Often when I visit tribal villages most of the males have left for school, for work, for a walk into another village … This time school holidays have started and some young boys between ten and twenty sit under a tree or close to a house, all together, and talk. “I wish we had…
Category: development
Bihar: a travel through a remote time and courageous business women
When we pass the regional border to Bihar in East India it seems we have done a travel to the past. The NGO driver, a project manager and myself are on the way to Buxar to visit a sanitation project, steered by Healing Fields. This is one of the Indian parts I have not visited…
To end poverty micro-loans are never enough
Micro-loans – the bestseller among development tools is under fire “Microfinance, not a quick escape from poverty, studies show” – When I came across this article published recently in various media talking about the limited effect of micro-loans, I got angry – and at the same time I was more than surprised that we really need…
Poor people as change drivers: What if we became partners instead of empowering dependencies
Have you ever thought if poor people can have innovative ideas for your business or become a real partner for development not in their poor villages, but in large and wealthy industries? It is true: many poor people often have no opportunity to get a good school or professional education. Many of them can not…
India: Healthcare in rural areas is expensive, but this could change
The long walk, the cost of loss of earnings of the day, the price of staying in the city when treatment is needed, and the cost of a relative coming with the patient to support any treatment needed – these all are factors that makes the access to healthcare in rural areas in India much…
Back from India – issues with ‘development’
Coming back to my home town in Germany after seven weeks in India was not really characterized by a “big shock”. Although many friends have asked exactly that question during the last days: “Isn’t it a big difference and somehow strange to come back to a completely different, developed and modern world?” It is cold,…
Go India, go future! 