Message-ID: <Pine.3.89.9709191720.A14955-0100000@lan.vita.org> Date: Fri, 19 Sep 1997 17:16:46 -0400 From: Dania Granados <mailto:granados@LAN.VITA.ORG> Subject: September Issue of DevelopNet News To: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU
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September 1997 Volume 6, No. 9
IN THIS ISSUE
FOCUS ON TECHNOLOGY
Technology and Microenterprise Growth
LITERATURE REVIEWS
Cultural Obstacles
The Changing Volunteer
The Secret of Quality Management
ORGANIZATION
Preserving Tradition in Indonesia
VITA PROJECTS
Helping Rural Hospitals in India Communicate
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Symposium on Biodiversity and Biodiversity
* * *
DevelopNet News is published monthly by Volunteers in Technical
Assistance (VITA) in Arlington, Virginia, USA. For additional
information, please see the end of this newsletter.
* * *
F o c u s O n T e c h n o l o g y
Technology and Microenterprise Growth
The MicroCredit Summit that took place in Washington, DC almost a year
ago drew the world's attention to the smallest of businesses --
microenterprises. The Summit highlighted the important role they play in
countries' economic development and made a strong case for giving them
the necessary financial resources to fuel their growth. Many argue,
however, that the importance the Summit placed on credit may have
overshadowed another equally important microenterprise need -- access to
technology.
How can technology help microenterprises? "Picture a farmer's
cooperative in a small village in the Philippines", says Lilia Ramos the
Executive Director of the Asian Alliance of Appropriate Technology
Practitioners (Manila, Philippines). "Using improved techniques, a
cooperative produces oyster mushroom spawns in low-cast but sterilized
incubation houses made of materials indigenous to the community ...
Members of the village cooperative can, after three months, sell their
produce to the cooperative and earn between 3,000 to 5,000 Philippine
pesos -- equivalent to 120 - 200 dollars -- from each planting batch."
The Philippines aren't the only country whose microentrepreneurs have
financially benefited from access to improved technology. In Bolivia, in
isolated communities on the country's high plateau where few economic
alternatives exist, microentrepreneurs raise alpacas for their thick warm
wool. Yet, with up to 40% disease-related mortality rates among the young
animals, low fertility rates, overgrazing, and low prices earned from the
middlemen purchasing the fiber, often those engaging in the activities
don't earn enough to make it worthwhile. Things improved dramatically
when Appropriate Technology International (ATI), a US-based non-govern-
mental organization, and (AIGACAA), a local producer organization,
teamed together to introduce new technologies. These technologies helped
some 1,400 farmers that were raising alpacas double their family income -
- from an average of $300 to an average of $633.
Over and above the financial benefits that microenterprises can get by
accessing improved technology they can also stand to benefit in a number
of other ways. Improved technology can help them speed up their produc-
tion process and save labor; increase the efficiency of the production
process; improve product quality and, therefore, increase product price;
and create new possibilities for local manufacturing.
The Case for Hand-in-hand Credit and Technology Assistance
The success of ATI's efforts in Bolivia relied on both credit and
technology-based assistance. On the technology side, ATI and AIGACAA
assisted local microentrepreneurs by introducing improved animal husband-
ry technologies, breeding programs, as well as improved shearing equip-
ment. The success of the program, however, also relied on the use of a
$700,000 credit facility that helped the microentrepreneurs purchase
improved stock, and pay for fencing to prevent overgrazing, and the
services of herders. Although ATIžs mix of technology and credit assis-
tance was quite successful, however, it is also no longer very common.
In the past decade, assistance to microenterprises has increasingly
focused on the provision of credit and savings services to the very
poor. Studies commissioned by USAID, the World Bank, and others suggest
that the credit and savings offered have helped microentrepreneurs
improve their family welfare, including the nutritional and educational
status among children. These same studies, however, suggest that credit
by itself doesn't promote innovation or increase productivity. Indeed,
innovation and productivity seem to be linked with technology transfer
and information dissemination. Why then are most microenterprise support
efforts "minimalist" in their outlook focusing only on the provision of
credit?
"The minimalist approach to microfinance is directly linked to the
increased drive for self-sufficiency," says Frank Lusby, Director of
Action for Enterprise, Inc. (Arlington, Virginia), a company that
specializes in international business development services. "As the funds
that bilateral and multilateral donors have available to support interna-
tional development shrink, these donors are increasingly focusing on
making the programs they support better able to cover their costs. In the
past, technology assistance efforts have been unsuccessful and costly, so
donors are increasingly reluctant to support them as they strive for
efficiency and cost recovery. The issue still remains, however, that
credit by itself is not sufficient to fuel innovation and increase
microentrepreneurs' productivity. There is no doubt that credit is
important to microenterprise development. It is technology assistance,
however, that can foster innovation, contribute to increased productivi-
ty, and help microenterprise develop the ability to adapt to changing
market conditions."
