NGOs in Africa are not always welcomed with open arms, and when they mix with knowledge-starved celebrities from the Global North, the mixture can be especially toxic. These articles discuss how Madonna’s recent visit to Kibera was trashed by local observers, and how commentators connect her cluelessness to the Kenyan government’s new efforts to limit and control NGOs.
Kenya is pressuring thousands of expat NGO workers and volunteers to go home – Quartz Africa
Le gouvernement kényan s’attaque au «syndrome du sauveur blanc» – Slate Afrique
The problem is two-fold: the “white savior complex” is real and needs continued and sustained critique and, like the debate in some African governments about sexuality, lends itself too easily to condemnations of neocolonialism. It is necessary is to maintain healthy critique and debate about governance on the continent (see our upcoming conference in South Africa), while also calling out the problems of many NGO efforts. These include, in addition to paternalism, a certain hypocrisy about the creation of “dependency” – NGOs are extremely dependent on donors as well as recipient suffering for their ongoing survival, yet many still criticize African citizens for becoming “dependent” on their aid.