Ifda dossier 47, May/June 1985

Introducing modern technology and architecture are to their
own benefit for the professionals as they can get a greater
share of income from expensive modern buildings. Thus, in
Kathmandu alone in 1977, 2000 million rupees were invested
in buildings when the total national budget of Nepal for
that year was only 7000 million rupees. Many of these new
buildings were designed and constructed with the help of
architects, engineers and contractors.
Out of this investment, a substantial proportion of funds
went out of the country in the importation of cement, steel,
oil and other materials. If you ask an architect or an engi-
neer about this, they will tend to say that it is not their
headache. "That is not my business, I am a professional and
I am trained in design and construction and to give service
to the client for a fee. Why should I bother about econo-
mics. There are plenty of other professionals to look after
them". Today's professionals have become self-centred and
money oriented and they are very little conscious of their
social responsibilities.
To combat this disease, Mwalimu Julius Neyerere suggests:
Indeed by.using good local farmers as supervisors and teachers of par-
ticular aspects of work, we shall be helping to break down the notion
that only book learning is worthy of respect.
This may precisely, be what we should aiming at towards our
outlook in professionalism. Here, I am reminded of one in-
cident. After Australia, I came back to Nepal again to ex-
plore mud construction (as well as mud roofing) in rural
areas of West Nepal. I was trying to build a small demon-
stration temple in mud and stone. It was in the school pre-
mises that we were building and hence the students came to
see me digging earth. One of them remarked:
This is not good, Sir. An engineer digging earth like an ordinary farm-
er! Please come and tech us. We lack teachers.
I replied:
If you help me in my work, I shall, help you in your classes.
The student again:
But Sir,
land?
are we in schools if not to get sway from working on the
This is a very important truth said by a kid of our present
educational system. Children are led to believe that our
education is provided so that one need not work on land any-
more. This is how one degrades the farming profession. My
ideas about professionalism is that there already exist a
tremendous cadres of professional expertise with the village
people. This must be relized as our most important resource
and, therefore, this must be facilitated. The present pro-
fessionals have undermined these 'native professionals' and
instead subjected the 'native professionals' into hardship