What Is Swadeshi?

"Swadeshi" or Localized Economics is a concept developed by Mahatma Gandhi as a key component of peaceful living, and we at Working Villages feel that it will be a valuable tool in taking our part of Congo from an environment of war and chaos to one of peace and productivity.  Our economic program of Village Self Reliance (VSR) is built on the philosophical concepts of Swadeshi.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, India felt the tragic impact as thousands and thousands of local spinners and weavers were thrown out of work by the importation of cheap factory-made cloth from England. The result was dire poverty and social chaos.  Gandhi's response was to throw away all article made of English mill cloth, and wear only cloth which he spun himself.  The image of him, spinning on his charka and preaching the importance of simple living and non-violence became instantly famous. Thousands followed him, and the final result was India's independence.

Fifty years after India's independence we find that the problems that were facing Indian society are now having an impact all over the world as we face the consequences of corporate Globalization of the Economy.  And if anything, the problems are even more devastating as we see the following effects of Globalization:

* Widespread unemployment
* Plummeting wages; impoverishment of the working class
* Erosion of worker rights
* Dangerous, mind-numbing, repetitive work
* Demographic upheavals as jobless flee to other countries
* Ruptured families as parents are forced apart to seek work
* Neglect and exploitation of children who are often forced into crushing, dangerous or degrading work to get money
* Widespread hunger and disease
* Disenfranchised people easily recruited to violent militias, religious fanaticism or terrorism
* Growing income gap, feeding into class tensions between rich and poor
* Erosion of democracy and human rights
* Devastation of the environment by manufacturing and shipping

But, the key requirement for a Global Economic network is cheap energy.  Thus, as if the above problems were not bad enough, on top of that we have the challenges of Peak Oil Production:

* Escalating manufacturing costs
* Escalating shipping costs
* Escalating costs for workers commuting to work
* Escalating costs for consumers traveling to stores

In industrialized countries, it is a great challenge to keep the economy going in the face of difficulties like this - but in a place like Congo's Ruzizi Valley, where the price of oil is now $8-$10 per gallon, with a per capita annual income of $100, it is no longer even a challenge - because the economy has finally collapsed.  Globalized Economics can no longer promise to support this population.  And there is no realistic means of getting back onto that sinking ship, even if the people wanted to do it.

So, does that mean that the situation is hopeless?

No, it just means that Globalized Economics cannot provide the answers.  Answers must be found somewhere else, and it becomes clear that Gandhi's idea of Swadeshi has much to offer.  Satish Kumar, the founder of the Schumacher College summarizes Swadeshi as follows:

"According to the principle of swadeshi, whatever is made or produced in the village must be used first and foremost by the members of the village. Trading among villages and between villages and towns should be minimal, like icing on the cake. Goods and services that cannot be generated within the community can be bought from elsewhere.

"Swadeshi avoids economic dependence on external market forces that could make the village community vulnerable. It also avoids unnecessary, unhealthy, wasteful, and therefore environmentally destructive transportation. The village must build a strong economic base to satisfy most of its needs, and all members of the village community should give priority to local goods and services."

Gandhi spoke of Swadeshi as follows:

"My definition of Swadeshi is well known.  I must not serve my distant neighbour at the expense of the nearest . . . Swadeshi is that spirit in us which restricts us to the use and service of our immediate surroundings to the exclusion of the more remote--I should use only things that are produced by my immediate neighbours and serve those industries by making them efficient and complete where they might be found wanting . . .

"If we follow the Swadeshi doctrine, it would be your duty and mine to find our neighbours who can supply our wants, and teach them to supply them where they do not know how to proceed, assuming that there are neighbours who are in want of healthy occupation.  Then every village of India will almost be a self-supporting and self-contained unit, exchanging only such necessary commodities with other villages which are not locally producible . . . A votary of Swadeshi will carefully study his environment, and try to help his neighbours wherever possible by giving preference to local manufactures, even if they are of an inferior grade or dearer in price than things manufactured elsewhere."

[In another context, Gandhi more forcefully:]  "It is sinful to eat American wheat and let my neighbour, the graindealer, starve for want of customers.  Similarly, it is sinful for me to wear the latest finery of Regent Street when I know that if I had but worn the things woven by the neighbouring spinners and weavers, that would have clothed me, and fed and clothed them."

Significantly, one of the most important qualities of Swadeshi is that items are produced by local workers for the use of people living in the local community.  A handwoven scarf or handcrafted piece of pottery which is exported and sold as a novelty item in a distant country cannot meet the strict definition of Swadeshi.  On the other hand, even Gandhi himself cautioned against making a fetish of Swadeshi.  And certainly, even though Swadeshi does not promote the environmentally and socially disruptive practice of long-distance commodity trade, there is still plenty of room for cultivation of compassion and brotherhood on a global level.

But in general, we can say that following the principles of Swadeshi, the values of traditional economics such as . . .

* Maximizing profit
* Maximizing output per worker
* Economies of scale, reducing per-unit costs
* Vigorous advertising to increase sales and consumption
* Orienting production to buyers who can pay highest prices
* Seeking areas of the world where wages are lowest
* Insuring low wages by maintaining sufficient unemployment in the worker pool
* Comparative advantage and absolute efficiency as determining factors of production
* "Free" markets, unfettered by tariffs and protection
* Winner-take-all competition and concentration of capital
* Empowerment of large corporations versus the community
* Pursuing the goal of happiness through consumption

. . . are set aside and replaced with Swadeshi values of:

* Local production focused on local needs
* Full employment
* Decent working conditions
* Simple living, reducing unnecessary wants and consumption
* Compassion for the worker
* Work as a means of expression and a means of spiritual fulfillment
* Work that is compatible with human needs such as family, community and spiritual life
* Sufficient compensation to earn a decent livelihood
* Cooperative, caring community
* Standards which protect local businesses from unfair competition by outside interests
* Standards which protect the environment and local living conditions
* Many small-scale producers, a more equitable distribution of wealth
* Empowerment of the community to protect its members and its environment
* Pursuing the goal of happiness through meaningful production and care of neighbors and community

And just as there is substantial difference between the values of Modern Economics and Swadeshi, similarly there is a substantial difference between the principles of production bwtween the two.  Whereas traditional economics stresses large scale industrialization, Swadeshi stresses Appropriate Technology.