Today kind of feels like the last day of school before summer holidays...when you are expected to be present, but not really expected to do anything productive....I find that my heart and brain have disengaged from the University and the work we have been doing.
In order to prepare for our departure, we left the consultant to work with the faculty and staff, collecting the necessary data for us to assist tomorrow in creating the business plan. As such, I have taken some time to do some reflecting - as is evident with the next two postings.
Through working with NUR staff on Phase II of the Strategic Plan, I found myself continually throwing the consultant questions about his role, as a western consultant, in the "development" process of the University. Often my thoughts steer to the relevance/importance of local cultural values in this planning and development process.
I place hope in the process I have witnessed this week at the University as it is likely one of the most inclusive processes in creating a business plan for strategic development at such a high level of institution.
I have watched the consultant work with the staff of NUR and it has been like watching a teacher set up a grade 8 class for an independent project in a student-centered classroom. With participation from staff, the consultant has established deadlines for decisions to be made and communicated with the project co-coordinator at CIDE, names were assigned to various tasks, locations for new offices were assigned, and detailed lists of necessary ICT equipment were created. Although I am optimistic, I am also conflicted as to what I think about this process. I was embarrassed for the staff at NUR as I saw them being treated like children, yet I recognize that this step was necessary to prevent the "shelving" of the Strategic Plan that it took a painful 3 months to develop. As the consultant asked the staff, "how many foreign consultants have stood before you, how many development plans have been shelved, and how much donor money has been spent on creating these plans?". And that is the reality...not only at NUR.
I am incessantly questioning what "development" means, what role I think I can morally and ethically play in the processes, what good existing projects/plans are doing, how the "systems" can be changed, how we can redefine development....and I am leaving with more questions than when I came.
However, I can make the following statements about development based on my very limited experience:
In order to prepare for our departure, we left the consultant to work with the faculty and staff, collecting the necessary data for us to assist tomorrow in creating the business plan. As such, I have taken some time to do some reflecting - as is evident with the next two postings.
Through working with NUR staff on Phase II of the Strategic Plan, I found myself continually throwing the consultant questions about his role, as a western consultant, in the "development" process of the University. Often my thoughts steer to the relevance/importance of local cultural values in this planning and development process.
I place hope in the process I have witnessed this week at the University as it is likely one of the most inclusive processes in creating a business plan for strategic development at such a high level of institution.
I have watched the consultant work with the staff of NUR and it has been like watching a teacher set up a grade 8 class for an independent project in a student-centered classroom. With participation from staff, the consultant has established deadlines for decisions to be made and communicated with the project co-coordinator at CIDE, names were assigned to various tasks, locations for new offices were assigned, and detailed lists of necessary ICT equipment were created. Although I am optimistic, I am also conflicted as to what I think about this process. I was embarrassed for the staff at NUR as I saw them being treated like children, yet I recognize that this step was necessary to prevent the "shelving" of the Strategic Plan that it took a painful 3 months to develop. As the consultant asked the staff, "how many foreign consultants have stood before you, how many development plans have been shelved, and how much donor money has been spent on creating these plans?". And that is the reality...not only at NUR.
I am incessantly questioning what "development" means, what role I think I can morally and ethically play in the processes, what good existing projects/plans are doing, how the "systems" can be changed, how we can redefine development....and I am leaving with more questions than when I came.
However, I can make the following statements about development based on my very limited experience:
- the intricacies of the of the cultural context are pertinent to any type of development project
- human nature cannot be ignored
- all processes must be inclusive of those who will be affected by change
- language plays an integral role in understanding between the foreign and local institution/organization; even if both parties speak English, it does guarantee the same understanding of what words mean and this can greatly impact communication
"The idea of development stands today like a ruin in the intellectual landscape. Its shadow obscures our vision."
"Development is much more than just a socio-economic endeavour; it is a perception which models reality, a myth which comforts societies, and a fantasy which unleashes passions. Perceptions, myths and fantasies, however, rise and fall independent of empirical results and rational conclusions; they appear and vanish, not because they are proven right or wrong, but rather because they are pregnant with promise or become irrelevant."
~Wolfgang Sachs~
"Development is much more than just a socio-economic endeavour; it is a perception which models reality, a myth which comforts societies, and a fantasy which unleashes passions. Perceptions, myths and fantasies, however, rise and fall independent of empirical results and rational conclusions; they appear and vanish, not because they are proven right or wrong, but rather because they are pregnant with promise or become irrelevant."
~Wolfgang Sachs~
I have an affinity for these statements as it has been made evident time and time again that often imported development projects do not work yet, we (the west) continue to pour our guilt money into Africa without reflecting on whether or not what is being practiced is working. Our world seems to be at a loss for 'solutions' yet, does not take the time to stop and think. We pay for consultants to land for two weeks, impose a development plan, and fly out - all the while deep down having an inclination that the plan likely will never create the change intended.
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