The Us of A has sneezed and the whole world has predictably
caught the cold. The only way this might have bypassed you is if you don’t live
in this world or you are super preoccupied with important stuff that you have
no time for small talk like the rest of us. The flu that is wreaking havoc
across the world comes in the garb of the USAID fund freeze. President DJT
through the DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) if you still haven’t
caught on has just come to the realization that the USAID has been bleeding
dollars with little to show for it. I cannot completely agree with this
statement. There are many organizations that have used USAID funds to make a
big difference in the communities they serve. What I agree with is that there
are people and organizations that have also used the same funds to do some not
so helpful things around the world. Those people have defeated the purpose of
the funds and necessitated a fresh look at it. This one decision has sent the
development world into pandemonium.
The Cause
President DJT campaigned on the America First platform. He
is of the opinion that the rest of the world has been ripping off America and
getting away with it for so long. This is not entirely true because America has
also received a lot from around the world. What is true is that the
relationship has been abused by some not so clever individuals leading to
undesirable outcomes stemming from the use of these funds. A deep look at the spending
patterns by DOGE has identified the USAID as one of the agencies that needed to
be repurposed quickly. Whether it continues to operate after the freeze is not
clear at this moment.
The Effect
I do not know the extent of the effect globally but I can
tell you that in Kenya a lot has changed courtesy of this one decision.
Primarily, people have lost livelihoods overnight. There are many who have been
serving in various organizations courtesy of USAID funds. Those people are in a
terrible place as far as their livelihoods are concerned. Breadwinners have
just lost their ability to bake bread with the stroke of a pen. Estimations
have put the number at over 35000 Kenyans. You have no idea what this means in
the developing world. I do not want to get started with the black tax
conversation but let it suffice you to know that this income loss has affected
more than the nuclear family of the employees.
Programs in many sectors have suffered a big blow. One of
the worst hit sectors is the health sector where these funds have been critical
in providing comprehensive care for those dealing with HIV and many other
significant interventions.
In terms of financial inflows-it is estimated that the
freeze has lost Kenyans about 85Billion Shillings a year. Pulling out such
funding will create a shock in the economy no doubt. The spending power of some
people has been cut off completely. The ripple effect on industries that have
depended on these funds will be huge. We are talking hospitality and leisure
here.
Courtesy of the freezing of funds, a lot has come to light.
It is now clear that many governments in the developing world have left the
management of crucial sectors at the mercy of donor funds. When your health,
education, sanitation and such other needs are at the mercy of donors, you
should look in the mirror and ask hard questions about whether you still
qualify to be a government. We have also come to learn that some people have
used USAID funds to push foreign ideologies in their host countries. There are reports
about organizations that have been pushing LGBTQ ideology in conservative
countries. This is an unfortunate use of critical resources that would make a
difference on other things that really matter.
The reaction.
People in different quarters have looked at this new
development through different lenses. Governments are feeling exposed because
the carpet has been pulled from right under their feet. You can hear them
shouting at the top of their lungs about why this is a bad idea. Those
vulnerable members of the communities which were receiving help through these
programs are pleading for mercy from DJT asking him to reconsider the decision.
I feel strongly for them because they are caught up in a game of chess they
know nothing about. We have a Swahili saying for it-fahali wawili wakipigana
nyasi huumia loosely translated it means when two bulls are having a go at each
other, the only thing that suffers is the grass beneath their feet. This is
what those vulnerable members are going through now. We also have the local
staff working within the said programs. For them, there is a loss of
livelihoods. This is also something to empathize with. Most of them have been
caught unawares with no idea how to proceed from here.
Many of these people are in a state of shock as we speak. It
becomes important to navigate them through the stages of grief until they can
pick up their lives and move on. The truth is that we are going to see a rise
in issues of mental health as people try to navigate this complex web. What
should our response be? It depends on where we stand. We could be observers,
beneficiaries, employees or the government. I will attempt to speak about what
our responses should be in each of these cases.
Observers
You occupy a unique position. You have the greatest ability
to see things from a balanced, rational perspective. You can filter through the
noise and offer practical help.
