Indigenous Knowledge and Achieving the Millennium Development Goals

Nicolas Gorjestani, World Bank

Indigenous Knowledge and Achieving the Millennium Development Goals

Indigenous Knowledge -- Learning from Local Communities

Global Distance Learning CourseMarch 28 – April 1, 2005

Colombo Dar es Salaam

Delhi Kampala

Nicolas GorjestaniSenior AdvisorAfrica Region

World Bank


Overview

Knowledge and Learning Context IK and Millennium Development Goals The Challenges Ahead


Knowledge is

experience---

everything else is

information


Knowledge is not the exclusive domain of rich countries, nor of

the rich in poor countries

Local Global


Indigenous Knowledge Course Objectives

Goal: Provide the participants practical tools and approaches to

help incorporate IK into development policies and programs; Promote South-South collaboration and peer-to-peer learning

among IK practitioners Approach:

Address the development challenges through the unique perspective of Indigenous Knowledge (IK)

Demonstrate the potential role of IK in helping achieve the Millennium Development Goals

Focus on success stories in using IK to help increase food security & agricultural productivity, reduce maternal mortality, and treat opportunistic diseases associated with HIV/AIDS


What are the Millennium Development Goals?

The 2000 United Nations Millennium Declaration formulates eight goals to be achieved by the year 2015

The goals cover the areas of poverty, hunger, education, gender, health, and environment

The MDGs place human development at the center of social and economic progress, and emphasize the value of global partnerships for development.


What is Indigenous Knowledge?

Unique to ANYANY community or culture Embedded in community practices and institutions Basis for local decision making pertaining to

food security, human and animal health, education, natural resource management, governance, etc.


Indigenous Knowledge and the Poor

Indigenous Knowledge is the social capital of the poor Indigenous Knowledge is the basis for their decision making Indigenous Knowledge provides local solutions to

development challenges facing poor communities By building on Indigenous Knowledge and leveraging other

knowledge, poverty can be addressed jointly with the poor


Why Use IK in the Development Process ?

Most of the poor who live under $1/day depend on traditional medicine;

About ¾ of Africans do not have access to modern health services and have to rely on traditional medicine;

There is a strong business case for utilizing traditional healing approaches to reach the poor and help them live healthier lives;

Development programs need to build on such local knowledge systems;

Upgrading the capabilities of traditional healers and birth attendants could help them to more effectively contribute to providing healthcare needs of the poor.

For Example, in Health:


Health

Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and other Diseases (MDG 6) Case Study from Tanzania: Tanga AIDS Working

Group combats HIV/AIDS using traditional medicines

Reduce Maternal Mortality (MDG 5) Case Study from Uganda: Public health services

and traditional birth attendants collaborate to help reduce maternal mortality by 50% over three years

Day 2

Indigenous Knowledge Could Help to Achieve the MDGs:


Poverty Reduction and The Environment Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger (MDG 1)

Case Study from India: Farmers reclaim sodic lands and increase production

Ensure environmental sustainability (MDG 7) Case Study from Sri Lanka: Conservation of

medicinal plants and documentation of their medicinal value produces income for communities while at the same time conserving the environment

Day 3



Education, Gender, and Infant Mortality

Achieve Universal Primary Education (MDG 2) West Africa: School curricula incorporate indigenous

knowledge and use local languages Promote Gender Equity (MDG 3)

Senegal: Women and traditional village authorities partner to abolish female circumcision

Reduce Infant Mortality (MDG 4) Ethiopia: Infants receive traditional medicine and child

rearing practices to treat common infant diseases



Partnerships Develop Global Partnerships for Development (MDG 8)

East African and South Asian practitioners learn jointly about IK practices and promote IK in early childhood development, conservation of medicinal plants and benefit sharing

Researchers, traditional healers and policy makers join to validate medicinal practices for safety and efficacy

Day 4




Enriching the Development Process --An Action Plan: Scale up successful IK practices Enhance the capacity of local communities to develop,

share and apply their indigenous knowledge systems Develop innovative tools for the validation and

protection of indigenous knowledge Design a results framework for monitoring indigenous

knowledge and measuring its impact Establish an innovation fund to promote successful

indigenous knowledge practices Organize a global indigenous knowledge conference to

galvanize the support of the development partners for the above agenda


Challenge: Help Incorporate IK in Development

Raise awareness at local and national level

Help communities to document, share and develop IK

Mainstream IK into your “operational activities”

Promote creation of conducive policy environments for application of IK

Adapt development solutions to the local context


Farmers

Hunters

Healers

Indigenous Knowledge for Development Program

Documents

Indigenous Knowledge and Achieving the Millennium Development Goals