At this time, when governments of developing nations are increasingly skeptical of foreign funding, barriers imposed by the donor countries put grassroots CSOs at enormous risk. As powerful elites in the Global South continue to discredit CSOs in the name of ‘foreign agents’, tied aid contributes to this narrative, muddying the waters for activists.
When the sector talks about donor fatigue or donors saying they don’t see where the money is going. Well, only less than 10% of your money comes directly to us. They should ask Northern CSOs about the other 90% – they shouldn’t ask us.
Prezados membros do Comitê de Ajuda ao Desenvolvimento (CAD) da Organização para a Cooperação e o Desenvolvimento Econômico (OCDE),
Nós somos parte do movimento #ShiftThePower (#PoderParaAsComunidades), uma rede global de grupos da sociedade civil e organizações internacionais aliadas do campo de desenvolvimento internacional. Escrevemos ao CAD com uma preocupação urgente.
For a long time, details governing the flow of resources from OECD DAC members to Global South CSOs have been “buried” in layers of paperwork and technical language in a manner that has been opaque and difficult to grasp. However, our analysis of DAC member aid flows reveals systemic imbalances in the distribution of Official development assistance
A poem by Sugarbird:
When all the acronyms fade away and the jargon moves to the periphery
All that remains true are the strands we call community.
Decades of debate and research of the factors that enable communities to act.
As I edit this draft that was originally started in December shortly after the summit (which I decided to shelve to go for my annual break) I remember the power of rest that resounded throughout the summit. I remember the curiosity on the faces of over 700 people. I remember the tranquility room where I once napped, and I was joined by a participant who was having her prayers. I remember how we both co-existed in that space, her in her prayers, me in my half sleep/siesta and there was a powerful message within that moment that has stayed with me ever since. That we can co-exist, in rest and in care.
Have you heard of imaginal cells? This is what Amaha Selassie asked us as we sat in the jungle-themed hotel lobby. It was the night after the #ShiftThePower Summit in Bogotá, and 5 of us had come together seemingly by accident, talking for hours about the worlds of possibility and complexity that the Summit had unlocked. None of us knew about these cells, so Amaha explained
The decision to develop this strategy came after a period of introspection and a strong demand from our members to prioritize the people. There was a perception that ZimRights had fallen victim to elite capture creating a Secretariat that was in the pocket of the donors with no motivation for shifting the power.
Recognizing that no single person has capacity to take on the whole system, incremental change in multiple different places can be powerful.
Hope is a strategy, and we need to practice what we preach.
