One of the associations we support!

Entraide et Fraternité throughout time…

The first Share Lent campaign was launched in 1961 under the name of Entraide et Fraternité.

  • 1961 : The first Share Lent campaign is born under the name of Entraide et Fraternité. Organized by Caritas Catolica to respond to a famine in the State of Kasai (DRCongo), it is very successful and gives its name to this Church service.
  • 1963: Entraide et Fraternité becomes an autonomous NGO (non-governmental organization) which is part of the renewal of the Church launched by John XXIII and Vatican II.

Acting for more social justice and for liberating development by drawing inspiration from evangelical principles is still the backdrop to the actions of Entraide et Fraternité today.

Of course, on this unwavering basis, the association’s awareness of cooperation has changed, as has their perception of development actors. The first decade for development, launched at the behest of the United Nations in the 1960s, was a phase of illusion:

  1. The post-colonial era was to lead to Western-style development or modernization.
  2. It was to allow “catching up” through transfers of capital, technical assistance, material works that would create an impetus.
  3. Entraide et Fraternité aid fell within this framework.
  4. They used the first relays, missionaries and Christian communities, they also made financial contributions for the sending of volunteers.
  • During the 1970s, the optics changed considerably. The fight against underdevelopment takes the emphasis of political liberation, for example against apartheid in South Africa, against international dependence and dictatorships in power, in Latin America or elsewhere.

A new conception of Christian commitment in favor of the poor emerges at the meeting of the Bishops of Medellin (Colombia). Liberation theology emphasizes the values of the gospel for the political, social, economic and cultural liberation of the peoples of the Third World.

The development projects supported by Entraide et Fraternité will also follow this evolution. It is less material achievements that are supported than efforts to raise awareness, to train grassroots groups in solidarity and institutional consolidation.

  • November 1977: the Share Lent campaign was defederalised and two independent non-profit organizations were created: Broederlijk Delen vzw for Flanders and Entraide et Fraternité for the French-speaking part of the country. Today, the joint action of its two associations is mainly at the level of political action.

Vers un développement durable

  • 1980: The 80s were those of a consolidation of the main lines of force of Entraide et Fraternité. The emphasis is more on recognizing people as actors in development (and among them the poorest and most excluded). The project criteria distinguish the dynamics of organizations and actions (for the survival and well-being of local communities), intermediary support groups for democracy and human rights and wider networks that coordinate actions. : three levels that complement each other.

Cette vision plus intégrée cherche donc à favoriser des projets qui s’articulent les uns aux autres, à rechercher des groupes qui incarnent des forces de résistance et de changement, à prendre en compte les contextes nationaux et régionaux. De plus en plus, les options seront définies avec les organisations partenaires en fonction des nécessités primordiales pour un développement durable.

Globalization of solidarity

  • 1990. Les orientations d’Entraide et Fraternité répondent alors à une conscience de plus en plus profonde de l’existence de liens entre l’ici et le là-bas : organisation de rencontres entre les témoins de terrain du sud et du nord, entre les associations d’économie solidaire du sud et d’économie sociale du nord, soutien au nord comme au sud, d’actions pour que le monde politique réponde aux besoins de reconnaissance et aux droits de ceux qui sont exclus et opprimés (droit au logement, à la terre, droit à l’égalité entre les hommes et les femmes, droit d’asile, droit à l’emploi…).
  • 1999-2000. Entraide et Fraternité participates in the great international campaign. Jubilee 2000 to demand the cancellation of Third World debt and submits 50,000 petitions to the Belgian Minister of Finance.
  • 2004-2006. Entraide et Fraternité is developing a program focused on human rights. After civil and political rights (2004), economic and social rights (2005), cultural rights (2006) were highlighted during the various campaigns. Entraide et Fraternité is also reviewing its geographic location in the countries of the South and reaffirms its willingness to support initiatives leading to change in civil society in the South.

The defense of peasant agriculture: a major development issue

  • 2011 to date: Entraide et Fraternité is developing a program focused on peasant agriculture and food sovereignty in 9 of the poorest countries on the planet. Its overall objective is to promote and defend sustainable peasant agriculture through citizen initiatives. It is also carried out in the north through work, at national and international level, to raise awareness and make political demands.

Bantayliving will soon inform you more about the specific projects developed by Entraide et Fraternité.

To know more about ENTRAIDE ET FRATERNITE
https://www.entraide.be/

March 2020