A Different Discussion About Aid

The United States of America has just sent a small number of its sons and daughters as Peace Corps volunteers to serve as teachers and advisors in Rwanda. They have arrived to assist, and we appreciate that. We are aware that this comes against the backdrop of increasingly scarce resources, of budget discussions and campaign promises, and of tradeoffs between defense and domestic priorities like health care and infrastructure investments. All that said, I believe we need to have a different discussion concerning the potential for bilateral aid.

The Peace Corps have returned to our country after 15 years. They were evacuated in 1994 just a short time before Rwanda collapsed into a genocide that killed over one million people in three months. Things have improved a lot in recent years. There is peace and stability throughout the nation. We have a progressive constitution that is consensus-driven, provides for power sharing, embraces diversity, and promotes the participation of women, who now represent the majority in our parliament. Our economy grew by more than 11% last year, even as the world entered a recession. We have chosen high-end segments of the coffee and tea markets in which to compete, and attract the most demanding world travelers to our tourism experiences. This has enabled us to increase wages by over 20% each year over the last eight years -- sustained by, among other things, investment in education, health and ICT.

We view the return of the Peace Corps as a significant event in Rwanda's recovery. These young men and women represent what is good about America; I have met former volunteers who have run major aid programs here, invested in our businesses, and I even count them among my friends and close advisors.

Peace Corps volunteers are well educated, optimistic, and keen to assist us as we continue to rebuild, but one must also recognize that we have much to offer them as well.

We will, for instance, show them our system of community justice, called Gacaca, where we integrated our need for nationwide reconciliation with our ancient tradition of clemency, and where violators are allowed to reassume their lives by proclaiming their crimes to their neighbors, and asking for forgiveness. We will present to them Rwanda's unique form of absolution, where the individuals who once exacted such harm on their neighbors and ran across national borders to hide from justice are being invited back to resume their farms and homes to live peacefully with those same families.

We will show your sons and daughters our civic tradition of Umuganda, where one day a month, citizens, including myself, congregate in the fields to weed, clean our streets, and build homes for the needy.

We will teach your children to prepare and enjoy our foods and speak our language. We will invite them to our weddings and funerals, and out into the communities to observe our traditions. We will teach them that in Africa, family is a broad and all-encompassing concept, and that an entire generation treats the next as its own children.

And we will have discussions in the restaurants, and debates in our staff rooms and classrooms where we will learn from one another: What is the nature of prosperity? Is it subsoil assets, location and sunshine, or is it based on human initiative, the productivity of our firms, the foresight of our entrepreneurs? What is a cohesive society, and how can we strengthen it? How can we improve tolerance and build a common vision between people who perceive differences in one another, increase civic engagement, interpersonal trust, and self-esteem? How does a nation recognize and develop the leaders of future generations? What is the relationship between humans and the earth? And how are we to meet our needs while revering the earth as the womb of humankind? These are the questions of our time.

While some consider development mostly in terms of infusion of capital, budgets and head counts, we in Rwanda place equal importance to relationships between peoples who have a passion to learn from one another, preparing the next generation of teachers, administrators and CEOs to see the exchange of values and ideas as the way to build the competencies of our people, and to create a prosperous nation.

We will do this because we see that the only investment with the possibility of infinite returns is in our children, and because after a couple of years in Rwanda, working and learning with our people, these Peace Corps volunteers will be our sons and daughters, too.

Comments

[asichii]

I am not a huge fan of eulogies because they create personality clouts. Museveni, Mugabe. Mubarak, etc were once the people's hereos. But I think the man deserves credit for such a sterling job. Here is the crux of the matter Mr President: When are you leaving office? Do you now have term limits? Have you allowed democratic transition (to include freedoms for political partiesand free press). No one has matched Mandela to date.

[Primadonna]

President Kagame,

Your words are eloquent and full of wisdom ... thank you for sharing your views with the rest of the world on this forum. Your form of community justice, Gacaca, brings your people together in unity which is the basis for a strong nation. This higher consciousness practice is a beautiful example for the rest of the world to see how we can rise higher than even former atrocities against one another and rebuild an even stronger humanitarian bond. Education is the key, forgiveness is the energetic way. I am deeply inspired. Yes ... the Peace Corps is a great partnership and a service that is rewarding in so many ways.
Many more blessings to you, your country and what you offer to the rest of the world.

[AScrantonian]

The New Rwanda has its detractors, to be sure. The French were humiliated for the support of the "genocidaires", most of whom ran and hid in the Congo, Brussels and throughout France. The Americans and U.N. stood idly by whilst the worst atrocities on the planet in half a century were perpetuated upon innocent and defenseless people.

Many reporters, in a effort to balance their commentaries, have inadvertently given credibility to those groups by giving them column inches. The U.N. has 17,000 peacekeepers in the Congo who treat the symptoms not the problems, and their reportage is even shoddier; rarely have they even quoted a source.

Now, when these groups have a tendency to start to quote each other, you get the self-sealing logic, sense of pseudo facts and semi-permanence that we still see occasionally.

GO TO RWANDA, as I frequently have for the last ten years, and see the kids going to school for free, the businesses taking off, the popularity of the leadership in all parts of the country; and then ask yourself, Are the negative comments of some of these detractors consistent with the voice of the Paul Kagame above. And then ask why.

