An opinion about trade and aid from Lawrence Temfwe of Zambia who was recently in Chicago attending the Willow Creek Leadership Summit...
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Giving aid to Africa to rebuild viable economy is not the answer to Africa’s poverty solution but fair trade said Andrew Rugasira a Ugandan coffee entrepreneur recently at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit. Micah Challenge a world wide Christian movement against poverty of which I am passionately involved would not agree any less. Since its inception several years ago Micah Challenge has been engaging the opinion in the G8 that stop the developing world to add value to their raw products before they export them. Micah Challenge has also been engaging the developing world to address the social, economic and political systems that they inherited from the colonial practices of the Europeans that are designed to keep Africans in poverty.
As I see it, wealth creation in Africa has three major obstacles. First is the need for the G8 and China to open up their market to African products that are value added. For example Africa must add value to its copper and coffee before it is exported. Also market access must be improved, especially to the G8 countries. The second is the most critical. African political leaders have continued to sustain the colonial economic and social models that make it easy for developed countries to import raw materials at a song. Most of these contracts are done corruptly and for the purpose of enriching government leaders and their families. Our political leaders have adopted the same unjust privileges and enjoy the same perks as those our colonial leaders enjoyed. We need servant leaders. Thirdly, Africa continues to lose the best of its educated people to Europe because our system rarely rewards ingenuity or innovation. As a result the African men and women whom God has endowed with abilities to help save their people from poverty, disease and premature deaths are working in Europe and North America, where their work is acknowledged, appreciated and rewarded and because their children have same opportunities as those of government leaders.
The church remains the greatest hope for Africa’s economic transformation. The upswing of concern by Christians all over the world to help people living in poverty is the reason for this hope. However, this concern must be rooted in fuller understanding of why Christ Jesus came. Jesus mission was to put in right relationships with all He created through preaching the good news in word and deeds (Luke 9.2). The message of the Kingdom of God was to be communicated in word and deed. In Acts we read that in the church, “There was no needy person amongst them.” True Christianity defends the cause of the poor, the fatherless and the widow especially when there are acts of injustices against them. A complete understanding of Jesus mission puts the church at the helm of fighting poverty. A lesser understanding makes it to be self-righteous and arrogant and a god instead of being a servant. Hope for the poor lies in people whom God has put His Spirit, “… He will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth.” (Isaiah 42:1-4). God is inviting you to his work among people living in poverty. Have you responded?
Lawrence Temfwe
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
2009 Millennium Development Goals report
From the United Nations Millennium Campaign:
The 2009 MDG Report, leading into the 2010 MDG review conference that represents the last major recommitment before 2015, is both promising and disturbing. Actual progress has been made, but the economic crisis is cutting severely into those gains, and, at this pace, the world will fall far short of achieving the Goals.
Overall, the number of people living in poverty (under $1.25 a day) had dropped by 400 million from 1990 to 2005 (1.4 billion) despite the growth in world population, an astounding number that, on its own, is proof that the Goals are achievable. However, the economic crisis chiseled away at that progress, and 90 million more people are expected to be added back to those rolls this year. Success in reducing hunger worldwide is likewise being reversed.
That news was delivered to the Hill last week at a well-attended briefing helmed by Anita Sharma, North American Coordinator of the Millennium Campaign, Francesca Perucci from UN Stats, and Dan Carucci, Vice President for Global Health at UNF.
Carucci delivered good news on Goal 4. Deaths of children under the age of five dropped from 12.6 million a year in 1990 to 9 million a year in 2007. He specifically pointed out the dramatic surge in the delivery of bed-nets to combat malaria in Africa and the success of measles vaccination programs. The world is also nearing the goal of universal enrollment in primary education , particulary in southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where enrollment increased by 11 and 15 percent respectively between 2000 and 2007.
On every other mark though, we're far behind pace. The most stark reminder came from Carucci: "in 2000 500,000 women died while giving birht, 500,000 died in 2005, and 500,000 will die this year." That is to say, there has been zero progress on Goal 5, reducing the maternal mortality rate by 75 percent.
The report overall is fascinating. It's rare that you get an engaging accessment of how the entire world is working toward achieving collective goals. I highly recommend at least skimming the whole thing (pdf). Here is a link to the report in pdf form: http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG%20Report%202009%20ENG.pdf
The 2009 MDG Report, leading into the 2010 MDG review conference that represents the last major recommitment before 2015, is both promising and disturbing. Actual progress has been made, but the economic crisis is cutting severely into those gains, and, at this pace, the world will fall far short of achieving the Goals.
