First, an apology. I haven’t died, I didn’t drop off the face of the earth, and I haven’t forgotten about all of you blog readers out there. Between our travels and our internet/electricity being out, this is the first time I have been able to post my blog and pictures. It is a long blog, so I hope everyone makes it all the way to the end, but we had a busy week!
Alright, Wednesday, Collin and I got to try our hand at visiting with 4H Club Leaders and Members. We were headed to a village called Korogwe, about 90km (55 miles) west of Tanga. Behind Korogwe lies part of the beautiful Usambara Mountain Range. But before I delve into that story, I present a comedy/tragedy/lesson for your reading pleasure.
On Tuesday, Gudila took Collin and I into Tanga to shop at the market. This market is set up on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays and we had no idea it even existed. It is huge. You can buy anything there from used clothes to pots to shoes to toys to fabric…which is what we went for. Yes Katy, I have finally purchased some fabric for you! After Collin and I picked out our fabrics and I bought a kanga (a traditional Tanzanian skirt that is really just a piece of fabric that you tuck around your waist) we just walked around looking at all that you can buy. There is a trick to buying kangas that I feel I should warn people about. At the bottom of each kanga is a Swahili phrase. Some are motivational, some are religious, some…well, I don’t quite know what to say about them. The one I bought last time I was in TZ said “Mungu Ndiye Kimbilio Letu” which translates to “God is my refuge.” You just need to make sure you get a correct translation before you purchase so you don’t end up wearing something you don’t mean to, like: God will bless me with many, many children. I put that one back, though the pattern was beautiful so I was kind of bummed. We left Gudila shopping for jeans and decided it was time to try our hand at coming BACK to the 4H Center in a daladala (bus) by ourselves. We have taken the daladala INTO town by ourselves, but have always taken a taxi back when we are alone. The daladala ALWAYS stops at the flour mill about ½ a mile from the 4H Center, if not, it will stop again in about 3 more blocks. Collin and I correctly identified our daladala, hopped on, told them “Kange” and stood squished amongst the other 30 people aboard our 15 passenger van. The daladala didn’t stop at the flour mill. The daladala didn’t stop at the 4H Center. The daladala didn’t stop at the petrol (gas) station just past the 4H Center. In fact, the daladala didn’t stop for another 10 miles. I wish I was exaggerating. It’s only after you pass your stop at 40 miles per hour that you realize how little Swahili you really know. And from what I could gather from the conversations around us, “We need out” sounds relatively similar to the name of a village far, far ahead on our bus route. Because when we said it, they all nodded and then kept us from trying to get out. It was one of those situations where you keep telling yourself “this will make a great story someday, this will make a great story someday,” all the while, you get farther and farther from your destination. When we were finally able to get off the daladala, we were blessed by another coming from the opposite direction almost immediately, which we were able to board and return to the 4H Center…30 minutes after we passed it the first time.
Ok, ok, now the information you have all been waiting for (just pretend you have been, it will make me feel better): How did the club visits go? Well. Great. Wonderfully! We had a fantastic time talking to 4H members and leaders. We began our journey Wednesday morning by loading up one of the 4H Tanzania Range Rovers, giving it a quick push start, because that’s how we roll (pun 100% intended), and climbing in for our 2 hour journey accompanied by Gudila (yes, we take her everywhere with us), Josef the 4H Training Director, and Manase the 4H Fundraising Director. After we arrived in Korogwe we picked up two District Advisors (they are sort of the equivalent of a county 4-H educator) and had lunch before meeting the first group of women (yes, I said women). You see, 4H membership in Tanzania ranges in age from 6-25. Three years ago, 4H Tanzania got a grant from the European Commission to focus on training and supporting young women who work in the “informal sector”. This is women who have non-professional jobs or who own their own businesses. These young women entrepreneurs form 4H clubs. Some of the women are even older than 25. We talked to them about why they are 4H members, what they have learned from 4H, and what they would like to gain from 4H in the future. These women work doing anything from poultry keeping to sewing to selling their food to making cloth. All of them do these things not as a hobby, but as their livelihood. It is their only source of income. Some of them are married, some are not, but ALL that we spoke with are mothers. That is a lot of responsibility for women in their 20’s. They said some of the most important things they had learned from being in 4H were business skills, finance management, time management, family planning, and self-confidence.
