No-Show
Hello, are you there?" "Hello?" "Hello??" If you think your cell phone connection is bad, try calling Tanzania. Or try getting the people there to act.
Doing a project in Tanzania can be awfully frustrating, and rewarding, at the same time. Because the frustration/challenge is so great that any little success feels like a monumental breakthrough.
I found out after fact that no one from the team went to the village as planned. And none of them volunteered the information, except Moses who told me that he couldn't make it 2 days before the scheduled trip. I had to drag the information out of them after several emails and attempts to call them.
When I first started the project, I was hoping to find locals who would identify with the cause and be willing to volunteer their time and expertise to help their own people. No one was willing to do it for free so I ended up having to haggle over fees that were sometimes inflated. In an effort to bring down the fees, I once had to tell one of them that I was the only one on the team that was not being paid, the only one who did not have a job (because I quit my job to do the project) and the only one on the team who is not Tanzanian even though the project was all about helping the poor farmers in Tanzania. I wanted people to join for the right reason knowing that I don't have the deep pockets of many NGOs.
I am still grateful that they decided to join the effort on their free time for a fee. I can’t expect everyone to feel the same way I do. Juggling 2 jobs is not easy so I understand that sometimes they just can’t make the trip. I just wish the attitude wasn’t so laid back. Maybe I am just too worried about disappointing the farmers with a no-show. Maybe I have a false sense that I am racing against time. There is only 1 farming season in the mountains, as opposed to 2 in the city. I am concerned that if we don’t train them and qualify them for new seeds early in the only farming season of the year, the farmers will not be able to see any increase in yield this year and will end up in the same situation that I found them in at the beginning of this year – food deprivation. I can't help the farmers unless the Tanzanians partner/experts help me.
When Stephen Lewis blasted South Africa government for its inertia in fighting AIDS, I could feel his pain. Do you help another country when they didn’t ask for help and were not as concerned about the problem? What would you do if people only wanted to be helped instead of being empowered? Do you try to change a “let it be” culture or do you accept it out of respect?
Doing a project in Tanzania can be awfully frustrating, and rewarding, at the same time. Because the frustration/challenge is so great that any little success feels like a monumental breakthrough.
I found out after fact that no one from the team went to the village as planned. And none of them volunteered the information, except Moses who told me that he couldn't make it 2 days before the scheduled trip. I had to drag the information out of them after several emails and attempts to call them.
When I first started the project, I was hoping to find locals who would identify with the cause and be willing to volunteer their time and expertise to help their own people. No one was willing to do it for free so I ended up having to haggle over fees that were sometimes inflated. In an effort to bring down the fees, I once had to tell one of them that I was the only one on the team that was not being paid, the only one who did not have a job (because I quit my job to do the project) and the only one on the team who is not Tanzanian even though the project was all about helping the poor farmers in Tanzania. I wanted people to join for the right reason knowing that I don't have the deep pockets of many NGOs.
I am still grateful that they decided to join the effort on their free time for a fee. I can’t expect everyone to feel the same way I do. Juggling 2 jobs is not easy so I understand that sometimes they just can’t make the trip. I just wish the attitude wasn’t so laid back. Maybe I am just too worried about disappointing the farmers with a no-show. Maybe I have a false sense that I am racing against time. There is only 1 farming season in the mountains, as opposed to 2 in the city. I am concerned that if we don’t train them and qualify them for new seeds early in the only farming season of the year, the farmers will not be able to see any increase in yield this year and will end up in the same situation that I found them in at the beginning of this year – food deprivation. I can't help the farmers unless the Tanzanians partner/experts help me.
When Stephen Lewis blasted South Africa government for its inertia in fighting AIDS, I could feel his pain. Do you help another country when they didn’t ask for help and were not as concerned about the problem? What would you do if people only wanted to be helped instead of being empowered? Do you try to change a “let it be” culture or do you accept it out of respect?
posted by Nancy at 5:18 PM
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