Role of NGO's Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Role of NGO's - Research Paper Example The island was claimed by Spain in 1492. In 200 years later, France forced the Spanish out and practiced farming there, which was aided by slave laborers, most of whom came from Guinea in West Africa. By 1791, the slaves pulled efforts together to oppose colonial rule. Towards the end of 1803, the French armies under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte ceded power and Haiti became independent in 1804. Immediately after the independence, the nation experienced serious problems of leadership and governance that has continued to destabilize the country up to date. The United States and other international community kept shifting between periods of engagement and non-engagement, but they did not offer Haiti any long-term solution its problems (Schwartz, 2008: 235). One of the most memorable leaders who have played a remarkable role in the country’s history is Aristide, who was ousted out of power in a coup by General Cedras Raoul in February 2004. Afterwards, a U.N. Security fore seen installation of interim force to restore order and form transitional government. Later, in 2006, Haiti held elections, but they were marred by violence after a run-off was called. In view of this background, it is clear that the crisis that is experienced in Haiti is mostly as a result of poor governance. This is especially as a result of lack of governmental capacity to serve the public effectively and efficiently. In particular, the government is left without the capacity to fight poverty or address the country’s most harmful impacts such as education and health, entrusting most of these functions to NGOs (Schwartz, 2008: 236). 1.2 Statement of Research Problem Most of Haitians are very poor, living on less than $2 a day, a situation that has been worsened by the inability of the Haitian government to provide basic services such as health care and education. This level of inefficiency by Haitian government was made evident in 2006, when the World Bank biennial ranked i t in the bottom 6 percent on government effectiveness and bottom 2 percent of countries on corruption (Buss, 2008: 256). Many NGOs commissioned by the international development community have attempted to bring Haiti on its foot, though they lack confidence in the government in performing its mandate especially regarding alleviation of poverty and improving the lives of Haitians. Similarly, the government circles raise complains that they are not consulted by the NGOs when choosing their projects. Most critics argue that many NGOs have failed to provide a long-term solution with their development projects, and rather opted to operate as relief agencies, providing temporary solutions such as giving poor citizens food on a daily basis (Haggerty, 1989: 25). With so many NGOs operating in Haiti, the role of government has been ignored, and the Haitian people have over relied on organizations that they did not elect into office. More so, the relationships between the NGOs and their donor s has continued to challenge the rights of the people of Haiti, yet these organizations have continued to amass a lot of wealth in the name of fighting poverty. One of the reasons given for the donors not dealing directly with NGOs rather than the government is the perception of widespread corruption in Haiti. There has been a discussion that the ongoing impression of widespread of corruption in the government can only be eliminated through promotion of good