Ever heard the saying, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions"? Click here to watch a trailer for Good Fortune, a powerful documentary I watched this week on PBS that exemplifies the quote. The website describes the film as "a provocative exploration of how massive international efforts to alleviate poverty in Africa may be undermining the very communities they aim to benefit. In Kenya’s rural countryside, Jackson’s farm is being flooded by an American investor who hopes to alleviate poverty by creating a multimillion-dollar rice farm. Across the country in Nairobi, Silva’s home and business in Africa’s largest shantytown are being demolished as part of a U.N. slum-upgrading project. The gripping stories of two Kenyans battling to save their homes from large-scale development present a unique opportunity see foreign aid through eyes of the people it is intended to help."
The well-intentioned but misguided efforts highlighted on Good Fortune are a complete contrast to Faith Alive. Everything there originated from the Nigerians themselves, is filtered through their indigenous cultural lens, and implemented by them. After all, they're the ones whose lives are affected long after the foreigners are gone.
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