[Givethemhellharry]

I had the pleasure of meeting President Kagame at CHOGM about 18 months ago. I believe he is the best President in Africa. What he has built in Rwanda from the ashes of the genocide 15 years ago is simply amazing. IMHO he should be given the Nobel Peace Prize for what he has accomplished. I found him to be a humble, caring and intelligent man.

A previous blogger complained about incursions into the Congo by Rwanda. The Congo is a totally dysfunctional country. The best thing that could happen to it is for it to merge with Rwanda and maybe Kagame could help straighten it out.

Another compared Kagame to Musevini. There is no comparison. Kagame has pretty much, eliminated corruption. Uganda is corrupt from the top to bottom. Museveni buys himself a new presidential airplane for $50 million even though his old one is only 8 years old and there is a shortage of ARVs (last year $7 million of $8 million meant to buy AIDs drugs disappeared from the Ministry of Health and no one is in jail) in the country and a host of other problems that the money could be better used for.

Another blogger complained about the amount of money spent on foreigners as consultants. Although there is a great need for these consultants, I totally agree that to much aid is being wasted providing these consultants a lifestyle they couldn't live in their home countries and to little is accomplished.

[Jim Shanor]

President Kagame, you and your brother in arms, Yoweri Museveni, bring a sense of understanding to the politics of the Lakes area that I wish would spread in all directions. As a former Peace Corps Volunteer in Somalia, development worker in Uganda, South Sudan and Kenya, I applaud your "Different Discussion About Aid." Would that the world would hear it.

[SharonWantsToTalk]

My 14 year old expressed interest in the Peace Corps just last week. I intend to encourage him.

[larry278]

This President is not a perfect man but is aiming to reach perfection; that reminds me of what Pres Obama is trying to do. Neither man may acheive perfection. Both men are trying to improve conditions in their nations. Pres Obama isn't making progress when he clings to what W had inflicted upon the USA & the world. Perhaps Pres Obama will stop trying to become a clone of W. That would be a desirable change.

[LMPE]

The first Tintin book was "Tintin in the Congo", written to promote Belgium's colonization of that region in Africa (Rwanda was also a Belgian colony). In the book, Tintin teaches the ignorant, stereotypically-drawn Congolese children about how great Belgium is (in an updated version, he teaches them math).

There needs to be a book about what the cultures of Latin America, Africa and Asia can teach the people of North America, Europe and Japan. The cultures have already mixed significantly, but there needs to be a major worldwide discussion about it.

[Lawrence Mindela]

President Kagame,

You are the symbol of Africas emerging leardership. Wish you Gods blessings

[SaundraS]

I could not agree with President Kagame more. Having been both a Peace Corps Volunteer and a Crisis Corps Volunteer (sent to Thailand by the Peace Corps after the tsunami) I have always felt that the greatest good of the Peace Corps does not come from accomplishing things - some of us accomplish very little - but in helping us understand the world from a different perspective and bringing that understanding back home to the US. As a Peace Corps recruiter, I would tell applicants that they would have an impact on only a few people, but that those few people would have just as great of an impact on them.

It is time we stopped thinking of aid as going to passive recipients of largess, and started understanding that the people we work with are as wise, caring, and determined as we are. The best aid is not a paternalistic relationship, but a true partnership.

http://informationincontext.typepad.com

[nkhogan]

Excellent perspective. Thank you for sharing your experiences. I agree with you that partnership, not paternalism, should be the goal of AID. The learning really does go both ways.

[EgyptianMysterySchool]

Uncle Paul,

Thank you for this beautiful piece. There is so much that you Rwanda and the rest of Africa can teach the west about humanity, community, forgiveness and brotherhood. I makes me proud to see how far your country has come since it fell into the most unimaginable despair possible in '94. You were wise to implement a system of confession and forgiveness in your country so that you could learn to live again as neighbors and family. I applaud your country's courage, instead of saying, "whoa is me" you pulled yourselves up together and began the work of moving forward. I pray that our ancestors bless your country with continued success and increasing prosperity.

[arvay]

Rwanda's journey reminds me of the scientific reality that we're all from Africa.

Until this new reality emerged, to me this was a genetic observation that means we're all one species.

Now, I think we may be seeing what our "family connection" really means. Our ability to overcome divisive forces and unite and support each other may be our most valuable family heritage. Not surprising that this tendency would have survived in Africa.

I think that the human race is is re-connecting. Our technology is making this increasingly possible. Poised against us are all the forces of hatred and the illusion of superiority.

[AhnAmuru]

I've been told that Rwanda is doing really well, for a nation emerging from conflict - even better than a whole lot of otherwise peaceful nations.

I'm heartened by the implicit recognition that human development indices - even more, or in addition to basic economic indices are vitallly important.

The real test, Mr. President, on which judgment will be passed, is whether you are an institution builder (and can effect transition of government from yourself to a legitimately chosen successor in a free and fair election), or "a survivor" - like many of your neighbours have turned out to be.

So far, so good.

[FRobert]

Yes we can!

[Jason Cisco]

President Kagame,

I marvel at your words. This was such an uplifting message that all can take something away from. I wanted to let you know I appreciate your thoughts that you have written here. The message that one needs to realize that we are part of a whole is both pure and true. I'm also amazed that Rwanda has come so far in the last 15 years. You are living proof that you can walk through the fires of this world and come out on the other side better, as a people, than you were before.

-An American Citizen