The Funding of a Call for Proposal in a Democratic Country in Africa - Term Paper Example

Call a proposal, issues in democratization The economy of the world has developed considerably in the last century. The economy of the world has become globalised. The Governments of different countries have increased their economic activities for the development of the economy as a whole. The Government invites proposal from organizations or groups for different functions and activities for the development of the country. The call for proposal is for a host of activities ranging from the development of the infrastructure and other activities of the Government. The Government or the organizations provide grants for the people to work on the development activities in the country. (Call for proposals, n.d.; sola lettura, n.d.) The candidate for the work is decided based on maintaining the specifications of the proposal and the cost for the activity. There can be a situation that the proposal is chosen over the cost effectiveness criterion. The practice of calling proposals on behalf of the Government has encouraged economic development in the country as well as the social development. The situation in the country improves with the development of the infrastructure and with the call for proposals; the organizations have a chance of bagging the orders. This helps in the development of the economic activities of the country. The paper deals in the funding of a call for proposal in a democratic country in Africa. Location-Nigeria Nigeria is one of the most prominent countries in the continent of Africa. The country is situated in the western part of the continent and has one of the largest populations in the continent. The population of Nigeria has a long history of being violent and there have been instances of war in the country. Islam is the principal religion of the country. The other dominant religion is Christianity with various forms like the Protestants and Catholic present in the country. There have been ethnic rivalries and tensions between the people of the country. If we take the economy of the country, Nigeria is one of the most developed nations in the whole continent. The principal industries in the country are the petroleum industry and the gas industry. Nigeria, being one of the principal members of OPEC, is one of the significant contributors in the international oil market. However, one of the major drawbacks in the country is the absence of the refineries, which makes it essential for exporting the oil even for the purpose of domestic consumption. In addition to the oil industry, other industries like the mobile phones have also been coming up in the country. The economic state of the nation has improved to a large extent in the latter half of the last century. It gained independence from the British rule in 1960 and there was an extensive period of military rule in the country. However, military rule gave away to democracy in 1999 and the country has evolved since then. However, there has been a general sentiment among the people in the country that there has been not much development after the inception of democracy in the country. (Nigeria: facts and figures, n.d. ; Nigeria, n.d.). The condition in the country is deplorable with the rise in criminal activities and poverty. There has been widespread unemployment and the country has no proper health system. There has been an augmentation in the number of the political parties in the country. The present condition of Nigeria is turbulent and the country has seen protests from the population of the country. The protests took place because of some glitches in the constitution. The President of the country, Umaru Yaradua was sent to Saudi Arabia for the treatment of heart ailment. However, the President did not sign and hand over the power of authority to the Vice President. This created lawlessness in the country. (Nigeria: politics takes centre stage in Nigeria, 19th February, 2010). However, after the Vice President assumed the responsibility of heading the constitution, the condition in the country has come under control. The condition was not favorable for the development after the President went to Saudi Arabia for treatment. However, after the Vice President came to power, he has asserted the situation and the development activities have started. The calls for proposals are one of the most significant parts of the development in Nigeria. With the stability in power, the system has started to invite the proposals for the development activities. Aims and objectives The aims and objectives of the paper are to find out the areas of the country which has been lacking in infrastructure and to develop the conditions in that field. In this context, the calls for proposals are an important point, as that would help to get the required funding for the proposals. The proposal for this paper will dwell on the health system of the country, as it has been underdeveloped. The proposed system will look to increase the number of the hospitals in the rural belt so that people do not suffer from diseases like Aids and Malaria. Most of the people in the rural areas do not have access to the health centers and this result in lack of medical treatment. Millions of people die every year due to the diseases and the ethnic clashes. The infant mortality rate of the country is also high. Nigeria- the call for proposals and the development activities The economic system of Nigeria is one of the most developed in the whole of Africa. The private sectors of the country as well as the Government have worked in tandem in the development of the economy and the society. Therefore, the call for proposals in the country has also increased. The International Development Research Center invited proposals for development of information system in the states of Baluchi and Cross River. The health system of Nigeria is not up to the mark and there has been a conscious effort to develop the system. (Call for proposals: NEHSI, February, 2006). The country is one of the hotbeds of Aids in the world and the Government has been working for the eradication of the problem. The National Agency for the control of Aids (NACA) has been instrumental in this process and has invited the private parties for cooperation in the project. The NACA program has been directed to decrease the disease from spreading out more violently and the cure of the disease in the health centers and the hospitals of the country. The NACA invite the participation of the small scale and the large-scale organizations in the area to fight the epidemic in the country. The funds received from the World Bank will be provided to the Business organizations for the purpose. The organizations have to submit a draft of their proposal to the body and after reviewing the proposal the grant will be made. (Call for proposals from Nigerian Private sector Organisations, 19th February, 2009). The educational organization of Africa- ERNWACA invited proposals for researches based on the scope of education in the Western part of Africa. The research team will receive grants from the commission and the team will consist of a mentor. The team will study the scope of the education facilities in the Western Africa. (Africa Education Call for Proposals: ERNWACA Research Grants Program, 2010) The UN development program has aided the development in Nigeria since its independence in 1960. The organization has been accountable for the progress of education, health facilities and the growth of the economy of the country. The body has also provided technological and financial assistance for the development of the programs in the country. The UNDP program has been working all over the world and its focus on Nigeria has helped her to become one of the most developed countries in Africa (Nigeria, n.d.) Africa has been devastated by problems of war and health problems. Nigeria has been no exception to the situation. However, with the development of the UN programs in the country the situation has been under control. The UN has initiated various programs in the country for the development of the economic and the social conditions. The UN has initiated the “capacity for the governance program” which has been instrumental in the development of the Government activities. The corruption level in the Government bodies has decreased largely. (Capacity for governance program, n.d.). In addition to this Program, the body has been responsible for initializing the “Economic Governance Program”. In this program, the economic programs of the Government are monitored and proper channels are initialized for the use of the funds. (Economic Governance Program, n. d.) Another important program initiated by the UNDP is for the development of the private sector in the economy. The economy of the country is dependent largely on the petroleum and the gas industries. Therefore, it has been a necessity for the economy to sustain the growth of the other industries for the development of the economy. The Program is directed at the development of the small industries in the country and the growth of the agriculture sector in the economy. (Private sector development program, n.d.) These are some of the examples of the call for proposals in Nigeria and the development activities in Nigeria. From the call for proposals, it can be seen that they can be of various types. However, there is an underlying similarity between all the calls for proposals. The calls for proposals look to develop the social and the economic conditions in the country. The Government or other National and the International organizations fund the activities of the organizations involved in the welfare activities. Therefore, the call for proposals is an important ingredient in the development of the society. Issues in democratization The continent of Nigeria has been ravaged by wars and the corruption from the past. Nigeria was ruled by the UK and after the independence, the military assumed the power. The military power was an autocratic form of Government. The people of the country were affected by the economic sufferings and the lack of development of the society. The leaders of Nigeria assumed the importance of the situation and after a long revolt was successful in throwing the Military Government out of the rule. Nigeria established the democratic form of Government in 1999 with the election of the first President. (Background and the purpose of the workshops, n.d.). The discovery of the oil in the country started the economic boom, which brought loads of people from the rural areas of the country to the sprawling cities of the country like Lagos. This pressurized the situation in the cities and combined with the corruption in the upper level of the authority the condition worsened. Not all the people in the country got a chance of employment in the oilfields of the country. This led to the unemployment problem in the country and the rise of the crime rates in the cities. In addition to the cities of the country, the southern part of the country referred to as the Delta region has been the hotbed of criminal activities like kidnappings and killings. The demand of the militants is to spend money of the Government on the development of the region. The region is poor though it has been the hotbed of oil production. (Ebonyi, n.d.;Nigeria, n.d.;Jane, January, 2007; Asokan, 19th December, 2009). The cities of Nigeria like Lagos are hit by robberies and thefts. The police have been fighting over the incidents and there has been a long history of conflicts between the two groups. This has caused loss of lives of innocent citizens. (Olukoya, 20th February, 2003). Despite possessing one of the largest oil resources, Nigeria is one of the deprived states in the world. The rural areas of the country are the most affected. After the development of the oil industry, the Government was more interested in improving the condition of the cities. The main source of income in the rural areas comes essentially from agriculture. At present, Nigeria has to import large portions of food products from the foreign countries. The Muslims rule the northern component of the nation while the Christians control the southern portion. The middle part of the country is often the most violent with both the groups fighting with each other. This has culminated in the loss of millions of lives of the people in the rural areas.(Rural poverty in Nigeria, n.d.; Gambrell, 11th March, 2010). According to a survey in 2000, the water supply in the cities is not developed and 20% of the population in the cities is without proper water supply. About a third of the population in the cities lives below the poverty contour. 18% of the population in the cities does not have the proper facilities of sanitation. (Urban Profile:Nigeria, August, 2002). The condition of education in the country is not developed. Under the military rule, the country did not pay much attention to the development of the universities as they were against the military rule. In addition to this, the economic conditions of the people in the country do not support higher education and thus, education has not penetrated in all forms of the society. (Dike, 5th February, 2002; Odia & Omofonmwan, 2007; Pp 82-83). The health condition in the country is not up to the mark with a very small number of doctors and hospitals in the country. Malaria and Aids are the most common diseases, which claim the lives of millions every year. The infant mortality rate is very high with 119 fatalities per 1000 births. Most of the rural areas have no reach towards doctors and hospitals, which make the condition worse. (Oyebanji, n.d.). The rural areas dominate the country and there are very few pockets of the urbanized population. The rural areas of the country are still dominated by the traditional “medicine man”. This process involves the usage of unscientific medicines and health care systems. The country has developed immensely in the health care department with the development of hospitals and nursing homes. However, the development has not extended to every part of the country. The Government policy on the healthcare department has developed the system but there is still need for improvement. (Healthcare, n.d.) Poverty, health issues and crime ravage the country. These are the issues of democratization, which have made the lives of the people in the country deplorable. For tackling these problems, the method of the calls for proposals is one of the most useful practices. This practice has been deployed by the country in various occasions, which has led to subsequent development of the country. The paper deals in the proposal for the development of the health system in the country for the rural areas with the development of the hospitals and health centers. Cost of the action and the amount requested from the Contracting authority The initial phase of the action comprises of the establishment of two hospitals in the rural areas of Nigeria. The hospitals will be constructed in the states of Cross River and Akwa. The states are close to the delta region of the country and the health system of the region is not well developed. The region is the hotbed of Malaria and Aids. The hospitals will have a special AIDS department. The size of the hospitals will not be very large and will have 75 beds. The hospitals will be attended by specialist doctors in the respective fields and will be accessible to all. The poor people in the region will be treated freely with the help of the Government and the international bodies. The cost of setting up of the two hospitals in the area will be 200,000 Euros. The infrastructure has to be set up by importing the materials and that will take up the bulk of the costs. The amount translates to 40,081,307 Naira, which is a huge amount of money in the context of the economy there. The labor costs will be low as the per capita income of the country is 1725 Euros. (The currency converter, n.d.; Per capita income, n.d.). The welfare bodies of the world will provide the majority of the money. As the hospital will consist of an Aids department the NACA will provide a good portion of the funding. Apart from this, WHO, UNDP and the Government will provide funding for the initiative. NACA 20% UNDP 20% WHO 30% Government 30% Summary of the Initiative The first phase of the action- to construct the two hospitals will take place for a year. After the construction of the two hospitals, functions will start in them. If the project is successful, the actions can be imitated in the other adjoining states. The objective of the function is to reduce the sufferings of the rural people and to provide health care to every person in the country. The hospitals will be involved in providing quality health services to the poor and will help to eradicate the deadliest diseases from the region. The hospitals will provide medication facilities as well as operating facilities. The people from the rural areas should get health related facilities at their doorsteps and should not travel hundreds of miles for medication and hospitalization. It can be hoped with proper medication and hospitalization, the death rate in the rural areas will decrease, and diseases like malaria and the Aids will have less devastating effect. The beneficiary will be the group of the common rural people who do not have enough money for the treatment of the diseases. Duration and implementation The first year will see the construction of the two hospitals. Operations will start from the second year. The local governing bodies will run the body and they will be responsible for all the actions in the hospitals. The poor people will be treated at a nominal fees and in some cases at free of cost. The Central and the State Government will be responsible for the running costs of the hospitals. Sustainability There are major risks for the project to be implemented in this part of the country. The area is notorious for the criminal activities and this may be a major hindrance to the construction of the hospital. Protection from the Government is needed for the implementation of the project. Another case for the sustainability factor is the future sources of funding. This is needed for the running costs of the hospitals. Though the Governments have been earmarked for the funding, it would be better if an NGO were created looking after the funding of the hospitals. The body will be responsible for the collection of funds both domestically and worldwide. Conclusions Nigeria is the most populated country in the continent of Africa. The resources of the country are vast and this has improved the economic condition of the country. However, there are some issues like poverty, health, crime, unemployment etc., which have plagued the whole country. The country remains the 20th poorest country in the world though it is one of the most significant contributors in the economy of the Western Africa. Therefore, the condition of the people in the country has not improved in true sense. The call for proposals is one of the most important medium through which the condition of the country can be improved. The call for proposals offers grants to the organizations or groups looking to work in the welfare of the society. Bodies like WHO can issue call for proposals for the development of the health conditions in the country. It is the duty of the Government and the international bodies to make the condition of the country stable. The establishment of the hospitals will be able to solve the health problems in the states of the delta region of the country. The deadliest of the diseases like the malaria and the Aids can be brought under control. The life of the poor people in the rural areas will be developed to some extent. Health facilities are one of the basic needs of the people in the country and this is one of such efforts to make the condition better for living. Therefore, the method of the calls for proposals is to be implemented carefully. In this way, the country can be made a more developed one with significant contributions in the world economy. References: 1. Africa Education Call for Proposals : ERNWACA Research Grants Program. (2010). Academic Africa. Available at: http://www.sociolingo.com/2010/01/africa-education-call-for-proposals-ernwaca-research-grants-program/ (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 2. Call for proposals. (n.d.). Finance Glossary. Available at: http://www.financeglossary.net/definition/469-Call_For_Proposals (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 3. Call for proposals: NEHSI.(February, 2006). African Studies Center. Umiversity of Pennyslvania. Available at: http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Current_Events/nehsi0206.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 4. Call for proposals from Nigerian Private sector Organisations. (19th February, 2009). National Agency for the control of Aids. Available at: http://naca.gov.ng/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc...gid... (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 5. Nigeria: facts and figures. (n.d.) BBC News. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6508055.stm (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 6. Nigeria. (n.d.). Nationmaster.com. Available at: http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ni-nigeria (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 7. Sola Lettura. (n.d.). Clean sky call for Proposal. Docstoc. Available at: http://www.docstoc.com/docs/9049590/Clean-Sky-Call-for-Proposal-ppt-%5BSola-lettura%5D (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 8. Nigeria: politics takes centre stage in Nigeria. (19th February, 2010). All Africa.com. Available at: http://allafrica.com/stories/201002190537.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010). 9. Nigeria. (n.d.). Welcome to UNDP Nigeria. Available at: http://www.ng.undp.org/ (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 10. Capacity for Governance Program. (n.d.). Nigeria. Available at: http://www.ng.undp.org/cgp.shtml (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 11. (Economic Governance Program. (n.d). Nigeria. Available at: http://www.ng.undp.org/egp.shtml (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 12. Private sector development program. (n.d.). Nigeria. Available at: http://www.ng.undp.org/psdp.shtml (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 13. Dike. V. (5th February, 2002). The state of education in Nigeria and the health of the nation. Africa economic analysis. Available at: http://www.africaeconomicanalysis.org/articles/gen/education10204234737htm.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 14. Healthcare. (n.d.). Motherland Nigeria. Available at: http://www.motherlandnigeria.com/health.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 15. Background and the purpose of the workshops. (n.d.). The National Academic Press. Available at: http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=2041&page=3 (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 16. Urban Profile:Nigeria.(August, 2002). Available at: http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:IYWF6z1VOWMJ:www.makingcitieswork.org/files/pdf/africa/Nigeria.pdf+crime+rates+in+Nigeria&hl=en&gl=in&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiFshfLTq1wXM1LjdeVEsVh5NiaCfsBDvoHJCERTAJOufsU26pGodRqWtNYU7ptzGxDWRjXoLR0w9SXMJw0S7sNyqszlTZObIi86qP9gB-9pCTy9NIEcqjo5KiJJhoWOQkO2mF_&sig=AHIEtbSqLQbjk5-UzTIL2mIRmoxui-07wA (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010). 17. Ebonyi.F. (n.d.). Nigeria’s rising crime rates. Helium. Available at: http://www.helium.com/items/465346-nigerias-rising-crime-rates (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 18. Olukoya,S. (20th February, 2003). Crime war rages in Nigeria. BBC News. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1443902.stm (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 19. Nigeria. (n.d.). US-africa. Org. Available at: http://us-africa.tripod.com/nigeria.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 20. Rural poverty in Nigeria. (n.d.). Rural poverty portal. Available at: http://www.ruralpovertyportal.org/web/guest/country/home/tags/nigeria (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 21. Gambrell,J. (11th March, 2010). Religious hatred, poverty behind Nigeria violence. Associated Press. Available at: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iNCU46VYMVf0VzhqkKJUus45PrDAD9ECHSNO0 (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 22. Oyebanji,J. (n.d.). Health conditions in Nigeria. Online Nigeria. Available at: http://www.onlinenigeria.com/health/ (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 23. Jane.S. (January, 2007). 2 Kidnapped oilworkers found dead in Nigeria. Available at: http://boards.library.trutv.com/showthread.php?s=d5b1aa976cd007fc5804aa21d0f9563f&p=9255846#post9255846 (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 24. Asokan.S. (19th December, 2009). Nigeria’s kidnapping culture on the rise. Global post. Available at: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/nigeria/091217/nigerias-kidnapping-culture (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 25. Odia.L and Omofonmwan.S. (2007). Educational system in Nigeria problems and prospects. Available at: http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:RmcdqjJ--3MJ:www.krepublishers.com/02-Journals/JSS/JSS-14-0-000-000-2007-Web/JSS-14-1-000-000-2007-Abst-Text/JSS-14-1-081-086-2007-541-Odia-L-O/JSS-14-1-081-086-2007-541-Odia-L-O-Tt.pdf+nigeria%2Bcondition+of+education&hl=en&gl=in&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgaCs3YhnY4dZzbUS1CeZX1sCMc-0-L80hqwPD8etyBenWVL-_leIggAd3GNxY6UA_o8tHA4HcY6tzXn-lP7S65Z15oMWgnx3y7aBp5DHbvSz05len-df8D5HTHytfk6JvLL_KW&sig=AHIEtbTeW98w2v62BeXae--3gWY7WfY_xA (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 26. The currency converter. (n.d.). Coinmill.com. Available at: http://coinmill.com/NGN_calculator.html#EUR=200000 (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) 27. Per capita income. (n.d.). Country profile and demographics. Available at: http://siakhenn.tripod.com/capita.html (Accessed on 23rd March, 2010) Read More