Road to recovery

I found this church in the middle of a village, in the bush. A number of churches are run by Polish priests and nuns. I was talking to a priest who told me about some of his projects; one was construction of bridges to connect communities that had been cut off. He also talked of some mediation he was involved in for peace in communities. This conversation left me deep in thought afterwards.

Riding with volunteers in Tanzania

For the past year, I have lived in Kibondo in Western Tanzania, where I worked closely with the Tanzanian Red Cross. I'm describing one of many days working with the Red Cross volunteers in one of the three refugee camps, Nduta refugee camp, which is home to nearly 100,000 people...  

I wake up to crows making loud caws and take a look at the time. It's 7am already and the day awaits.

I get ready and off we go to Nduta camp, the camp is about 36.2 sq km
There are close to 300,000 refugees in the three camps in Tanzania. Although there is no conflict, the country has become a safe haven for people from nearby countries ridden with different forms of conflict.

Bumping and jostling in the car with every movement, the dust is all I see ahead of me as there is no tarmac. We arrive at Nduta just in time to catch the morning meeting. Right after the meeting, on cue, bicycles are rolled out. This is the daily routine. The volunteers ride the rocky paths of the camps to deliver family news to their fellow refugees. For some refugees, this is the only way to get any assurance of their family member's well being. They cherish these moments. Sitting at different call centres where we provide free phone calls to the refugees, I smile all the time till my face hurts. I see the way their faces light up when they hear a loved one's voice and it warms my heart.

My Jacob's Cream Crackers

These crackers are the truth! They have been my companion for years.

For the kind of work I do, I prefer eating something dry, devoid of any form of spices when I am out working on the field. I work in sometimes difficult terrains to navigate where bumpiness is normal as there might be only dirt roads.
I live on these crackers and apples (when they are available) on the field. I could find these easily anywhere in Nigeria. However, the last time I worked in another country, the 2 packs I took with me from Nigeria finished quite quickly as I was on the field much more than I was in the office.

Thoughts on humanitarian action...

Humanitarian action normally has the aim to save lives, reduce suffering, poverty and help to maintain human dignity. Well, that's the summary for me from working in the humanitarian field.

I've noticed that when humanitarian action is mentioned, just like development assistance, it is mostly tailored to the Middle East, Africa and in some cases, South America. A good number of the organisations leading in this field are from Western countries, these countries would like to save the world albeit being wishful thinking.

All humanitarian assistance is worthy and directly impacts lives. I can say that for a fact as I work in that area. The joy derived from witnessing the emotions of a beneficiary is PRICELESS!

However, in the light of recent attacks, it is slowly dawning on everyone that nowhere in the world seems to be safe these days... There have been constant attacks by armed groups in different parts of the world and the Western countries are targets for various reasons.

Some of the "holy wars" that are being fought might not make sense to some of us, but the ones in it are willing to die for the cause for which they fight. Unfortunately, we all are caught up in it - innocent, guilty, old and young, every living thing!

Sharing pictures

“The ethics of using pictures of people, especially children who don't have the power to decide whether and how their image is used in the press is complex but they must be treated with sensitivity and dignity”…seeing this as a facebook friend’s status accompanied by a naked crying girl, running along with other children in a conflict situation struck a chord deep in me. 

The issue of pictures being taken and published without consent especially with people who might not be able to challenge that action tends to keep getting a reaction from me. A colleague and I were discussing this topic and she mentioned a post that went viral of a fellow European who went to Africa as an aid worker but the person was all about taking selfies in the midst of 'suffering' Africans. That was certainly not the motive for this person being sent to Africa.  In portraying the picture of suffering Africans, how about showing pictures also of the nice places where these selfie crazed people eat, live and hang out…pictures of those places should equally fill the internet, because in the midst of the suffering, these workers find places that remind them somewhat of home where they feel safe.