I've had a few people asking questions about ways they can help in Botswana. I'm sure I'll have more insight after I come back, but I wanted to give some recommendations now as well.
Aid can be a very good or a very bad thing for African countries. Some countries need aid (free money, free food, free clothes,) but others function very well on their own. In these high-functioning countries, influxes of foreign aid can be very harmful to local economies. Free goods will always be able to undercut even the most inexpensive locally-made products, causing people to look for freebies instead of supporting their own, local small-business owners.
An alternative to contributing to aid organizations is to become a part of the growing microfinance movement. Microfinancing organizations provide small loans to people, mostly women, who want to start or grow businesses. The first experiments in microfinancing were in Southeast Asia and were highly successful. Southern Asia, Western Asia, Africa, and the Americas have all successfully become recipient areas of microfinance loans.
If you are interested in financing a microloan, I suggest Kiva.org. People from all around the world are listed with their professional goals. You can choose a recipient for a loan of $25 or more. You won't get interest payments, but they will pay you back. The payments can then be transferred to Paypal accounts where you can loan it out again or buy something from eBay ;)
Aid can be a very good or a very bad thing for African countries. Some countries need aid (free money, free food, free clothes,) but others function very well on their own. In these high-functioning countries, influxes of foreign aid can be very harmful to local economies. Free goods will always be able to undercut even the most inexpensive locally-made products, causing people to look for freebies instead of supporting their own, local small-business owners.
An alternative to contributing to aid organizations is to become a part of the growing microfinance movement. Microfinancing organizations provide small loans to people, mostly women, who want to start or grow businesses. The first experiments in microfinancing were in Southeast Asia and were highly successful. Southern Asia, Western Asia, Africa, and the Americas have all successfully become recipient areas of microfinance loans.
If you are interested in financing a microloan, I suggest Kiva.org. People from all around the world are listed with their professional goals. You can choose a recipient for a loan of $25 or more. You won't get interest payments, but they will pay you back. The payments can then be transferred to Paypal accounts where you can loan it out again or buy something from eBay ;)
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Update: One thing that I am definitely going to look into while I'm there is their need for shoes. I know that shoes are something that aren't as readily available locally in many places. I may put together some kind of shoe drive to send shoes back to Botswana if they need them.
