Something my dad asked me right before I left for the Peace Corps, rocked me a bit. We were having a conversation about Peace Corps celebrating their 50th anniversary and I bragged to him that the Peace Corps Senegal program had been open for 48 of those 50 years. He then posed the question, if the Peace Corps is doing their job, why would they still need to be sending people into a country for almost 50 years! Why would they still need to be teaching things like hand-washing, sleeping under a mosquito net, promoting going to local health professionals, etc. At the time, I had no answer, and I felt a rock sink to the bottom of my stomach. What was I getting myself into? Flash forward, I have been in country for almost 8 months and I have been in my official site for almost 6. I am by NO MEANS a professional at this development work stuff, but I do have a bit of a better understanding on how it all works.
Peace Corp volunteers who had been in country for a while reassured us as we were installed into our sites, that "real" work would no start until about a year in. This seems weird and reassuring at the same time. Why would it take so long for "real" work to start? But also, it took a lot of pressure off my shoulders about getting things started right away. It did take a long time to feel "at home" or "at ease" at site, which is something I can see adding to this idea of not getting "real" work done for a while. It is just now that I am finding that true enjoyment is outweighing stress when I am in Maleme Niani. This is due to the formation of true friendships and overall communication skills improving. The idea of "real" work is a relative term. What is "real" work in development work? Does it have to be tangible? Will I actually see the fruit of my labor in my time in country? The answer to these questions are not there. It will entirely depend on how the rest of my service goes and I can only answer them upon reflection of my two years here. I can say though, after lots of training, and then putting those teachings into practice, two years is NOT enough time for development work to happen. It takes DECADES for people to change their behavior. They might know the right thing to do, but the job is not done until they begin to practice it. I do not expect to see an entire community change during the course of two years. Just because someone comes to me and teaches me something doesnt mean I would actually practice it if it went against 20 years of habit.
Development work is not for the faint of heart, the short tempered or the "time is money" kind of person. It takes persistence, patients, and the realization that I might leave Maleme Niani and not be able to see a lot of change in the community. Now that is not to say it is not there. But I might walk away having just put the wood on the stove, while the next volunteer will need to begin to light it, and the volunteer after that will continue to need to feed the fire... etc. For me, as long as I walk away from this experience happy with what Ive done, and knowing that someone in my community learned something from me, then I will have succeeded. It only takes one person in a developing community to change their behavior to help build the fire of development, but two years is just a starting point. 50 years, 100 years, 200 years, thats where you can see real leaps and bounds made.
Now with that, I feel that I have started some "real" work in The Niani (as I like to call it). I was approached by a man who used to work for an NGO and has a real passion for creating fuel efficient, environmentally safe mud stoves. Ironically, PC Senegal is working on a program to create other stoves that will cook faster and be safer for people to use everyday, so I eagerly jumped at the opportunity to help him. So for the last couple of weeks I have been working with him to create these stoves. We have made 4 stoves so far. They are great and people seem to really like the. I am on my way to Thies to partake in a "Stove Camp" which will be directly followed by a Health and Environmental Education seminar. There will be a lot of information thrown at me, undoubtedly, but it will be great. I am really looking forward to that.
Other then that, I have continued to work at the school, doing another mural, and have been scouting out some other work opportunities with different groups in the community. As they come I will keep you posted.
Hey! Love the posting! It is very true what you said about how long it takes to see a change. I mean I am sure that if we stayed here possible for 10 years maybe we might see a faster change in practices but then again it is only if the people want to change. So many varying factors that we have to take into account.
ReplyDeleteAlso! So, jealous that you are going to a mud oven stove event this week! I wish I could go! I really want to learn how to make them! You are going to have to show me when I get to Tamba!
So, have fun!
Dear Nicolette,
ReplyDeleteFirst, I want to thank you for your service to the people of Senegal. I betia ta baake. Allah ma i la silo dialla.