Designing Successful Technology Assistance Efforts
Although it may be easy to understand why and how access to technology
may benefit microenterprises, it is also important to keep in mind that
designing technology assistance efforts that can meet entrepreneursžneeds
requires some effort. For one thing, there are a number of things that
technology assistance strategies must avoid in order to be successful.
According to Mary McVay, currently with Goodwill Industries, and a
specialist in technology assistance, there are several obvious strategies
to avoid including "introducing technology without sufficient training,
supply channels for needed raw materials, and access to spare parts and
maintenance services." McVay also cautions against marketing technology
without regard to WHO benefits, and then later finding out that the
original target group are not benefiting."
Another key consideration in designing a successful technology assistance
program is to avoid the use of standard "blueprint" efforts that don't
take into account local cultural, social, and economic circumstances. To
succeed, technology assistance efforts must be tailored to local circum-
stances and take into account the impact the technology will have on
those adopting. "Possibly the best way to ensure this is to use a
"subsector" approach which links technology assistance to the needs of
entrepreneurs in specific trades or industries" says Lusby.
What other considerations should be taken into account when designing a
technology assistance effort? According to Lusby, "when an organization
is thinking of introducing a new technology it must first think about how
that technology will be sustained in the market. There must be some
assurance that there will be enough buyers for the new technology to
support a system of manufacturers and distributors. Great care must also
be given to identifying manufacturers who can use the technology to build
products that can be sold for a profit. Finally, a lot of thought should
be given to product distribution channels and the tools and training
that microenterprises will need to be able to take advantage of the new
technology. Only if all of these issues are addressed will the technology
transfer process be successful. Although the technology assistance
process will not recover its costs through fees etc. charged to
microentrepreneurs as happens under a simple credit program, donor
resources will have been used effectively since the new technologies will
become integrated into the local context and will become sustainable."
Source: Vicki Tsiliopoulos, VITA <mailto:vickit@vita.org>
L i t e r a t u r e R e v i e w s
CULTURAL OBSTACLES
Overson Shumba, 1995. "Science Teachers' Assessments of the
Interaction of Indigenous African Culture with Science Education in
Zimbabwe." Zimbabwe Journal of Educational Research, volume 7, no. 3
(November), pages 259-295.
Often, technology transfer is slowed or blocked by reliance on
traditional beliefs about the physical world and society. Overson
Shumba (University of Zimbabwe, Harare) asked teachers of school
science to give their impressions of the conflict between
traditional beliefs and those basic to modern science and
technology. Some of the participating teachers held strong
traditional values and beliefs. On the other hand, some of them
pointed out that many experiences of indigenous culture can be
explained scientifically, with the result of enriching indigenous
culture, not weakening it.
Shumba believes that indigenous parents perceive "your school
knowledge" as relevant to examinations and "our knowledge and ways of
doing things" as relevant to practical real-life situations. "School
knowledge is in danger of continuing to be perceived as external and
theoretical" compared with what is needed to cope with everyday
realities. He says science must be introduced wherever possible to
build on experience and highlight differences in viewpoint between
Western scientific thinking and traditional thinking.
His study included acknowledgment of the value of science, gender
issues and sexuality, problem solving and logic, causality, views of
nature, and language issues.
THE CHANGING VOLUNTEER
Randall Baker, 1996. "The Changing Nature of International Volunteer
Activity in Developing Countries." African Environment, Volume 10,
nos. 1 and 2, pages 99-111.
The 1960s, a period of heady idealism, marked the origin of the U.S.
Peace Corps and many parallel movements within European countries.
There was a strong urge to "get out there and do something to help"
the developing countries. It seemed reasonable that much could be
achieved by simply sending young, motivated persons to the Third
World. They usually were recent graduates. They gave support to well-
defined, but weak, public-sector activities. Says the author:
"Little emphasis was placed on the acquisition of language and
cultural adaptation skills and frequently the volunteers were
working with a westernized, English-speaking elite."
After a while the volunteers began to question the philosophic basis
of this kind of volunteerism. Eventually they returned home and many
of them became policy makers in the kinds of organizations that had
sent them abroad. "Recent graduates" were replaced by skilled
persons assigned to specific projects. The projects now had locally
based officers who managed staffing and performed project
appraisals.
Baker (Indiana University, Bloomington) describes the implications
of the change for volunteers' ethics, project definition, and
volunteer attitudes toward their relationship to the society in
which they were immersed. Baker concludes with separate
recommendations for the host country, the sending agency, and the
volunteer.