I know there is a temptation to castigate the government,
employees and beneficiaries of the fund at this point. Let me say, this will
not help at all. It will only aggravate the situation.
The best gift you can give them at this point is support and
affirmation. This is the time to tell them that they are capable of coming out
of this situation. It is the time to call out the greatness in them. It is time
to tell them that they have what it takes to turn around the situation. This
applies especially to the employees and beneficiaries of the various programs.
It is also good to point them away from and towards God. No
matter how good a person is, they will never replace God in your life. They
have limits they can take and distances they can cover after which they wear
out. America is just tired of carrying the burdens of other nations in this day
and age. I guess it is Ron Paul who said that foreign aid is an arrangement
where money is taken from the poor people of a rich country and handed over to
the rich people of a poor nation. This is a hard hitting truth we might not
want to acknowledge.
Your government needs to be called out albeit respectfully.
You have to find out why they are super dependent on foreign aid to run matters
that should be basic for the government. More often than not, the countries
that need too much help are suffering from a more serious pandemic in the form
of government sanctioned corruption and abuse of office. Those are situations
that demand hard questions and commitments to change.
Organizing protests against the US government is barking up
the wrong tree. They are not responsible for the social burden of your country.
They have their own issues to deal with. The rage needs to be directed towards
our own local administrations.
You must also be ready to point out again respectfully the
fact that certain NGO’s have nothing to show for the many years of work and
dollars spent in certain communities. They have lived up to the mantra of nothing
going on. We have heard stories about statistics being exaggerated to justify
the flow of funds-Kibera anyone??? Such organizations are taking away money
from people who genuinely need it for their own benefit with little happening
on the ground. As an observer, you have a responsibility to call this out.
Beneficiaries
We are talking about the people on the ground who benefit
from the various programs. What should the response be?
You need to drop the entitlement mentality which tells you
that people owe you anything. Just because you have been supported for many
years shouldn’t make you turn around and think it is my right. I know how hard
it is to take this in and I truly empathize with you but I have to say that
gratitude is what should be flowing from your lips. You should be grateful for
the far the US has carried you. It is not their responsibility.
Your anger and confusion are justifiable but if you stay there,
no help will come your way. The question you must start asking is-how can I
start doing for myself, that which I have constantly depended on others to do
for me? You have to drop that victim mentality and start seeing yourself as
capable of handling this latest challenge. If you summon it, there is greatness
within you. Decide today that you will take steps to solve the problems you
have to without referring to others. Own your challenge and do what it takes to
surmount it. Start where you are, with what you have, right now.
If you must direct your anger somewhere, direct it to your
government not the US government. Let your anger be known at the ballot box.
Let it be known on the platforms social or otherwise available to you. Demand
for more from your leaders at both the local and national level. Be a voice for
good governance, against corruption and abuse of office. Do not resign to the
fate of helplessness. You are better than that.
Look at this as a wakeup call to take charge of your
destiny. The fact that you are here means there is more to you than being a
dependant. There are others in a situation similar to you or maybe worse who
have actually moved on from dependency to being dependable. If they can, so can
you. If they have, so will you. Rise up to the challenge and become who you are
meant to be.
Employees
Kudos to you if you have been working tirelessly to turn
things around in the community where you are based. Thank you for the good work
and sacrifice you have made. You will turn out just fine if you have been a
great person serving your community. You should only worry if you have been a
leech reaping where you have not sown. If that be the case, brace yourself for
an awakening. The good news is you have what it takes to be great from now
going forward.
I know you may be having feelings of guilt asking yourself
whether you made the right spending decisions when the money was flowing in.
Well that is water under the bridge. The only thing you should do is learn your
lessons and do better going forward. If you are good at what you do, another
opportunity will come your way. When it does make sure you spend better on the
things that will outlast your next assignment.
For some of you this might be a call towards your destiny.
