As figure 2 shows, eventually three families benefit from a project starting with two families.
Figure 3 shows that the advantages of the Oxen Project outweigh the disadvantages. This project is sustainable as it is low tech and only required a primary investment. It will improve the quality of life of the people of Tangaye at an ever-increasing rate. However, it will be a long time before all the families own oxen.
For the people of Tangaye, this project is a necessity, as it will enable them to bridge the hunger gap. Sustainable development projects such as this have no strings attached, no benefit to the donor and most importantly, no dependency on the aid giver (3).
Multi-lateral aid can create dependency on the aid giver. Many relief aid projects cause this problem. In 1984, after five years of drought in Somalia, millions of refugees went to camps run by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (4). Refugees became completely reliant on handouts, undermining the local farmers’ market. Another problem with multi-lateral aid is that although theoretically it should be not be ‘tied’, organisations have withheld aid from countries with non-democratically elected governments e.g. Libya (2).
The Basotu Plains of Tanzania have been transformed into agricultural land for the ‘Wheat Project’, an example of bilateral aid, funded by the Canadian Government. The wheat farms are highly mechanized; using imported Canadian equipment and spare parts. This is ‘tied’ aid, as it allows Canada to channel money designated as aid back from Tanzania to manufacturers in Canada.
Wheat is far better suited to a temperate climate and Tanzanian’s staple diet is maize, most cannot afford to buy bread. The Barabaig, a large group of nomadic cattle herders, have lost the land traditionally used for grazing during the wet season and have therefore also lost their only means of survival. They have received no compensation and derive no benefit from the project (5).
When compared to the Oxen Project in Burkina Faso, the Wheat Project in Tanzania illustrates how bilateral aid doesn’t necessarily help the poor as much as sustainable development can. Like multi-lateral aid, it is often used as a political tool, as aid has been withheld from countries donors believe to be undemocratic, aggressors or have a poor human rights record (2).
Rainforests
The island of Java in Indonesia has an exceptionally high population density so there is not enough land for farming. The largest island, Kalimantan, is covered by peat swamp forest. This forest is uninhabited, except by a small group known as the Dayak. To reduce population density and subsequent land pressures in Java, the Indonesian government devised the Transmigration Policy, aiming to relocate a million people to Kalimantan by clearing thousands of acres of the peat swamp forest.
The immigrants to Kalimantan face a great struggle for survival. The land is infertile as the peat layers break up easily and are blown away, leaving only clay. The farmers therefore have to use huge amounts of fertilizer to get even the smallest harvest.
The deforestation creates huge problems for the Dayak, who traditionally made a living from fishing and making furniture from rattan. Eutrophication of the rivers due to intense use of fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides; coupled with the effect of artificial drainage channels led to the depletion of fish stocks. The polluted water causes dysentery, often resulting in death. Also, rattan has become sparse as the trees that it grows on are removed. The Dayak people are now pre-empting the government and cutting down trees to sell the timber themselves (6).
Rather than help the poor, the Transmigration Policy has made life harder for them, and damaged the environment in the process. Figure 5 (7) shows that even the ecological effects of deforestation will eventually affect humans. Therefore it is a necessity for the principles of sustainable development to be followed by the governments of countries containing ecosystems such as these.
Throughout the 1970s European and American banks encouraged deforestation in LEDCs to allow the development of cattle ranches and intensive agriculture, growing crops such as bananas and coffee for export. This led to half of Costa Rica’s natural rainforest being destroyed.
Costa Rica boasts an impressive range of stunning environmental habitats, making it a prime target for American tourists, subsequently becoming the first country to develop ‘Eco-Tourism’, whereby the delicate environment is not damaged and the visitors learn about the ecosystems visited. The Braulio Carillo National Park is comprised of completely untouched rainforest and most access is only along an aerial tramway, leaving the forest floor undisturbed. The profits from this project do not get siphoned off by a TNC to boost another economy but are reinvested into Costa Rica.
The indigenous people of the rainforest have elected representatives to be given agricultural training. The representatives are then responsible for training others. In this way they learn to farm in sustainable manner, causing minimal damage to the rainforest (6).
The ‘Eco-tourism’ approach demonstrates that the environment does not have to be destroyed in harvesting its resources, and that there is an opportunity for profits to be made whilst also retaining principles of sustainability. Projects such as this are a necessity; otherwise poorer countries may be forced to exploit these fragile ecosystems in order to achieve economic stability.
