as nursing, entertainment, hotel, restaurant and construction, among others. The recent batch of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) was mostly comprised of medical practitioners in response to the increase in the demand for health care workers in Europe and the USA.
As gender equality spread in developed nations in the west during the last quarter of the 20th century, more jobs became available to women. Nursing, which was predominantly a female occupation became the least preferred work as women in these countries chose less demanding jobs with higher pay. Registration in nursing schools dropped, consequently leading to inadequate labor supply in hospitals and other health care institutions. Thus, by the start of the 21st century when European countries and the US found themselves needing more health care service providers to cater to the baby boomers of the 60’s, they were forced to look for labor supply outside their own territories.
Having a surplus of nurses, the Philippines became one of the first, if not the biggest supplier of health care service providers to these countries. The English language skill of Filipinos, coupled with other Filipinos characteristics and values have boosted the demand for Filipino health care workers. Enrollment in nursing and health care courses in colleges and universities increased. New training institutes specifically offering short courses on health care sprung around the country. Some of these short courses are bundled with promises of immediate employment abroad after completion of the course.
The salaries of these health workers in Europe and the US are higher than employment wages and income from professional practice in the Philippines. This encourages licensed doctors and qualified professionals from other fields (education, engineering, accounting, etc.) to go back to school to study either the four-year nursing course (for those who can afford the time and tuition) or the short health care courses.
The migration of skilled workers caused more problems other than the brain drain. It has divided families, leaving children with at least only one parent (sometimes even none). Many of the husbands and wives left behind have become dependent on their spouse’s remittances. The absence of the spouse led husbands to seek other women and wives other men. The children experienced emotional issues, resulting to delinquency and other social problems. A number of husbands and wives are known to squander their spouse’s income on alcohol, gambling and luxury items. Thus, many OFWs find that they have no savings when they come home, pushing them to work abroad again. And this becomes the OFW cycle that traps them.
The brain drain phenomenon however, also had positive outcomes especially at the national and household levels. Overseas jobs have absorbed a considerable percentage of unemployed Filipinos. The remittances of OFWs comprise a sizable percentage of the GDP. It has lifted many families from poverty, allowing them to buy properties and send children to good schools.
Yet, the positive gains from the brain drain are precariously anchored on the economies of other countries. The current economic recession in Europe and the US has already affected much of the world’s economies, including Japan, one of major export markets (along with the US) of Philippine products. Being export-oriented (labor and products), the Philippines is expected to be gravely hit. The rising industry of customer service call centers in the country, which has somehow slackened the brain drain, is also expected to take a beating. These companies are mainly US and Europe-owned. As the recession continues, the companies will be forced to shrink their customer service employees in an effort to save the business from total collapse and bankruptcy.
The effects of the recession are already being felt. Many OFWs, along with call center employees find themselves unemployed. Those in cash crop production have to contend with the shrinking export market. At present, employment rate is increasing and there is a surge of OFW returnees who lost their jobs and consequently leading to a drop in remittances. All of these only prove the superficiality of Philippine development.
Please wait for the last part of this 4-part post...
Monday, May 18, 2009
Notes: Poverty and Development – Part 2
As a development worker working and traveling in developing countries, I noticed one common and disturbing theme: POVERTY. For me, poverty is THE development issue. It has been a perennial problem that majority of the world’s population faces. But the lack of impact of development efforts on developing countries, despite the years and the billions of dollars spent on programs makes me wonder if development programs helping poor countries as intended or are they fostering dependency on international aid, corruption within the government and consequently, furthering poverty and underdevelopment? This has led me to one major question: what have we not done right?
This is the second part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES
Having a history of more than half a century of development work, the Philippine experience may be the best example to illustrate my answer. Its development history has been driven by both capitalist-led interventions and socialist ideals. The oldest-known non-government organization (NGO), the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) was founded in 1952 based on Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s…
This long history of development in the Philippines has resulted to several positive outcomes. Today, the country has one of the highest literacy rates (98%) in the world. While there are still human rights violations, it boasts of having one of the highest levels of gender equality among developing nations, especially in education and employment.
Many sectoral organizations have formed national-level federations and international alliances to represent and advocate for grassroots interests. The enactment of the Local Government Code (LGC) has empowered local communities to be independent and to address problems at the local level. There has also been a noticeable decrease in the number of people living below the poverty line as the proportion of the middle class expanded.
These gains however, are currently being threatened. The World Bank has categorized the Philippines as a middle income country at the start of the 21st century (year?) due to the rise in its HDI and GDP. As a consequence, much of the international donor agencies pulled out from the country, resulting to a chain reaction starting with the closure of majority of local NGOs. Without support from the NGOs, many cooperatives and community-based organizations (CBOs) collapsed, further weakening the civil society movement.