After we visited with that group of women, we drove into town to a hair salon that is owned by a women 4H member named Amina. Amina serves as the treasurer of her 4H Club. Before she joined 4H she was working for another person’s salon and barely making enough money to survive. After she joined 4H she decided that she could run her own salon with the knowledge and skills that she had gained. Her business has now been open for 1 year and is really successful. She makes an average of 20,000-30,000 Tanzanian Shillings ($15-20) per day. A huge increase over what she used to make. She now has a bank account and saves a substantial portion of what she makes.
Next we went down the road to meet Veronica, a seamstress. Because of the lack of electricity in Tanzania (even if you have electricity, it will go out often) and the lack of money, sewing machines here are manual. Like the old fashioned foot pedal ones. Just imagine making your Fashion Review entries like that. Veronica has had her business for 5 years and has been a 4H member for 2. Her fabric and clothes were beautiful and if she was in Tanga, I would have had her make a dress for me. She also makes batik cloth (which is hand dyed cloth) and trains 3 girls at a time for 1 ½ years in dressmaking. She said the most important things she has learned so far from 4H is how to communicate with her customers and how to market her business. The amount of money she saves each month increased by about 30% after she joined 4H.
After meeting with Veronica and her apprentices, we walked down the street to meet Asnath, a 3 year 4H member who has owned her own restaurant for 1 year. She was previously working at another restaurant and when she joined 4H she realized that she could run her own business too. She began selling firewood and charcoal until she had accumulated enough capital to open a small establishment (small meaning it seats about 6 people at a time). Now that is all that she does. She is also a mother and said that 4H has helped her learn to plan her time to balance between work and being a mother.
After this we drove for a long time until we reached a maize (corn) field. We drove through the corn field and reached a Secondary School (7th grade and up). There we met 24 year-old Janet. Janet makes batik (remember it’s the hand dyed cloth), earrings, bracelets, and dresses. From 4H, Janet has learned decision making skills, how to work with others, creativity in designing and how to look for markets for goods. The one thing that she would like to have is a facility where she could display and sell her products as well as training other youth in her craft. It was about this time that we decided to support her business. Gudila bought a skirt and top and Collin and I bought some batik and bracelets made from coconut shells. We enjoy supporting these young entrepreneurs!
Next we visited Matilda and her three children…and the rest of the children in the neighborhood as well. Collin and I are quite an attraction amongst youth. Some of the most creative young entrepreneurs may soon be selling tickets to see us Mzungus (white people). We tried our best to carry on a conversation with Matilda about her business (she has a stand where she sells vegetables, clothes, and shoes) while the kids ran towards us, decided they were too close and ran away, laughing the whole time. From 4H, Matilda gained knowledge about family planning, HIV/AIDS prevention, how to conduct business, and confidence. After she joined 4H, she learned how to open a bank account and saves about 20,000 Tsh each month. She would like to receive a loan to provide a better facility for her business. After our meeting with her, we talked to the kids and took their picture. After about 20 minutes…one of them got up the courage to actually touch me. And then laugh hysterically (we both did).
I have bad news for all you readers. This was just the first day. We went to our hotel, took showers (in HOT WATER!), and went to dinner. I had samaki na chipis (fish and French fries) that were delicious. “fish” in Tanzania (and a lot of other places too) normally means “a fish”, like head, tail, bones, teeth. That’s your warning.
