Makilikaw ka baara, a ka ɲi de!

The rains have begun falling across the arid Mali landscape, where the villagers of Makili have returned to the fields to till the land and plant the crops that will sustain them through the upcoming year. My host brother Benke and other close friends were amongst the many to marry during the busy wedding season, which has just come to a close.

I miss my friends and family there. Especially during the wedding season, which I enjoyed more than any other, despite it being the hottest time of year. One friend asked me if I could be his ‘'kɔnyɔncɛ', basically his best man involving responsibilities such as stealing his fiancée in a donkey cart, amongst others. We joked, ‘a ka gɛlɛn dɔɔni’ (that'll be just a little difficult). Youssoufu told me people keep asking ‘Maliki ka dɔn bɛ min?’ (where is Maliki’s dance?).

I am happy to be able to keep in touch with my friends regularly, and am so proud of the work that they have continued in my absence:

Water and Sanitation Committee

Dramani, the chairman of the committee, sounded disheartened when we spoke on May 12th. One of the two pumps we had installed, serving the Diarrakɛla ‘kin’ (neighborhood), broke. I tried to offer encouragement, to advise him on how they can fix it themselves.

When I called him back two days later, he was beaming with pride. He told me that they had just repaired the pump themselves without ever having to ask anyone else for help. A piece of the piston unit had fallen within the well, and using their pump tools, they were able to retrieve, replace, and tighten it.

He excitedly proclaimed that now they can repair any pump on their own. We talked of even charging other communities to repair their pumps elsewhere. He sounded very proud, and I was too. I told him that’s why I wanted to teach them, ‘Aw ni baara’ (great work)!

I mentioned that the pump must have broken because of how it has been misused by people slamming the handle. While the villagers know how important the rule is, they need to take this opportunity to enforce it. He agreed, told me they are.

But the extent to which they are enforcing the rule shocked me completely. He told me that they had actually locked the pump until those who broke it paid the fine. I asked, ‘do you actually know who broke it? Who are you charging?’ He explained that everyone in Diarrakɛla broke the pump together, all must pay!

Each household was charged 2,500 CFA, about $5. That is a huge sum of money in their community. Setting such a severe fine shows the strength and commitment of the committee, especially given that the decision to do so came only from within. And Dramani later informed me that every household had paid! The pump is now working well, rules being observed.

Otherwise, they built a couple of trash collection areas that we had planned, although I would like to see them upscale the effort. The committee continues to meet regularly and collect monthly dues. But regarding the project to construct a new drinking water well, money collection remains slow.

Dramani and Aliwata, the treasurer, had called a couple times to update me on their work, exclaiming that 'we are going to build the new well!' But as time continued, they kept running into obstacles regarding money collection. Some people kept refusing to pay, arguing that since Maliki left, there is no point.

I advised them to involve the village elders, to make sure the project is known as a community project, not Maliki's project. They have since held a village-wide meeting alongside the elders to stress the responsibility for all to fulfill their commitment.

The committee is trying, and will soon begin house-to-house collections again. That is all I can ask. With the involvement of community leaders, I believe the well will be built. But as with everything in Mali, ‘dɔɔni dɔɔni’ (slowly).

Fish Farm Committee

The committee continues to meet regularly and harvested the fishpond in April. They now only raise ‘mannɔgɔ’ (catfish) in the pond, having abandoned ‘dɛbɛ’ (tilapia). Unfortunately ‘dɛbɛ’ have proven difficult to keep, as they are not as hearty as ‘mannɔgɔ’ in tolerating dirty water.

The profit collected was again lower than should be expected for a pond of it's size, and based on the figures Youssoufu gave me, actually represents a decrease from last year's profit. The pond should be more productive, but they did place all of the money raised in their ‘kɛsu’ (account) and kept over 1,000 young fish aside for breeding.

The committee is now composting a mixture of rice husks, cow dung, and plant material to feed to the fish daily, as advised by Engineers without Borders. The problem we have had with this project is that every organization has contradicting advice regarding fish rearing. It is tough to know how best to succeed. But the important thing is that the committee is active and trying.

Youssoufu told me yesterday that the rains have begun filling up the fishpond. Soon they will repopulate the pond in preparation for the next season.

Women’s Garden Committee

I had been less able to monitor the progress of this committee over the past year due to the fact that the women do not have their own cell phones. But I am delighted by information I have recently received from Youssoufu.

In March, he verified with Mama, the chairman of the committee and one of my Malian host-mothers, that the committee is holding regular meetings. The women had just planted all sorts of vegetables in the garden. They had consistently collected monthly dues before hitting a snag over a few months during which time many women travelled frequently to attend weddings in their home villages. Therefore, a couple months had passed without collection, but Mama insisted that they would pick back up once the season ended.

Yesterday, Youssoufu shared with me a particularly encouraging pursuit. Earlier in the year, one of the wells within the women’s garden went dry as soil collapsed inside. Fortunately, the concrete rings were okay, but nevertheless repair was required.

The women’s garden is arranged in four quadrants, each representing one of the village’s four ‘kinw’ (neighborhoods). Each quadrant has it’s own well. The committee organized a project to excavate and repair the well by raising money from each woman within the affected ‘kin’ of Katilɛla. The well is now fully operational.

Committees regularly fail after short periods of time throughout Africa, and our village had been no exception. I am thrilled that all three committees we started together in Makili during my stay are still active and in positions of strength over a year after my evacuation.