Diébédo Francis Kéré told me the following: his work in Burkina Faso is based on an idea that he calls "social architecture". To give you an example: There is a great lack of schools in Burkina Faso. That is to say, there is a shortage of teachers and school material as well as proper facilities. The only thing that there is not a shortage of is children who want to learn how to read and write. But to Diébédo Francis Kéré, as for all sensible human beings, there is no use in waiting for things to change. Education can start before the school is built. The climate allows for lessons being held outdoors, e.g. under the shadow of a tree.

-       But the education has to work in two different ways, he said. At the same time as they learn how to read and write they will have to contribute with something. The only condition I gave the children and their parents when I said that I would be willing to pay for a teacher and contribute with my knowledge was that all the pupils had to bring something with them when they came to take part in the classes held under the tree. Can you guess what?

He provided the answer himself.

-       A brick, he said. That goes for the older children that have the strength to carry. The smaller children could bring some pebbles. To build a school you need small stones as well as bricks. The pebbles could be used for the floor.

And then he showed me some photos. Rows of boys and girls, everyone carrying a brick or a smaller stone. The boys carried the bricks under their arms; the girls balanced the bricks or the stones on their heads.

His idea was simple; while the pupils learned to read and write, they all contributed to the construction of a school.

This is not a beautiful or "idealistic" story. Instead it is a very tangible solution to a real problem. A collective solution. When, instead of money, there are human beings willing to work and children yearning to learn. In places where illiteracy is still regarded as a plague, a kind of mental cholera. But where there is still the possibility to fight this disease by reasonable action.

And there is truly nothing remarkable or unique with this, if one recalls our own Swedish history. This is exactly how the young Swedish labour movement built their people's parks and assembly halls at the end of the 19^th century. The temperance movement their lodges. They did it together. In the evenings after a long a day of work. On Sundays when they could have used the rest. But instead they built. And not only buildings but also a different society.

This is a method, which should be supported in poor countries. A collective solution, where everyone contributes in the way they can, does not only mean that it is possible to solve one specific problem. It also means experience, knowledge and insights for those involved. Moreover, it creates an understanding for the true meaning of cooperation. Hence, it is not about what has always been done together, e.g. digging irrigation plants. Instead of waiting for money from the World Bank or erratic Foreign Aid organisations that might not exist, it is about discovering new ways in which cooperation could play a huge part when it comes to facing the future.

I have always been rather sceptical to why Swedish people's movements, with their great experience, have not been more involved - and are involved! - in contributing to development in African countries. Why have they always relied upon the expensive consultants and experts? I could write a book about all these strange, but always well-paid, consultants who come flying down for longer or shorter periods of times to countries like Mocambique and Zambia or other African countries where I have lived. These experts have then travelled back home to write a report, which quite often did not lead anywhere but to the archives. (There are exceptions!)

I specifically remember one Swedish consultant who spent four days in Maputo, the capital of Mocambique. When I asked him why he was in Maputo, he answered that he was about to propose a new agricultural policy in the country. In four days! And I do not think he even bothered to leave the city during his short stay.

(A story like this might seem a bit unfair. There will probably be people demanding that I should name the consultant and be more specific about which project I am discussing. But why should I? I do not persecute people? I try to reason about which ways lead in the right direction when it comes to development; roads that will lead out of the misery.)

Franz Fanon once wrote "the bridge should be built by those who will use it". I do not completely agree with him, however, I understand what he means. But the school that is being built in Burkina Faso, where the students walk to school at dawn, carrying their bricks, is something that we should be able to contribute to. Since they most likely would manage without us.

Henning Mankell