Economic development from the margins: lessons from Chiapas.

AuthorEarle, Duncan

Abstract

This article addresses the problems associated with economic community development in marginal communities within Less Developed Nations, using the complex case of groups within a conflictive region of the state of Chiapas, Mexico. It shows how all parties to community development must negotiate with each other and the forces at play in these and similar situations, in order to overcome the many obstacles. It also explores the role of social scientists in the debate about what can be done to maintain and improve the economic viability of rural economies (other than out-migration), and how to do so in a sustainable and equitable manner. It closes calling for some means to maintain a "knowledge fund" to accumulate lessons about what works and what fails in such efforts.

WHO IS HELPING? NGOs and the New World Order

In the recent U.S. Census report of a serious underestimation of the undocumented in the U.S. as compared with the new 2000 data, the news did not surprise many people living here. As with major cities throughout Latin America and the Third World, we are experiencing the fall-out of the declining viability of rural agricultural communities around the world, a population that until very recently were the earth's numerical majority. No global problem remains so perniciously pervasive than the poverty of these marginalized areas of the globe, especially those places so devastated by the socioeconomic changes of the last two decades that out-migration to cities and to the industrialized "North" has come to be nearly the only viable basis of their current economies. With the rise of free trade agreements and trade globalization, conditions continue to deteriorate, as the services and policies that once buffered globalization impacts on the low-income population have been scaled back or removed. The private sector, theorized to replace government with greater profitability and efficiency, is typically no where to be found, as there is rarely sufficient incentive. What has replaced the organizational impact of government, for many areas of the less developed globe, has been Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs). These organizations have proliferated and become a significant force of change in many parts of the world, yet in many cases we do not know much about what it is they do, how well they do it, and what could be learned from their approaches to the problem of the viability of the margins. Moreover, as I argue below, the structure of these NGO's rarely allows for the production of information that could serve to refine and perfect the kinds of interventions that will truly aid these communities at risk. Organizational goals and methods vary enormously. There is often little coordination of their efforts, and some are highly competitive, ideologically narrow in vision, and lacking in ability or interest in sharing what they have learned. Yet for many communities, NGOs are all there is, as organizations of aid in the process of improving their economic and knowledge conditions. Many bring with them views and visions of the work and the setting very much at variance with the people they are attempting to help, and with other potentials sources of aid. If so many are pinning their hopes on NGOs, both at the local level and as the symbol of a new direction in development assistance in the New World Order, it would be helpful to understand better how these organizations work, what local people think of them, and for those of us who have worked with NGOs for decades now, what kind of organizational action is efficacious, what works, and why? This is the starting place for my study.

Chiapas in Rebellion; Enter The NGO

NGOs are of particular significance in parts of the State of Chiapas, Mexico, because since the uprising by armed, anti-globalization peasant Mayas, who specifically declared war on the NAFTA agreements in their first communique, the state has been awash with them. Further, they arrived at a time when the state was downsizing its role as a social player in community development (CD), in the poorest state in the country. Further, many of the NGOs have embraced particular political positions within the political conflict, while others attempt to remain neutral. And finally, the current President envisions them playing a major role in returning Chiapas to a state of peace. So the stakes are very high as regards their successful impact, yet little is really known about them, about what creates successful interventions, and about who is doing what. It appears if this new model of NGO-based social assistance is to be more successful than past efforts, there must be research done both on past efforts and on what is currently taking place. With the help of a colleague, Dr. Jeanne Simonelli, this is what I am aiming at, and this forms the basis of the discussion to follow.

Project Description:

What is the nature of their interventions and how do the goals and initiatives of NGOs and donors compare to those of the communities they seek to serve? Why do some programs fail and others succeed? Do NGO programs influence a community's ability to meet their own stated needs? What role can these organizations and their programs play in the transition from civil strife to social peace? These serve as touchstone questions here.

This research examines community development (CD) processes in conflictive areas of Chiapas, Mexico. I build on two decades of work with CD among Maya and other similar rural communities, and recent intensive research in the Santo Domingo region of the State. Expanding from two initial communities of inquiry and one non-governmental organization (NGO), the study examines the impacts of NGO interventions and CD processes as well as inquiry into other NGO interventions in the State. At one level, the research seeks to understand and assess the success of these interventions and the perceptions and expectations that drive the participation of stakeholders, with a goal of both specific advisory commentary and a testing of hypothesized CD intervention principles. At another more theoretical level, the study seeks to bridge the gap between radical critiques of development anthropology and the current practices of (applied) development anthropologists, generating a verifiable model of responsible community development that both addresses critiques of the past approaches, and provides a positive alternative. Thus, the proposed research aims at anthropological praxis, the combination of knowledge, theory, and action. I take as a model the interpretive and methodological framework refined by anthropologist June Nash. According to Escobar (1997:507):

"her reading of the contemporary Chiapas situation suggests an alternative meaning of development in the making as the region's social movements press for a combination of cultural autonomy and democracy, on the one hand, and the construction of material and institutional infrastructure to improve local living conditions, on the other..... Nash's exemplary work as an engaged anthropologist concerned with development is complemented by her active sponsorship of students in her fieldwork projects, [and] the publication of her works in Spanish ... The contemporary and pressing nature of the research derives from the theoretical debate and its implications for the discipline, but also from growing concerns about the role of NGOs in relation to the State. The case of Chiapas provides an appropriate arena to examine the latter, in the wake of changes in the political landscape of Mexico and the call by President-Elect Fox for cooperation and collaboration between the State and NGOs, as part of a peace plan (Cuarto Poder 2000). The first change in national political party in over fifty years coincides with a nascent process of reconciliation among groups and communities after six years of conflict associated with a popular rebellion against the former government (Rus 2000; Simonelli nd). On the local and regional level, political strife has been tied closely to alternative efforts and visions of social and economic betterment, some of them in turn tied to a history of involvement with international and national NGOs and their community development (CD) efforts. The new governmental initiatives to involve NGOs in the peace and development processes of the region increase the urgency of the kind of research presented here, as Chiapas enters into an era of possible changes.

Statement of the Problem

The continued failure by the nations of wealth and educational advantage to develop a rigorous approach to helping the disadvantaged communities of the world despite huge investments of resources and human effort may become one of the greatest historical legacies of the last fifty years. As we face another century, the hew and cry of the injustices of this situation from these quarters take ever darker turns. Whatever other significations are contained in the September 11 attacks, no one doubts the relationship between where they are seen positively and where there is poverty, injustice and suffering. The notion of transferring the Marshall Plan successes in Europe and Japan to the small traditions to the south has been for the most part a sustained failure. Ongoing efforts to invest in economic development nation-to-nation burdened many countries with huge amounts of debt without having significant impact on economic health, and in fact often leading to the enhancement of corruption and mismanagement. Striking out at the "grassroots," as an alternative closer to the people in poverty, has led to the proliferation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which have sought by various means and with various ideologies, methods and directions, to transform the lives of the disadvantaged. This too has not fared well in most quarters. This article discusses the role of NGOs in the specifically significant region of Mexico, within the State of Chiapas...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT