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September
2007
South
Sudan 2nd Time Around
We arrived in South Sudan undoubtedly suffering from an “if it’s
Tuesday we must be in
Belgium
“syndrome. Two days of flying then a couple of meetings in Nairobi
with AID organizations we are indirectly involved with, then before we
knew it we were on a Nairobi-Juba [The South Sudan Capital] flight.
After a 4-hour delay on an aircraft looking older than us we were on our
way. We were only put at ease by the anticipated excitement for next 3
weeks which we knew lay ahead of us in
South Sudan
.
Once in
Juba
it was good to be reunited with Melinda [American] and Levi [Sudanese]
both program directors responsible for our work and well being. With
expectation of undisrupted sleep and stomach regulation we settled into
our new but familiar surroundings. We were led into a not so fancy guest
house dependent on 12 truck batteries to keep us comfortable, However,
with satellite TV, air-conditioning, home cooked meals and my very own
internet connection; we have nothing to complain about. Detached from
our last previous lives of constant sports, In and Out hamburgers and
our morning workout, we quickly acclimated ourselves to bumpy roads,
mosquitoes and lack of chocolate quickly. Our guest house is secure and
safe with many security guards armed with cell phones. If needed, I
can’t manage help could come quickly with the local roads that can’t
handle anything traveling more than 5-miles an hour.
We took with us little more then a Swiss Army knife a couple changes of
clothes and my trusty laptop computer, just the basics we need for our
stay. What we love here besides the work are the impromptu gatherings
with other Foreign Service people over insurmountable beers. Most have
spent a good part of their adult life on the African continent and their
experiences are awe-inspiring and make us more listeners than story
tellers. There are no barriers from politics, religion, to the good, the
bad and the impossible, working in African countries. Most other than
Flo and I and some consultants passing through live somewhere in Africa,
have families and know what’s going on in the AID world.
Our mission here is to train 40 plus women, mostly widows who lost their
husbands in the 23 years of Civil War which recently, ended in
Sudan
. Few have a livelihood or any means of income. I’m going to give a 2
week basic business training course and an analysis of local business
opportunities. Flo and I will introduce basic micro businesses to them
and try to arrange some micro financing. Flo will run a work shop on
HIV/AIDS education, grant writing and organization strengthening. These
are the type of programs that will eventually rebuild this War-Torn
country.
The time we finish here in
South Sudan
we would have spent a total of 2 months in 2007. In that time it is
inevitable to get to know the people of
South Sudan
. We can’t help but adding this country to our “Wish and Want
List” that they meet some type of prosperity soon. Admittedly, It’s
a hard country to work in, frustrating on trying to get anything done on
a timely basis. Plenty of obstacles, whether it’s from tribal or
ethnic prejudices, religious differences, government and NGO bureaucracy
or even gender stagnation. With it all we enjoy every day we are here.
February 26, 2007
A
New Sudan
Hi
All,
Just
imagine a country without any electricity, water that has to delivered
everyday by a donkey driven wagon, no autos other than UN issued Toyota
Land Cruisers, non -existent local transportation, and the hardest
to imagine, no chocolate. That’s
South Sudan
where UN and AID workers almost out number its own people. That’s what
23 years of war and conflict can do to a country and its people.
We’ll start with the horror story first. Leaving for
Sudan
we were hit with the classic domino effect. One delay on the
Phoenix
–
Chicago
run caused mayhem of rescheduling, trying to get to
Nairobi
, our jumping off spot for
South Sudan
. So we were rerouted Phoenix to Chicago to London to Rome to Qatar to
Nairobi where we spent the night, then to Uganda, then Juba in Sudan,
then catching 2 small planes from Juba to Rumik, then to Wau our final
destination. I’m not going to try to count the hours we spent on
planes or terminal waiting rooms, but in all it was 9 different
airplanes 10 cities, 7 countries and 4 continents. Our luggage didn’t
have a chance to make it, which it didn’t. It turns out it wasn’t
the Sudanese rebels we had to worry about but the airlines.
My big 65 was spent somewhere over the skies of
Rome
,
Qatar
and
Kenya
and its respected airports. That night in
Nairobi
however, we caught up with an old friend, a Vice President of the
organization we are here with MK. Cope. She treated us to a fine meal at
a good
Nairobi
restaurant which we ordered one too many margaritas.
