‘‘We live from culture that is where We live from culture that is where everything is coming from, without everything is coming from, without (it) we are nothing’(it) we are nothing’

Unlocking the transformative power of ‘culture’ through small-scale interventions: the story of a development ‘encounter’ in Mozambique

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Vincent Rich & Barbara KruspanEmail: richv@wmin.ac.uk

Approach of the PaperApproach of the Paper

Briefly explores the contested place of ‘culture’ in (and for) development;

Details the cultural (political and institutional) ‘context’ in post-Independence Mozambique

Uses the stories (or narratives) that lie behind a particular development intervention in Cabo Delgado to explore issues of accountability, empowerment, capacity-building and impact;

Reflects on the wider lessons that emerge from the analysis in terms of replicability and sustainability

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Repositioning culture for Repositioning culture for development (Platteau, 2011)?development (Platteau, 2011)? ‘Culture can build the ‘capacity to aspire’ and give

‘voice’ (Appadurai, 2004) (individually and through cultural networks), rescuing terms like participation and empowerment ‘from the tyranny of cliché’.

In the face of globalisation it can help to frame ‘alternative development’ (Pieterse, 2010), with agency privileged over structure, and choice and resistance part of the ‘arena of struggle’.

Cultural change can lead social change by revealing the ‘power of alternatives, often outside of the conventionally political’ (Clammer, 2012).

Arts for art’s sake’, culture for culture’s sake? (Stupple, 2014): revealing ‘post-colonial’ narratives

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Setting and Context: Cabo Setting and Context: Cabo DelgadoDelgado

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A ‘rich’ fund of traditional culture (sculptural art, handicrafts, dance and music), but also emergent (syncretic) forms and actors, particularly amongst young.

Government support for culture is limited; emphasis has been on ‘folkloric’ culture, rather than everyday ‘lived culture’

Culture has become ‘politically instrumentalised’; the impact of GoM’s resource-led development model is ambivalent at best.

The CAP ‘story’: Cast of The CAP ‘story’: Cast of CharactersCharacters MERRY - a small UK charity set up in 2003 (disbursing

grants only) – and its Trustees - where the story starts.

Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation (HSI) - active in Mozambique for over 30 years – and its local ‘project manager’

The Cultural Activities’ Project (CAP) – a MERRY-funded/HSI administered collaboration since 2006 – giving micro-grants and technical/organisational support

The Mozambican government, and its Provincial and District Education and Culture departments

Existing (and emergent) cultural ‘actors’ and groups in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique

Funding ran at about $40,000 per year in CAP’s first two Phases, and $50,000 per year in Phase III (2010-2013) & Phase IV (2013-2015), after which MERRY’s funds will be exhausted – and where the ‘story’ ends?

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The CAP Model: Funding Flows and The CAP Model: Funding Flows and SharesShares

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MERRY Trust(London)

Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation (HSI) Mozambique

Swiss Agency for Development & Cooperation (SDC)

Cultural ActivitiesProject (CAP)

CAP ProjectManager

Cultural Actors & Groups (Cabo Delgado)

100%

12%

30%

CAP Assistant

3%

55%

The CAP ‘story’: Overarching The CAP ‘story’: Overarching ThemesThemes1. The legalisation of cultural groups to facilitate

access to long-term financial/institutional support 2. Building the capacity of individual cultural

actors, groups or associations – via the development of basic management and project skills and an understanding of organisational structures and dynamics.

3. The need to establish and deepen connections (networks) between the various cultural ‘actors’ and associations in Cabo Delgado, including links with institutions outside the cultural ‘sphere’ at different levels (local, national, international)

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The CAP Model: Supporting Local The CAP Model: Supporting Local AgencyAgency

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MERRY Trust(London)

Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation (HSI) Mozambique

Swiss Agency for Development & Cooperation (SDC)

Cultural ActivitiesProject (CAP)

CAP ProjectManager

Cultural Actors & Groups (Cabo Delgado)

CAP Assistant

Some Beneficiaries: Cooperativa Some Beneficiaries: Cooperativa Uiuipi/CDCD/Escola de Musica Uiuipi/CDCD/Escola de Musica DuniaDunia

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The CAP Model: is small The CAP Model: is small beautiful?beautiful?PM has extensive local knowledge; offering

legitimacy; ‘politically smart/locally led’? (Booth & Unsworth, 2014)

Disbursing micro-grants, of variable amounts ($20-$7,000), responding to local needs, not pre-set agenda (versus the ‘log-frame, results-based, impact-agenda’ approach)

Partnership, not principal-agentConcern with process, not just funding - via

advocacy, management and project skills etc

An unusual’ project; almost a CCT programme?

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So, what does the CAP ‘story’ So, what does the CAP ‘story’ tell us?tell us?No formal evaluation/explicit impact

assessment by CAP; HSI estimates 1,400 direct beneficiaries in 2013

But positive cultural impact, in terms of:◦ Widening the diversity and raising the quality

of cultural activities; including emergent forms◦ Legalisation of eight cultural groups in Cabo

Delgado; widening potential funding sources for all

◦ Establishing the conditions for a Provincial Cultural Platform/Network to emerge

◦ Achieving the ‘localisation’ of some project administrative functions

.

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……and what is left unwritten and what is left unwritten here?here?How the voices of cultural actors

themselves can be meaningfully captured, to reveal their own stories or ‘narratives of development’ (Carr, 2010) about CAP.

How potential ‘capture’ of the CAP framework by the state or other interests might be countered

What the broader lessons from MERRY – as a low level, informal NGO – might be for future community inspired development interventions, in culture and other areas.

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