Comments

Hi, The points you raise are critical to the development endeavour and much broader than my specific contribution in this book. You ask, what do we do when religious/cultural values don’t align with those of mainstream Western development. Well, for those who believe in grassroots development the answer should be that we don’t impose our values on others, but of course communities are not homogenous units but complex constellations of individuals some who may welcome Western development and others who don’t. This leads into the much more complex debate of whether all aid is a universal right or only humanitarian aid being universal and development assistance being an extension of Western values, the former being apolitical the latter highly political. Rather than arguing a particular perspective, my book offers a model that offers insights into the extent of the assistance that religious groups could offer in the statebuilding endeavour and then providing insights into how to better understand the relevant doctrines of two religions in relation to post-conflict statebuilding, but I leave it to individuals to interpret for their particular situation whether this is to be used as a tool to avoid potential challenges from religious groups or as a means of better tailoring assistance to believer’s hopes and aspirations. As for religion and culture, yes I agree that religion is a factor that shapes the broader concept of culture, but its a particularly important one that seems to be wilfully taken off of our radar. Its as if there is an unwritten rule that allows for discussions of tribal structures, traditions and practices but none that may fall under the rubric of religion and in particular if its one of the major religions. Thanks for your comment. Please note that the first chapter of my book is available for free from the Palgrave site.

Very interesting and important post. I absolutely agree that organizations need to recognize the value of people's time and labor, particularly in the case of research, which likely will not bring any benefit to the participants. In Timor-Leste and elsewhere in Asia/Pacific, is the norm for attendants at such meetings not to receive any compensation at all? In many places I've worked in Africa, meetings like these would provide meals, in-kind gifts, or per diems - some type of compensation. It's almost the opposite of what's described in the article, as per diems for say, a 2-hour meeting can easily be the equivalent of multiple days of labor. It became clear in many cases that people attended almost solely for the goods/money they would receive simply for showing up. I'm curious whether this is a regional difference or difference in who the largest donors are in each region, or perhaps due to the aid industry having a larger presence and longer history in some parts of Africa?

Thanks Tess for the article. It is a great summary of the very changed situation here in our island home. The speed at which the people have come together to get things up and running is impressive to say the least. As you say there are many challenges ahead in the rebuilding of Vanuatu after Pam. I am optimistic and even more so after witnessing the initial response of the people in the first stages of recovery.

Denis, thanks so much for this post -- I agree that religion is a hugely underrepresented topic in development, and I look forward to reading your book. Certainly it would be fantastic if development agencies and practitioners routinely sought a deeper understanding of the religious contexts in which they work, with the goal of identifying those mutual 'hopes and ambitions' you mention. But I wonder if I could press you a little bit more on 'what now?', in those cases where religious/cultural values don't align with those of mainstream Western development. Do we (development agencies/workers) just have to walk away? I'm thinking particularly of issues of power and oppression within religious communities, and the risk that we might overlook these by accepting the most dominant interpretation of values. More generally: should (or indeed can) we consider 'religious' and 'cultural' values as separable? Personally I am inclined to think of religious belief/practice as inextricable from culture, and vice versa. Should those working in development approach 'religion' differently from 'culture'?

Yes, it's good that we finally know what "Indo-Pacific" means. It will be even less of a stretch for the government to stay above 90 per cent than we thought. However, even as precisified, this geographic term is unhelpful. Touching shared oceans is hardly a sensible criterion for aid rationing. What's more, this property is absent in the case of a few recipients -- Afghanistan, Bhutan, Laos, Mongolia, Nepal -- and present in the case of quite a few poor non-recipients -- Comoros, Djibouti, Madagascar and Yemen to the west, and various struggling countries in Central America to the north-east. (Presumably the Red Sea nations of Sudan and Eritrea will be at a disadvantage because they face a mere inlet of the Indian Ocean.) Assuming that none of the currently excluded Indo-Pacific countries will partake of Australia's aid budget anytime soon, it would have been better to stick with the line that we are primarily an Asia-Pacific donor, and explain bilateral support outside our region on a case by case basis, without reference to ocean views.

Oh - sorry. That last comment was fro me not jo. I posted using her iPad and auto complete did the rest. Terence

I applaud the World Bank for its wake up call and encouragement to Australia to open its gates to Pacific Islanders especially people from Kiribati and Solomon Islands who are severely affected by the effects of climate change and sea level rise. It is true that if Australia should adopt the New Zealand Pacific Access Quota it would make a lot of difference to the lives of Pacific families who has experienced hardship and poverty due to the effects of climate change. Not only that but Australia could really benefit from the inputs of Pacific Islanders who are honest and hard workers. Cheers.

