NGOs role in poverty alleviation urged
JAKARTA (JP): Authoritarian regimes or dictatorships do not appear to be conducive to the development of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), but this condition must not discourage social workers from helping the poor, a Malaysian social activist said yesterday.
The treasurer general of the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW), Abdullah Malim Baginda, also advised social activists, however, to be more diplomatic and refrain from taking a confrontational stance against governments for the sake of their general populations.
"Confrontations will not benefit anybody, and they may create problems for the very people NGOs are trying to assist," Baginda told 330 participants of the council's 26th Asia and Pacific regional conference in Jakarta.
He warned that the success of an NGO depended greatly on its relationship with a government because it lacked expertise and access to information on policy issues relevant to its work.
"A forum for regular NGOs/government dialog, as well as progressive government policies on the social organizations will benefit both parties," Baginda said.
The activist also noted how grassroots groups often ignored efficient management because they only concentrated on their work.
"NGOs are often forced to confront internal issues such as management, their dependency on external donors, (lack of) transparency and their need for professionalism," he said.
According to Baginda, efficient management was important in generating confidence and acceptance of the government, donors and the community.
"However, they should not allow others to determine what should be done," he added.
Education
Also in yesterday's session of the five-day conference, women activists spoke up for the campaign to eradicate poverty whose dire effect was often felt by women and children.
Educator Khunying Ambhorn Meesook of the Foundation for Lifelong Education in Thailand said that education should focus on children from low-income families in order to help them break free from poverty.
"If they can lift themselves out of absolute poverty, they will have the chance to find satisfaction in their lives and in turn will provide their own children with a fair start," Khunying said.
She lamented how only a few educational programs were for the poor and how the current universal curriculum, designed by educators who inherently had middle-class values, was not suitable for their needs.
She also expressed regret that children from poor families entered schools with considerably lower budgets, lower qualified staff and with less material and equipment than children from richer families.
Another expert, Helen Disney, concentrated on the role of women in encouraging social change through the family and relationships.
Disney, an interim chairperson of The Asia Pacific Forum on Families, said women were still struggling for acknowledgement of their status in society.
She cited the director of the World Health Organization in Europe, Ilona Kickbusch, who said higher educational levels for women would improve their status.
Resources
Economist and former state minister of environment, Emil Salim, said that poverty arose from the lack of access to natural resources. He said the degradation of natural resources in Asia was the result of development that took place during the last 30 years.
Indonesia is considered a very successful nation in reducing poverty. The United Nations Development Program will present an award to President Soeharto next week for his outstanding commitment to the alleviation of poverty.
Separately, economist Mubyarto said in a seminar held by the Bogor Institute of Agriculture in Bogor, West Java, that Indonesia could eradicate absolute poverty by 2005.
"At that time we would have been able to face even the most severe economic competition from other nations," said the assistant to State Minister of National Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasmita on the poverty alleviation program.
The conference on social welfare concludes today. (09/prb/24)