In addition, majority of financial programs such as credit and livelihood were stopped, and environmental protection and rehabilitation activities were abandoned. In less than a decade the country’s development has regressed, leading the World Bank and other donor agencies to question if they had pulled out of the country too soon.
Blaming the country’s regression solely on the pull-out of international funding is oversimplifying the situation. There are of course several other factors that contributed to the Philippines’ regression. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) implemented in 1988 under the Aquino administration failed to protect farmers from decisions of landowners to convert agricultural lands into residential, commercial or industrial areas.
These converted lands are exempted from CARP and were not distributed to the farmers who have worked on it for decades and centuries. The land remains with the landowner. Moreover, the CARP and the government in general, failed to subsidize small farmers, leaving them vulnerable to exorbitant prices of agricultural inputs.
As the Philippine government pursued industrialization, many farmers found it more practical to sell their land for conversion than to continue tilling them. Many of those who continued farming turned to cash crops which generated more revenues than agricultural food crops. These land conversions and increase in cash crop production led to the scarcity of food in the country. It is ironic that the Philippines, host to the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) established to increase rice production, ended up importing rice from other countries that benefitted from IRRI’s research and training.
Please wait for the 3rd part of this 4-part post...
This is the second part of my effort at examining the historical development trends and progress, with a focus on the Philippines.
DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES
Having a history of more than half a century of development work, the Philippine experience may be the best example to illustrate my answer. Its development history has been driven by both capitalist-led interventions and socialist ideals. The oldest-known non-government organization (NGO), the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) was founded in 1952 based on Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s…
This long history of development in the Philippines has resulted to several positive outcomes. Today, the country has one of the highest literacy rates (98%) in the world. While there are still human rights violations, it boasts of having one of the highest levels of gender equality among developing nations, especially in education and employment.
Many sectoral organizations have formed national-level federations and international alliances to represent and advocate for grassroots interests. The enactment of the Local Government Code (LGC) has empowered local communities to be independent and to address problems at the local level. There has also been a noticeable decrease in the number of people living below the poverty line as the proportion of the middle class expanded.
These gains however, are currently being threatened. The World Bank has categorized the Philippines as a middle income country at the start of the 21st century (year?) due to the rise in its HDI and GDP. As a consequence, much of the international donor agencies pulled out from the country, resulting to a chain reaction starting with the closure of majority of local NGOs. Without support from the NGOs, many cooperatives and community-based organizations (CBOs) collapsed, further weakening the civil society movement.
In addition, majority of financial programs such as credit and livelihood were stopped, and environmental protection and rehabilitation activities were abandoned. In less than a decade the country’s development has regressed, leading the World Bank and other donor agencies to question if they had pulled out of the country too soon.
Blaming the country’s regression solely on the pull-out of international funding is oversimplifying the situation. There are of course several other factors that contributed to the Philippines’ regression. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) implemented in 1988 under the Aquino administration failed to protect farmers from decisions of landowners to convert agricultural lands into residential, commercial or industrial areas.
These converted lands are exempted from CARP and were not distributed to the farmers who have worked on it for decades and centuries. The land remains with the landowner. Moreover, the CARP and the government in general, failed to subsidize small farmers, leaving them vulnerable to exorbitant prices of agricultural inputs.
As the Philippine government pursued industrialization, many farmers found it more practical to sell their land for conversion than to continue tilling them. Many of those who continued farming turned to cash crops which generated more revenues than agricultural food crops. These land conversions and increase in cash crop production led to the scarcity of food in the country. It is ironic that the Philippines, host to the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) established to increase rice production, ended up importing rice from other countries that benefitted from IRRI’s research and training.
Please wait for the 3rd part of this 4-part post...
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Notes: Poverty and Development – Part 1
As a development worker and tourist in developing countries, I noticed one common and disturbing theme: POVERTY. For me, poverty is THE development issue. It has been a perennial problem that majority of the world’s population faces. Billions of dollars have been spent on thousands of various poverty interventions. Countless seminars, fora, conferences and conventions have been held to discuss poverty and come up with workable solutions. Technological innovations have focused on increasing food production.
Despite all these efforts, poverty still remains as a huge problem in itself, as well as both a major cause and consequence of other issues that underdeveloped and developing nations struggle with. This apparent lack of impact of development initiatives on world poverty has prompted many development stakeholders to ask why, including me. It makes me wonder if development programs helping poor countries as intended or are they fostering dependency on international aid, corruption within the government and consequently, furthering poverty and underdevelopment. So, what have we not done right?
