Peter Bell GS '64, former president of CARE USA, an antipoverty NGO, discussed the shifting relationship between the U.S. government and NGOs after the Iraqi invasion and Asian tsunami, in a talk yesterday in Dodds Auditorium.
During the lecture, sponsored by the Wilson School, Bell listed several current issues NGOs must consider as they navigate their humanitarian work, including ideological conflicts with governments that affect funding for reconstruction and reproductive health.
The first trend Bell noted was the "blatantly" expanding role of the Defense Department in rebuilding nations. Because of the increased military role in the Iraq reconstruction, he said, NGO workers could be mistaken for plainclothes military men and kidnapped by terrorists.
He also spoke of the "competition between the Departments of Defense and State" caused by the Bush administration's USAID reform, stating that it would be a "setback" if the details of this aid program were aligned with U.S. "short-term geopolitical issues." In such an event, funding for NGOs would be directed only to those advancing US goals, which counters the objectives of most NGOs.
Bell's concern is based on a USAID statement released one-and-a-half years ago, which said that part of the criteria for an effective project was the extent to which the project advanced U.S. strategic objectives. This, Bell said, was counter to many NGOs' codes of conduct.
Bell continued to address the conflict between NGOs and U.S. governmental objectives by citing the growing ideological rift over sexual health issues abroad. "I could make a speech on this subject alone," Bell said of reproductive health and AIDS prevention programs.
The issue here, Bell said, is that NGOs encounter problems in receiving funding for such programs when their views are incompatible with those of the U.S. government — often held by "ultraconservative" Congressmen. According to Bell, politicians attempt to press their "ideological and illogical points" in foreign policy when they cannot express them domestically. This has caused concern in the past because, while CARE frequently enlists sex workers and prostitutes to teach sex education and proper condom use, U.S. officials would have the state deny funding to NGOs that associate with "sex trafficking."
Bell spoke of the need to diversify funds in the future. CARE, an antipoverty NGO, was one of the top three recipients of USAID funding and used these funds to address issues such as female genital mutilation in Ethiopia and allowing women in Rwanda to own land, which Bell said was "important in a country of widows." Despite this, he said that CARE was against "all forms of assistance with U.S. geopolitical principles." Bell was concerned that while advancing U.S. geopolitical goals was one of USAID's five operational goals, reducing extreme poverty was not a priority.
Bell said there were "occasions when [CARE and other NGOs] must draw the line."
Because NGOs can only do so much, Bell said there are political problems that Americans must deal with. He said that Americans, "as members of society," have a duty to engage in the political process, and they will influence "thousands upon thousands" of the world's poorest people through their political experiences.
Bell said he hopes that through such political participation and collaboration between NGOs toward the goal of eliminating poverty, citizens and NGOs can "build a constituency that will help more members of Congress to our view of a better world."
Read More
Científicos de Princeton, investigadores luchan para preservar conjuntos de datos en medio de eliminación federal de los datos
Sena Chang and Luke GrippoEl 3 de febrero, miles de páginas web federales que contenían directrices sanitarias, informes del censo y datos climáticos fueron retiradas de línea, lo que generó preocupación en la comunidad de investigación de Princeton.
El 3 de febrero, miles de páginas web federales que contenían directrices sanitarias, informes del censo y datos climáticos fueron retiradas de línea, lo que generó preocupación en la comunidad de investigación de Princeton.
Preguntas Frecuentes Nuevas avisan a la comunidad sobre interacciones con Servicio de Control de Inmigración y Aduanas
Nico David-Fox and Caitlyn TabladaEn medio de la ofensiva del presidente Trump contra la inmigración, la Oficina de Equidad Institucional y Diversidad agregó nuevas preguntas frecuentes para asesorar a la comunidad universitaria sobre las interacciones con los oficiales del Servicio de Control de Inmigración y Aduanas (ICE, por sus siglas en inglés).
En medio de la ofensiva del presidente Trump contra la inmigración, la Oficina de Equidad Institucional y Diversidad agregó nuevas preguntas frecuentes para asesorar a la comunidad universitaria sobre las interacciones con los oficiales del Servicio de Control de Inmigración y Aduanas (ICE, por sus siglas en inglés).
‘Devastadora’ e ‘impactante’: Qué Princeton puede perder con la congelación de ciencia de Trump
Sena ChangMientras la administración Trump continúa cambiando las pautas federales de investigación y financiación, el “Príncipe” habló con profesores y estudiantes para comprender los posibles impactos.
Mientras la administración Trump continúa cambiando las pautas federales de investigación y financiación, el “Príncipe” habló con profesores y estudiantes para comprender los posibles impactos.