Brunei is determined to attain a zero-poverty status by 2035 and is making significant strides towards this goal (see my earlier blog post here on this issue). Through various initiatives, Bruneian NGOs, such as BANTU Services, SCOT and MKM (Majlis Kesejahteraan Masyarakat), and individual families are supporting the government in its efforts to realise the zero poverty goal.
FOOD DRIVE is one of these initiatives. It involves the distribution of basic food items such as rice, noodles, cooking oil, sugar, salt and eggs to needy families. It is usually done monthly (if budget allows) and during major seasonal events such as Ramadan and Back-to-School. Furthermore, the initiative is citizen-driven since food items are procured from Bruneians and their distribution to needy families is done by volunteers, particularly the youth.
From our study of poverty in Brunei, I have observed that people have mixed feelings about the efficacy of FOOD DRIVE in contributing to the eradication of poverty within the country. Some sections of the Bruneian community believe that FOOD DRIVE does contribute to poverty eradication and that addressing the food requirements of needy families is the first port of call in the poverty eradication process. Others are of the opinion that the initiative does not lead to poverty eradication but promotes aid dependency. Both camps have always asked me: Can FOOD DRIVE help address the problem of poverty amongst needy families? In this blog post, I share my thoughts based on observations from volunteering in one of the FOOD DRIVE initiatives during my PhD studentship at Universiti Brunei Darussalam and from our study of poverty and quality of life in the country (you can access our publications on this here, here, here and here).
FOOD DRIVE does contribute to poverty eradication: Poverty, as we argued in our article here, is multidimensional. Food poverty (the inability to acquire or consume sufficient and nutritious food) is one of these dimensions; and it interconnects with, reinforces or is reinforced by, other dimensions that are financial, economic, social and seasonal in nature. This is discussed in detail in an article here and by the World Food Programme. If a person is food insecure, his or her ability to, for example, generate income, avoid falling into debt or mortgaging household assets, improve human capital and build social capital is compromised. Addressing food poverty could therefore lead to significant poverty reduction in society.
Food poverty in Brunei is not severe: the country attained the extreme-hunger target of the Millennium Development Goal 1 well before the 2015 deadline, as reported here and here. Families that receive food assistance are moderately deprived. Addressing or meeting their food needs enables them to overcome food poverty. It also helps to address other forms of deprivation that these families experience. If the families become food secure, they have the energy or motivation to, for example, pursue sustainable livelihood strategies and not resort to selling household assets.
Indeed, addressing the food needs of needy families should be the ‘first port of call’ in poverty eradication: Food nourishes both the body and mind, which ultimately enables a person to effectively focus on improving his or her quality of life. Highlighting the role of food aid in fighting poverty, United States Congressman, Tim Ryan, rightly observes that “getting out of poverty starts with a healthy body and healthy mind.” It would be difficult, if not impossible, to help needy families graduate from poverty by addressing their economic deprivations first, for example, in the belief that once they can earn an income, they can meet their food needs. From our study in Brunei, we learnt of situations where some needy families received assistance for income-generating activities but later used the capital to meet pressing food needs. For this reason, it is essential to first address the food needs of needy families, and this makes food interventions, such as food drives, very critical.
FOOD DRIVE is key to addressing seasonal deprivations: As I discuss in an article here, seasonal deprivations relate to realities, such as lack of income and food, that poor and vulnerable people experience repeatedly at certain times of the year, which are brought about, or to peak, by marked changes in climatic (rainy and dry) seasons and non-climatic seasonal events such as back-to-school and festival periods. As our study found, seasonal realities are common in Brunei but not severe. Needy families, especially those who depend on outdoor livelihood activities such as fishing and vending, experience food challenges during the rainy season as their livelihood activities rarely generate sufficient income for food. During the back-to-school season (which falls in December), needy families also face food challenges as they face the expenses of sending children back to school. Furthermore, during seasonal significant events such as Ramadan, Hari Raya and Chinese New Year, when having enough food is essential, needy families rarely do. FOOD DRIVE is usually implemented during these seasons and it has been instrumental in helping needy families to meet their food needs.
As Professor Robert Chambers explained well in his book Provocation for Development, seasonal realities push poor people further into poverty. In Brunei, seasonal lack of food and income makes needy families more vulnerable to debts and mortgaging of household assets to meet food needs, which exacerbates their deprivations. Addressing these seasonal realities therefore prevents needy families from falling further into poverty. And FOOD DRIVE does precisely that!
FOOD DRIVE promotes a greater sense of community: Brunei does not have international NGOs such as Oxfam GB and Care International. The remarkable achievement in poverty eradication that the country has realised is therefore attributable primarily to the Government of Brunei and its citizens. As I highlighted earlier, FOOD DRIVE is essentially run by Bruneians. The initiative has been vital in enhancing the citizens’ (especially the young citizens’) awareness of the living conditions of needy families. This is significant in nurturing the citizens’ sense of community, which is important for poverty eradication within the country.
HOWEVER, there is room for improvement: the FOOD DRIVE initiative is faced with the challenge of double-dipping: there are cases of needy families getting food assistance from more than one source or benefactor. Furthermore, there are doubts about the initiative’s sustainability and lasting impact on poverty eradication. Lastly, the food needs of needy families should be addressed first, as I shared earlier, but for how long would this be? And how do welfare agencies wean needy families off dependence on food assistance? Such pertinent questions are often asked! All this reveals the scope for improvement, and the focus should be on:
- Having a coordinated targeting mechanism, NGOs and families that engage in food drives usually use the same list of needy families. It is vital that they establish, at Ward (Mukim) or District level, a food drive committee and develop a targeting mechanism that stipulates who provides food assistance in which villages (Kampongs) and to which needy families. This will prevent double-dipping.
- Having a sound Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) system, which provides invaluable insights or evidence not only of the challenges but also of the outcome and impact, on poverty eradication, of food drives. This is essential if such initiatives are to be improved. In addition, there is a need to establish a platform where food drive implementers, local leaders and interested people regularly share lessons learnt and engage in discussions on food drive issues.
- Having a clearly articulated food assistance graduation plan, which helps to answer the questions as to when and how to wean needy families off food assistance. Food assistance to needy families should not be provided forever but only for a specific period. The duration and the ways to wean needy families off food assistance would be spelt out in the graduation plan. It is, in fact, very possible to graduate needy families from food assistance!
FOOD DRIVE does indeed contribute to poverty eradication in Brunei. Food assistance is the first step towards, or the foundation for, poverty graduation. However, there is still room for improvement!
Blessing Gweshengwe PhD 