ACROSS THE YEARS
Development paradigms, approaches and interventions have evolved throughout the years. These are intricately intertwined with political-economic discourses. The first paradigm equated development with economic progress. It proposed that poverty can only be addressed through economic-oriented interventions.
With this, the socialist-communist perspective argued that only by revolutionizing the political-economy of the country can true development prosper -- by eliminating inequality, poverty will be addressed. From the other end of the political-economic spectrum, the capitalists believed that strengthening the economy is the only way to development and address poverty.
The cold war brought on not only the arms race, but also a development race. As capitalist nations tried to prevent the spread of socialism-communism to the rest of the world, development funding and interventions naturally poured in from them into the underdeveloped and developing countries. They believed that effects of economic progress will trickle down to poor countries and communities.
However, as time passed and very little change was perceived in the poverty situation of the beneficiary-nations, development planners and managers realized that economic progress, while an important prerequisite to development, is not the only aspect that needs to be addressed.
Acknowledging the cyclic nature of poverty, development initiatives moved to encompass education and health among others. This resulted to a more comprehensive measure of development. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP), considered as a reliable measure was then replaced by the Human Development Index (HDI). In line with the new encompassing approach, the HDI includes indicators on education and health, along with economic indicators like income and employment.
While equality, human rights and people’s participation are considered integral to democracy, these were yet to be realized in a capitalist-led development. Thus, as the socialist-communist nations pursued their brand of development with the same ideals of equality and empowerment, and gaining new allies along the way, development planners and managers from the rich capitalist nations had to reconsider their approaches. Equality, human rights and empowerment moved from the political sphere into the development arena.
A whole new development paradigm took shape by the last quarter of the 20th century. From the top-to-bottom approach typical of capitalism, interventions moved on to the bottom-to-top participatory approach. The focus changed from economic-centered empowerment to general political empowerment. The scope covers not only economic progress but a more holistic development that includes environmental sustainability as well. And finally, the method changed from being curative problem-oriented to preventive awareness-raising and capacity-building.
This is still the development paradigm that shapes the current development approaches and interventions. Yet, as I have noted earlier, poverty still remains, if not increasingly becoming the biggest development problem in the world. This brings us back to the question of “why.”
Please wait for Part 2 of this 4-part post...
Despite all these efforts, poverty still remains as a huge problem in itself, as well as both a major cause and consequence of other issues that underdeveloped and developing nations struggle with. This apparent lack of impact of development initiatives on world poverty has prompted many development stakeholders to ask why, including me. It makes me wonder if development programs helping poor countries as intended or are they fostering dependency on international aid, corruption within the government and consequently, furthering poverty and underdevelopment. So, what have we not done right?
ACROSS THE YEARS
Development paradigms, approaches and interventions have evolved throughout the years. These are intricately intertwined with political-economic discourses. The first paradigm equated development with economic progress. It proposed that poverty can only be addressed through economic-oriented interventions.
With this, the socialist-communist perspective argued that only by revolutionizing the political-economy of the country can true development prosper -- by eliminating inequality, poverty will be addressed. From the other end of the political-economic spectrum, the capitalists believed that strengthening the economy is the only way to development and address poverty.
The cold war brought on not only the arms race, but also a development race. As capitalist nations tried to prevent the spread of socialism-communism to the rest of the world, development funding and interventions naturally poured in from them into the underdeveloped and developing countries. They believed that effects of economic progress will trickle down to poor countries and communities.
However, as time passed and very little change was perceived in the poverty situation of the beneficiary-nations, development planners and managers realized that economic progress, while an important prerequisite to development, is not the only aspect that needs to be addressed.
Acknowledging the cyclic nature of poverty, development initiatives moved to encompass education and health among others. This resulted to a more comprehensive measure of development. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP), considered as a reliable measure was then replaced by the Human Development Index (HDI). In line with the new encompassing approach, the HDI includes indicators on education and health, along with economic indicators like income and employment.
While equality, human rights and people’s participation are considered integral to democracy, these were yet to be realized in a capitalist-led development. Thus, as the socialist-communist nations pursued their brand of development with the same ideals of equality and empowerment, and gaining new allies along the way, development planners and managers from the rich capitalist nations had to reconsider their approaches. Equality, human rights and empowerment moved from the political sphere into the development arena.
A whole new development paradigm took shape by the last quarter of the 20th century. From the top-to-bottom approach typical of capitalism, interventions moved on to the bottom-to-top participatory approach. The focus changed from economic-centered empowerment to general political empowerment. The scope covers not only economic progress but a more holistic development that includes environmental sustainability as well. And finally, the method changed from being curative problem-oriented to preventive awareness-raising and capacity-building.
