How do big international NGOs have more power than governments in some parts of the country, which are touted as conservation areas? The power conversations are not limited to physical locations; they are also manifested in how the finance flows in support of conservation work are structured, as recent studies by Maliasili found. The reports further point out that the organisations that control the money needed for conservation work often dictate the direction of conservation work even where the model they are pushing has minimal impact or chance of success. The conservation community must start to have conversations around power. The era of local NGOs appropriating themselves as the community voice and becoming a broker in the relationship with the outside world is also gone.

Source: Daily Nation December 06, 2023 20:59 UTC