German development service
The Deutsche Entwicklungsdienst gGmbH (DED) was a company founded in 1963 that was active in the field of personal development cooperation in the Federal Republic of Germany . The shareholders were the Federal Republic of Germany (95%) and the “Learning and Helping in Overseas” working group . V. (AKLHÜ) (5%). At the beginning of 2011 it was incorporated into the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ).
history
The company was founded in Bonn in 1963 in the presence of Heinrich Lübke , Konrad Adenauer and John F. Kennedy . Role models were German and international models of the “work camps”, the church volunteer services overseas (DÜ) and the Working Group for Development Aid (AGEH) as well as the US Peace Corps . In contrast to the Peace Corps, however, the DED only used employees who have completed professional training that qualifies for the respective program.
The first seat of DED was Bad Godesberg near Bonn, before moving to Berlin-Kladow in 1977. In Wächtersbach (Hesse) and Berlin, DED had previously prepared its “volunteers” in special training centers in three-month courses (languages, regional studies, behavioral training, self-help techniques). From 1977 this preparation was also concentrated in Berlin-Kladow. In 1999 the German Development Service relocated to the Bonn Tulip Field due to the provisions of the Berlin / Bonn Act . The preparation was henceforth done by the German Foundation for Development Aid (DSE), later InWEnt , in Bad Honnef . The buildings in Berlin-Kladow were demolished in 2010. A residential park is being built on the site.
The first 14 development workers of DED traveled by plane to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania on August 20, 1964 . The aim was to help people help themselves . Initially, the helpers were mostly craftsmen and technicians with non-academic training, as well as nurses. Later, the qualifications specialized and engineers, environmental technicians, urban developers and management experts were deployed. In the 1980s, Kohl's federal government clearly criticized the direction of DED. The organization was seen as a “breeding ground for social revolutionaries” and left-wing troublemakers. When the doctor and DED helper Albrecht Pflaum was murdered by so-called contra rebels in Nicaragua in April 1983, DED called the 50 or so helpers working in the country back to the capital, Managua , as their safety could only be guaranteed there. By 2007, DED had around 15,000 development workers under contract since it was founded .
The Society for Technical Cooperation , DED and the educational organization InWEnt signed a merger agreement in Berlin in December 2010. On January 1, 2011, they merged to form the German Society for International Cooperation . DED practitioners criticized the merger. In her opinion, this shifts the focus to economic development and the fight against poverty is neglected.
Tasks and requirements
DED was a recognized provider of development services within the meaning of Section 2 of the Development Aid Act . In accordance with the partnership agreement, he made professionally experienced specialists available in developing countries to work on their programs and projects in the public and private sectors; he promoted the work of development-relevant organizations in developing countries through technical advice and the establishment of local self-help groups , and he carried out civil peace service tasks ; he organized the dispatch of German development workers for the voluntary service of the United Nations .
His work extended in particular to the program areas of agriculture and securing resources, technical and manual vocational training , small businesses , management and administration , health care and community / social work . Participation in general education was largely discontinued in the 1990s because it was assumed that there were enough local teachers available in the partner countries. The request for collaboration was formally issued by the host country. The legal basis for this personal collaboration was bilateral international treaties.
The development workers were recruited for a period of two to six years (plus preparation time). The prerequisite was a completed training in the requested profession and two years of relevant work experience. Due to these high requirements - compared to voluntary services such as the US Peace Corps - DED consistently worked with qualified personnel. On the part of DED, great importance was attached to appropriate, integrative behavior in the host country and, after the return, to involvement in development policy . A small part of the development workers did development service according to § 22 EhfG instead of military or community service . The minimum duration for this alternative service was two years plus preparation time.
The development workers were looked after in the host country by a "country representative" (BA) or "country director" (LD) who was employed full-time at DED.
In 2007 around 1,000 development workers were deployed abroad with DED every quarter. They worked in 40 countries in Africa , South America , Central America and Asia .
Furthermore, with around 600 development workers in 2009/2010, DED was the largest sending organization for volunteers as part of the weltwärts program of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and had taken over the secretariat for administrative and financial processing from weltwärts, thus sharing the other 200 weltwärts - Sending organizations to receive the funds from the Federal Ministry intended for weltwärts.
In addition, there were some development workers with domestic contracts who were supposed to make the goals and work of DED known at home, for example through exhibitions or lectures. Around 500 former development workers also worked together in Germany as speakers for development issues on a fee basis. The speakers could be requested from DED on various topics. This program was entitled "Education meets Development".
Web links
- The DED in the lexicon of sustainability
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Deutschlandfunk: Learning and Helping in Übersee , June 24, 2013
- ↑ Annalen.net , accessed 18 August 2009
- ↑ Tagesschau: German development aid is bundled ( Memento from January 9, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) (archive version)
- ↑ Development volunteer service weltwärts ( Memento from September 28, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) at ded.de (archive version)