Ask your father how long it took for black people and latinos to get civil rights in the USA. How long did it take women to get equality to men in the USA? My answer is that these things haven't fully been realized yet.
The people of Senegal have been enslaved, colonized, victimized, by both Europeans(and Americans) and their own people.
We did not have enough food to eat in my compound(because of drought) in Daoudi(35km north of Koussanar). With part of my own Peace Corps stipend ($100/,month at the time, which was about the average yearly income of the Senegalese), I bought 100kg of millet and 30kg of peanuts to supplement our food until the harvest. To save on transport, I sent these on the truck that was taking well building supplies (mainly bags of cement and rebar) up to Daoudi (35km up a jeep trail with no motor vehicle traffic). Some of my villagers thought that I had stolen the millet and peanuts. (They assumed the millet and peanuts were there to feed the well diggers.) Some government officials regularly do this. Just like good ole USA!
So my villagers refused to feed the well digger as they had previously agreed.
You can tell your father that PCV's in Tamba had to try for 2 weeks to make a phone call from Tambacounda to Dakar. In 1980 the only phone that I could use was in the post office. The phones did not work for 2 weeks, so I had to travel to Dakar and back to make the equivalent of a phone call for one of my projects.
You can tell him that we had to research our projects and fund them. That letters took 3 weeks to get to the USA and 3 weeks to get back. One of my letters took 6 months to get to me because it went via South Korea.
You can tell him that PCVs were sick some of the time. My first case of dysentery took me out of the village for one month. I had amoebic dysentery 7 times and had as many malarial crises. One malarial attack brought my weight from 175lbs to 155lbs in 4 days. One of my fellow PCVs died from malaria.
You can tell him that the life of a PCV is a little bit difficult. Of the 35 Rural Animation Volunteers that arrived in Senegal with me in March of 1979, 17 finished there 2 years service. The others were either medi-vaced, psycho-vaced, or either quit because it was too hard or dealing with the way that Senegalese treated women.
The big aid(millions of $) that the US sends to Senegal is to benefit American companies and farmers. If it helps the Senegalese, that is an added benefit.
I could write more. And that is a threat. lol
Sincerely,
Kim
You can also tell your father that the rich people (like the 400 Americans who possess more wealth than the poorest 150 million Americans) don't want to give up any of their wealth to help the poorest people of the world, the ones who are starving to death.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how slowly change happens. How many times have we heard advice, ignored it, heard it again, and then decided to try something different. PC will have been in Moldova for 20 years when I COS...and I don't see an end in sight. One volunteer can pour their heart out into a community and start ideas, reach for sustainability, but usually this hinges on certain leaders that remain in the community. If these leaders let down for a second, and in Moldova, usually it is the case that they find a better opportunity abroad, the work that the volunteer has done can be lost, or slowed significantly.
ReplyDelete50 years is nothing. 20 years ago the country I live in was a part of the USSR. Only now are people starting to realize that there can be something better in the future, and that if they want change, they have to make it. And it will still be years and years before any results occur.
I know your Dad, and I know he wasn't trying to belittle the Peace Corps, but to ask a logical question. And it needs to be asked. We just have to look at time differently.
Nicolette,
ReplyDeleteYour father's question has been asked before, but isn't well posed. Those asking this question might think they are critiquing Peace Corps' efficacy, and fail to realize its just as much a question of how well Senegalese people have reacted to new ideas. Its audacious to think your ideas can change lives, and perhaps just as assuming to believe that there are people who want their lives changed by complete strangers (as "Kim" mentioned above, many of these strangers were slavers, colonizers ect).
As it turns out, and as you well know by now, there ARE ideas (simple, easily taught, incredibly effective ideas) that change lives, and there ARE people willing to trust a stranger in their midst. Please document how things were before you began your 'real work', measure the change, and make sure those numbers see the light of day. People don't understand how effective Peace Corps volunteers are because volunteers aren't great at capturing their successes.
Accountability starts at home in your hut ;) Thanks for what you're doing. It matters.