THE SECRET OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT
F. Omaswa and others, 1997. "Introducing Quality Management Into
Primary Health Care Services in Uganda." Bulletin of the World Health
Organization, Volume 75, no. 2, pages 155-161.
How did Uganda finally begin to improve its primary health services
F. Omaswa's (Uganda Ministry of Health, Entebbe) final paragraph
says it all: "Ultimately, quality stems from an attitude or mindset
fostering continuous service improvement. Achieving quality often
requires a major shift in existing thinking about health care, a
shift which Uganda has begun to make. This change from the idea of
health as a commodity made up of treatments, procedures, and training
applied in defined and enforceable ways represents the birth of the
concept of providing a service that meets the needs patients and
communities perceive, and that is delivered in conformity with
established standards. Not making this shift means remaining locked
in the trap of not having enough resources, yet wasting much of what
there is through inefficient services provided by unmotivated
personnel."
O r g a n i z a t i o n
PRESERVING TRADITION IN INDONESIA
In Indonesia a yayasa (foundation) named SEJATI is one of several
organizations working to preserve the uniqueness of traditional cultures.
SEJATI feels that the world will cease to be intact when the knowledge
and wisdom of traditional communities is swept away by the rapid flow of
modernization, to disappear without a trace. As a result, the foundation
is working to document art, culture, tradition and knowledge as well as
beliefs adhered to by traditional communities. SEJATI believes that this
effort will open the eyes of the outside world to the culture of
traditional communities and that more people will then join in the
effort to preserve their traditional beliefs.
Information: Adbon Nababan, YAYASAN SEJATI, Jalan Mendawai IV/2, Jakarta
12130 ž Indonesia; tel: + 62 (21) 7247217 and + 62 (21) 7247221; fax. +62
(21) 7247562
V I T A P r o j e c t s
Helping Rural Hospitals in India Communicate
Like many other countries, India has many rural health centers and
hospitals that operate in isolation from one another. These hospitals
lack easy access to the expertise that might be found in other hospitals
in the region. They also lack access to the latest medical information
provided by major health organizations such as the World Health
Organization (Geneva, Switzerland) or the U.S. Center for Disease Control
(Atlanta, Georgia). The isolation is largely due to the lack of
communications in many of the rural areas in which the hospitals operate
-- telephones are simply not available and radio communications between
hospitals are difficult and often confusing since transmission and
transcription are dependent on inexperienced radio operators.
To help alleviate some of the communications problems faced by rural
hospitals in India, VITA has entered into a collaborative agreement with
the Technical Entrepreneurs Intrapreneurs Network (TEIN) a non-profit
organization dedicated to entrepreneurial education and networking in the
Washington, DC area. Together VITA and TEIN are working to design a
system that will provide the hospitals with an e-mail capability which
will allow them to access diagnostic assistance and network with
experts. This much-needed e-mail connectivity will also allow the
hospitals to identify and procure specialized equipment and even access
education and training materials for staff improvement "We will start out
by testing the program on a pilot group of 10 rural hospitals in India,"
says Joe Sedlak VITA's Director of Government Relations. "Although the
system will be a closed system and will not provide voice connection to
the internet, we expect that the hospitals' new-found access to e-mail
will dramatically improve the services they offer their patients. VITA
believes that the e-mail connectivity will also enable the hospitals to
provide preventive medical information to local community groups."
Although VITA and TEIN started working on this collaborative effort in
late 1996 progress has been slower than expected because of a delay in
the launch of VITAžs new satellite which the program will be using to
facilitate e-mail transmission. With the launch of VITA's satellite now
scheduled for the end of September, 1997, program activity is expected to
accelerate.
Information: Gary Garriott, VITA <mailto:garyg@vita.org>
A n n o u n c e m e n t s
SYMPOSIUM ON BIODIVERSITY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
Symposium on Biodiversity and Biotechnology. The symposium will bring
together participants for three days of seminars and informal
discussions, in which they will learn about the latest advances and
possibilities in the application of molecular technologies to
biodiversity prospecting. The symposium is being sponsored by Rutgers
University, Nature Biotechnology, The Boyce Thompson Institute, Cornell
University, the University of Sao Paulo, Xechem, Inc., and the
Iberoamerican Program of Science and Technology for Development (CYTED).
Information: Bill Smith, Cook College, Rutgers University, 542 George
Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08903 USA; tel: +1 (732) 932-91-64; e-mail:
mailto:wsmith@aesop.rutgers.edu
* * *
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DevelopNet News is an electronic newsletter published monthly by
Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA), a private, nonprofit,
international development organization located in Arlington, Virginia.
The newsletter needs your stories: you are invited to send them to the
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Editor: Vicki Tsiliopoulos <mailto:vickit@vita.org>
VITA specializes in information dissemination and communications
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