Whew! Ok, intermission. Go get some coffee to keep yourself awake. Thursday morning, after breakfast, we drove towards the mountains until we were at their base. We went to the Korogwe Primary School and were greeted by a group off singing, dancing, welcoming 4H members! First they sang a welcome song (which you can see on Facebook) then they sang their 4H Pledge. Yes, they SING their pledge. I love it! I’m thinking we should start doing that in the U.S. too! During their welcome song, they took turns choosing a dance partner. I couldn’t compete with their moves (shocking, I know). After we got our groove on (or tried to anyway), we met with the two club advisors and learned general information about their club, meetings, and main projects. The club has 126 members, more girl members than boys. Their club-wide projects are tree planting (which is a big deal in Tanzania 4H) and caring for their 2 hectares of maize (corn), which is in a field behind the school. Most of the 4H members have individual projects as well. These include poultry keeping, goat keeping, and gardening. After meeting with the two advisors, we went and met with the kids to ask them questions as well. About 30 of the 126 members were present to talk with us because the school is actually on break right now. The kids were great! And after getting over the initial shyness of talking to us, they had some great answers to our questions. It is amazing what these kids are focused on and worried about already, even though they are only 10 years-old or so. We ask what their favorite part of 4H is and most of them gave the same answer: “It helps prepare me for my future” or “It makes me self-reliant so I can take care of myself in the future.” It is unfortunate that 9-14 year olds are so worried about that, but it is so good that 4H is there to fill that need. We asked what they would want to know from 4-H members in America. Some of the things they said were, what kind of 4-H projects you do, how you play computer games, if you sew, and what the cars are like in America. When asked if there was anything they need from 4H (either Tanzanian or American), they said they need a well. The school has no access to water without drawing it from the river, half a mile away. They recently bought a water pump with grant money, but they still have no access to water, which means they cannot properly irrigate their crops. Sounds like a worthwhile cause, doesn’t it?
We took pictures with them, and once one kid found out they could touch us without something catastrophic happening, Collin and I were surrounded. It turned into a total frenzy when I unleashed my blond hair from the bondage of a ponytail. After handing out some 4-H items like Frisbees, pins, and stickers that we had brought, (Thanks to everyone who donated items! You can go put it in your record book now) we headed on to the next school, about 30 minutes away.
The next school’s 4H Club has over 300 members! We met with 6 of the Club Advisors first and asked mostly the same questions we had asked the school before. After that we met with the kids. They began by having their Chairperson, Ezekiel, give a presentation about their club, Gudila translated for us. They said that some of their biggest needs are room for planting (they only have ¼ acre for corn and vegetables), technology, irrigation, and a well and pump. One member said that he enjoyed 4H because it was building the capacity for them to sustain themselves. What an important and powerful task that is. They also like 4H because they learn about things like protecting the environment, independence, planning for the future, and leading others. Their 4H projects also mean that they can afford school materials. We asked what they want to know about 4-H in America and they had some great questions! What kind of projects, when did 4-H begin in the U.S., how many members are there, what kind of sports do kids play, the types of food we eat. They were very excited about the idea of being able to communicate with a club in the U.S. (which is a big project that Collin and I are working on with the Global 4-H Network).
We had a wonderful time visiting with these clubs and members and getting to see first-hand how 4H works in Tanzania. While the language and culture may be different, 4-H’s purpose remains the same: to prepare youth to be involved, self-sustaining individuals. It is good to see the youth here benefitting from the work of 4H, but it is humbling to know that even with 4H, many of these youth won’t attend secondary school, let alone college. Our idea of success in America is very different from the idea of success in Tanzania (or any other undeveloped country). One of the young 4H members asked us, “Since you are from a developed country, and Tanzania is an undeveloped country, what can you do to help us be developed and grow?” I hope I can find the answer to his question in my work here. That is quite a challenge to work on.
On Friday, Collin and I left for a trip to Pangani and Saadani National Park where we went on a Safari and boat ride. And guess what? I finally saw my hippos! Lots of them! But this post is long enough as it is, so I will save my stories for later. Thanks for reading!
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