Conclusion
The Somalian Refugee camps show that although relief aid (often multi-lateral) is necessary to save lives, it can easily lead to dependency on the aid giver. Conversely, the Oxen Project in Burkina Faso shows that sustainable development cannot replace relief aid, because it is a long-term investment, but it is an exceptional opportunity to help the poor achieve self-sufficiency. Other forms of development are not always as effective in helping the poor. The Canadian Wheat Project in Tanzania (an example of bilateral aid) caused indigenous peoples to lose their land but was of no benefit to them and they could not afford to buy the produce.
Sustainable development does not have the same problems caused by the subservient role enforced on LEDCs by short-term aid and bilateral aid projects. It is an opportunity to help generations to come, whereas short-term aid has only a limited time scale. Rather than encourage dependency on aid, sustainable development educates people to help themselves.
The transmigration project in Indonesia illustrates how indigenous peoples can be severely affected if rainforests are not managed in a sustainable manner. It is a necessity to manage these fragile ecosystems in a way that is sustainable as otherwise the potential effects could be catastrophic. The Braulio Carillo National Park has helped the poor by protecting their traditional way of life and giving them agricultural training, whilst also boosting the economy without damaging the rainforest.
However, sustainable development does have its limitations. It does not alleviate suffering or give the same immediate results as relief aid; it may take years for the results to become apparent, as often high inputs of time and education are needed. Sustainable development can be difficult to co-ordinate as techniques and approaches initially only benefit a small area. These techniques and approaches may be adulterated and lose effectiveness on a larger scale as people make adaptations. Sustainable development projects are usually ‘owned’ by the people they aim to help, requiring the aid giver to yield control and thus lose the ability to use ‘aid’ for political leverage or to benefit themselves. Lastly, it may be seen as hypocritical for MEDCs to promote sustainability to LEDCs when we ourselves need to address issues of wasting energy, pollution and damage to the environment.
There is a lot of evidence to support the statement that sustainable development is a necessity, because the limitations listed above are normally outweighed by its benefits for the people it will help. Limitations of sustainable development are often measured in terms of Western interest but could be perceived as advantages to the people that sustainable development will help e.g. adulteration of techniques could be beneficial if approaches are adapted to suit the local environment.
Although there will always be alternatives to sustainable development, if MEDCs are to help decrease the poverty gap, without creating dependency on aid, using aid for political leverage, or forcing poorer countries to damage the environment, they must consider sustainable development to be a necessity, as it is an exceptional opportunity to help the world’s poorest peoples in the long term.
Bibliography
Introduction:
(1) Brundtland Commission (1987)
(2) Waugh, David (2000), Geography – An Integrated Approach, Walton-on-Thames, Nelson. p. 642
Additional Web Research (date of website visit in brackets):
- http://www.johannesburgsummit.org (07/2003)
- http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev (09/2003)
- http://www.worldbank.org (09/2003)
- http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications (12/2003)
Agriculture:
(3) ‘Bridging the Gap’ – TEARFUND promotional video
(4) BBC Educational TV Programmes
(5) Monbiot, George (1994) The Scattering of the Dead, published in the Guardian 23rd November
1994
Additional Web Research (date of website visit in brackets):
- http://www.monbiot.com (visited 09/2003)
- http://www.aah-usa.org/Somalia_27_july_01.html (09/2003)
- http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications (12/2003)
Rainforests:
(6) Channel 4 Educational TV Programmes
(7) Roberts, Reiss and Monger (1993) Biology – Principles and Processes, Walton-on-Thames, Nelson. pp. 13-14, 52-53
Additional Web Research (date of website visit in brackets):
- http://centralamerica.com/cr/parks (10/2003)
- http://www.worldheadquarters.com/cr/protected_areas/parks/braulio_carrillo (10/2003)
- http://www.infocostarica.com/places/braulio.html (11/2003)
- http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications (12/2003)
Formed at the Rio Earth Summit of 1992 where sustainable development was first popularized on a global level
Less Economically Developed Countries
More Economically Developed Country
International Monetary Fund
Non-Governmental Organisation
The period between two harvests when food stores are depleted
Increase in nutrients resulting in a dense plant population, the decomposition of which kills animal life by depriving it of oxygen