Paper short abstract:

Abahlali baseMjondolo will contribute to this roundtable by sharing learnings, stories and critiques about development as part of our work with the poor shack dwellers of South Africa and in our work with the Translocal Learning Network.

Paper long abstract:

The dignity of the poor can only be achieved if they are part of their own development, becoming stewards and active participants on their own terms and by their own design. This must be a process undertaken from below, democratically, with people being consulted and making decisions, having a voice to speak about their own development. It must be initiated and completed with the people. “Nothing about us, without us”, the slogan used by many movements to demand that the full and direct participation of members must be integral to decision-making, grounds the work of Abahlali baseMjondolo, a shack dwellers movement in South Africa, with more than 115,000 members that was formed in 2005 to fight for, promote and advance the interests of the poor and marginalized. This contribution grows out of a critique of development and is grounded in the understanding that development is neo-colonial and neo-imperial and that is something that is imposed and done to poor people in the formerly colonized countries, with the backing and financial support of Western governments, aid agencies, companies, and local governments. It is always assumed that when you are poor, when you are living in a shack, when you live in a rural area, when you are marginalized, that you cannot think for yourself, that you cannot be involved in development, because you are poor. AbM demonstrates that people and movements are capable of determining what is best for themselves and to ensure the dignity and rights of the poor.