Our philosophy
The work of The Soko Fund and the support of the American Friends organization is rooted in the philosophy of the "capabilities approach" to development.
In important work, developed over several decades, the Nobel Prize winning economist, Amartya Sen, and the American philosopher, Martha Nussbaum, have spearheaded a radically new approach to the problems of developing countries and their solution. The approach abandons the old quantitative measure of average income and Gross Domestic Product in favor of identifying the capabilities and social functions that will enable both individuals and communities to build better lives for themselves. Evidence shows that a key 'capability' is education and an especially "fertile function" is the role of women in development.
By facilitating the education of women in vocational subjects at degree level, The Soko Fund, with the support of the Friends, is able to make a relatively small sum of money a powerful driver in the improvement of individual lives and the advanement of Malawi, currently one the most underdeveloped countries in the world.
*Amartya Sen, Freedom as Development (1991)
Martha Nussbaum, Women and Development (CUP, 2000)
Martha Nussbaum, Creating Capabilities (OUP, 2010)
In important work, developed over several decades, the Nobel Prize winning economist, Amartya Sen, and the American philosopher, Martha Nussbaum, have spearheaded a radically new approach to the problems of developing countries and their solution. The approach abandons the old quantitative measure of average income and Gross Domestic Product in favor of identifying the capabilities and social functions that will enable both individuals and communities to build better lives for themselves. Evidence shows that a key 'capability' is education and an especially "fertile function" is the role of women in development.
By facilitating the education of women in vocational subjects at degree level, The Soko Fund, with the support of the Friends, is able to make a relatively small sum of money a powerful driver in the improvement of individual lives and the advanement of Malawi, currently one the most underdeveloped countries in the world.
*Amartya Sen, Freedom as Development (1991)
Martha Nussbaum, Women and Development (CUP, 2000)
Martha Nussbaum, Creating Capabilities (OUP, 2010)