Congo

Wikipedia Review has been discussing my last post, but I would like to comment here on some objections raised both there and in the comments here, by Wikipedians I admire.

Lar, it may surprise you but I agree with you more than you imagine. I believe that providing knowledge is the answer, but, as I posted—rather cynically, I might add—in my post, it is best to first find out what kind of knowledge people need and then respond by providing that. Unfortunately, when all you have is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail; when all you have is a wiki, then everything looks like a laptop.

For example, I would be completely and fully in support of wiki-produced agricultural manuals that promote sustainable agricultural techniques for the various climates and geographical conditions of Congo, recognizing that the Democratic Republic of Congo is slightly larger than Western Europe. In other words, if what works in Denmark may not work in southern France, then it is reasonable to assume that what works in Ituri might not work in Kasai or Haut-Katanga. Of course, this requires an understanding of local indigenous crops, climate, soil conditions, water availability. etc. This is not the kind of content that a group of dilettantes can put together at their leisure—or rather it may be, but the results would be devastating for the people they are trying to help. And I'm not even getting into the impact of an edit war on the best way to grow cassava.

Yes, more than just a wiki is needed. This demands expertise, professionalism, people intimately familiar (on the ground?) with local conditions, etc. While you may have this in French, it would be most helpful in Lingala, Kikongo, and Tshiluba; the first two have wikis with some 1500 articles between them, while Tshiluba does not have a wiki yet. Then it must be provided to the people, farmers, who need it most, either in print format (in a country with a relatively high 67 percent literacy rate, mostly in urban centers, but only 55 percent of male children and 49 percent of female children actually attending primary schools), or electronic format (phones per 100 people = 5; internet use per 100 = 0). For more information, see UNICEF's country profile.

So, I repeat the question I asked in my last post: While helping developing nations is an admirable goal, has anyone at the WMF given any real thought to the challenges involved in this? Statements about cows, mud, and Wikipedia may make some Westerners feels good about themselves, but they fail to confront the genuine challenges that other, more established and experienced aid groups face every single day. To many, myself included, they are simply condescending and trite.

For examples of some of these challenges, see Doctors without Borders, Engineers without Borders, and Teachers without Borders.