Caitie Eckna Blog Post 2
Caitie Eckna
3/2/22
Does the World Bank Always Help?
The war on poverty can negatively affect the poor. Western organizations involve themselves in developing countries and areas, coming up with ideas that could potentially lessen the amount of poverty. One place where this is evident is in Uganda, where The World Bank tried to implement a dam to change the area's economic status. “NGOs: Fighting Poverty, Hurting the Poor”, by Sebastian Mallaby, works to prove that this activist organization prevents the world bank from helping these poor areas. The purpose of the World Bank is being able to implement actions to promote economic growth. Although Mallaby describes these activist groups preventing positive change in poor areas, these organizations are working to protect the environment and the voiceless.
The plan for Uganda was to develop a dam at the end of the Nile river to improve the economy. This was named the Bujagali Hydropower Project, to promote growth by producing a cheaper power source. This would bring electricity into this area and help to fuel economic growth. This new technology in Uganda would slowly advance the Ugandan society and reduce the percent of people in poverty yet it also would have negative impacts on the environment. This plan would open up the Nile river to large firms to build multiple dams at the bottom of the river. This would disrupt wildlife, waste water, and cause pollution. “permanently submerge highly productive agricultural land as well as islands supporting valuable natural habitats”(International Rivers). This dam may bring technological advancements, but at the expense of the environment.
This plan was mainly put into place to help the people who live in Uganda. In an effort to pull these people out of poverty, The World Bank would be displacing these lives. The dam will force people to move from their homes and relocate. This is a costly change that many of these people cannot afford. “Those displaced will be left permanently poorer as a result of the project”(International Rivers). Many of the resources needed in this society will be lost, like fishing. People will lose their homes, jobs, and resources which are all needed to survive. As well, many of these people will not even be able to afford the grid electricity that the Bujagali project would be supplying. It is evident that only the smallest percentage of the population would get electricity and benefit from it. The non-governmental organizations explain how this grid electricity plan does not seem to be the best solution for Uganda, “Not the best approach for countries with weak energy sectors like Uganda, and certainly not for Uganda's rural poor majority.”(International Rivers). It is clear that despite Mallaby’s claims, the NGOs are fighting to preserve nature and help the poor.
Works Cited
Bujagali Dam, Uganda. International Rivers. (n.d.). Retrieved March 2, 2022, from https://archive.internationalrivers.org/campaigns/bujagali-dam-uganda
Mallaby, S. (2004). NGOs: Fighting poverty, hurting the poor. Foreign Policy, (144), 50. https://doi.org/10.2307/4152984
Ngo' tell world bank bujagali dam is "too flawed". International Rivers Resource Hub. (2021, August 17). Retrieved March 2, 2022, from https://www.riverresourcehub.org/resources/ngo-tell-world-bank-bujagali-dam-is-too-flawed-3341/
Caitie this is a really interesting blog post. We always think in the West that with our money we can help solve almost any problems and help raise people out of poverty. But this clearly contradicts that and explains that what we are doing may not always be the best case scenario. It raises the question as you brushed upon if this is really just a way to get companies to invest in these areas and make money where they may not have if not for this intervention. Also were local groups brought in on this decision making process. Overall great post, you raised a lot of good points.
ReplyDeleteCaitie, super interesting post! This seems like another example of a western institution entering into a situation that it does not know enough about in an effort to "fix" things. I have a couple of questions in regards to this general trend. Do you think supposed benevolent intent really matters in situations such as this one, does the fact that the World Bank was trying to do a good thing matter if it all goes bad? Do you think cultural trainings that encourage western leaders to be more mindful when entering into foreign situations would help to prevent issues like this one from occurring? Do you think that interventions such as this one around the world ultimately amount to a net good or a net bad so to speak, is the world in a better place overall because of these actions?
ReplyDeleteHi Caitie! I really liked the topic you decided to use for your blog post. It's really thought-provoking to see some of the attempts Western countries have made to try and "help" other countries, yet seemingly always falling short due to some of its consequences. I wonder how exactly these organizations and countries can try helping more effectively while incorporating the voices of those actually affected. I'm not sure how these countries would be able to help in a way that isn't destructive or giving off imperialist vibes-- but I wonder what proposals there are/what has been done that have been mindful of the country and its target population.
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