Following some recent threads (e.g.'Change') I thought this discussion would be timely. I mentioned this topic to some friends over a couple of beers last night and as a result today we all went
to visit a town called 'Fundaci?n' near the city of Ban? in the South West, about 1 hr 30 mins drive from the capital. Apparently it is quite well known and a friend of my husband's made a documentary about it some years back.
Fundaci?n is a small town, off the beaten track, but it is strikingly
well-manicured, without being anything near opulent. I have seen towns like J?nico (near Santiago) and Tenares (near Salcedo) which are famous for existing almost exclusively on remittance money from the US, and consequently many of the houses there are new and flashy (not to mention tacky with a capital T), in contrast to almost zero economic activity.
In Fundaci?n there were very few houses like this. The majority were of the very simple palm wood with palm leaf roof type house common in the SW. The difference being that all the houses were freshly painted. All the streets were spotless. The community facilities - main square, schools, hospitals, children's park, playing fields were good quality, well-maintained and again, immaculate.
People were out and about, and many were busy sweeping the pavements and streets outside their houses.
So, what makes it different? According to the friends I went with the 'secret' there apparently is good community organisation and little more. There is no showy stuff like luxury SUVs hinting at drug money or anything of the sort. Although the SW is the DR's
poorest region, Ban? province is fairly prosperous - coffee, agriculture being the main activities. People from Ban? are reputed to be very businesslike and many if not most colmadoes in the capital are run by Banilejos.
I am very curious to find out more about Fundaci?n, because it is a genuine 'model' town. In case you are wondering, it's not peopled by some austere religious sect, there were bars and music blasting out on the main square just like anywhere else in the DR. In a way it was encouraging - see what can be done with relatively little money and good community mobilisation, but also -- if it's that simple why can't the whole country be more like this???
Chiri
to visit a town called 'Fundaci?n' near the city of Ban? in the South West, about 1 hr 30 mins drive from the capital. Apparently it is quite well known and a friend of my husband's made a documentary about it some years back.
Fundaci?n is a small town, off the beaten track, but it is strikingly
well-manicured, without being anything near opulent. I have seen towns like J?nico (near Santiago) and Tenares (near Salcedo) which are famous for existing almost exclusively on remittance money from the US, and consequently many of the houses there are new and flashy (not to mention tacky with a capital T), in contrast to almost zero economic activity.
In Fundaci?n there were very few houses like this. The majority were of the very simple palm wood with palm leaf roof type house common in the SW. The difference being that all the houses were freshly painted. All the streets were spotless. The community facilities - main square, schools, hospitals, children's park, playing fields were good quality, well-maintained and again, immaculate.
People were out and about, and many were busy sweeping the pavements and streets outside their houses.
So, what makes it different? According to the friends I went with the 'secret' there apparently is good community organisation and little more. There is no showy stuff like luxury SUVs hinting at drug money or anything of the sort. Although the SW is the DR's
poorest region, Ban? province is fairly prosperous - coffee, agriculture being the main activities. People from Ban? are reputed to be very businesslike and many if not most colmadoes in the capital are run by Banilejos.
I am very curious to find out more about Fundaci?n, because it is a genuine 'model' town. In case you are wondering, it's not peopled by some austere religious sect, there were bars and music blasting out on the main square just like anywhere else in the DR. In a way it was encouraging - see what can be done with relatively little money and good community mobilisation, but also -- if it's that simple why can't the whole country be more like this???
Chiri
