Empowering A Sustainability Cycle Begins With A Hand Up Not A Handout

By Sivan Ya’ari*

“If we want to truly transform socioeconomic inequalities, we must make the fundamental shift from handouts to hand ups when it comes to providing aid,” says Sivan Ya’ari, Founder and CEO of Innovation: Africa.

Aid organisations across the globe are changing harsh realities for millions of people on a daily basis. There is no doubt that without their aid, some of the population’s most vulnerable would have little or no hope. While many of these roles serve to empower communities, others can sadly have the opposite effect.

In the lowest-income countries, local organisations often do not have the resources they need. Effective international charity and aid can act as a helping hand to equip local governments and institutions to provide interventions independently. Traditionally, many aid models involve giving donations or handouts, and even though these may be given with the best intentions, they paradoxically may also fail to equip individuals with the tools and knowledge necessary to become self-sufficient, inadvertently perpetuating a cycle of dependency.

When donations and aid are consistently used as a long term strategy, those living in poverty eventually become dependent on the donors as opportunities to get out of their current situation lessen. Local businesses shut down as the need to produce items is no longer necessary and skills development lags. When donations and essential items are provided at a minimal price from external sources a cycle of dependency hinders any hope of socioeconomic growth.

A continent that needs help

With 34% (over 445 million) of people in Africa living in poverty, the continent is an ideal case for aid. It is the world's least electrified continent with nearly 600 million people without access to electricity and clean water. Nearly 60% of all healthcare facilities in Africa do not have access to reliable electricity for lights, essential medical equipment or vaccine refrigerators. In rural areas, a visit to a clinic often requires an arduous journey by foot.

In terms of agriculture, farming lies at the heart of Africa’s economy and has an extensive social footprint. It accounts for 14% of the total GDP in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the majority of employment for the continent’s population. But, due to increasing water scarcity, Africa is simply not able to reach its full agricultural potential. Serious adverse effects on food security and on livelihoods at the regional, national and individual household levels are becoming increasingly prevalent.

While donations and aid have done much good for millions across Africa in terms of food security, health care, clean water, and education, its chief weakness is that positive results have not proven sustainable. Africa finds itself in a self-perpetuating cycle of going back to donors simply to maintain the status quo. What the continent really needs is to create the environment – economic and social – to achieve self-sufficiency.

It takes a village

Aid is not intrinsically linked to dependency with studies showing that length and intensity of the donation period have the most influence on whether communities are able to get on their own feet again. In most cases, preventing aid dependency requires active participation of both donors and recipients in aid initiatives. Take, for example, Innovation: Africa. By using innovative technology that harnesses the most reliable and affordable energy source available, the sun, just a few solar panels are sufficient to power a solar pump that enables clean water trapped just a few meters beneath the ground to be pumped up.

The impact that access to solar energy can have on communities is life-changing - clean water brings food security, female empowerment, access to light in health and education centres and fosters economic independence thereby helping to break the cycle of poverty, reduce inequality and bring peace where the lack of water previously created tension.

However, the real power of our solar project lies in our two-pronged approach which utilises both cutting edge technology and grassroots community empowerment as a solution to the underlying condition of rural poverty. We do not simply give communities access to solar.

The foundation of our approach is to establish a strong connection with the community’s leadership to foster collaboration. The community then identifies important facilities like schools and health centres that should be incorporated into the system design. From the placement of taps, to digging trenches, to security along the pipe pathway, community members are taught critical skills to become essential partners in completing the project and a sense of ownership is fostered, thereby enhancing the project’s long-term sustainability.

Each community forms a committee that is tasked with managing, preserving, and protecting the water system, including local leaders, women’s groups, parent-teacher groups, clinic/school staff and more. Committee members learn about the system operation, pipeline route and simple troubleshooting so they can be held responsible for protecting and maintaining their solar system after installation.

At each water project, ten villagers are hired, paid, and trained by the local contractor and learn different skills. Upon completion, they receive a certificate which will assist with their future employment opportunities.

Having the local community involved in the installation of their own water system allows them to be familiar with it, preserve it, manage its operation and perform simple maintenance work. This in turn ensures long term success and sustainability, and increases the community’s sense of ownership over it. We can then walk away leaving an empowered community who are able to take their future into their own hands and create a sustainable and efficient ecosystem of growth.

There is certainly a place in the world’s most vulnerable countries for aid. But if more nonprofits and aid organisations can harness their resources as the spark that ignites self-sufficiency, a positive cycle of growth can result in true sustainability for any initiative. With that as the goal, we can secure a future of independence, not just for Africa, but for countries across the globe.

* Sivan Ya’ari is the  Founder and CEO of Innovation: Africa