The good stuff
Tomorrow assorted villagers from Bamenda’s surrounding areas will arrive.
They are here to take part in a three-day workshop hosted by COPAAP.
It’s probably stretching a point to say they will learn how to run community businesses – but they will certainly be challenged to think about what could work in their communities.
This business, or Income Generating Activity as development workers call it, will provide revenue to pay wages but beyond that the aim is for it to generate community funds to tackle AIDS and HIV.
These bad roads. These remote communities. Poor communications. AIDS.
How do you start to treat people? To teach? To raise awareness?
The answer is of course, you train them to do it for themselves.
Sick people shouldn’t have to travel. So you train volunteers to do it locally.
Government funds are limited and can’t be counted on. Instead we show them how to generate their own funds.
So maybe it’s really not that simple but then we’ll continue to learn along the way – alongside the villagers. The will is here to make it work.
So today we’re putting together slides and sessions. We’re gathering up armfuls of paper and coloured pens. We’re planning and budgeting for meals and accommodation and tomorrow we meet the villagers.
I’m told education levels will be mixed.
I’ve gone through everyone’s PowerPoint slides and taken out all the development jargon and the acronyms.
But they have made a commitment to learn. They will travel hours on those nasty roads to get here. They have sacrificed earnings. That is how important it is to them.
It doesn’t just mean the future of AIDS treatment in their communities – it means the absolute future of their villages.
As far as the workshop I can only make an un-educated guess as to how it will go but I hope they have fun. I will.
Because this is the good stuff.
I spend too many evenings in and too many days in the office.
Tomorrow we get out. Tomorrow we get to do the fun bit.
Tags: aids, bamenda, cameroon, hiv, income generating activities, workship
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October 14, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Hey! Make sure you put the presentations on Slideshare.com, I would love to embed them on my blog and I bet there’s more bloggers who would love to do so. Good way to promote you guys, too;)
(apart form the fact I am genuinely interested in those materials)
October 14, 2008 at 2:05 pm
It certainly sounds good stuff.
I agree with sylwiapresley, it would be interesting to see some of the presentations too – if you’re able, obviously.
October 14, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Sylwia/Paul it’s going to have to be no I am afraid. For lots of reasons. Firstly the simple problems of sending it. Secondly while I have done my best to pull it together without destroying anyone else’s work – this is a group project – locals and volunteers alike.
It is probably not up to being looked at my design minded people.
Although I know you’d be nice.
Maybe next time – when we’re a bit more polished and perhaps the internet is better.
Thanks for the interest though and offers of support.
October 14, 2008 at 8:04 pm
That’s cool.
I have a friend in a NGO who always says simplicity is the key – always keep it simple, clear and relevant, nothing else really matters.
The central message in what you’ve written here and what I’ve heard from himis the same also – this is about people learning to help themselves – and if that happens then you succeed.
October 15, 2008 at 1:56 am
I enjoyed this post. But had a few thoughts and questions.
You said: “These bad roads. These remote communities. Poor communications. AIDS.”
I understand. But I wonder, how is it at all possible for people to move in Cameroon? For people to communicate?
I mean, have you seen the way people are in constant motion and how information travels in cameroon? I doubt things are as “remote” and out-of-touch as your words suggest.
You paint a picture (a sense and sensation) of a silence and immobility in communities and between communities that, yes, is sometimes true, but not necessarily the truth of things.
I do agree that AIDS education is so vital. I am glad there are groups like your own working on this. But I wonder how your methods and assumptions and perhaps even your outsdier status might get in the way of getting the message across to these Cameroonians you seek to help?
I am eager to hear how the workshop goes. Were some of your expectations challenged? Some of your views altered? Or were your perceptions simply confirmed by the people who attended? Did your presentations work? Do powerpoint slides work? How about performances that tell stories to get messages across and that might engage people of all ages and backgrounds? Can you speak some Pidgin to the people? Could they begin to relate to you and could you begin to relate to them?