Scott Family Fellows: Views From Liberia
October 29, 2007
Calling all applicants for a new round of Liberia fellows!
Posted by Rebecca Schutte at 03:16 PM
Are you seeking a difficult, but challenging task? Are you looking for a way to make a difference in an African country which is rebuilding after years of horrific civil war and corrupt leadership? Here is your chance! Recruitment for more Liberia fellows has begun!
Liberia’s civil war killed over 270,000 people, destroyed basic infrastructure, and left the country in ruins. The government of Liberia, led by President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, has made incredible progress over the past 22 months-- but there is still much work to be done. These fellowships help fill the tremendous capacity gap caused by many skilled civil servants being killed or fleeing Liberia during the war. The fellows serve as special assistants to key government ministers and other senior officials in the government of Liberia. Typical fellows will be young professionals with Masters degree-level training (e.g., an MBA, MPP, MPH or a law degree) and one year of related experience, or a Bachelor’s degree with at least three years of related experience.
Please read the current fellows’ bios to get an idea of their academic and professional experiences and what important tasks they are currently performing in Liberia.
We are recruiting 3 general fellows for a program that is closely related to the Scott Family Fellows program. These fellowships are funded by the Open Society Institute. We are also recruiting 3 law fellows (MUST have a law degree) who are generously funded by Humanity United and the McCall MacBain Foundation. All fellows must be willing to work hard, be flexible and energetic, and do whatever is asked of them to get the job done. Liberians are especially encouraged to apply.
Think this opportunity sounds perfect for you or someone you know? Click here to see the two fellowship announcements and to get instructions on how to apply. Help play a vital role in helping this country get back on its feet after years of chaos!
October 16, 2007
Becoming Frankenstein in Liberia
Posted by Robtel Pailey at 04:53 PM
What would have happened if Frankenstein’s inventor had morphed into the grotesque monster himself, if by some freak of nature happenstance, the creator had become his own experiment in a replica of the Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde scenario? That’s what came to mind when one of my course mates at Oxford said astutely, “Robtel, you’ve become your own research,” after I told him I’d been chosen to work with Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf beginning in July.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always felt like a 21st century Frankenstein trapped in someone else’s body politic, but lately I’ve been feeling a lot more like his creator, especially since realizing that I have become a living reflection of my master’s thesis topic, which traces the political, economic, and social implications of highly skilled, professional Diaspora Liberians who are resettling in the country during its post-conflict reconstruction era. The central question I kept asking throughout the writing phase of the thesis was 'why?' Why give up a comfortable life in the Diaspora to go back to a country whose infrastructure is shattered, whose citizenry is suffering from post-traumatic stress, whose judicial and legal systems are antiquated, essentially whose very existence has been inert since 1989? One possible hypothesis in migration studies is that the stronger the social and symbolic ties of migrants to persons and/or institutions in the country of origin, the higher the propensity to return, and the greater the chances for this return to affect social and economic change. It is with this notion that I based my thesis; it is with this realisation that I couldn’t stay away from Liberia, even after having lived away from the country for nearly 20 years.
Just like the 35 returnees I interviewed in December 2006 and January 2007 when I was in Liberia for field research, I’ve always felt this metaphysical connection to the country, that even though I wasn’t in Liberia, Liberia has always been in me. Today, Liberia is a changing nation with shifting political, social, and economic concerns. Having elected Africa’s first female head of state, the country and its war-battered populace are on the road to recovery. With this realisation comes a responsibility to serve. That’s where the Scott Family Liberia Fellowship comes in, and the reason I applied.
I was prodded by an Oxford buddy, veteran Ugandan journalist Bernard Tabaire, to apply for the Fellowship sponsored in part by the Center for Global Development, the government of Liberia, JSI, and the family of American billionaire Ed Scott. After vacillating for what appeared to be an eternity, I submitted an application reluctantly in early April (I never thought government work would fit my temperament), and was called almost two weeks later for a video conference interview. When I received a phone call from D.C. in early May informing me that not only had I been chosen for one of the six fellowships, but also that President Sirleaf wanted me to work along side her, I was simultaneously shocked, thrilled, terrified and humbled beyond measure. I had NO CLUE what I was getting myself into, and for a split second I questioned my own qualifications, but my father mitigated by fears by reassuring me that though it will mean long hours and rock-solid diplomacy, President Sirleaf wouldn't have chosen me if she didn't think I could handle it.