Outside
of the
Middle East
, The Horn of Africa is the most troubled and tense spot in the entire
world. However, we are in
South Sudan
because there are good programs for both Flo and I. Business development
and training young entrepreneurs along with building women’s
self-esteem to help build a society that can at least enjoy the basics
of life.
South Sudan
is not just another country whose average income of its habitants earns
less than a dollar a day. It shows the strife and war from years of
Arab, Black conflict on every dusty road in the southern region. It’s
as rudimentary as it gets which makes
South Sudan
a smorgasbord of humanitarian programs for AID workers like us.
Chooses your favorite dish and go to work, consuming it. We still enjoy
these programs, we get to travel and it makes us feel both young and old
at the same time.
Our first steps in South Sudan was
Juba
where we were greeted in by the Sr. Field Operations Manager, Melinda of
the VEGA [Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance] –IESC
[International Executive Service Corps] program and escorted to the only
housing in the capital for foreigners. We spent the night in a neat tent
camp in an over sized tent with all the amenities, 2 cots a light and a
mosquito net. Uniqueness of camp was emphasized by all the AID workers
here to do some type of development work in
South Sudan
. The food was excellent but couldn’t compare to the ambiance. Here we
are exhausted from 5 days of non-stop flying, no luggage [if I omitted
telling anyone] now sipping an ice cold Pilsner just a few feet from the
mighty
Nile
River
. The Nile, the bright full African moon, the breeze softly blowing off
the
Nile
. This is the stuff TV Movies are made of; it really couldn’t get any
better.
A
new
Sudan
is emerging from a period of conflict where there were high levels of
human displacement and limited productive activity.
Sudan
today is divided by the North and the South.
S. Sudan
is looking to secede the next 6 years but there problem is
that they have oil, so lasting independence and peace may be harder to
achieve than expected.
The
current population in all of
Sudan
is over 12 million, with 6 million residing in
S. Sudan
whose individuals have limited exposure and proficiency levels. Albeit
many of those displaced are returning with varying degrees of exposure
to new productive activities. 23 years of civil war, Arab against Black
Muslin of the North [Darfur] and the Northern Arabs s against the Blacas
k, mostly Christian of the South. In Wau, S. Sudan where we are its
considered safe to walk around as long as you stay on the main roads
avoiding the thousands of land mines still in the area.
We
arrived in Wau and were escorted to a basic Guest House with our team of
aid workers who will spend the next month implementing programs to have
some impute into the local economy. We landed on a dirt runway and
surprised to find our greeting party can drive right up to plane to
collect us and any luggage [which we didn’t have]. The guest
house came with cleaning service, breakfast, lunch and dinner and about
6 hours of generator time which gave us power for the ceiling fans, TV
and time to charge our laptop computers. In the evenings we can catch Al
Jazeera TV the only station available via satellite. Al Jazeera
seemingly appears neutral on world affairs but 80% of the news clips,
shows atrocities by Americans and Israelis but little of the Arab vs.
Arab conflicts.
The
work here was exceptional, well planned and we feel everyone got best
for their buck. Flo help establish the first Women’s Business
Association in Wau. 30 plus eager women were like sponges,
absorbing everything Flo had to teach and putting it into immediate
process. Flo also managed to sneak in her dental hygiene instruction to
about 30 children. I ran a 3 week business training program on
entrepreneurship and business problem solving. Flo and I both enjoyed
visiting the participant’s local businesses and offering some advisory
service. In all we feel our time in Wau was successful and will have
input for the future of people we worked with.
The
night noises in Wau are filled with the noise of diesel run generators
until midnight when the entire city goes dark and hot. There is a lot of
down time [work wise] especially when generators need to take their
rest. Satellite connections are hit and miss and when it’s a hit we
are happy to spend the $7.00 per hour to hook up to the internet. There
are those times when we bury ourselves in a book, drink a cold beer and
watch the river Jur [Wau] or the Nile [
Juba
] float by. Not a bad way to spend an unproductive day.
We’ll
home be home on March 9th, this time for an extended period, we hope.
Flo
& Dave
February 14, 2007
Southern
Sudan
After
9 different planes, 4 days and lost luggage which, still haven't found
our way to us [but located] we made it to Wau in Southern Sudan. This
place is certainly different to anything we have been in before. No
roads, no hotels, just few government guest houses or tent camps to stay
in. There is 1 Internet which is pretty resourceful and $7.00 an hour.