Thanks Chris, Just quickly as I am on a supposedly computer free beach holiday. If I had to recommend one work of fiction with much relevance for development and change I would say the Wire. maybe somewhat depressing when it comes to illustrating how hard it is to change things but also excellent at showing how complex the world is and how rigid structural factors are. And there are still small wins amongst everything. There is a good book on the wire and public health policy which shows that some of the successes in real world Baltimore have been bigger than one might take from the fiction alone.

Could not agree with you more about the power of fiction. We use <a href="http://www.lse.ac.uk/internationalDevelopment/pdf/WP/WP61.pdf" rel="nofollow">this great paper</a> by Lewis, Rodgers and Woolcock in one subject of our Master of International Development at La Trobe. We then get students to read one of a growing list of novels we have selected and write a reflexive piece on what thoughts about social change have been provoked by the book. It seems to work well. I was thinking of doing something similar using <a href="http://elibrary.worldbank.org/doi/abs/10.1596/1813-9450-6491" rel="nofollow">this paper</a> by the same authors on cinema and development. Maybe you could get the ball going with a review from developmental/social change perspective of a recent movie. Selma? Pride? Other suggestions anyone?

Hi Robin, Just reading DFAT's "Performance of Australian Aid 2013-14" and it notes that for the purpose of measuring progress against the "Focusing on the Indo-Pacific region" target, "the Indo-Pacific refers to developing countries in the Asia Pacific (including South and West Asia), in the Indian Ocean and those bordering the Indian Ocean in East and Southern Africa". So Africa is part of the Indo-Pacific - or at least parts of it such as Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, South Africa, Somalia. Nice to finally have a definition (of sorts). Joel

One of the problems with this analysis is the rather vague nature of the phrase 'work for free', its quite important to define what you mean by work, to understand that most work in a subsistence society in not wage labour but leads to benefits further down the track. While doing research with Duncan Ironmonger, the founder of the methodology of the measurement of unpaid work, in the Pacific in the 1980s he told me 'work is something you could pay other people to do', thus child care is work, playing tennis is clearly not work because you can't pay other people to do it for you. Giving your opinion to researchers is not work as you couldn't pay someone else to do it or it wouldn't be your opinion. Participation takes time, and researchers should learn more of the techniques of mobilizing volunteers used in Civil Society organizations to make it worthwhile for people to participate in voluntary activity without actually paying them. Another principle of good volunteer management is that volunteers don't take the jobs of paid workers (except in a very brief or emergency situation). Unfortunately in Timor-Leste not many civil society organizations understand why the Board of an NGO is not paid, but the staff are. Nevertheless the Board would disappear if they did not think it was worth their while to participate, Often some small token payments are made or transport and food made available to help them feel it is worthwhile being on a board or a committee, but it is they who employ the paid staff and determine their salaries. Tomas Freitas is right that the coming of the so called 'aid industry' to Timor undermined the volunteer spirit. No one was paid to engage in the struggle for self-determination, yet it was a great action of co-ordination, will and voluntary initiative. Thus is sad to see so few actual membership NGOs mobilizing volunteers for their own style of development. Many tasks for which community members historically would volunteer in the past, like cleaning up the village, were done because people would benefit by the improved conditions, now they sit around and wait for someone to pay them. Management of volunteers didn't seem to be one of the skills looked for in aid workers during the UNTAET period. The UNDP will be publishing its Human Development Report this year on Work, a noted improvement on the use of the word 'employment' much loved by the World Bank, it is not surprising that Timorese are confused and hostile when so many competing economic analyses are presented to them by different agencies, supposedly here to help them. Helen Hill, Vila Verde, Dili

A very interesting post and thread. A similar phenomena also occurs in Dili. I have experienced ngo’s flying in to a full schedule of interviews and focus groups. Often these are with members of the community who supply an invaluable insight into the topic under review – as volunteers. Of course, the community member is aware that the expert has a well paid job and lifestyle yet they are not receiving any compensation for their time. A very delicate situation. But I also agree with other contributors who speak of the danger of payment luring non-interested parties just for the money! At a minimum I would like to see the ngo follow up with these groups, acknowledging that the ngo is appreciative of the time and contribution the community member has given and providing them with some insight into the findings of the report. Such an action would show respect. There is a danger In Timor, where there is such dependence on volunteers (don’t get me started on the invaluable role of the volunteer teacher), that volunteer-fatigue could set in.