This is still the development paradigm that shapes the current development approaches and interventions. Yet, as I have noted earlier, poverty still remains, if not increasingly becoming the biggest development problem in the world. This brings us back to the question of “why.”
Please wait for Part 2 of this 4-part post...
Monday, May 11, 2009
Ethiopia: Travel Back in Time
In modern day Ethiopia, I can still see how Africa must have looked during Jesus’ era. Nothing much has changed if you compare it to paintings of olden days. It always feels like I’ve been transported in time. Only the main roads have been paved. Most streets and even major roads are still red or brown.
A big part of Ethiopia is in the Rift Valley, so they have a lot of these red volcanic rocks which they grind into smaller stones that they then spread over the streets and roads. They say it does not absorb water, instead allowing the water to go straight to the soil. So, it keeps the roads/streets from turning into mud during rainy season and peoples’ feet drier. And it actually works!
The regional capital of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State (SNNPRS) is Awassa. It is not that far from the capital and it is along the “best” highway in all of Ethiopia. It only takes 4 hours ride by minibus or car and 7 hours by big bus (because the big bus stops so often for food!) from the national capital, Addis Ababa. It is the second largest “city” in Ethiopia, but still looks like a small town in all aspects compared to other cities in developing countries.
For transportation, they have the autorickshaws which they call Bajaj since it is the name of the company that exports them to Ethiopia from India. It is like a motorized pedicab in Asia but much bigger wherein the passengers are behind the driver. They also have the horse-drawn carriage. Those are the main modes of transportation around the town.
For out-of-town trips, you will have to take the vans which they call the minibus or the bigger buses. You will also find donkey-drawn carts used for moving wares, water, firewood, hay, etc.
There are horses, donkeys, goats, sheep and cows everywhere. You may not know this but Ethiopia has the most number of livestock in Africa. You’ll find horses and donkey being left by their owners to fend for themselves when they are too sick to work – I mean the animals.
They don’t eat horse or donkey meat and since it would take a lot of energy to bury them when they die, dead horses and donkeys, or whatever dead livestock are left on the side of the streets as hyena meal. You’ll be amazed at how fast these hyenas can finish off a horse. A dead horse may be left in the evening and by morning you’ll only see the bones.
In Ethiopia, you’ll see the rich and the poor in the same villages which must have been the case during biblical times. They have no “rich” or “poor” villages as we know in most countries today.
The secret is that Ethiopia was a former monarchy that gives out land titles to everyone who applies for land. It is not real land ownership as we know it. Rather, it is only a transfer of land rights. And these patches of land used to be of the same size for everyone that is actually big by many developing countries’ standards.
Many compounds are separated from other houses with tall concrete walls, probably to keep off both thieves and hyenas. Others only have bamboo fences or GI sheets which I doubt would keep off neither the hyena nor the thief.
They also don’t designate areas for the poor or the rich. I think the government gives land titles depending on the area assigned to be distributed and according to whoever is applying for land by that time. When the federal government took over after the monarchy was overthrown, they did not change the system (well, I think only until recently).
So, whether you can afford to build a concrete house or only a mud hut, you’ll have the same lot size with everyone else. You own the house though, which you can sell along with the land rights.
A big part of Ethiopia is in the Rift Valley, so they have a lot of these red volcanic rocks which they grind into smaller stones that they then spread over the streets and roads. They say it does not absorb water, instead allowing the water to go straight to the soil. So, it keeps the roads/streets from turning into mud during rainy season and peoples’ feet drier. And it actually works!
The regional capital of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State (SNNPRS) is Awassa. It is not that far from the capital and it is along the “best” highway in all of Ethiopia. It only takes 4 hours ride by minibus or car and 7 hours by big bus (because the big bus stops so often for food!) from the national capital, Addis Ababa. It is the second largest “city” in Ethiopia, but still looks like a small town in all aspects compared to other cities in developing countries.
For transportation, they have the autorickshaws which they call Bajaj since it is the name of the company that exports them to Ethiopia from India. It is like a motorized pedicab in Asia but much bigger wherein the passengers are behind the driver. They also have the horse-drawn carriage. Those are the main modes of transportation around the town.
For out-of-town trips, you will have to take the vans which they call the minibus or the bigger buses. You will also find donkey-drawn carts used for moving wares, water, firewood, hay, etc.
There are horses, donkeys, goats, sheep and cows everywhere. You may not know this but Ethiopia has the most number of livestock in Africa. You’ll find horses and donkey being left by their owners to fend for themselves when they are too sick to work – I mean the animals.
They don’t eat horse or donkey meat and since it would take a lot of energy to bury them when they die, dead horses and donkeys, or whatever dead livestock are left on the side of the streets as hyena meal. You’ll be amazed at how fast these hyenas can finish off a horse. A dead horse may be left in the evening and by morning you’ll only see the bones.
In Ethiopia, you’ll see the rich and the poor in the same villages which must have been the case during biblical times. They have no “rich” or “poor” villages as we know in most countries today.
The secret is that Ethiopia was a former monarchy that gives out land titles to everyone who applies for land. It is not real land ownership as we know it. Rather, it is only a transfer of land rights. And these patches of land used to be of the same size for everyone that is actually big by many developing countries’ standards.
Many compounds are separated from other houses with tall concrete walls, probably to keep off both thieves and hyenas. Others only have bamboo fences or GI sheets which I doubt would keep off neither the hyena nor the thief.
They also don’t designate areas for the poor or the rich. I think the government gives land titles depending on the area assigned to be distributed and according to whoever is applying for land by that time. When the federal government took over after the monarchy was overthrown, they did not change the system (well, I think only until recently).
So, whether you can afford to build a concrete house or only a mud hut, you’ll have the same lot size with everyone else. You own the house though, which you can sell along with the land rights.
Ethiopian Trivia: Lucy, Moses and Jesus
When people hear of Ethiopia, sick, thin, hungry children almost always come to mind. This is the result of the posters that International Development and Funding Agencies circulated around the world when they talked about poverty and hunger.
And as you probably know already, the "missing link" which they call Lucy was found in Ethiopia, far from the "cradle of civilization" which is South Africa.
But, did you know that the Ark of the Covenant - the chest containing the tablets of the Ten Commandments that Moses received from God - and Jesus' cross are said to be found in Ethiopia?
They say that these are guarded by one (or more) tribe(s) in northern Ethiopia. Ethiopians claim to have found the true cross of Jesus that they even have an annual celebration for that every September which they call the Meskel Celebration (Meskel being Amharic for Cross).
There may be some merits to their claim about the covenant although I’m skeptical about the cross. You see, an Ethiopian queen, Queen of Sheba, was said to have seduced King Solomon and became his mistress. Historical accounts say that she certainly visited King Solomon. As for being his mistress, there is no concrete evidence. She may have gotten the Ark from King Solomon for safekeeping.
If you have read your bible, you may remember that King Solomon's house/family was the safe keeper of the Ark. Or they may have gotten it when Ethiopia once conquered Egypt.
Nonetheless, Ethiopia is not only about poverty and AIDS, or about children being waited upon by vultures as a meal. Ethiopia has much more history than most people know, enough to whet the appetite of the curious. For me, Ethiopia is the right place for my quest for old civilizations and the origin of mankind.
So if you are looking for some sort of adventure to give you a sense of time travel, or curious about ancient civilizations, Ethiopia is waiting for you...
And as you probably know already, the "missing link" which they call Lucy was found in Ethiopia, far from the "cradle of civilization" which is South Africa.
But, did you know that the Ark of the Covenant - the chest containing the tablets of the Ten Commandments that Moses received from God - and Jesus' cross are said to be found in Ethiopia?
They say that these are guarded by one (or more) tribe(s) in northern Ethiopia. Ethiopians claim to have found the true cross of Jesus that they even have an annual celebration for that every September which they call the Meskel Celebration (Meskel being Amharic for Cross).
There may be some merits to their claim about the covenant although I’m skeptical about the cross. You see, an Ethiopian queen, Queen of Sheba, was said to have seduced King Solomon and became his mistress. Historical accounts say that she certainly visited King Solomon. As for being his mistress, there is no concrete evidence. She may have gotten the Ark from King Solomon for safekeeping.
If you have read your bible, you may remember that King Solomon's house/family was the safe keeper of the Ark. Or they may have gotten it when Ethiopia once conquered Egypt.
Nonetheless, Ethiopia is not only about poverty and AIDS, or about children being waited upon by vultures as a meal. Ethiopia has much more history than most people know, enough to whet the appetite of the curious. For me, Ethiopia is the right place for my quest for old civilizations and the origin of mankind.
So if you are looking for some sort of adventure to give you a sense of time travel, or curious about ancient civilizations, Ethiopia is waiting for you...
Ahh… India!
Sensory assault – that’s India for me. It is cows, temples, festivals, Hinduism, Gods, arts, architecture, incense, colors, poverty, rickshaw, spices, tea, dirt, grease, and overloaded trains. It is all these things combined, and more, that confronts you when you step in Indian soil.
The richness of colors, sounds, smells, textures and tastes that is uniquely India has made me fall in love with the country, the very same reason why some people don’t want to go back to India.
In these times when people have become very obsessed with the fast life, when the desire to make more money have ripped relationships apart, when technology have made intimacy and closeness a thing of the past, and when apathy is the norm, India is the ultimate test of the nerves, of one’s senses. It reminds me that I am human, and how it is to be one.
