If I could change the world..

Every day humanitarian aid workers help millions of people around the world. The day recognizes the sacrifices and contributions of those who risk their lives to give others help and hope. It is also about inspiring the spirit of aid work in everyone.

Love is really what it's about. Showing love in tangible ways to the most vulnerable and marginalized amongst us is not easy. It requires sacrifice and getting outside our comfort zone. It can mean being misunderstood and disenfranchised. But that which we do for the least is also what we do for God.

To all the incredible people I've had the pleasure of meeting since starting on this journey, happy humanitarian day! I am blessed by the efforts of my team-mates, colleagues and former classmates and friends. May we never forget what a privilege it is to live this life as we do.

Family Planning Saves lives!

Ushahidi!

Ushahidi means Testimony in Kiswahili. I'll let the video speak for itself.

What is the Ushahidi Platform? from Ushahidi on Vimeo.

To give or not to give

I landed in India in late August. Almost immediately...all five senses were tantalized. From the plethora of food options that teased my taste-buds, to the smells and sounds (talk about the ubiquitous honking of cars!) And the sights! India is a beautiful country...with mass disorganization and chaos, but with raw beauty and warm people. To say that India is capable of bringing out every single emotion out of you is an understatement.

One of the sights that has haunted me since I landed in this wonderful country is the sight of children begging. I took the picture above many moons ago.

I cannot reconcile proximity that stark poverty has to ultimate opulence. To see people living in shanties on the sides of roads in Mumbai and the sight of little ones with tattered rags in New Delhi doing little tricks in the hopes of procuring a few rupees simply breaks my heart. And right next to the largest slums in Asia are high-rise apartment buildings with every single amenity that money can buy. I had read that the divide between the rich and the poor is great here – but to see it in actual terms is quite disconcerting.

And mentally – I still haven’t reconciled what to do when a child comes up to me to beg for money. What is the best thing for that child – to give or not.

Does giving away money serve as a temporary solution akin to a bandaid over a leaky faucet? Or does it serve an immediate need to feed an empty stomach? Or does it simply sooth our conscience that our daily quota for a ‘good-deed’ was met?

Growing up in Kenya, even as a teenager, I used to pack simple sandwiches whenever I went out to give away to anyone that came up to me to beg for money. It was so deeply ingrained in me that money could be potentially used for things other than basic survival tools (such as drugs, etc), that food was the best option to give.

Extreme poverty is such a complex issue and tackling it from any one angle requires much thought. Do the said-beggars in places like India and Kenya even have a choice to do something other than begging? Or is structural violence so deeply entrenched that a vicious cycle of poverty and lack of access to basic needs such as food, clean water, and education do not facilitate ability to do anything else but beg?

I think of donor agencies who give development assistance to resource-poor countries in various forms – food aid, technical assistance and expertise, hard money, etc. How is that different from a single person giving a few rupees or shillings to a single child? Therefore the ultimate question, does giving serve to encourage a culture of begging and dilapidate a person so much that they feel they do not have a choice but to ask for help? Or does it truly help to meet some basic needs?

Having been here five months – I am still nowhere close to the answers. As I continue to work as global health professional in India and beyond, my ultimate aim is not only to set up new projects, but to ensure sustainability of any work that I do. To train capable people and transfer knowledge to ensure that someone can do the work that I do after I leave. Knowing that I do not have all the answers and do not understand the complexity to local problems in the global context, I choose to give.

Who wants to be a (Slumdog) millionaire?

Are movie-makers doing more harm than good when they take real-life kids out of destitute settings to play acting roles..? What are the ethical issues involved in making movies such as Slumdog, Kite Runner involving children? The psychological ramifications of having exposed children to the 'high life' and then putting them back into same settings is quite something to think about. Not to mention the probable exploitation that takes place. From the movie producers who might pay below-standard rates. To the parents of the children, well-intentioned as they may be, who might not have education as a top priority when poor health and malnutrition continue to ravage the family. Quite something to think about. 

This article brings to light some of these issues. The producers may have been well-intentioned in setting up trust funds for the two child stars of this block-buster. But I have to wonder. Are the trust funds the best way to better the lives of these kids? What about the other children? Children who grew up around Rubina and Azharuddin? Are they not worth this education? Isn't the slum itself - home to thousands of people - the setting for this movie? If the slum and the sum total of its inhabitants make up the reason for this movie's existence, shouldn't a trust fund be set up for all inhabitants of said-slum? 

Perhaps this is too lofty a request and the movie-makers did not mean to make this movie with a 100% altruistic motive. Perhaps the awareness generated around issues of urbanization and poverty is enough. Perhaps this is meant to inspire the local government to think of urban planning and setting up infrastructure for education and health as more and more people move to urban settings such as Mumbai in search of employment opportunities. However, I have to wonder is it too much to ask that a portion of the $150 million gross revenue go towards better health, better educational opportunities and ultimately a better life for the inhabitants (children especially) of the slums.