Evidence that ‘one size fits all’ prescriptions do not work in the economic development arena
On the Road !
Don’t we often wonder why - for reasons other than leakage and corruption, of course - huge sums of money spent on anti-poverty measures do not give desired results?
During our trip into East Singhbhum( Jharkhand), we got to see the cultural issues that adversely impact even the noblest of intentions.
Pradan, one of the best NGOs that one encounters, mentioned 2 projects that failed because of non-compliance with the local culture. When they tried to introduce watermelon as new crop, the red color of the fruit was a deterrent for the tribes, as red has bad connotations. Similarly, a Dairy project initiated to improve health conditions,and also as an income-generating income activity failed miserably, because the tribal population believed that the milk should exclusively be drunk by the calf and not by humans. They also don’t milk the cow to sell the milk.