For me, India would always be a place of paradoxical metaphors, of dreams and nightmares, of the attractive and repulsive, of the mundane and outlandish, and of life and death. It is where you can experience life in i
ts raw form. India exudes that unrefined energy that reminds you of your mortality and your relationship with nature.That’s the thing about India. Against the onslaught of modernization, beneath the veneer of civilization, there lies the primeval energy that is undeniably perceptible to any mortal soul that steps on its soil.
Either you’ll love it or detest it. As I said earlier, India is an assault to the senses. Needless to say, I fell in love with India.
And because of these, I would always want to go back to India. Not to live there. It is too rich for me. It is too full of life that it is both invigorating and draining. The energy around can be overwhelming and humbling, but never calming.
And so, my love affair with India would always be an intermittent one, for fear that a daily dose of it will just make me burst out of my own skin.
Indian Clothing 101
Women in both Bangladesh and India are discouraged from showing too much skin or wear tight dresses that cling to their bodies, showing the shape of their breasts and buttocks.
They may show their bare belly when wearing a sari and some skin on their arms with short-sleeved kameez or sari blouse, but never the shoulders. Their lower garments must also cover their ankles. Thus, most of them wear high-heeled sandals so as not to trip over their long
shalwar or sari.
Some women, especially from very traditional and religious Muslim families, mostly in the villages and a few in the cities, wear the very loose and very long burka over their shalwar kameez or sari.
The black burka is known around the world as the trademark clothing of Muslim women, sometimes covering their whole face, other times showing only their eyes. It is a very convenient disguise for someone not wanting to be noticed, especially in places where almost half the population is wearing it. Thus, it gained prominence when the Al Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden allegedly escaped capture by disguising himself in burka.
I was told that most of the people in India and Bangladesh don’t have or wear undergarments. The men have no boxer shorts or briefs under their pants or lunggi and the women seldom wear bra and panty under their blouse and sari or kameez.
I initially couldn’t imagine not wearing undergarments. But having experienced summer in Bangladesh, I now find this practice very convenient for everyone and practical too. Summers are so hot and humid, so the lesser the clothes, the better. In fact, many foreigners from whatever country in Asia, Europe, North America or Africa, wear lunggi in their flats, just as “westernized” Bangladeshis wear pants to their offices or schools.
The lunggi is equal opportunity clothing for men. I was told that all Bangladeshi men, from whatever economic status wear lunggi at their homes. It doesn’t matter whether they are professionals who wear double-breasted suits to the office, students who wear the school uniforms, or street workers who wear the lunggi to their work. When they are at home, they all wear lunggi.
Besides, the lunggi makes it easier for men to pee, especially since they pee squatting, whether in squat toilets indoors or in the sewers or rivers outside.
But whatever they are wearing, their clothes are always a mixture of designs and colors. I have never seen a single person in another place, much less a whole population of people wearing as many colors and prints in a single set of clothes as daily attire.
Women may have straight or angled designs on one garment and, flowing, rounded or curved prints on its pair, all in two to five different colors. The men have no qualms wearing flower-printed or light-colored shirts or lunggi that are considered too feminine in the western culture.
Imagine this: a woman in orange shalwar, with some small purple and green triangle prints and trims, paired with a purple kameez with green or orange stripes and a green orna with orange and purple circles. Or this: yellow shalwar with red stripes, orange kameez with yellow flowers and a red orna that has orange, red and yellow squares.
Then imagine multiplying this woman and the colors and prints of her clothing into thousands that you meet everyday in the streets of India. Then you’ll only have the tip of a picture of India.
They may show their bare belly when wearing a sari and some skin on their arms with short-sleeved kameez or sari blouse, but never the shoulders. Their lower garments must also cover their ankles. Thus, most of them wear high-heeled sandals so as not to trip over their long
shalwar or sari.Some women, especially from very traditional and religious Muslim families, mostly in the villages and a few in the cities, wear the very loose and very long burka over their shalwar kameez or sari.
The black burka is known around the world as the trademark clothing of Muslim women, sometimes covering their whole face, other times showing only their eyes. It is a very convenient disguise for someone not wanting to be noticed, especially in places where almost half the population is wearing it. Thus, it gained prominence when the Al Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden allegedly escaped capture by disguising himself in burka.
I was told that most of the people in India and Bangladesh don’t have or wear undergarments. The men have no boxer shorts or briefs under their pants or lunggi and the women seldom wear bra and panty under their blouse and sari or kameez.
