Realism vs. Idealism in a cooperation and development context: a never-ending dilemma

Working in a cooperation and development context is for everybody, experienced and non-experienced staff, an amazing but yet complicated challenge. And if this is true when working in poor resources countries, it is definitely even more challenging when working in a "tremendously rich" country like DR Congo. 

DR Congo President Joseph Kabila and UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon

This paradox more than on exogenous (aka. external) causes lies mainly on the "bad will" of its politicians and authorities.

In fact, these administrators instead of working to reduce the inequalities gap among their citizens, prefer keeping the current social and economic "status quo" as it is certainly the most profitable for themselves.

Perhaps, it is highly rhetorical to say that but nonetheless it allows us to go directly to the core issue of the causes that prevent countries like DR Congo to develop as they should and do deserve: widespread corruption.

Before arriving in DR Congo, I was convinced as many "mundele" at their first experience in Africa that the "white colonizers" were the main responsible of all or a great part of the miseries present in the African continent. 

But once on the field, I could realise that this far from the truth, at least as it concerns the current economic and political situation nowadays. Corruption is indeed the main responsible to which point the finger at. And corruption is not an exclusive feature of the "mundele race", unfortunately.

Now, the dilemma is the following: working in a potentially rich country and devoting huge resources (both human and financial) from the international community, proves to be a frustrating experience due to the misallocation of the country’s wealth by the local politicians, getting the feeling of “giving away fish rather than teaching them how to fish”.

UN peace-keeper in Eastern Congo

The same dilemma can be illustrated with the “Drop the Debt” initiative.

Indeed, what is the sense of dropping the debt of countries like DR Congo if this will lead to even more corruption and no financial accountability at all, towards the international community and their citizens?.

This reminds me of a friend of mine’s say: “Help someone when they are in trouble and they will remember you when they are in trouble again”.

Is this really the very purpose of our stay in this country? Granting unlimited withdrawal right from the international community bank account? Ownership must go hand in hand with accountability and on the basis of the accountability provided by the beneficiary country, it will depends the conditionality of the assistance provided to the latter.

Therefore, when working in a development and cooperation context, we might be caught in “Catch 22” situation, where the ideal of helping the population of given country collides with a reality where a true development is not truly wanted or allowed.

This situation can be resumed as it follows: “We cannot really help those who requested our help, because if we really managed to help them, there would be no one else to help, then we would be obliged to leave and this would not be convenient for those who were benefiting from our presence in their country”

Obviously, the ultimate victims of this dilemma are always the common people. This is probably the sole reason why many people like me working in this context, accept to embrace such a dilemma.

 Because after all, “it takes a fool to remain sane in a world covered up in shame”

Photo group with the newly-trained experts on negotiation techniques, mediation and conflict transformation 
Matadi 08-12 May 2012