By Rashid Musa
STOCKHOLM, Sweden
Blackstarline
“Who is there to help the people who need clothes, medical equipment, fresh water etc? We have the language, the culture and we have true passion for our brothers and sisters” - Mr. Said Jama, S.A.V.E
As I enter a room located in Rinkeby in the northwest parts of Stockholm the 20th December of 2009, I saw 60 young Africans who were eager to help their nation. The eagerness and excitement was radiating in the room and from that day the birth of a volunteering organization was born.
When I spoke to Suleman Said Jama the chairman of S.A.V.E (Somali Awareness through Volunteering and Education) he was very relaxed and looked optimistic. The 20 year old young man was very humble and he was quick to point out that the organization wouldn’t come together if it wasn’t for Jihan Mohamed, Zana Hussein and Habiba Mudey. It all began with the four of them starting a Facebook group call “Save Our Somalia”. The success of the group grew rapidly and it is still growing today.
While I and Mr. Said Jama were speaking of the current situation in Somalia he sighed. He is tired of the new form of colonialism that is taking place all over Africa and particularly in Somalia. We were discussing how some of the employees in NGO’s such as the Red Cross and even in UN exploit the land. How they live in their big houses that are guarded with huge wire fences.
The statistics of AID- efficiency are alarming but not surprising. ‘Debatt’, a Swedish debating program aired in SVT 2009-10-15 showed that the estimated amount of aid funds that actually reached the needy was only 20% of the total amount. The rest were administration costs..
The members of S.A.V.E are tired of seeing their home land being poor and devastated as a result of two decades of civil war and numerous clashes with it’s neighbour Ethiopia. Not to mention the current havoc being fueled by the so called “peace keepeing” force, African Union Mission to Somalia, AMISOM, consisting of troops from Uganda and Burundi. All while the struggle continues in the everyday life of the Somali people. “Who is there to help the people who need clothes, medical equipment, fresh water etc?” said Mr Said Jama
He was telling me about how international volunteer workers rather stay in their camps and not fulfill their duties. “We have the language, the culture and we have true passion for our brothers and sisters” he answered me when I asked him about what separates them from other volunteering groups.
Somalia may be divided into many different groups but those that live in the diaspora have shown us a strong bond. The respect between each other is tremendous and it’s beautiful to witness what our youth have accomplished.
Todays youth of Somalia around the world seems more powerful than ever. S.A.V.E is the start of a new organization that surely will take the world with a storm. We will clearly keep an eye on them and follow their progress. I’m confident that S.A.V.E is the beginning of something big.
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