The Catch-22 of INGOs

I will first qualify this post.  I am a young development worker, which is to say, I'm not very old or experienced.  I have professionally worked for longer than 6 months in one country - which is to say, not very long.

Mozambique has been called a "Foreign Aid Darling" in recent publications, and this moniker does indeed represent a lot of money being thrown to Mozambique in the name of projects.  It's seen everywhere - the big pagoda-shaped resort being built in Maputo by the Chinese, the number of Mozambicans who say "Oh yes, I know a lot of Germans and Danes" and as I'm told, most notably the increase in the number of foreigners both in grocery stores and the offices of Immigration.  

This represents money.  Lots of Money.  And as far as for-profit companies go, it's understandable.  Come to a new, rapidly growing market, make a profit, employ more people, continue profiting.  It's how the system works.  In terms of International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs), this gets more complicated.  They have a mission to "help people."  The problem is this:  how can you help people if you don't know what they need?  There is so much infrastructure in international development attempting to help well-meaning INGOs figure out what the local population actually needs.  I'm not convinced this works though.  I've seen how much reports can be manipulated without ever actually telling a lie.  

These INGOs are rich.  They've been in Mozambique for anywhere from months to decades, and continue with noble mission statements and dedicated staff.  The problem is this: their programs are good.  Mostly worthy of the billions of dollars in funding received.   But not good enough to put themselves out of business (sustainability).  

In a recent conversation with a new colleague, a Mozambican who has spent decades working with everyone who is anyone in the foreign aid business in Mozambique, he clearly laid out the culture of dependency created by these programs.  Farmers had unions.  Then big organizations came in with projects that treated the farmers as babies.  Farmers became dependent on these organizations for money, infrastructure, and ideas, and he we are, decades later, waiting for them to become independent as they are waiting for us to come up with the next idea and pot of money.  

Does this mean that the world would be better without the programs?  I'm not sure yet, to be honest.  I think there are good and bad programs, competent and not competent people, good and bad ideas.  Looking back at my older posts, I think the main problem is this: it's not that we can't build good programs.  It's not that we shouldn't not try to help people because of this fear of dependency.  It's that there is a history and structure bigger than any one program, any one person, and I'm starting to think that we got most of that part wrong.  

HOWEVER.  Mozambique has seen record development since the civil war ended.  So just because a system is wrong or not perfect doesn't mean that it doesn't achieve.  It's complicated.

Things have gotten better for this family.