214
R. Gard
Faith as a Floatation Device
In the twentieth Century religion and the role of faith-based organisations (FBOs)
have often been ignored by those involved with humanitarian aid and development.
One scholar went so far as to call it “a development taboo” after completing research
that explored the paucity of studies on the roles of religious organisations in development (Alan ver Beek 2000: 31). In the twenty-first Century the academic stigma
associated with FBOs has lessened, and now the academic community and the wider
international aid community have begun to explore in greater depth the role FBOs
play in humanitarian aid (Peterson 2010).
Though FBOs have a long history of humanitarian works, the last two decades
have seen a proliferation in religious charities, NGOs and other faith-based associations. Importantly, the World Bank has estimated that as high as 50% of all health
and educational services globally are provided by FBOs (James 2009: 7). The World
Bank’s study entitled Voices of the Poor concluded that many people in lower socioeconomic conditions demonstrated more confidence in religious organisations than in
secular, governmental or military governing bodies (Narayan et al. 2000). These finds
echo my own fieldwork experiences whereby community members were primarily
interested in turning to their families, both those that lived locally and abroad, and
local faith-based organisations for assistance in the aftermath of Winston (Gard 2016,
np).
Estimating the total number of NGOs operating in the world is difficult and data
are incomplete, yet “according to the United Nations Development Program, there
are approximately 40,000 non-governmental organizations in the world in addition
to the community-based organizations which number in the hundreds of thousands”
(Leverty 2008: 1). More than 5,000 NGOs have been granted consultative status with
the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in the United Nations (UN) (United
Nations 2020). Embedded within Article 71, Chap. 10 of the UN’s Charter, authority
is given to “make suitable arrangements for consultation with non-governmental
organizations which are concerned with matters within its competence” (United
Nations Charter 1945). This is advantageous as many FBOs often have deeper histories than other NGOs, which can in turn strengthen their connections with local
communities.
In catastrophes, FBOs are able to build on established foundations of trust and
expedite community support:
I observed this first-hand while in Fiji while engaging with the congregation of Saint Luke’s
Anglican Church and the aid they provided to the wider Fijian community following Winston.
Church members and staff collected supplies and donations – both local and international –
and redistributed the goods and money to those in rural communities most heavily impacted.
Although past relationships and pre-established sympathies may impact a FBOs abilities
to engage with the wider community in an unbiased and unpolitical manner, especially
given the competitive dynamics of religious organisations in some Pacific communities, an
increased integration of FBOs at all levels of extreme weather and climate change response
can nonetheless prove advantageous, as they have much to offer the communities in which
they are embedded, as well as the wider humanitarian community. (Gard and Veitayaki 2017:
162)
R. Gard
Faith as a Floatation Device
In the twentieth Century religion and the role of faith-based organisations (FBOs)
have often been ignored by those involved with humanitarian aid and development.
One scholar went so far as to call it “a development taboo” after completing research
that explored the paucity of studies on the roles of religious organisations in development (Alan ver Beek 2000: 31). In the twenty-first Century the academic stigma
associated with FBOs has lessened, and now the academic community and the wider
international aid community have begun to explore in greater depth the role FBOs
play in humanitarian aid (Peterson 2010).
Though FBOs have a long history of humanitarian works, the last two decades
have seen a proliferation in religious charities, NGOs and other faith-based associations. Importantly, the World Bank has estimated that as high as 50% of all health
and educational services globally are provided by FBOs (James 2009: 7). The World
Bank’s study entitled Voices of the Poor concluded that many people in lower socioeconomic conditions demonstrated more confidence in religious organisations than in
secular, governmental or military governing bodies (Narayan et al. 2000). These finds
echo my own fieldwork experiences whereby community members were primarily
interested in turning to their families, both those that lived locally and abroad, and
local faith-based organisations for assistance in the aftermath of Winston (Gard 2016,
np).
Estimating the total number of NGOs operating in the world is difficult and data
are incomplete, yet “according to the United Nations Development Program, there
are approximately 40,000 non-governmental organizations in the world in addition
to the community-based organizations which number in the hundreds of thousands”
(Leverty 2008: 1). More than 5,000 NGOs have been granted consultative status with
the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in the United Nations (UN) (United
Nations 2020). Embedded within Article 71, Chap. 10 of the UN’s Charter, authority
is given to “make suitable arrangements for consultation with non-governmental
organizations which are concerned with matters within its competence” (United
Nations Charter 1945). This is advantageous as many FBOs often have deeper histories than other NGOs, which can in turn strengthen their connections with local
communities.
In catastrophes, FBOs are able to build on established foundations of trust and
expedite community support:
I observed this first-hand while in Fiji while engaging with the congregation of Saint Luke’s
Anglican Church and the aid they provided to the wider Fijian community following Winston.
Church members and staff collected supplies and donations – both local and international –
and redistributed the goods and money to those in rural communities most heavily impacted.
Although past relationships and pre-established sympathies may impact a FBOs abilities
to engage with the wider community in an unbiased and unpolitical manner, especially
given the competitive dynamics of religious organisations in some Pacific communities, an
increased integration of FBOs at all levels of extreme weather and climate change response
can nonetheless prove advantageous, as they have much to offer the communities in which
they are embedded, as well as the wider humanitarian community. (Gard and Veitayaki 2017:
162)