When ‘service’ is worse than inaction by Nathan Chan (China)

“The rise of voluntourism, where people vacation to underdeveloped places for community service, is harmful to the very societies it is meant to help.”

It sounds heartless and cold to argue that millions in desolate poverty should be cut off from international aid. What is the point of a free market system that generates floods of wealth and innovation, if it does not wash over every corner of the earth?

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Even inaction, however, would be better than the predatory, multi-billion-dollar industry of voluntourism: a phenomenon where millions of Western tourists pay thousands of dollars for curated volunteer experiences in developing nations.

Voluntourists have different reasons to embark on these trips: some want to pad their resume, others want to volunteer in safe environments, and many want to feel more grateful for the privileges they enjoy. No matter the reasons, their actions lead to money-minded entrepreneurs profiting off the ostensible desire to do good in vulnerable communities. 

For example, many volunteers visit Cambodia each year to help orphans. As a result, the Cambodian economy has become reliant on travelers. To encourage more voluntourists, orphanages recruit children from families, thereby creating the facade of a crisis that turns poverty into a tourist attraction.

In reality, only a small portion of dollars being paid to voluntourism organizations end up in the hands of vulnerable communities. National Public Radio (NPR) estimates the industry to be worth over three billion US dollars. A fraction of that would have a large impact in places such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the average cobalt miner earns USD 0.4 hourly. Meanwhile, 2021 saw an increase of around 50 million people finding themselves in extreme poverty compared to the prior year. In addition, it is hard to derive sustainable impact from a volunteers’ week-long visit, in which they often indulge themselves rather than the communities they are ostensibly helping.

​This is an example of chronic market failure, where capitalist incentives distort genuine impact. The free market is a powerful force for change, but these fraudulent experiences of volunteerism are insulting to those who are genuinely disadvantaged, and exploitative to well-intentioned volunteers.

Voluntourism needs to end. It is the antithesis of effective altruism, tragically diverting funds away from more useful charitable endeavors that may not be as well packaged but may generate more impact on the communities that need help. Globally, governments, enterprises, educators, and local communities must come together to promote a culture rooted in genuine aid as opposed to self-serving trips. In places like Cambodia, it is important to make sure the exploitative entrepreneurs who are profiting from misery are exposed and made pariahs for the harm they did in the name of doing good.



Citations:

“Cambodia's Orphan Business: The Dark Side of 'Voluntourism'.” Al Jazeera, September 15, 2019. https://www.aljazeera.com/program/rewind/2019/9/15/cambodias-orphan-business-the-dark-side-of-voluntourism. 

Dostilio, Lina D, Sarah M Brackmann, Kathleen E Edwards, Barabara Harrison, Brandon W Kliewer, and Patti H Clayton. “Reciprocity: Saying What We Mean and Meaning What We Say.” Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning 19, no. 1 (2012). 

Gharib, Malaka. “The Pandemic Changed the World of 'Voluntourism.' Some Folks like the New Way Better.” NPR, July 15, 2021. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/07/15/1009911082/the-pandemic-changed-the-world-of-voluntourism-some-folks-like-the-new-way-bette. 

Suckling, Elena, Zach Christensen, and Dan Walton. “Poverty Trends: Global, Regional and National.” Development Initiatives, November 10, 2021. https://devinit.org/resources/poverty-trends-global-regional-and-national/. 

“The Truth about Voluntourism.” Save The Children, September 20, 2017. https://www.savethechildren.org.au/our-stories/the-truth-about-voluntourism. 

Zakaria, Rafia. “Poverty as a Tourist Attraction.” The New York Times, May 1, 2014. https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/29/can-voluntourism-make-a-difference/poverty-as-a-tourist-attraction.