adminA FEW weeks ago, I attended a forum for Non-Governmental Organisations operating in one district in Matabeleland North province in which around 21 NGOs from various sectors were in attendance. The organisations operate in different spheres of development and are of different financial and human resources composition. However, it became very apparent to me that quite a substantial amount of resources was being poured or allegedly poured into the district.
Being a livestock practitioner the question that immediately came into my mind was whether we have corresponding evidence of development on the ground that is related to the amount of resources that are being channeled or allegedly channeled to this sector not only in that particular district but in other districts across the whole country where such resources have been directed to? Another question was what role should Government, both central and local play in monitoring and ensuring that resources said to be mobilised for a certain sector and agreements have being signed for execution of certain tasks are actually spent and used for that purpose in the agreed areas?
It is basic knowledge that Non-Governmental Organisations mobilise resources to carry out tasks for and on behalf of Government and surely it is therefore a no brainer that Government must and should know what happened to the resources that were mobilised and obtained for a specific task in specific geographical locations.
Without Government tracking down the final destination of these resources we will continue to have cases of glossy headlines that are not matched by equal and tangible development on the ground.
I can’t even remember how many times I have read articles in our papers about such and such an organisation having put in $5, $10, $15 million for the development of livestock in Matabeleland yet farmers in the two provinces continue to cry for drinking water for their animals, still use dip tanks that were built ages ago and are still bedevilled by rangeland issues.
This article is not in any way insinuating that all Non-Governmental Organisations misdirect or abuse the money they get for community development but the article is definitely revolting against tokenised development in which names of vulnerable communities are used only to legitimise proposals and once the money is obtained it is either directed to communities of personal interests or is used to finance an obscenely extravagant lifestyle!
Government should surely take a keen interest especially where large sums of monies are involved because some of the amounts that get reported in the media can build small dams or even rehabilitate existing dams but what you see is a whole international organisation going to put a two metre by two metre fence around a functioning borehole and then install a screaming sign post with all fancy logos to announce its esteemed and timely intervention!
In some cases the sign posts appear to have cost way more than what was spent on the said activity.
I have a classical case in Matabeleland South where one giant Non-Governmental Organisation built tiny makeshift metallic blair toilets for an urban community and thereafter convened a well to do opening ceremony attended by their directors, some all the way from Harare.
Even someone with scrambled eggs for brain would have seen that the amount of money spent in constructing those toilets did not warrant that level of amplified celebration and one can even hazard that the cost of fuel and hotel accommodation for those directors easily surpassed what they were ululating about.
The call therefore from this pen is for Government to take an active role of superintending over the use of resources that have been sought and found in its name for the development of its communities.
Government role cannot just begin and end in signing operational agreement papers with these organisations.
Disclaimer: Mhlupheki Dube writes in his personal capacity hence this article and others should not be misconstrued to represent views of his employer or partners.
Sidumisile Mabena