Memo+21+Describing+Events+(Dan+F)

These points will be made in response to actions taken in Ghana that contribute to why development projects fail.
 * 1) I believe that the issue in the event I will discuss below will be a common thread in future case examples I receive to draw my conclusions on. For three of four years leading up to completion the Ghana solar project work was done on a project in and out of country without establishing need through what I feel to be proper channels. Toward the end of this period the reflector was taken up north to where the charcoal was produced and demonstrated for the locals there to see if it was something they would use. They were honest and said that they would never use such a device. This was a fatal flaw in the groups plan because they did not ensure that a solution was wanted by the people who would have to use the device and those people were not consulted in anyway before hand. It’s true enough that an alternative would be more environmentally friendly, but the use of a specific device introduced by outsiders is not an effective way to solve a problem in the majority of cases.
 * 2) The next event outlines what I hope will be a solution and is as follows. Along with the solar project there was also a condom vending machine project (which failed) and a Fractal math education project. The education project was much more successful then the other two projects because it imparted knowledge rather then a free device that solved a problem. It was my feeling even before going on this exchange that education is one of the only effective transfers that dose any good. It gives the people a chance to decide for themselves after examining all or at least most of the options. Clearly a class on fractal math is no seeking to transfer a specific technology but it did convey the cultural components of African math that confirm that to at least a certain extent Africans were mathematically inclined even before Westernization and Globalization became such influencing factors.