All -
As a one-time construction-wallah, I share the sense of fear and
despondency with regard to post-tsunami reconstruction programmes. To the
rich and powerfull especially, large disasters imply large projects;
multiple small ones would be more adaptable to local needs and local
participation. However, there are many ways of breaking, or even making, an
egg.
I worked in various ways in Bangladesh as one member of a large project
team, for five years from 1992, with an international firm of engineers.
The project was to design and construct, with government ministerial
participation, cyclone shelters-cum-primary schools on selected sites a few
kilometres apart in Bangadesh's coastal cyclone risk zones. Many hundreds
of such shelters were anticipated. The project had been won by proposal in
European competition, the team comprising paired expatriates and
Bangladeshis; an entire team of Bangladeshi women sociologists advised on
cultural issues. In addition to civil, structural and utilities engineers,
and sociologists, the team comprised economists, geologists, geographers,
landscapers, hydraulogists, agrulturalists, zoologists (re animals),
hazards specialists, and architects (I have probably ommitted some). Again,
all of these, and more, were paired.
The main reason, as far as I could deduce, why expatriates were there at
all was for reasons of financial management of international funding. With
the most sincere respect to all indigenous communities, the greatest
unspoken concern (the concern that has no name) seemed to be that of
corruption and the consequent loss or misuse of international public funds.
In the end, and as I understood it to have been, it was alleged corruption
in the guise of a high level requirement for baksheesh (which was not paid)
which stopped the project after hundreds of sites had been selected with
local participation and raised expectations, all project documentation
(drawings, schedules, specifications, contracts) completed and with funding
committed. Difficulties are only sometimes insurmountable but many things
are not always as they seem.
Had construction been able to proceed, thousands of small children
previously unable to get to school would have received an education
(including geography ?) and thousands of lives would have been saved in
repeated cyclones, sea-surges - and perhaps in tsunamis. Corruption, and
donor's fear of corruption, is the worm in the bud of international
developmet aid.
I would be interested in similar experiences there might be.
James
At 22:43 07/01/05 -0800, you wrote:
> Dear Colleagues We have expressed our concerns at the significant loss
>of cultural heritage as a consequence of the recent Indonesia earthquake
>and Indian Ocean Tsunami. are planned to be relocated without
>consideration to the traditional livelihoods and ecological relationships
>of the local people. to the rebuilding process. merely addressing
>risks to a few historic buildings but also addressing the issues of
>recovery and development with a cultural perspective. to raise our
>collective voice on this issue. best wishes Rohit
>
>
>
> ********************************************* Rohit Jigyasu, Dr. of eng.
>Visiting Professor Research Center for Disaster Mitigation of Urban
>Cultural Heritage Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto 600-8469, Japan Phone-
>+81-90-9982-8362 ********************************************* ---
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