It is indeed a pleasure for us at NGC to join the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts in the launch of this very timely and necessary National Policy on Sustainable Community Development.
Although it is a well-intentioned enterprise with important wins to its name, the pursuit of global development has been punctuated by a number of unsuccessful interventions—from aid programmes that created dependency; to long-gestating projects that outlived their usefulness; to projects that caused irreversible environmental damage and destroyed livelihoods. Connecting many of those initiatives were questions not asked—How will these interventions fare over the long term? What will their impact be down the road? Is this project a good fit for this community?
Today, entities involved in the development process must ask these questions. Indeed, the framework within which development is approached today hinges on the idea of sustainability—a principle which considers both needs fulfilment and long-term impact. NGC has been investing in the development of this country for over forty years, through direct treasury contributions as well as a diverse portfolio social responsibility initiatives.
