Macaulay Award 2017 - Tanzania by Eveline Norbert
Tanzania by Eveline Norbert
In July 2017, I went as part of a team of Blackheath High girls to abati, Tanzania to volunteer alongside our leader from Inspire Worldwide, partnered with Livingstone Tanzania Trust and
Girls4Girls. We mainly worked on a woman-focused community project to construct efficient stoves and raised bed gardens, and improve the existing school floors. With a population of approximately 50 million, 80% of Tanzanians work in agriculture where they typically earn less than 80p per day. As a result, 35% of children in Tanzania are malnourished due to the agriculture being exported. By building raised bed gardens, families are now able to sustain themselves whilst also being able to export excess food as a further source of income. Additionally, stoves are beneficial to families as they reduce the carbon footprint as well as fuel bills by 10%.
With the little knowledge I had been taught beforehand and a few lessons in Swahili, I was nervous and unsure of what to expect from a country I had never visited before. However, upon arriving in Babati, we were welcomed with a cheerful performance by the boys and girls of Managa primary, the school in which we were residing.
Our first day on the project, consisted of us repairing the classroom floors; we were given thorough training and briefings to ensure work was done safely. We started by creating cement by mixing of sand, water and cement; for each cement bag, ten buckets of sand were used and water was poured just enough to make the cement of the right consistency. Thereafter, we made the floor uniform before successfully cementing the ground.
From then on, a regular day composed of us building a stove, a raised bed garden, an evening workshop with the girls from the neighbouring secondary school and gazing at the stars before going to sleep. Each day we were split into two groups where in turn, one was allocated to build the stove and the other, the raised bed garden. Although construction work was demanding, I felt that throughout the trip, I developed more stamina and was becoming stronger.
To build a raised garden, land had to be ploughed inside a drawn circle. Drawing a near-perfect circle was accomplished through the use of sticks and rope, similar to how a compass works. A stick was inserted as the centre point and a rope was attached to the top, another stick being attached to the other end; the stick on the other end was then used to create the circle. It was exciting to see simpler models of equipment we use regularly at school and the applications of them in the real world. Moreover, building a stove required us to accurately break mesh wire to use as scaffolding before placing the hand-chosen bricks and cement. I found this to be my favourite job as it was like fitting puzzles together except with bricks. My partner and I also got complimented on our work by the Fundi’s. [Fundi is Swahili for workers]. When we first met the girls of Fredrick T. Sumaya School, they sang us a song that they had produced and in return, we performed a song with a choreographed dance which we had prepared. In the evening workshops, we participated in activities to help bond with one another as well to get to know ourselves better. Activities included falling from the table into everyone’s arms and writing letters to our future selves.
During our stay in Tanzania, we visited various places including the safari and other schools. At the safari, we saw numerous animals including warthogs, impalas, wildebeest, mongoose and antelopes. As my favourite animal is the elephant, it was especially nice when a herd of adult and young elephants crossed in-between our safari trucks. Furthermore, we also visited a baobab tree situated on the Safari turf, a gigantic tree in which poachers used to hide the skins and tusks of the elephants they had successfully killed. You could also see the holes in the tree where poachers have stuck sticks to climb up and hide their goods. We also went to a market where we bought material and visited a seamstress who designed and made custom fitted clothing for us. After a few days of anticipation, our clothes arrived and it was the talk of the day! On Sunday, we visited a church with a cheerful choir and attendees who sang to very upbeat songs, which contrasted with the quiet, calm church that I am used to.
My favourite part of the trip was visiting a nearby village where we tasted their homemade cooking and discussed our cultures. Although I wasn’t fond of the food, it was nice to try something new and very different. We discussed the differences in our cultures including tribes, marriages and technology.
Something that I found interesting was that when a man wants to marry a woman, a bracelet is put on the woman’s hand by the man to symbolise that she is now his. This is then followed by three days of running away, before returning to ask the woman’s parents for her hand in marriage. A dowry is then given by the man consisting of money, a goat for an uncle or auntie and two sheep for the grandma.
The trip ended with a delightful farewell ceremony held by the school as well the handout of bracelets we made for the girls. Overall, I learnt so much about their culture and way of life which has made me appreciate my lifestyle more. Moreover, I have recently been able to use the skills and knowledge from the construction work to help make cement and build with my father at home. Although I will miss Tanzania, I am glad that I was able to make an impact and I hope to visit again as a volunteer, both to see the improvement and to help further.
