Invest in empowering local organizations to tell their own stories and help them spread the word about their achievements and assistance. This fosters deeper understanding and helps us provide direct access to resources.
International NGOs and international agencies appropriate our knowledge, communicate to listeners and give the public what they think we need. We, in turn, want to say: "Stop trying to speak for us and stop controlling the narratives in a way that promotes your institutional interests!"
There are technologies and techniques that allow local people to share their experiences and needs. Listening to local people will help you understand the horrors of war and the diverse, changing needs. This will lead to greater solidarity and may influence where and how individual or institutional donors and the general public choose to support us.
Therefore, we ask the international community to invest in strengthening these collective systems so that we can easily and effectively tell our stories and communicate in our language with a supportive public. We also ask you to listen and amplify our voices, our experiences, and our activities on our behalf. This will contribute to the active development of solidarity and understanding of the role of local actors in relief, recovery and rehabilitation efforts. It will also help us to obtain more direct and sustainable resources.