With it all we are having a great time and doing some real meaningful
work. S. Sudan is infiltrated by UN Peace Keeping forces which you see
at every turn. We eat 3 meals a day at our guest because restaurants are
rare. We seem to be buying clothes on a daily basis waiting for our
luggage to arrive in this remote place. We are working with fine young
people from the US, Kenya and S. Sudan. however, like the rest of world
businesses are trying to exist and need help organizing themselves for a
better life. Its a post conflict reconstruction environment, where war
is very fresh on the local people minds. There is a definite divide from
the Arabic north and the Black south with a fragile peace 2 years old
now. Our training courses are translated into Arabic and we can't buy a
pencil without an interpreter. We get 1- 24 hr TV station and that is Al
Jazeera, so we are kept up with all the wars going on around the
world. However, they are not as anti-American as we thought. Or is
that because we are more anti-war than we thought. With it all it
is safe for us and we are enjoying every minute.
With
it all it is safe for us and we are enjoying every minute.
Flo
& Dave
January 19, 2007
Ghana
Again and Again
Our
social calendar went from close to fictional to excessive. It started
with a busy
Holiday
weekend when we attended our friends Pat’s, [American from NYC]
Christmas party for the children of Nana House. Nana House, situated in
the poverty-laden community of Chorkor T Garden in Accra
. Nana House is the school she runs for local disadvantaged children. We
joined in the festivities and once again realized what a great time of
year this is for children, no matter what country. We enjoyed the skits
directed and acted out by the students. Then certainly agreed with all
the accolades Pat received from appreciable parents and citizens Chorkor
T Garden.
The
holidays just don’t seem the same without blinking lights [when
there’s electricity] or artificial snow [no such thing as real snow
here]. Sure
Ghana
has its share of inflatable Santa’s and overused plastic Xmas trees to
go along with the 24 hour holiday music. And, like home, there is a
never-ending encouragement to go out and buy gifts.
Our
busy holiday continued when a friend of a friend of a friend got married
and we were invited as guest of our friend Barbara. Flo
attended the wedding ceremony and we both attended the reception.
Typically Ghanaian, the wedding ceremony started an hour and half late.
However, that didn’t disrupt our habit of arriving on time for the
next night’s reception, starting at 6:30 as printed on the invitation.
At 8 pm the guest started slowly filtering in, the bride and groom
decided to attend on their own 9pm or was it 10? The once the
festivities began, bottles of South African wines was placed at each
table but getting to drink it turned out to be an all evening dilemma.
No one seemed to have a corkscrew in the entire party facility. They
actually had to send someone out to buy a corkscrew on Christmas Eve, no
less. Finally we sat down for a good meal and a glass of wine at 11pm or
was it 12? That enabled us to stay out to the early hours of the morning
and overlook our normal bedtime of 8 pm.
Christmas
Day was spent with the family of another Ghanaian friend Vincent, who
resides in
Phoenix
. His sister Jane and Brother-In –Law John, live in a comfortable home
in Teshie, a nice coastal community close to
Accra
. It was full of holiday fun with family and friends, children playing
games, men talking business and women preparing great food. The children
were delightful, playful while respectful and it all resulted in a most
rewarding and pleasant day.
The
New Year in
Ghana
is celebrated 2 days before and 2 days after but not on New Years Eve
where most Ghanaians spend the night at church.
The New Years celebrations for us started early at a Rotary Club
party as guest once again of our friend Barbara. It was on a palatial
estate owned by the newly elected president of the Airport Rotary Club.
It was held in his magnificent house, full of marvelous art. The 100 or
so, guest was a cross section of the energetic people that have made
Ghana
the best country on the African continent to be in. Highlighted by an
extravagant serving of exceptional food and of course dancing to 1 am.
It was an overwhelming impressive evening.
