Lynn C. Fritz, Director General, Fritz Institute

Initiative Session Date: November 8, 2005

Summary:

Mr. Fritz believes there will be visionaries, including members of IGD, who take the obvious and apply the necessary energy towards engaging a variety of stakeholders to create change.  This is how he became involved in development work - by seeing that logistics were a hurdle that must be overcome in order for other development efforts to be successful.  Logistics planning, he said, can assist the process of developing a coordinated strategy between NGOs, government, international organizations and businesses to address global poverty.  Changes can be made to encourage local organizations, agencies, and the private sector to work together to develop rudimentary, preparatory actions for disaster response.  He highlighted that there is growing awareness around the value of building the capacity and infrastructure of local institutions.  Mr. Fritz argued that only Africa can save Africa, emphasizing that vital changes occur when local people are involved.  The gap between institutions with resources and individuals in need of those resources can be closed, he suggested, via the promulgation and celebration of accomplishments, measurement of successes, and an insistence that more be done.  Mr. Fritz recognized the importance of the work that IGD is doing, and the efforts of the members to develop a critical mass in the public and private sector to create change in humanitarian relief. 

"The time to get engaged in disaster response is certainly not during the response phase... and the absolute optimal way for private sector to be engaged, for the absolute optimal and long term result, is prior to anything happening."

Biography