By Yaqoob

With our stay in India always being dependent on the Indian government giving us a visa, we’re often thinking about ways we can help bring about lasting change – change that continues even after we finally leave (whether that leaving be from visa difficulties or otherwise). This lasting change is what development folk call ‘sustainable’ change or sometimes ‘outcomes’ – change that lasts, even after a project finishes.

Here are six ways we’re trying to bring sustainable change. We’d like to hear your thoughts as to which you think has a better chance of bringing lasting change.

  1. Empowering individuals: Faisal*, a young man, had had an accident when he was 7 which left him unable to walk for 18 years. After about a year of struggling to negotiate the health system, Yusuf was able to organise Faisal’s surgery, such that he can now walk again! That change will hopefully last as long as Faisal does! Similarly, when children become literate, or a widow gets a pension, the change for those individuals lasts for the rest of their lives. (By the way, you can read more about Faisal’s story here.)
  2. Individuals ‘passing it on’: As many as 500 children have learned to read through our literacy workers’ efforts. That is a lasting impact on most of those children’s lives – hopefully helping them to engage in further education, increasing their self confidence and perhaps leading to better jobs. Additionally, however, we’ve now invited any of those literate children who want to to become ‘teachers’ themselves. To those who are keen, we give their own teaching book and let them loose to teach their younger siblings and friends. Since the children’s teaching is voluntarily, this effect can continue after we go, and our current efforts to help children become literate can ‘multiply’ to have an even greater effect. Similarly, we ask some of our patients who have become well through our efforts whether they would be willing to help other patients. Not many take up the invitation, but those who do sometimes develop a ‘taste’ for the joy of helping others, and may well continue to do so after we leave.
  3. Empowered staff: Hanah* was married at 15, after having only studied till 8th class. Then her husband became abusive, such that she needed to leave with their young son. Hanah is now one of our literacy teachers and doing a great job. Even better, she has now learnt to use a spreadsheet to keep the records of our classes (see photo of Hanah with her computer). In so doing, even after we leave, Hanah’s newfound skills will hopefully assist her in being employable in another NGO – to continue doing good, and to be paid for it!
  4. Spiritual change: Our voluntary care for people is sometimes so unusual in our very self orientated society, that occasionally folk experiencing our help are prompted to ask why we do it. This reflection then can lead them to look at their own lives and, very occasionally, make deeper spiritual changes. It’s hoped that those deeper spiritual changes will last well beyond their involvement with us.
  5. Local Christians getting involved: One of our patients told us of her husband, Abid*, who has been in jail for several years without trial, simply because his family can’t afford the bail to have him released. When our middle class Indian Christian friend, Manny*, heard this, he immediately wanted to help, even though (and this is a big deal in India) Abid is not a Christian himself. We hope that as Manny experiences helping others, even those outside his own faith community, his desire to help will continue beyond our being in India.
  6. Systems change: Government hospitals in India are supposed to give free health care to the poor. A number of staff within the hospitals, however, are corrupt, with hospital staff often demanding payment from patients’ relatives to have the ill person treated. This is highly unethical, not to mention illegal, but it is common. Yusuf is working hard to identify and confront this corruption by taking surreptitious videos (blessed be smart phones) and bringing that evidence to the notice of the hospital authorities. He’s had some minor success, with the authorities agreeing to put up signage in the hospital warning against giving or taking bribes. If these efforts succeed, they may have a lasting effect beyond our stay.

Which of these ways do you think has a better chance of bringing lasting change? Or perhaps you have other suggestions! If so, feel free to add your comments below, or send us a message via our contact page.

* Names changed

Tags:

, ,