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06 Sustainable Livelihoods The ICD policy is about developing communities from inside out and developing PNG from the bottom up to balance top-down development. It is about building from and strengthening what already exists and works on the ground and encompassing a human rights framework to development. It is about government working in partnership with and strengthening the work of churches, NGOs and civil society activities. The ICD policy recognises that sustainable development with long-term change can only be achieved when communities own their future. “Mobilisation should start from national leaders but sustainability depends on continuing community participation” James Grant, former Director, UNICEF 1980 -1995. The key is in the community. There is a need for a shift in attitudes at all levels so that our families and communities have access to opportunities to take ownership of development and build their communities from inside out. The development of the policy took five years of hard work by the Department for Community Development but continued implementation will be even harder. Community-driven Community Learning and Development Centres (CLDCs) are central to the policy implementation and the District Focal Point Co-ordinator of the Provincial Divisions for Community Development is the connection between the CLDCs and government. The ICD policy does not provide an instant remedy to the multitude of social problems in PNG today. However it does recognise the strength and resilience that already exists in communities throughout the nation and provides a framework for growing the nation from that foundation. It is framed in a 50 year vision for generational change recognising that introduced socio-economic, religious and cultural paradigms are often a thin veneer over complex and diverse traditional cultural psychologies and lifestyles. It recognises also that there is little attention given to the impact of the interactions between the layers and multiplicity of culture and a need for further About Dr Dame Carol Kidu indigenous sociological research to underpin policy and legislative interventions. In the post Independence development process there has not been enough focus on the micro-issues which require endless patience and dialogue and often end up in the “too hard” basket. There is a need to re-think community development knowing that sustainable developmental can only be achieved when communities own their future. Sustainability is a social process and Dr Dame Carol Kidu is a member of Parliament in PNG and is a former Minister for Community Development. Dr Kidu is the second female cabinet minister in PNG, and she has been re-elected to parliament three times since 2002. In 2002, Dr. Carol Kidu was appointed as a Minister for Welfare and Social Development, and between 2002 and 2007 she served as a Chairperson of the Ministerial Committee on Urbanisation and a member of the Ministerial Appointments Committee. Her particular interests are in areas of social justice, including poverty reduction, access to learning for all, development strategies for the informal sector, and human rights with special focus on women’s, children’s and indigenous rights. must be based on cultural understanding and cultural relevance. Community development in PNG has a history of mismatched expectations and priorities with disappointing outcomes. The ICD policy of the Department For Community Development aims to change that history. I encourage any volunteers working at the community level to visit the Department For Community Development to see how they can contribute to making that change happen. < Above > Participants of the AVI/Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) Indigenous Women’s Tour with Dame Carol Kidu on the steps of PNG’s Parliament House. Photo > Carole Howlett/AVI
A healthy market place The life of a Market Trader is tough. This is especially true in Swaziland where a few hundred women, aged mostly between 15-60, travel from all areas of the country to form an informal market two days a week. Australian Volunteer Business Development and Marketing Officer, Mike Merritt, writes about an initiative of local organisations SWABCHA and the Ekululameni Rehabilitation and Training Centre that is working with Market Traders to address issues of nutrition, health and wellbeing. » Arriving in Manzini, based 37 kilometres south of the capital of Mbabane, the women camp both Tuesday and Wednesday nights. The temporary home is usually an open bus shelter, where they live and sleep on concrete floors throughout all four seasons of the year to ensure their livelihoods. To compound the misery, many are seriously ill. Swaziland has the highest HIV-AIDS prevalence in the world with 26 percent of adults being positive. The prevalence rate of women aged 25 to 29 further increases to 49 percent. This is three times higher than men and experienced in a social environment which does not encourage women to be proactive, equal partners, married or not. Individuals with HIV also have increased incidences of tuberculosis (TB) and their nutrition and general health is poor. In the advent of the HIV-AIDS / TB pandemic and the subsequent loss of life, women are often faced with the double burden of being the sole money earner for the family, and acting as a caregiver due to related illnesses. With socio-economic development being severely hampered, and to help sustain livelihoods, Australian Volunteers with their colleagues from two local organisations, SWABCHA and Ekululameni Rehabilitation and Training Centre, got together and developed the Manzini Market Women Health Project. The initiative is working to increase awareness on health issues and to provide practical help through the delivery of health services to the Market Traders. Research indicates the average earning of a trader at about E800 (AU$111) per month. It is feasible to assume that each trader has at least one dependent and that this meagre income deters the beneficiaries from accessing healthcare services, especially screening and testing services, due to the cost of transport and the impact on work time. This initiative aims to go some way towards alleviating hardship while providing a degree of awareness and sustainability. Activities of the project include visiting the market over an eight week period to conduct awareness sessions about HIV-AIDS, TB and HIV testing, allowing for the identification of the common myths and the dangers of Multiple Concurrent Partnerships (MCPs) and access to eye testing services. During the delivery of the project 30 people on average a day are accessing HIV and TB testing. So far the project has conducted 177 eye tests and supplied 140 pairs of glasses and given away 59 free eye drop bottles. Future sessions and a community open day with a range of local service providers including Swaziland Breast Cancer Network, Population Services International, Family Life Association Swaziland, University Research Council, Swaziland Malaria Control Program and the Elizabeth Glaser Paediatric AIDS Foundation, will cover additional health issues including TB, heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer, malaria and eyesight problems. Sustainable Livelihoods Above > Attending a market-based mobile clinic in Swaziland. Photo > Courtesy SWABCHA A Mobile Wellness Clinic will also be a part of these activities, providing on-the-spot diagnostic services such as HIV testing and counselling, palliative and rehabilitative advice, TB screening, and blood-glucose and cholesterol testing. Eye testing will also be offered with glasses provided free or at cost to those in need. < Mike Merritt is Business Development and Marketing Officer with Ekululameni Rehabilitation and Training Centre and Michelle Drabarek is the Marketing and Branding Officer with SWABCHA. As part of their assignments with AVI, they have collaborated to deliver the Manzini Market Women Health Project. For more information on the project visit www.swabcha.org.sz This is a position of the Australian Volunteers for International Development program (AVID). AVI is working in partnership with AusAID to deliver AVID. A healthy market place > Mike Merritt 07
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