A
couple of days before the New Year we met two enterprising men at our
favorite watering-hole, Papas Bar. Emanuel an economic major with his
masters from
Tel
Aviv
University
in
Israel
. And Samuel an entrepreneur who had spent the last 18 years in
South Africa
. We spent a pleasant evening exchanging stories about working and
living, in foreign countries. The evening led to invite to a New Years
Party being thrown by Samuel’s brother and wife. Emanuel and his wife
Mary, who we quickly bonded with, picked us up and like usual we were
one of first to arrive at the party. That was fine because it would take
hours to walk through the palatial estate we found ourselves in. The
house by no means would be out of place in
Beverly Hills
, in fact it would be on the celebrity maps sold in the area. The house
set off by the largest indoor-outdoor bar leading to a large pool,
inlaid with the popular
Ashanti
symbol for eternity at the pools bottom. More impressive was that the
bar was stocked with every kind of liquor imaginable. Getting there
early gave a chance to get to know our host Daniel and Barbara. Both are
doctors who practiced in
South Africa
soon after apartheid was abandoned. Over the years they built clinics
and hospitals throughout SA, invested wisely in prime real estate before
returning to their roots in
Ghana
to enter the political arena. Among the 400 guest were probably the most
influential people in
Ghana
, mostly high members of the NPP party now in power. We were half
waiting for
Ghana
’s President John Kufuor to show, but I’m not sure he made the
invitation list. The evening was with the three favorite things
Ghanaians love drinking, dancing and dining. A magnificent buffet was
served well after mid-night and when sufficiently stuffed, we called it
a night. We left early, but well after 2am leaving most guests still
drinking, dining and dancing.
A night to remember!
For
us what makes
Ghana
, so rewarding are Ghanaians, Always smiling and greeting us.
Especially this time of year when everyone wishes us a Merry
Christmas as we take late afternoon walks. There’s a constant, manyana
attitude where watches and clocks are useless ornaments.
In
Ghana
, there is no talk [or need] of de –nuking the military, how
refreshing. As we leave our habitat each day, Flo is always joined by
the neighborhood kids who grab both her hands and swing them to tune of
the nursery rhyme she taught them the day before. When we leave, she
will miss those kids most of all. In all,
Ghana
is extremely safe, no matter what time or place we are at. It’s an
easy country with only the horrendous traffic to get stressed with.
New
Years Eve came and went quietly while the only resolution we made is to
spend more time at home. We quickly broke that resolution, when we
learned that a “60 day truce” has been declared between the
government of
Sudan
and its
Darfur
rebels. Just in time for Flo and I to get in and out of the country. We
have accepted an invitation from the International Executive Service
Corps to go to
Southern Sudan
in February for a month. At least we’ll be home for 2 weeks to catch
up with everyone.
Before
our final days in
Ghana
were upon us, Flo and I went the northern city of
Sunyani
, where I had small consulting job. We
both got out of the mayhem of
Accra
to work, relax and reminisce of our 3 months in
Ghana
.
In
Theory
Ghana
has a good system to conserve their valuable energy. Every 5th
day we go without power for 12 hours. The power switches off from
daytime to nighttime on the same schedule. However, the power master
doesn’t seem to like to work on theories and we seem to spend a
sleepless night at least twice a week. We have got use to using crowded
tro-tro’s to get around Accra, but often have wait to they fill up with
passengers which usually takes up to an hour. It’s always a disbelieve
whether the ignition will get the vehicle moving, but often than not it
takes a good push to get going. You have to love the messages usually
painted on the back windows of these tro-tro's. The best of the lot was
signed “ Executive Transport and Courier “ which is a mostly dented
old mini-van carrying 25 people on 12 seats loaded with baskets of dried
fish and chicken gizzards . Somehow, we never fail to reach our
destination. Some innovated signing are “Life has no Spare Parts”
and best one we have often seen on numerous disable vehicles
along the side of road with the message; “Trust Me”. One
also can’t help but notice all the cars lined up along the road with
its hood up and someone tinkering with the mechanics. Ghanaians have a
unique talent, for getting the most life out of a vehicle. If it
consumes gas, they can make it run no matter what.
Accra
also has it share of late model cars like Mercedes and BMW’s, even a
Mazarati is seen in our neighborhood. However, most cars look like
machines that crash dummies wouldn’t be seen dead in.
I’ll
miss my favorite fruit-lady who day after day man’s her kiosk full of
fruit. I never pass without a gleeful greeting, some fresh bananas and
the sweetest pineapple in all of
Africa
. The last 3 months we have made some neat friends and we’ll miss them
unless we get a chance to return to
Ghana
. I had to have my last goat kebab at Papas bar before we head home.
With it all, it’s been a fine time, but we are really looking forward
to getting home on Monday.
Flo
& Dave
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