Development for whom?

When it comes to development, there are many questions that are raised regarding to whom it is aimed at. Some people think that development is smothered with vested interests because those who are developing an area have a hidden agenda in the area that they are working on. Some people say that development damages the culture of the people there because more often than not policies that get implemented are of the "one size fits all" kind. Development is a word that sometimes is hard to describe given the many definitions that are attached to it. What I think about development is that it aims to make people's lives better.

Development through the course of my study here in DLSU has been changed over and over in my head. There was a time that I believed in agrarian reform. A time when I thought that representing the working class is the best way to go. There was even a time when I thought that boosting agriculture is the way to make our country recover. Though I still do believe that agriculture plays a major major role in any economy, it will be left for the next entry.

I think that development should be targeted to those who need them, they should be those who just absolutely have no way to raise their standard of living. Interventions have to be done in order for them to have a better life. In order to institute these development plans, participatory action research must be done first. The people who will benefit from the development plan have to be part of the planning process to ensure that the plan is the best that can be done for them. They themselves must know and realize what they need so that there will be little trouble during the implementation of the program. Generic free size development plans are not the key towards developing people, but rather a plan that is formulated with the people themselves.

Development for whom is a question that will really make you think as to whom development really is for. Development is about the people. It shouldn't be about the companies involved or the governments that would try to take a bite out of the publicity cake. It should be about the people we are trying to help, and the steps we have to take to ensure they get what they deserve. It should start from below, the place where the poorest of the poor live and try to make their lives better. It shouldn't start from above because chances are there won't be any left for those at the bottom. What is needed are responsible elites who really want to make a difference in the lives of people.

Poverty cannot be truly eliminated, but it can be lessened and alleviated. And it takes us, the ones who are educated, to really change something. We have to vote wisely, participate in the decisions that our country is making and ensuring that those in need are taken cared of. We need to be the voice of the people who are usually put at the sidelines. We have to be at the forefront of those wanting to have a better life.