Overall, the number of people living in poverty (under $1.25 a day) had dropped by 400 million from 1990 to 2005 (1.4 billion) despite the growth in world population, an astounding number that, on its own, is proof that the Goals are achievable. However, the economic crisis chiseled away at that progress, and 90 million more people are expected to be added back to those rolls this year. Success in reducing hunger worldwide is likewise being reversed.
That news was delivered to the Hill last week at a well-attended briefing helmed by Anita Sharma, North American Coordinator of the Millennium Campaign, Francesca Perucci from UN Stats, and Dan Carucci, Vice President for Global Health at UNF.
Carucci delivered good news on Goal 4. Deaths of children under the age of five dropped from 12.6 million a year in 1990 to 9 million a year in 2007. He specifically pointed out the dramatic surge in the delivery of bed-nets to combat malaria in Africa and the success of measles vaccination programs. The world is also nearing the goal of universal enrollment in primary education , particulary in southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where enrollment increased by 11 and 15 percent respectively between 2000 and 2007.
On every other mark though, we're far behind pace. The most stark reminder came from Carucci: "in 2000 500,000 women died while giving birht, 500,000 died in 2005, and 500,000 will die this year." That is to say, there has been zero progress on Goal 5, reducing the maternal mortality rate by 75 percent.
The report overall is fascinating. It's rare that you get an engaging accessment of how the entire world is working toward achieving collective goals. I highly recommend at least skimming the whole thing (pdf). Here is a link to the report in pdf form: http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG%20Report%202009%20ENG.pdf
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Professor Muhammad Yunus Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
From the Grameen Foundation...
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I am delighted to announce that Professor Muhammad Yunus, founder and managing director of Grameen Bank and member emeritus of Grameen Foundation’s board of directors, has been awarded a 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom. Dr. Yunus will receive his medal from President Barack Obama at a special White House ceremony on August 12.
I worked with Dr. Yunus for six years in Bangladesh prior to establishing Grameen Foundation with his support in 1997, and I am delighted that he is being honored for his tremendous work on behalf of poor people worldwide. While living there, I saw Professor Yunus’ humble leadership and pathbreaking ideas changing lives and motivating people at all levels of society to envision and work towards a poverty-free Bangladesh. Today, it is a completely different country than when I first arrived there in 1988, and his work has been at the center of those positive changes.
Ultimately, it is his unwavering belief in the power of even the poorest person in a society—whether they live in a rural Asian village or an urban slum in Africa, Latin America or even the United States—to help themselves that inspires all of us here at Grameen Foundation each and every day.
President Obama captured these sentiments wonderfully in his announcement of the awards, saying, "Each [recipient] saw an imperfect world and set about improving it, often overcoming great obstacles along the way.“
I am deeply honored that Dr. Yunus has invited me to join him and others at the ceremony and look forward to sharing that experience with all of you.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is this nation’s highest civilian honor and recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the United States, world peace and culture. When Dr. Yunus receives his award, he will be joining a distinguished group of individuals that includes Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Please join us in sending congratulations to Dr. Yunus by clicking here. We will present all these congratulatory notes to him on August 13, the day after the awards ceremony.
Sincerely,
Alex Counts
President & CEO
Grameen Foundation
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I am delighted to announce that Professor Muhammad Yunus, founder and managing director of Grameen Bank and member emeritus of Grameen Foundation’s board of directors, has been awarded a 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom. Dr. Yunus will receive his medal from President Barack Obama at a special White House ceremony on August 12.
I worked with Dr. Yunus for six years in Bangladesh prior to establishing Grameen Foundation with his support in 1997, and I am delighted that he is being honored for his tremendous work on behalf of poor people worldwide. While living there, I saw Professor Yunus’ humble leadership and pathbreaking ideas changing lives and motivating people at all levels of society to envision and work towards a poverty-free Bangladesh. Today, it is a completely different country than when I first arrived there in 1988, and his work has been at the center of those positive changes.
Ultimately, it is his unwavering belief in the power of even the poorest person in a society—whether they live in a rural Asian village or an urban slum in Africa, Latin America or even the United States—to help themselves that inspires all of us here at Grameen Foundation each and every day.
President Obama captured these sentiments wonderfully in his announcement of the awards, saying, "Each [recipient] saw an imperfect world and set about improving it, often overcoming great obstacles along the way.“
I am deeply honored that Dr. Yunus has invited me to join him and others at the ceremony and look forward to sharing that experience with all of you.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is this nation’s highest civilian honor and recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the United States, world peace and culture. When Dr. Yunus receives his award, he will be joining a distinguished group of individuals that includes Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Please join us in sending congratulations to Dr. Yunus by clicking here. We will present all these congratulatory notes to him on August 13, the day after the awards ceremony.
Sincerely,
Alex Counts
President & CEO
Grameen Foundation
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