Third World to First World: is it possible?

Douglas King

Development:Several years ago at a conference organized by a leading organisation, the Director, with twenty years' experience of development in both Asia and Africa was asked a specific question.

What was the major difference between a developed and under-developed country that inhibits progress? The question was of vital concern to many organizations and governments, who over many years have donated and invested huge amounts of money in an attempt to close the gap. Most people would agree that instead of closing, the gap is widening despite major world conferences seeking ways to "make poverty history".

Countries such as Sri Lanka continually receive aid from both the East and West. Much of this is outright donations, whilst some is given as long-term loans, which will probably become part of debt cancellation in future years.

Much of the infrastructure including roads, bridges and government buildings have been the result of the generosity of leading wealthy nations. So why is it that despite massive financial input, Sri Lanka remains very much as a "developing nation"? (The term "Third World" has now been relegated as non politically correct).

If one word was required to sum up this inability to make greater progress, then it would be "attitude". In simple terms it is the way one feels about something. A story was recently told by a young couple strolling around Kandy Lake. Two young men walking a little distance ahead, discarded several wrappers from food they were eating.

The young couple picked them up and politely returned them to the men, who again threw them away once the couple had passed. It is a common sight to see school children throwing wrappers and uneaten food from van windows.

When a leading government school in Kandy was contacted, since it had been seen that the students were collected from there, despite three polite letters, no reply was forthcoming. If these were isolated incidences, they might well be excused, but many will agree that such attitudes are common.

Rubbish collection points often have more garbage strewn around the container, than inside. Dogs, cats and even children can be seen rummaging through the piles of rubbish.

Why is there no door or gate on the open side? A resident living close to one of these tips offered the local municipal council a donation to provide metal doors to two of these unsanitary eyesores. His offer made by registered letter received no reply.

The road safety regulations in Sri Lanka are similar to many developed countries. The differences being that they are often ignored. Outside Kandy General Hospital is a pedestrian crossing. It is quite a usual sight to see elderly or inform members of the public, or mothers carrying babies, making desperate attempts to cross the busy road.

Buses, three wheelers and vans will totally ignore and even swerve around those already on the crossing only to be forced to wait in traffic a few metres further along. Most people will have witnessed selfish drivers who have made a second or third traffic lane, only to have caused a block to oncoming vehicles, and thus further delays.

The same drivers, in all probability, are considerate to family and friends. It's all a question of attitude, since enforcement of the law can never be 100%.

The daily newspapers often carry stories of frustrated pensioners, teachers, and others, trying to get a reply to letters sent to government departments. It seems an unwritten rule in the civil service that letters go unanswered. There is a case of a foreign resident performing valuable voluntary service to the Education Department.

He sent over sixty registered letters, questioning the duties payable on a car he had imported, to various government offices. Despite these sent over the course of 1 year, and including follow-ups, no replies were received. He even offered to donate it to the Divisional Education office. Finally, he gave up and the car was claimed by the Port Authority.

The same individual a while ago had cause to write to Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the U.K. A satisfactory reply, from a secretary, was received in eight days. Even the Queen of England will reply in reasonable time, through one of her secretaries, to any letter sent to Buckingham Palace. So why are these attitudes so different in these two countries?

Holes in roads, especially those in rural areas, are part of the landscape. Repairs on any large scale often have to wait until the World Bank or similar institution offers money for repairs. How long such repairs last is only guess work, and the same holes often reappear within months. There are few complaints since to most people they are normal and only an inconvenience, rather than a danger.

Last year, several days prior to the Vesak celebrations, the Education Ministry issued instructions to school Principals that their schools and environment must be cleaned and tidied. Many older students absented themselves for several days, well-knowing that they would have to participate in this work.

Apart from the attitude of such students, it seems an anomaly in education that Principals have to be officially ordered to carry out such works. There are numerous schools, urban and rural, that have piles of broken furniture often taking up valuable space. Much of this could be repaired for use by the school or redistributed to those short of chairs and desks.

However, in most cases it lies dormant, deteriorating even further, and is a health and fire hazard. Education authorities have a relaxed attitude towards the problem and despite appeals from schools, little is done.

Schools are powerless, since every stick of wood or metal is listed in the inventory of the school, and woe betide the Principal if even one small piece is not accounted for. Such bureaucratic attitudes seem more in keeping with a colonial past!

On the same theme, many schools have piles of outdated textbooks and unsuitable library books, clogging up space in cupboards and on shelves. A recent offer of a donation of a large number of English books was refused unless a cupboard could be provided.

On closer investigation, it transpired that two steel cupboards were crammed with books totally unsuited to a primary school. Many had been donated by the U.S.S.R. with such stimulating titles as "The life of Lenin" and similar.

Another Principal spent almost an entire week listing every single book and piece of broken furniture that he wanted disposed of to the Department, and thus deleted from his inventory. Weeks later the same books and furniture still cluttered half of one classroom. Inflexible attitudes are deeply ensconced in public service.

Many schools have children's play equipment that has been broken for many years, depriving the younger students of recreation. Often it's nothing more than swing seats and seesaw seats that are missing, or a broken bearing on the merry-go-round.

The same school will happily spend thousands on a lavish sports day, but will plead poverty when it comes to fixing the swings and other equipment. A Volunteer from the U.K. demonstrated how to quickly repair the swing and seesaw using old tyres, and at no cost. These have now been in use for over a year, and are safer and permanent. Such attitudes towards problem solving should be encouraged everywhere.

Similarly, numerous schools have several classes sharing an open hall. There are no visual or sound barriers which makes teaching and learning many times more difficult. To make matters worse ancient, broken blackboards, far too small for modern teaching are propped up on tables or chairs against windows. The contrast between the sunlight and faded blackboard, makes reading difficult and a strain on the eyes.

It is inconceivable that for over fifty years no solution to these problems have been implemented. Again it took the know how and common sense of a volunteer to show how simple, permanent, moveable partitions can be made, providing visual barriers as well as large, better blackboards.

The students now sit with windows to both sides, giving better lighting and unable to see other classes. Surely such attitudes for improvement are not owned by developed nations.

No doubt those with experience in every facet of institutional life would be able to relate many instances of entrenched attitudes, where flexibility and change are noticeable by their absence. Initiative is not encouraged and in some cases actively discouraged.

At every organization level, few have any autonomy to make constructive changes. Organisational incompetence and resistance to change can often stifle the most creative minds. But in the final analysis it is the attitude that shows itself in a lack of divergent thinking and momentum that further stagnation in society.

However, there do exist islands of positive attitudes, by both Government departments and individuals. Such attitudes are part of mainstream thinking in many developed societies. It's hard to imagine a school in the U.K. that would ignore or tolerate many of the unnecessary inadequacies that are so prevalent in Sri Lanka.

Current attitudes in the U.K. deplore poor service and lack of accountability. A degree of autonomy in every institution encourages initiative. There are performance targets for every Government department, as well as schools, hospitals and police forces.

These relate even to the minor details as to how quickly the telephone and letters are answered. Maybe at times these go too far but it was not always like this. Thirty years ago attitudes were very different. How long will it take before Sri Lanka can also boast such attitudes?