Blackstone Operations

I’ve recently become interested with the curious situation Africa has in communicating with the world. Specifically, so much of what we hear and learn about Africans and their needs comes from…non Africans. We’ve grown accustomed to accepting what these other organizations–be them non profits, church groups, government initiatives, UN groups, volunteer organizations– have to say about what Africans need and the best way to help them.

While I have no doubt that many of these groups are at a greater position to understand some of the best solutions to assuaging their various concerns and troubles, I’m bothered that the African “voice” seems to have been lost. The video below is in interesting perspective on what some Africans think about the work of NGOs in their countries. I found it reading a website that collects news stories from Africa about Africa (http://allafrica.com) . Of course, keep in mind that these individuals have been selected for their opinion and that I could head over with a camcorder (not really) and create a similar video with the opposite message. Nonetheless, I feel these voices need to be heard and their perspectives kept in mind when determining how we, as a modern society, can help others.