Give someone a fish or teach someone to fish?
Miade comes down firmly on the “teach” side of the question. Development projects are only truly successful if project participants gain knowledge in the process. Clothes get worn, food gets eaten and money gets spent. But knowledge gets passed on. If you really want to invest in Togo’s future, invest in a Togolese community’s skills to control their own future.
From our mentorship approach to our substantial partnerships with local Community Based Organizations, a description of practically every Miade project includes the phrases “knowledge transfer” or “sustainability”. In practice, these phrases mean things like partnering with local agriculture extension workers on to introduce new farming techniques on demonstration plots, training local masons to maintain household latrines, educating leaders to stress the importance of continued entrepreneurial training, equipping local institutions to deliver successful vocational training, empowering women to teach their sisters and mothers improved food preparation techniques, and the list goes on. Miade’s goal is to support communities in achieving self-reliance, because then and only then, can they achieve prosperity on their own terms.
