NGO (Beninese Solidarity with Endangered Westerners)(2013)

NGO (Beninese Solidarity with Endangered Westerners) Synopsis

Hazoumè's "NGO (Beninese Solidarity with Endangered Westerners)" reflects on issues of immigration, economic disparity, and perceptions of wealth. Taking a critical eye toward the vast numbers of local and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) operating in his country of Benin, the artist created his own NGO to aid poor Westerners, thereby reversing conventional assumptions concerning poverty and the distribution of capital from so-called developed nations. In an attempt to expose the often hidden realities of the income inequality that exists in global Northern countries, he asked Beninese celebrities to solicit donations from Africans, who commonly associate Westerners with affluence. For Hazoumè, the driving concept of the project is to uncover such illusions: "To all appearances, it’s a matter of reversing the help, from south to north. But in reality—it is about making the Africans cogitate differently."

NGO (Beninese Solidarity with Endangered Westerners) (2013) is a documentary film directed by Romuald Hazoumè, released on September 21, 2013 with a runtime of 16m.