Of rain and lack of electricity

The rainy season is finally here, which is a big relief from the heat but it also means that my work starts to slow down as people go out to work in the fields. It is also my last three months here, which means I am doing a lot of winding-down myself.

The biggest challenge this season is mostly the constant water and power cuts. The cuts are particularly frustrating, but I find the apathy of people here even more unnerving. In a recent article in the Washington Post, there is an analysis about a recent discovery in the declaration of independence. Modern technology has been able to discover that the marks underneath the word “citizens” were actually crossing out “subjects”. The article goes on to explain the technology that allowed for it ans some of the implications on the independence movement. To me, the “typo” reveals a very important feature about how we Americans see ourselves in relation to government. We are citizens, and as such we embrace our rights and responsibilities. This has a particular resonance for me, here in Senegal, during this season of electricity and water cuts. It is outrageous to me that people here in Senegal are completely unfazed by only having two to three hours of electricity every day despite the high costs of utilities and the amount of money we all pay to the state-owned power company. This article, however, revealed to me that people here in Senegal see themselves not as citizens, but as subjects of their government. This self disenfranchising is caused by an unresponsive bureaucracy but also by a lack of education among the people of this country. I see this as being a major barrier to any development or growth. Unless people embrace their citizenship and engage their government there is no hope for ever moving forward in Senegal. I would also like to think, perhaps rather naively, that in an open democracy like Senegal’s it is in the government’s best interest to encourage active citizens. However, the engorged bureaucracy running this country is content. After all, they have generators.

Anyway, I think that really contextualizes a lot of my frustrations after two years here, and makes me very skeptical about the possibilities for positive change. Hopefully, as information becomes more widely available, people will be more engaged with their society.

It was really nice to see many of you on my recent trip up the eastern seaboard. I am sorry if I didn’t get a chance to see you, I will be back, permanently, by the end of the fall. Whoa, it is weird to write that out. Since coming back I helped lead a Girls’ Leadership Camp near the river town of Sokone. The camp had 27 girls ages 14-17 from the regions of Fatick, Kaolack, and Kaffrine. The purpose of the camp was to encourage leadership, teach important skills, and have fun. The girls had the chance to swim, play sports, learn business lessons, do arts and crafts, and hear inspiring lectures by local leaders. I think the camp was a great success, although it was exhausting. It was great fun and it will hopefully inspire these girls to be leaders in their communities.

I am working now with a group of leaders in Fatick that wants to install Universal Nut Shellers as an income-generating activity for their respective associations and groups. The nut sheller saves countless hours of work and can be very profitable in a place where Fatick where the women do not have time to spend 40 hours shelling peanuts. The sheller does 50kg an hour! This is a region-wide initiative and I hope they shellers will be installed and functioning in time for peanut season in early October.

I am continuing work on a training to be given to farmers and gardeners in August about business skills. The training is adapted to growers and will include Accounting, Costing, Marketing, and Financial Planning. I am also working to combine this training with a vertical gardening workshop. Vertical gardening has its roots in high-density localities where space is a big issue for urban gardens. These techniques are also very good water savers. This is where I think they will be of great use. The scarcity of fresh water makes Fatick a great candidate for vertical gardening.

In two weeks I will be going to Sierra Leone! I am very excited to see a different, much lusher and more mountainous region of West Africa. I will make sure to keep you posted.