I initially couldn’t imagine not wearing undergarments. But having experienced summer in Bangladesh, I now find this practice very convenient for everyone and practical too. Summers are so hot and humid, so the lesser the clothes, the better. In fact, many foreigners from whatever country in Asia, Europe, North America or Africa, wear lunggi in their flats, just as “westernized” Bangladeshis wear pants to their offices or schools.
The lunggi is equal opportunity clothing for men. I was told that all Bangladeshi men, from whatever economic status wear lunggi at their homes. It doesn’t matter whether they are professionals who wear double-breasted suits to the office, students who wear the school uniforms, or street workers who wear the lunggi to their work. When they are at home, they all wear lunggi.
Besides, the lunggi makes it easier for men to pee, especially since they pee squatting, whether in squat toilets indoors or in the sewers or rivers outside.
But whatever they are wearing, their clothes are always a mixture of designs and colors. I have never seen a single person in another place, much less a whole population of people wearing as many colors and prints in a single set of clothes as daily attire.
Women may have straight or angled designs on one garment and, flowing, rounded or curved prints on its pair, all in two to five different colors. The men have no qualms wearing flower-printed or light-colored shirts or lunggi that are considered too feminine in the western culture.
Imagine this: a woman in orange shalwar, with some small purple and green triangle prints and trims, paired with a purple kameez with green or orange stripes and a green orna with orange and purple circles. Or this: yellow shalwar with red stripes, orange kameez with yellow flowers and a red orna that has orange, red and yellow squares.
Then imagine multiplying this woman and the colors and prints of her clothing into thousands that you meet everyday in the streets of India. Then you’ll only have the tip of a picture of India.
Sense of Privacy in Bangladesh: A Matter of Perspective
Being a foreigner in Bangladesh is not easy. The Bangladeshis always want to talk to you. They are very curious and they stare. It's not impolite to stare in their culture. They will stare at you as long as they want. And even if you stare back, they won't budge.
And not only stare. They will also actually ask you very personal questions without blinking. Like if you're married, and if yes, where's your spouse, how many children you have, how old they are, etc. If no, then why not, and if you have a special friend back home or here, etc.
It's actually just harmless curiosity and they want to practice their English with you. Besides, it's somehow prestigious for them to talk, and especially befriend, a foreigner or a “bideshi”. They would brag to their family and friends if they have talked to a bideshi, even if it was for only a few minutes. So, it's normal if you get invited to the house of someone whom you just met in the streets.
But sometimes, it gets too much. They have a different sense of privacy. They entertain visitors in the bedroom. So, when they enter your flat, they wouldn't hesitate to enter your bedroom or examine your things and clothes. Even to the point of opening your closets or drawers. They think that that is a normal thing to do because that’s what they do with other locals.
Some volunteers, especially those placed in the rural areas shared stories of being horrified about having their Bangladeshi visitors go through their things and find out very personal gadgets like a dildo. To an adult, you can brush it off as a tool for HIV&AIDS-related awareness raising campaigns or workshops. But it would have been a different scenario if children were to find them.
Bangladeshis are very friendly and very curious, particularly in the villages. Not so much in Dhaka though. The people in Dhaka are somehow more reserved. Probably because it is the capital and the people are more exposed to western and other cultures, although you would still get the occasional stares and questions.
Sometimes, neighbors would even knock on your door to try to befriend you. But of course, if you're a foreigner, you can never be too careful about letting strangers inside your flat. We don't even do that at home. And we have also been warned to be extra cautious, being a foreigner.
In a very poor country where most people haven’t even been outside their village, much less the country, the stereotype of foreigners being rich is still very strong. They think still that all foreigners have money.
The Bangladesh Van: A Case of Language Barrier
Rickshaws are the most common form of transportation in much of Asia. The modern rickshaw is a pedal cycle with three wheels, one in front of the driver, and one on each side of the covered passenger seat. It is commonly called pedicab in other parts of Asia.
The original rickshaw was much the same as the pedicab. But instead of it being pedaled and having a third wheel in
front of the driver, it is being pulled by someone, usually a man. This method of transporting passengers by pulling the rickshaw has given birth to the term “rickshaw puller.”
I am sure that many of us at some point may have seen a depiction of a rickshaw as this is a common theme of both old and new photos of Asia.
A rickshaw-van however, is a custom-made three-wheeled cycle with a wooden flatbed attached to the two rear wheels instead of the passenger seat of a normal rickshaw. But in Bangladesh, they sometimes call this only as “van.”
I remember one of the Canadian volunteers was fooled by their use of the word van. When she first met the executive director of the partner organization she was going to be working with, she was told that the organization has a van that she can use as transportation for her field work. Her work involved frequent visits to the partner community organizations in the remote villages.
