In other news, I got my first tour of Juba yesterday. I got to cross the Blue Nile (unlike the White Nile which runs through Cairo) on a fairly rickety metal bridge, but the view was spectacular. The area is very green and lush down the river and there are some mountains in the distance. I've heard they can be hiked but that the mines from the war make hiking somewhat risky. Some of the friends I've made here have done it and say if you stick to paths and rocky areas it's not a problem, but I'm not sure how adventurous I feel like being with my limbs. There are apparently huge numbers of mine-clearing teams in the area working on the issue.
The tour included driving by a number of ministry buildings where it is illegal to stop on the road, so I only got a quick look. We drove past a large number of hotels in the area, my guide seemed to think they were quiet important, although I'm not exactly sure why, but there are a good number of hotels, especially along the river. I saw the super market (not exciting sounding, but I'm pretty stoked to go there one I get the fridge in my room and load up on cheaper food), and got a general sense of the town. There are a number of IDP (internally displaced persons) camps around town, including one right across the road from the hotel I'm at that has around 500 people staying there, as far as I can tell the one across the road isn't an official camp (as in run and operated by an agency like the UN).
My organization has been here for two years now in Juba, longer then almost any other organization because most other agencies were focused on conflict areas like Jonglei State in the north where both internal and external conflict occurs. IA (as I will abbriviate the organization) according to my boss was one of the first organizations to come into Juba hoping to develop services in the capital area, which was seeing huge number of IDPers. Oddly enough Israel commands a fair amount of respect here because they have been here in an unofficial capacity since the 1950s, when South Sudan was identified as a strategic place for Israel to support. Israel has been (again unofficially) helping out South Sudan's rebellion since the 1950s, as there are important shipping considerations given Sudan's port, oil issues, etc. Israel apparently carries huge support here according to my boss, and saying you're associated with the organization (or state) can help open doors that might otherwise be closed. It's odd for me to consider using that to my advantage in my work, but it's something to consider.
My work here will definitely be guided by the mission of IA and its approach towards setting up locally sustainable programs. My boss has been critical of organizations that come in and bring in external resources to build programs, import pre-designed modules, utilize external actors, etc. She's not alone. A lot of criticism of INGOs (international non-governmental organizations) comes from their one fit all solutions, as well as lack of local knowledge, and inability to integrate their programs and training into local communities so that it can be sustained when the INGOs leave. IA's theory is to use only local actors, in fact my boss is the only non-local on staff in country, and very rarely are people brought from out of country to conduct trainings, etc. Programming is all developed here by local actors to ensure "local ownership" (key buzz phrase there) of the programs, and ensure their long term sustainability locally if external actors leave.
As a result my project here is being locally managed, and the scope of the project will be determined by the Ministry of Social Development (which the Minister for Gender sits under) and the team I work with there. I will meet with them tomorrow because the Minister for Gender has been sick with malaria and I can't meet the team until I meet her because of protocol which is very important here. Everything must be done according to the hierarchy and very set protocol. (More on what I've learned about malaria below). I'll get a tour of the slums and brothels today with the woman who runs the girls' center, and hopefully meet with the police. My boss says they have a great relationship with the police through the social workers who have worked very hard at working with the police over the last two years on gender-based violence (GBV) issues. They apparently are very coordinated and conduct trainings together and for each other, so I'm excited to see what it looks like in practice.
I'm sure I will continue to discuss the benefits and downsides to local ownership/lack of external actors throughout the summer as part of my reflective practice through the in internship. It's important to question the underlying assumptions that we utilize when practicing development/conflict resolution work as my professor constantly taught us during the semester. While obviously there are obvious advantages to local ownership such as sustainability, programs that are locally initiated tend to do better overall and survive more then one generation, not to mention providing jobs and skills for local actors, there are also downsides. In watching my boss attempt to train and execute plans with local actors it becomes clear why sometimes (or often) INGOs chose to bring in external employees.
Hiring local workers often means (although not always) putting a huge amount of work upfront into training those workers, giving them skills and resources to be able to carry out the jobs they are hired for. That and it often means working against local customs/notions of time, accountability, responsibility, etc. For a Westerner trying to adjust to a different sense of the importance of time and how and when things are to be accomplished this can be incredibly frustrating, even though it is the Westerner who is imposing their idea of how a workplace should run onto the local community. This tension can be difficult, and I constantly watch my boss check herself to recognize it's her expectations that are the problem often, not necessarily how people are responding to them. It's difficult, and she's trying to walk a careful balance of getting things done and not leaving people behind in attempting to do so. While I believe she's right in the importance of local ownership I see the difficulties that causes, although the progress she's made in the last two years speaks to the importance of not just involving locals, but putting them at the forefront of these projects. (More on that later hopefully).
Malaria is as normal a part of life as the common cold around here during the rainy season, so I've already been warned I will lose time with my team because at some point everyone will come down with it. It's just a part of life, and the only real thing to be done is catch it early, get medication early, and eat and rest well. My understanding is that basically everyone has some exposure measured in terms of parts per million found in the blood. Below 3/4 is no big deal and apparently that's pretty normal for around here, above 3/4-10 is when people get sick with malaria symptoms and need medical treatment. Above 10 means severe sickness, and people are usually evacuated out then, 20 ppm is death. Or so I've been told by my local malaria experts (ie: other expats who have been here a while). The main thing is to keep yourself healthy enough that your body can fight it off, and my experts say that people usually fall sick when they aren't eating right or getting enough sleep. So I'm working on sticking to regular meals, and getting a regular sleep schedule as quick as possible.
I'm happy to report that even though it's been raining for the last two days my room has no leaks, and even the little terrace between the rooms stays dry. It makes for a good place to sit and do work, and the rain keeps things cooler then they would be otherwise. The mud is a little crazy since there aren't many paved roads in my neighborhood, and sidewalks are non-existant in this part of town, fortunately I brought one pair of boots that will hopefully get me through. My summer rain coat is already the best investment for this trip so far since otherwise walking to the bathroom or the bar for breakfast would leave me soaked.
This is my little pre-fab room, the area in front is what I'm generously calling the terrace, but it actually is nicer then it looks since the covered area look out into a little tree covered grassy spot beween the other rooms. (Check out the shoulder of my awesome rain jacket on the right).
In really exciting news I discovered the hotel breakfast has peanut butter (sure sign of an expat hotel). Normally peanut butter is ridiculously expensive outside the U.S. so the fact that I get to put some on my toast every morning makes for a pretty fantastic start to the day. Also the Kenyan tea the hotel serves is pretty tasty. It's really all about the little things.
Pictures will be sparse (I think I've mentioned) since they are viewed suspiciously or just outright illegal in many places. Picture taking can get you into huge trouble here as I get told over and over again, so I'll probably be erring on the side of caution and just not taking many, but I promise to upload what I do take.
Alright, I suppose that's all for now. I've got to get ready for my afternoon tour and hopefully get some more reading done. I have the feeling once I meet the ministry people tomorrow things will pick up, or so I hope. Please feel free to leave any questions you have about my work, South Sudan, or anything in the comments (or send me an email if you don't want to put it in the comments). Just please sign any comments with your name so I know who is asking! Hope all is well wherever this post finds you!
When you say you are going to the grocery store, I hope that doesn't mean fruits and veggies, right? Just canned stuff?
ReplyDeleteLove, Mom