Like the returnees I interviewed in Liberia, I’ve discovered that the challenges of moving back home are monumental. Issues such as (warranted) resentment from non-returnees, frustrations with post-conflict infrastructural deficiencies, the duality of social re-indoctrination, familial obligations and expectations, etc. are real and lived. Still, I know that my purpose is more critical than the sum of those challenges. Though recent migration research suggests that highly skilled migrants not only are more likely to return, but also more likely to act as “agents of change,” this notion is riddled with patronising rhetoric. If anything, being a “change agent” in Liberia has meant coming back infused with the knowledge that I have more to learn than to teach. Affecting change from within established structures is almost as important—if not more—than transforming things from the periphery, especially in the case of new dispensations such as Liberia’s. This, and only this, has kept me anchored. I have morphed into my own experiment, indeed, and it feels good to have created something so strangely familiar.
We are all driven by urges, compulsions to create something of worth, to be recognised, to have an impact. Call me a utilitarian, but I think academics have an obligation to nurture research so that it has some residual effects, so that it does not become a monster of an experiment, but rather the personification of how we think the world should function. In many respects, our research is an extension of ourselves. Mine has been extended, stretched, and formatted so much that I am now the embodiment of it. I have plunged into this next chapter of life head-on, and discovered that becoming a more autonomous Frankenstein in Liberia ain’t half bad.
October 04, 2007
A Nation of Bathtubs and Generators
Posted by Dan Honig at 02:35 PM
Liberia—or Monrovia, at least—has bathtubs. They're not in use, of course – there is no running water. They remind us that at one time, this country was prosperous enough from municipal water supply and had porcelain tubs imported from overseas.
Mansions are filled with families occupying only part of the house, time and neglect making upkeep of the whole structure impossible, occupancy of the entire building dangerous.
Sometimes people talk about television as creating images of 'the good life' in the developing world, creating a standard that can't be reached. No need for television here. The realities of the past and - one hopes - the possibilities of the future are all around. Everywhere, signs of a previous wealth contrast with current squalor.
What does this mean for expectations? And if disappointment is the gap between expectations and reality, what are the ramifications here?
Monrovia is an atomized city - a city of walled compounds, of separation. It's a city of generators, because there's no power grid. It's a place where follow-up and micro-management are the norm, because people don't trust others to work diligently.To effectively have agricultural markets work, there has to be trust. To maximize farm yields, there has to be trust. To make small businesses work, there has to be trust.
I was talking to a friend who drives a cab. He's one of the most loved cabbies for expats in the city, because he's always on time, If he doesn't have time to pick you up - if he's too busy - he tells you. If he says he's 10 minutes away, he'll be there in 10 minutes, not 30. I asked him why he didn't buy another cab - he makes pretty good money - and hire a 2nd driver, someone he trusted. He laughed. "Who? Who can I hire? Someone will drive my car to Guinea and sell it." I suggested maybe he had a relative, a cousin or brother who could be trusted. He laughed again. "Even worse! He won't work at all. He'll just take my money."
How do you build trust? Is trust a by-product of shared development, or an input? If the latter, what role can government play, not in building infrastructure that allows for the exchange of physical capital (e.g . roads), but rather social capital?
Ultimately, faith is what makes things work - faith in the government to be broadly fair, faith in others not to steal, faith that this year will be better than last and next year better still. Faith that the economic pie will expand - for if the pie is stagnant or contracting, the smartest move is to ignore the rules and try to take as much of today's pie as you can.
What's more, not maximizing today's pie, playing for the future, is only the prudent move if you think enough others will do likewise - otherwise you're just Milton Waddams in Office Space, passing all the pieces of cake and being left empty-handed.
The bathtub is a visible sign of what once was. The question is how Siafa, or Maureene, or Vabah respond to the bathtub. Does it need to be filled today? Or is it enough that the roof isn't falling in? Do we pay attention only to the 'function' of development - the rate of physical progress - or can people focus on the 1st and 2nd derivatives of the function, the velocity (the speed of development) and acceleration (the speed at which the speed of development is changing)? What role can government play in building trust, in managing expectations, in shifting focus?
October 03, 2007
Welcome to the Scott Family Fellows: Views from Liberia blog!
Posted by Rebecca Schutte at 10:19 AM
Welcome to the Scott Family Fellows: Views from Liberia blog! This space will feature the six Scott Family Fellows—young professionals working with key senior government officials in the Liberian government for one year. Their posts, including photos and videos, will present the Fellows commenting on a range of topics based upon their personal experiences and observing challenges Liberia faces during their transition from conflict to reconstruction.
Stay involved by posting your own comments and questions in response to the Fellows' writing.
Please also check out this blog from Molly Kinder which documents her experience interning with the Liberian Ministry of Finance during the summer of 2007. Molly is a former CGD employee, and currently attends the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.