When she finally saw the van, she was very shocked. But she just laughed it off. She eventually learned to like it. It's actually cooler than a regular automobile van. You have the wind on your face. But you have to have a hat to protect yourself from the sun during summer.
She used to ride the van with her back to the rickshaw puller and her feet dangling beneath her. Can you imagine a beautiful 60-year old white female with white-blond hair doing that? She was cruising along the small alleyways and side streets in the farming villages of Southern Bangladesh. And you bet, she caused quite a stir.
My first experience with the Bangladeshi van, if not the only so far, was when I first crossed India from Bangladesh with two friends. We had to take the van from the bus stop to the customs and immigrations offices located a mile away. We were so thrilled by the novelty of the experience that we took pictures of ourselves riding on the van. We even tried to tell the rickshaw puller (the Bengali term is wallah) to stop for a few minutes so we could take pictures.
But the rickshawallah refused. He wanted to reach the waiting area as fast as possible so he could go back to the bus and take other passengers. They are paid by the bus company according to the number of passengers and number of times they have brought passengers from the bus stop to the border. And the fare is very minimal. So we did not insist on the stop.
Instead, my friends and I tried to take pictures by just extending their arms. I’m sure most people have tried that and found it easy enough when you’re sitting or standing
still. But it’s a different story when you’re on a moving rickshaw.
We were all sitting on the edge of the flatbed because our bags occupied the middle. So couldn't move much, otherwise the flatbed would flip over. We didn’t relish the thought of being run over by a rickshaw. Besides, the road wasn't exactly that smooth.
Thus, we ended up spending the rest of the rickshaw trip trying to take pictures of ourselves on the van while trying to hold on to the flatbed so as not to fall over. We did that until we reached the waiting area.
The rickshawallah immediately took off once the last of our bags was taken from his van.
As we tried to settle down on the plastic chairs outside the waiting room which was already full of people and luggage, one of my friends asked me what they call the real van – the auto/motorized one. I told her they call it the minibus.
The original rickshaw was much the same as the pedicab. But instead of it being pedaled and having a third wheel in
front of the driver, it is being pulled by someone, usually a man. This method of transporting passengers by pulling the rickshaw has given birth to the term “rickshaw puller.”I am sure that many of us at some point may have seen a depiction of a rickshaw as this is a common theme of both old and new photos of Asia.
A rickshaw-van however, is a custom-made three-wheeled cycle with a wooden flatbed attached to the two rear wheels instead of the passenger seat of a normal rickshaw. But in Bangladesh, they sometimes call this only as “van.”
I remember one of the Canadian volunteers was fooled by their use of the word van. When she first met the executive director of the partner organization she was going to be working with, she was told that the organization has a van that she can use as transportation for her field work. Her work involved frequent visits to the partner community organizations in the remote villages.
When she finally saw the van, she was very shocked. But she just laughed it off. She eventually learned to like it. It's actually cooler than a regular automobile van. You have the wind on your face. But you have to have a hat to protect yourself from the sun during summer.
She used to ride the van with her back to the rickshaw puller and her feet dangling beneath her. Can you imagine a beautiful 60-year old white female with white-blond hair doing that? She was cruising along the small alleyways and side streets in the farming villages of Southern Bangladesh. And you bet, she caused quite a stir.
My first experience with the Bangladeshi van, if not the only so far, was when I first crossed India from Bangladesh with two friends. We had to take the van from the bus stop to the customs and immigrations offices located a mile away. We were so thrilled by the novelty of the experience that we took pictures of ourselves riding on the van. We even tried to tell the rickshaw puller (the Bengali term is wallah) to stop for a few minutes so we could take pictures.
But the rickshawallah refused. He wanted to reach the waiting area as fast as possible so he could go back to the bus and take other passengers. They are paid by the bus company according to the number of passengers and number of times they have brought passengers from the bus stop to the border. And the fare is very minimal. So we did not insist on the stop.
Instead, my friends and I tried to take pictures by just extending their arms. I’m sure most people have tried that and found it easy enough when you’re sitting or standing
still. But it’s a different story when you’re on a moving rickshaw.We were all sitting on the edge of the flatbed because our bags occupied the middle. So couldn't move much, otherwise the flatbed would flip over. We didn’t relish the thought of being run over by a rickshaw. Besides, the road wasn't exactly that smooth.
Thus, we ended up spending the rest of the rickshaw trip trying to take pictures of ourselves on the van while trying to hold on to the flatbed so as not to fall over. We did that until we reached the waiting area.
The rickshawallah immediately took off once the last of our bags was taken from his van.
As we tried to settle down on the plastic chairs outside the waiting room which was already full of people and luggage, one of my friends asked me what they call the real van – the auto/motorized one. I told her they call it the minibus.
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