|
| Sunday, 05 September 2010 |
|
|
|
|
Ujamaa Center National Visitor Program
Community Development: A Process or Event or a Case of Waiting with what wants to come?
Introduction
“Change had always occurred in Africa before the coming of the Europeans. Whether the pre-European age was golden or one of unredeemed barbarity is not helpful to useful scholarship - and neither is it true. It was clearly logical for the colonialists to try and supplant the traditional values of the persons they colonized. One - way of going about this was to derogate indigenous cultures as the pit of darkness of itself - something irredeemably barbaric and congenitally evil” I quote here from a paper I wrote for a debate in Partner News a journal of MS Kenya and it leads me to the questions, what influences the way we think, act and respond to challenges in life? How has research, education and our hopes contributed to the way we do things? Does religion, culture, language, education and the arts have any part to play in determining our development or underdevelopment? What and who defines our destiny, identity and course of change? It is such reflections that inspired the formation of Ujamaa Center in 2001. Since then much water has passed under the bridge. What have we learnt? It is these lessons that we wish to share in this visitor program mooted by Allavida for a new member of the team but which we wish to institutionalize for the world to learn about the Coast of Kenya and our efforts in spirituality, social and community capital and alternative systems. Monday March 14, 2005
The participants used this day to reflect on the theory and practice of development based on the paper shared by Ochieng and video documentary ‘Why Africa is Poor’. Our history it was noted is very subjective and divide and rule tactics have been used to divide us. Our society therefore has been shaped by this history of fraud. The way we value things as Africa so that anything good is associated with whites. The way whites use Africans to become rich, capitalism in Africa and the way Africans struggle for leadership were delved into at great length. Consumerism and how this has eroded the fabric of Western society was shocking. Of concern however was the fast rate at which Africa is copying these cultures. Strategies like buy nothing days in the North were a good lesson from the video Affluenza. There was the whole issue of how the North is exploiting the south through trade, the impact of trade rules that disallow processed coffee to go to the North and how the North uses double standards when it comes to dealing with Africa. Over reliance on one product is dangerous, alternatives need to be found this advise was given to Africa. There was too the whole issue of the way our governments deny people rights and subjugate them, there seems to be only two tribes the rich and the poor. Yet it wasn’t also clear whether the panacea to these disparities was in political systems adopted. Capitalism and socialism some felt were central to the crisis. Some however did not see how socialism could work. People went back to days of the hunter-gatherers, feudalism, capitalism and how this has influenced Kenyan development. That whole debate about the rich versus the poor, loss of identity; spirituality: how far is one touched when there is a problem in the environment? The loss of support systems after losing our collective values is what has led to the very complex relationships we have now. If Europeans didn’t come would we better than we are today? That we also had our own capitalism was acknowledged. A participant who works for the Catholic church observed that they give relief food, build hospitals etc. and Pokots benefit the most, however on Sunday they go to Legio Maria and other sects which offer them nothing. How can one explain this? When helping people must they reciprocate? Do we intend to get returns when we do these things? Do we take or build on what is there? When doing hunting and gathering, what value did we place on it? Why do people become lawyers? Commerce took us over, commercialization of processes? The coming of Europeans has eroded some of our ways and this has affected us negatively. Decision-making, the rules of hunting then and now, dispute resolution mechanisms were clear and consequences known if mistakes were made. Decisions are now made by a central government; other people decide the rules, chief etc. The constitutional review process is an important one therefore but has been short changed. Why has socialism suffered so much? Why isn’t it working in the world? Cuba has tried it and worked with it for long but is far the only one. Sankara also tried this and has got into a lot of trouble. The scramble for Africa informs the power games now. These were such tissue issues and opinions were as diverse as the group was. Overall the day was one that enabled all the participants to do some soul-searching on African religion, spirituality, culture, local knowledge and alternatives. The school system was singled out for criticism as having contributed to lack of ideological direction among African elite. Passions ran high at some points but the debate was deep and philosophical.
Please Read or Download the rest of the document in Library
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