Sometimes the devil uses money to bribe you into forgetting what makes your
heart race. It is time to do a deep introspection and ask yourself whether this
is all you were meant to be. Some of you have gifts and talents that you have
never put to use. Maybe this is the hour for them to spring forth. God may have
been asking you to walk away for a long time but this was your comfort zone.
Things may have been shaken up so that you wake up out of your slumber and find
the place of your function. Some of you have capacity to create employment for others
yet you are stuck in employment.
If you were prudent enough to save up a few shillings here
and there, they will give you options. Find a good financial advisor who should
help you make sound choices. If you need help in this regard, let’s talk.
The one thing you shouldn’t do is panic. Things are under
control and if they are not, you will soon get them under control. The wisest
thing to do when you are at your lowest is to look at where you are, what you
have and where you can start. Unbeknownst to us, we carry more than we care to
admit. A long focused look at your life will unearth gems that you can channel
towards a productive life whether you have a white collar job or not. You got
to where you are courtesy of your abilities. Just because you have lost an
opportunity doesn’t mean you have also lost your ability. Transfer your skills
to the next assignment that needs you.
There are many things I can say but now is not the time. One
thing I will conclude with is that this challenge will bring out many different
results. Some will go on to build successful futures out of this setback while
others will fade into oblivion. What matters is what you have on the inside of
you. How will your story end? Will you be one of those who couldn’t cope with
the reality or will you like a phoenix rise from the ashes and go on to
conquer? I am rooting for you. Don’t let yourself down.
Governments
I acknowledge that you found these programs in place. Some
of them have been running for decades. Fortunately or unfortunately, you have
been chosen as the one to make the move in a different direction. To speak to
the Kenyan case this is what I will say. 85B is such a small amount of money if
we tighten the loopholes we have in government. Our former president spoke about
the country losing 2B daily to corruption. What that means is that we have the
capacity to recover close to 720B annually if we just close this one tap. The
question is, do you as government have the balls to make this hard call? The
funds we are crying foul about are available in our current budget. Why should
we proudly say that a third of our budget is usually lost to corruption? Why
does our procurement have to be at exaggerated rates.
If I was in government today, I would form the equivalent of
DOGE to probe wastage and make recommendations for making things right. This is not hard to do. The hard bit comes
when we talk about implementing those recommendations. What has happened in the
US in less than a month is that action has been taken on the recommendations of
DOGE. The problem we have in this country is that we have good reports
gathering dust in various government departments.
Any self-respecting government will look within and ask
where did the rain start beating us? Donor dependent countries will start
talking about looking East, finding alternative sponsors. Isn’t it shameful
that over 60 years after independence we are still depending on foreign aid to
run basic programs? Isn’t it shameful that the founding fathers of our nation
spoke about fighting disease, poverty and ignorance yet today 60 years later we
still talk about the same things in our manifestos? Don’t you have the
slightest respect for your manifesto? DJT is not a perfect man. He has many
issues we can talk about but one thing you cannot accuse him off is lip
service. When he promises the electorate he will do something, you best believe
he will. Is that too much to ask of you as leaders? When will we move on to
bigger fish? For how long shall we talk about being sabotaged by the West? What
have we done with our natural resources? What about our human capital? Are we
saying the best we can do is to send our people to the Middle East for menial
jobs?
My advice to the government of the day is decide to do what
needs to be done on the matter of basic programs. Recover that money from our
current resources. Make corruption and abuse of office extremely costly that no
one thinks about doing it. Move on from lip service and become intentional
about transforming the country. Decide that you will no longer bear the shame
of passing around begging bowls to see who will be merciful. Where there is a
will, there is a way.
In conclusion I see this move by the US as a blessing in
disguise for the developing world. It is our opportunity to rewrite our
history. If we as Africans can find a way of weaning ourselves off depending on
foreign aid, our voice will be much louder on the global stage. We have a
responsibility to bring out the greatness of Africa and it begins with us
becoming self sufficient on the basic needs of our continent. We need to get to
a place where our best and brightest want to stay around and build our
continent. We must work to ensure that we are the solution to our own
challenges. Homegrown solutions work best. It is time for the real Africa to
stand up.
