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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | The case of the yellow settee: experiences of doing development in post-war Somaliland |
Author: | Bradbury, Mark |
Year: | 1994 |
Periodical: | The Community Development Journal: An International Journal for Community Workers |
Volume: | 29 |
Issue: | 2 |
Pages: | 113-122 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Somalia |
Subjects: | NGO community development civil wars private aid |
External link: | http://search.proquest.com/pao/docview/1304157343 |
Abstract: | This paper examines the experiences of the British charity ACTIONAID, which has been working in Somalia since 1980. The civil war forced ACTIONAID to withdraw from Somalia in 1990, but it returned to Erivago, Sanaag region, in Somaliland, in May 1992. In Sanaag a process is underway to rebuild a community damaged by war. ACTIONAID has two roles to play: to assist with the rehabilitation of the physical and economic resources of the region, by acting as a bridge between the communities and the northern donors; and to help restore confidence and provide institutional and moral support to the communities after years of war. ACTIONAID's programme in Somaliland during its first six months illustrates some of the complexities that can face an agency working in a situation of armed conflict. ACTIONAID wanted to avoid becoming a source of conflict in Sanaag. To minimize the risk of destabilizing the situation it chose to proceed cautiously, to work on a small scale with local people and resources and with sensitivity to the local politics. This meant ensuring that the organization was accessible to all and favoured no one. In spite of its cautious actions, however, the ACTIONAID office was attacked and looted by armed youths in July 1992. This incident was probably caused by ACTIONAID's failure to strike a balance between the various groups in Erivago. Notes, ref. |