Speaking The Language of International Development

Language is a crucial consideration in international development. In communities around the world, language diversity is common, and bilingualism of individuals is vital to business and social life. Language diversity raises issues in education that must be addressed, because they underlie many other important social issues. For example, choices about the language in which children begin schooling and become literate are fundamental to ensuring equal educational opportunity. Education is central to reducing poverty and enabling social and economic development.

International sustainable development promotes a cross-disciplinary understanding of economics, law, sociology, political science, anthropology and language, in the context of sustainable or environmentally friendly positive social and economic change.

The terminology of international development is constantly evolving as new socioeconomic concepts emerge. In over 25 years of experience in translation for global development we have witnessed the appearance of a number of neologisms, either entirely new or established terms used with a different meaning in such organizations as USAID, the IDB, World Bank, the United Nations Development Program, etc.

Translating into dialects can be challenging due to cultural references and limited vocabulary in the scientific domain. For instance the Ilocano (Philippines) language’s lexical inadequacy is observed in the profession. Another major challenge in Ilocano translation stems from the fact that Ilocano is a predicate initial language. When a translator attempts to follow the syntax of the source language in order to maintain accuracy or fidelity, the resulting translation often lacks natural flow and cohesiveness, undermining transparency.

Likewise translating and interpreting for the Chuukese language (islands of Chuuk) s also challenging, especially due to major cultural differences between the islands and the mainland United States. The Chuukese language usually does not have its own words for legal, scientific or modern socio-economic terms. The Chuukese number system also poses one of the greatest challenges to an interpreter. The Chuukese language has a completely different numbering system for objects of different sizes and shapes: long objects, round objects, meats and certain vegetables, people, weapons, etc. The Chuukese dictionary lists two pages of such variants!

Translators need to work around these challenges to achieve a balance in accuracy, fidelity, transparency, equivalency, and cultural appropriateness of the translation.

Some of our latest translation projects for International Development:
• Road and Water Investments in Uzbekistan
• Strengthening the Judiciary in Lebanon
• Rural Development Initiatives in Afghanistan
• Democracy Enhancement and Good Governance Initiatives in South America
• Water and Sanitation Program in Angola
• Supporting Democratic Governance in Egypt
• Expansion of the Provincial Roads Management Facility in the Philippines
• Support to the Education Sector in the Philippines
• Support to Road, Energy and Natural Resource Management in Malawi
• Country-level annual reports for NGO programs
• NGO purchasing procedures in the field
• Malaria Protocols in developing countries
• Blood transfusion protocols in the field in Ivory Coast
• Schools and educational programs in South America
• Guide to Sexual and Reproductive Health in Francophone West Africa
• Social networks and family planning in Mali
• HIV/AIDS in Cote d’Ivoire
• Water use program in Congo
• Gender based violence in sub-Saharan Africa
• Role of entrepreneurship to reduce poverty in Morocco
• Global Fund HIV/AIDS program in Mali
• Policy for Sexual and Reproductive Health Programs in Africa
• Country-wide immunization programs West Africa
• HIV/AIDS and retroviral protocols
• NGO human resources policies and procedures
• Open Budget Survey material and E-newsletters – Africa
• Training material and Reports South America
• Command Assessment and Training in Argentina
• Transparency Standards in Peru: Strengthening the Culture of Integrity
• Intellectual Property Policy in South America
• Addressing the needs of girls at risk of early marriage and married adolescent girls in Burkina Faso
• Piloting a safe spaces, asset-building program for adolescent girls in urban Ghana
• Expanding safe spaces, financial education, and savings for adolescent girls in Kenya
• Ending Child Marriage in Ethiopia
• Growth and Productivity in Agriculture and Agribusiness
• The Rise, Fall, and Recovery of the Microfinance Sector in Morocco
• The Cotton Crisis and Diversification of Crops in Cameroon
• Institutional and Capacity Challenges in Agricultural Policy Reforms in DRC
• Expanding Family Planning Options in Africa
• Care and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in Côte d’Ivoire
• Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV/AIDS in the Democratic Republic of Congo
• Nutritional Support of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in the Context of HIV/AIDS in Côte d’Ivoire
• Fertility Awareness for Young People (various African countries)
• Social Networks Project in Mali
• Commodity Prices on World Markets
• Government Support to the Cotton Industry in the USA, China, Turkey, India, the European Union, Brazil and Columbia
• Cotton Price Trends on World Markets
• Immunization Coverage Survey in Mayotte, etc.

For an overview of our translation expertise, visit our medical and life science translation service page.

Tags: anthropology, international, languages, law, morocco, Philippines, USAID

Category: Business Translation