Stepping Aside

Omondi and James of Mumbaya Youth Group solicit the help of family in their households to prick out tree seedlings.

I have known that most of my projects, due to the brevity of my time, would not be fully implemented until after I have already left. I have strived to ensure that these projects were planned in a sustainable manner, such that when I step aside, they can proceed without any major issues.

These projects include:

Improving Healthcare Access for Communities within the Swamp

I have been working to mobilize and guide staff members at Osieko Dispensary to institute weekly mobile clinics (by boat) into marginalized communities within the Yala Swamp to improve access to healthcare. Over 4,000 people live in these communities, where a trip to the doctor means passing through the swamp by boat, then entering the often volatile waters of Lake Victoria, to arrive at Osieko Dispensary. The journey proves to be too demanding for most people, who instead simply do without healthcare.

In February, Edwin and I travelled to Osieko Dispensary to discuss the idea with staff. They raised several concerns, but acknowledging the need, were very much willing to pursue the project.

A talk to bring it all home...

Speaking with 90 young men in Form 4 at St Benedict's Budalang'i High School yesterday.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had the opportunity to speak with students at two nearby secondary schools. 150 young men and women within the health and young Christian clubs at Nyambare Secondary School in nearby Siaya District, and 90 young men in Form 4 at our local St. Benedict’s High School here in Budalang’i.

At each school, I was given a one-hour time slot to speak to the students, offering any advice I thought could help them. These talks, however brief, were two of the most fulfilling and enjoyable experiences I’ve had in my three years in the Peace Corps.

Not only did I have a blast, but the students also seemed to enjoy themselves, taking notes and participating when engaged. Although I wish I had time to work at more secondary schools, it is fitting that these opportunities have effectively concluded my time in the Peace Corps.

There was a time when filling such a long time slot would be a daunting task. What could I possibly talk about? But in the past three years, through the work and conversations I’ve had within my communities both in Mali and Kenya, I’ve developed an understanding of the issues of development, along with ways to frame my arguments to motivate those around me to take charge of their own lives. In many ways the speeches I gave are the culmination of my time, an appropriate summary of everything I’ve learned about development.

Teaching Taboo: Advising The Next Generation

Students at New Hope perform a range of role plays on resisting peer pressure.

I have been teaching weekly Adolescent Reproductive Health and Lifeskills classes at two local primary schools. At New Hope Primary School, I teach approximately 100 students from standards 5 through 8. At Budalang'i Primary School, I teach approximately 60 students from standard 8. This has been yet another opportunity to work in a field which I have no prior experience in. As time has gone on, I've gotten more and more comfortable with teaching and have come to rather enjoy it.

Answering questions from the students at New Hope prior to beginning a lesson on HIV/Aids.

Expanding Lunch to Buongo Primary

This past Friday, Edwin and I headed back out into the swamp, this time to begin laying the groundwork to expand our proposed school lunch program for Bubamba Primary School to another school, the newly formed Buongo Primary School.

Edwin and I held a community meeting with the head-teacher Obari and 23 parents under the large tree on Buongo’s school compound.

The school in Buongo began simply as an ECD (early childhood development) center, but now serves children in classes 1 and 2 as well. This totals to 94 children. The school plans to add a level each year, basically following the current students up to Class 8.

The school compound in Buongo. Parents had actually constructed this rustic mud school building voluntarily in order to start the school. The school is still not fully registered with the government, and won’t be eligible for funding for new facilities until next year.

We are now well into the rainy season, and with the significant rainfall especially upstream, the Yala River has begun to swell. Just last week, the agricultural fields adjacent to Buongo experienced significant flooding, and accessing the village required wading through water past waist deep.

Trudging Through Swamp and 'Siasa' (Politics)

Trekking through the swamp, back to Bubamba School to begin work. Thankfully, the water has reduced greatly.  The Yala River had swollen in January, at the time of our first trip out there, causing waters to reach up to waist-deep. This time, only up to knee-deep.

At the beginning of the month, I joined all 123 Peace Corps Kenya volunteers when we were required to consolidate in a central location, such that in the event of any widespread violence resulting from the elections held on March 4th, we would be able to quickly evacuate the country by any number of means.

Although the voting and tallying process was fraught with a number of failures and inconsistencies, and results therefore were delayed until five days after the election, there was thankfully only isolated reports of violence, all of which quickly contained by the security forces. So instead of an abrupt end of our time in Kenya, which would have marked my second evacuation in as many countries, what we were left with instead was a week and a half vacation with close friends in a rather fantastic resort in rural Kenya. Comfortable accommodations, buffet meals, Peace Corps Olympics, sports, and general shenanigans... yes please!

Working Through Political Interference

When I first heard about my site, I figured that I would have a predetermined workload. Unlike in Mali, I was assigned to a host organization, which has had over ten years experience in implementing a variety of projects within the community. I thought this meant I'd basically be an employee again. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The disorganization within my host organization at the moment, along with the abrupt resignation of my supervisor to pursue politics once I arrived, and the departures of my initial counterpart, whom I saw only once a month anyways, and Austin, the young man who assisted me over my first two months, has meant me being again on my own, the same way I was in Mali.

We hired Edwin, my current counterpart within my host organization, on a voluntary basis at the end of November. I really enjoy working with this guy. He is very motivated to help his community, specifically marginalized villages within the Yala Swamp near where he lives. But Edwin lives across the river from me, voluntarily teaches at a local institute each afternoon, and must often scrape together odd jobs to earn money to support himself. With all of these constraints, we are only able to truly work together a couple times a week.

In many ways, I like working this way. The situation has given me a lot of freedom to determine for myself where my time can best be utilized. I am still working hard with my host organization to build it's capacity and succeed with it's current contract on Land Rights outreach. But otherwise, I have been largely able to choose whom to work with, and what needs to focus on.

Mumbaya Youth Group members during a weekly meeting this past Sunday.