Let's talk about TOMS. We've probably all seen these trendy shoes that manufactured by TOMS, a company that gives a pair of shoes to "a child in need" for every pair of shoes you buy. TOMS shoes are one of the biggest fads of the past few years. There's a lot of problems with this - just think of the aphorism, "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime."
Shoelessness isn't going to solve poverty. Poverty is an multi-faceted issue that is much deeper than just children lacking shoes. For example, TOMS emphasizes that shoes are crucial for children in developing countries so that they don't contract diseases in the soil that are usually transmitted through bare feet. And this is true, to an extent. If you look at the bigger picture, soil-borne diseases are extremely prevalent in these areas because of poor sanitation. Putting on a pair of shoes isn't going to solve the bigger issue of poor hygiene, which negatively impacts food, water, and shelter resources in these areas as well.
Shoelessness isn't going to solve poverty. Poverty is an multi-faceted issue that is much deeper than just children lacking shoes. For example, TOMS emphasizes that shoes are crucial for children in developing countries so that they don't contract diseases in the soil that are usually transmitted through bare feet. And this is true, to an extent. If you look at the bigger picture, soil-borne diseases are extremely prevalent in these areas because of poor sanitation. Putting on a pair of shoes isn't going to solve the bigger issue of poor hygiene, which negatively impacts food, water, and shelter resources in these areas as well.
Moreover, the skin on the soles of feet for people who have gone barefoot most of their lives are much stronger and resilient than those of people who have worn shoes their entire lives. But when a child makes the transition from not wearing shoes to wearing shoes, their feet become less callused and strong. So when TOMS donates a pair of shoes to these children, first of all, the shoes only last about a year as children outgrow them. And second, these children lose the calluses they have built up over time, making them even more susceptible to foot diseases from the soil once they stop wearing shoes again.
In Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert's book When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself, the authors give a suggestion on how to avoid giving "bad aid" such as what TOMS has done for many years:
In Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert's book When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself, the authors give a suggestion on how to avoid giving "bad aid" such as what TOMS has done for many years:
"Avoid paternalism. Do not do things for people that they can do for themselves. Memorize this, recite it under your breath all day long, and wear it like a garland around your neck." (p.115)
How would you feel if someone walked into your home, looked around, took note of some things that you neither had nor wanted, and then went and bought them for you? First, you might feel inferior, or maybe even humiliated. And second, if this person keeps bringing you things over time, you probably won't try to work harder to earn these things, and eventually come to rely on this person to provide you with things he or she thinks you need.
Finally, flooding the market with free goods, like TOMS shoes, is economically disastrous for those people who already sell them. Many African countries' textile industries collapsed after the massive importation of secondhand clothing in the 1970s and 1980s. "First you have destroyed these villages' ability to be industrious and produce cotton products, and then you're saying, 'Can I give you a T-shirt?' and celebrating about it?" says James Shikwati, director of the Nairobi-based Inter Region Economic Network, a think tank. "It's really like offering poison coated with sugar."
Finally, flooding the market with free goods, like TOMS shoes, is economically disastrous for those people who already sell them. Many African countries' textile industries collapsed after the massive importation of secondhand clothing in the 1970s and 1980s. "First you have destroyed these villages' ability to be industrious and produce cotton products, and then you're saying, 'Can I give you a T-shirt?' and celebrating about it?" says James Shikwati, director of the Nairobi-based Inter Region Economic Network, a think tank. "It's really like offering poison coated with sugar."