Tireless years advocating for children, social justice

His docket as regional director of Plan International for East and Southern Africa involves supervision of operations of 12 countries; from Egypt in the North, Zimbabwe in the South and Uganda somewhere in the middle.
Twenty years ago, Roland Angerer, made his first visit to Africa. He had come to work for an Austria non-government organisation (NGO) in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The work was related to placing development workers with local partner organisations.

But this was not the first time he was doing development work. He started doing the kind of work as a student and it has remained part of him since. We are talking about 35 years of careers fused with development work.
“I am driven by injustices and inequalities in society, especially if children are affected, and have potentials which are never developed,” he says. Angerer believes children should be exposed to all chances and opportunities to develop to the highest levels of their potential.

Ideals
If the circumstances do not allow, thus social, economic and political, then he steps in to find ways of developing skills of children. Angerer says the challenges that stand in the full development of children’s potential in Africa starts with poverty and ultimately minimum resources to guarantee their minimum rights.
“It starts with access to life, food, health services, basic education and goes into violation of their rights and threats that impedes their progress and their further development,” he argues.
He cites the rising numbers in children’s death during their first year of life as a result of negligence rooted in simple things like hygiene, which leads to diarrhoea that accounts for high mortality rates. Most communities where such deaths occur do not have access to clean water.

He observes that if mothers and babies are provided with clean water over the first 1, 000 days, then their bodies and brain can develop. He says that unfortunately children in urban centres continue to have an edge over their rural counterparts where facilities are largely undeveloped and not standardised, which in effect ,undermines their rights to proper education.
“Look at the plight of girls. They are disadvantaged in many societies because they have different roles to play. They go late to school because they have to first do work at home. They wake up 4am in the morning, fetch water, do the cooking, look after siblings, and study for a while and have to return home for more chores and then retire very tired,” he observes.

Successes
In trying to mitigate some of the challenges, Plan International, a child rights organisation working with communities around the world, works through promoting the convention for the rights of a child.
The convention changed the way children are viewed and treated – i.e., as human beings with a distinct set of rights instead of as passive objects of care and charity.
Angerer says there are still gaps as they benchmark research and findings on ground in many communities in countries like Uganda. And the conversation is not how these gaps can be filled.
He adds that works by working within vulnerable communities and with children and young people through the Child-Centred Community Development (CCCD).

The approach appreciates that all children have the same human rights and sets out to work with children and communities, tackling gender inequality and exclusion, engaging with civil society, influencing government and strengthening accountability.
“We are working in 70 countries around the world and we reach about 28 million children with different types of programmes,” says Angerer. Fikru Abebe, Country Director, Plan International Uganda, says they reach 39,000.
He says that in the last 23 years they have invested $250m and plan to inject 80 million Euros in their five- year plan. He says they are looking at empowering youth with development skills.

The Ugandan story
“We have changed lives in Luweero through generating income for vulnerable families and sensitisation on nutrition. We are also operational in Tororo and Kamuli and have helped farmers in marketing their products. All this is documented. The energy and passion is admirable,” Abebe explains.
This has partly been through village and savings schemes, which help in lifting locals out of poverty if they learn how to handle finances in investing
Angerer says all this plays into their efforts to make a contribution to Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs), an intergovernmental set of aspiration goals.
“The SDGs are a good basis to actually rally different actors in society together around common objectives. What is interesting is that development is getting closer to the environment. People are protecting water and forests,” the development enthusiast explains.

Personal life
Well, Angerer is enthusiastic about work but spares time to enjoy other things in life. He was born in Austria and is a journalist by profession. He has worked in India, Panama, South America and married a wife he met in South America.
His movements have made him and his family global citizens. He says that people might be different but when you scratch beyond smiles, they are the same. They are driven by fulfilment of their life, acknowledgement of their loved ones around them as they look for peace and survival.
“All people are explorers and innovators. They have plans and dreams and want to achieve something,” he adds. He is based in Nairobi. His first impression when he came to East Africa was a welcoming, respectful and polite people.
The 54-year-old remembers his youth skiing, playing football with friends and spending time with his mother who made special sweet for him. And in school, he recalls a violent headmaster who used corporal punishment to instil discipline in pupils. He cherishes openness, honesty and loyalty.

Factfile
Education, Angerer holds a university degree in Communications and Political Science, as well as a Masters in Development Management. He has been working in international development for more than 25 years in different capacities.
In 2001, He joined Plan International as Country Director in Colombia, starting the first experience of fundraising in a programme country.
Passion, Angerer is a strong advocate of Plan’s Child-Centered Community Development approach and is convinced that a critical mass of children and young people who get the opportunity to understand and claim their rights will transform the world.

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