Inspirational, transformational and what a privilege.
You might be asking what film we have seen or perhaps a play, but this was our trip to Tanzania.
Arriving at Mwanza airport we paid our visa and collected our luggage that had made its way from Miami. Charles Loleku from the partner organization (African Inland Church Tanzania) was outside with a Tearfund sign, which we were glad to see. He welcomed us and we made our way to our Hotel the ‘Victoria Palace’. On the way to the hotel he confirmed that the Brazilian team had cancelled and 4 of the Haitians had been unable to make the trip due to visa issues. Sunday afternoon was taken up by discussions with Charles having meals and resting.
Monday’s plans had been thrown out of the window, because the delegates from Haiti were arriving late. So we were taken into Mwanza and Tanzanian Tearfund head office. Afterwards we walked around the hotel area, looked out over Lake Victoria and discussed the week ahead with Charles.
KASNGUTI
Tuesday we ate a late Breakfast as the two from Haiti arrived early and joined us for Breakfast. After we piled into the vehicle and headed north to Bunda. At Bunda we turned onto the B162 and headed west to arrive at Kasnguti. Umoja started in this village in 2003, they have accomplished a clinic and pharmacy for the community and a church. The community reaslised using the program, they have resources in the village. The clinic was built by donated stones, sand and cement and local labour. After the local and national government heard of the good work that was going on, they wanted to be a part of it. Government aid came through paying for the roof, fittings and most importantly sending staff to run the facility and paying their salaries. Patients would pay a flat rate of 3000 TS for a consultation and medication, under five’s and over 70’s received free care. With the second phase of Umoja the community decided to start a savings and credit program called Self-Help-Groups, we visited one that was comprised of 34 members each giving 5000 TS which is equivalent to $3.50. The group had been running for three years with the percentage on loans at 3% with a maximum of three months to repay the loan.
This was the same response in the three villages we visited; the government would come in after substantial work had been done to booster the program. Tanzanians commented how the government was appreciated for their involvement.
KETEMBERE
Wednesday was a visit to the region called after the Nation Park Serengeti; we drove 150km close to the border of the Serengeti to a village called Ketembere. We were presented with the 3 pillar system, Umoja facilitators, village government and the village community as a whole. This was a pilot village that Tearfund had identified in 1998; lessons had been learnt from this village which had been used in the other visits we made. Example, the village was encouraged to see the greatest need, which they decided was education of their children. The three main areas that were identified were 1) Education 2) Health and the 3) Church in the community, before there was no church in the village. They pooled their resources and built a school, only for the government to come along and tell them, that they didn’t build to the government standards and needed to be replaced to obtain government sponsorship. They were not despondent; they turned the old rooms into dormitories for the boys and focused their attention on the new rooms. This had been done with two new larger classrooms. They wanted their village in the Serengeti to look like London, we joked with them saying that there were many wild animals in London. On a side note, hunting and alcoholism in the area had declined during the program.
KWIKUBA
Kwikuba was in the Mosoma Rural area, this was relatively close to where we were staying at the Paradise hotel. The town and surrounding area has 19 SHG’s, they were first started in the church in 2004, and the congregation grew as a result with the Umoja & SHG program. Another theory of change was that outlying villages saw the progress being made in Kwikuba and asked for help to change theirs. Since 2004 a clinic and pharmacy, church and a factory for grinding grain had been built. Testimonies from various members of the church and SHG’s were made before we ate a meal. Many spoke about the transformation that has been seen in the town and surrounding areas, church attendance has risen, yield in agricultural crops had increased and buildings had been built. Local Muslims had come to the church and asked for help in starting the process of Umoja with-in their community, this has brought the whole community together and are working to further the town as whole not as separate religions. Carpenters SHG had been started, part of their vision is to see their trade passed on to future generations. As a result of the program they now train apprentices and most of the village buys products made from the consortium.
Tearfund Haiti, African Inland Church and us.
A beautiful clinic built through local resources, great progress with the village working together.
It was a special time, we are still processing all we saw and experienced.
You might be asking what film we have seen or perhaps a play, but this was our trip to Tanzania.
Arriving at Mwanza airport we paid our visa and collected our luggage that had made its way from Miami. Charles Loleku from the partner organization (African Inland Church Tanzania) was outside with a Tearfund sign, which we were glad to see. He welcomed us and we made our way to our Hotel the ‘Victoria Palace’. On the way to the hotel he confirmed that the Brazilian team had cancelled and 4 of the Haitians had been unable to make the trip due to visa issues. Sunday afternoon was taken up by discussions with Charles having meals and resting.
Monday’s plans had been thrown out of the window, because the delegates from Haiti were arriving late. So we were taken into Mwanza and Tanzanian Tearfund head office. Afterwards we walked around the hotel area, looked out over Lake Victoria and discussed the week ahead with Charles.
KASNGUTI
Tuesday we ate a late Breakfast as the two from Haiti arrived early and joined us for Breakfast. After we piled into the vehicle and headed north to Bunda. At Bunda we turned onto the B162 and headed west to arrive at Kasnguti. Umoja started in this village in 2003, they have accomplished a clinic and pharmacy for the community and a church. The community reaslised using the program, they have resources in the village. The clinic was built by donated stones, sand and cement and local labour. After the local and national government heard of the good work that was going on, they wanted to be a part of it. Government aid came through paying for the roof, fittings and most importantly sending staff to run the facility and paying their salaries. Patients would pay a flat rate of 3000 TS for a consultation and medication, under five’s and over 70’s received free care. With the second phase of Umoja the community decided to start a savings and credit program called Self-Help-Groups, we visited one that was comprised of 34 members each giving 5000 TS which is equivalent to $3.50. The group had been running for three years with the percentage on loans at 3% with a maximum of three months to repay the loan.
This was the same response in the three villages we visited; the government would come in after substantial work had been done to booster the program. Tanzanians commented how the government was appreciated for their involvement.
KETEMBERE
Wednesday was a visit to the region called after the Nation Park Serengeti; we drove 150km close to the border of the Serengeti to a village called Ketembere. We were presented with the 3 pillar system, Umoja facilitators, village government and the village community as a whole. This was a pilot village that Tearfund had identified in 1998; lessons had been learnt from this village which had been used in the other visits we made. Example, the village was encouraged to see the greatest need, which they decided was education of their children. The three main areas that were identified were 1) Education 2) Health and the 3) Church in the community, before there was no church in the village. They pooled their resources and built a school, only for the government to come along and tell them, that they didn’t build to the government standards and needed to be replaced to obtain government sponsorship. They were not despondent; they turned the old rooms into dormitories for the boys and focused their attention on the new rooms. This had been done with two new larger classrooms. They wanted their village in the Serengeti to look like London, we joked with them saying that there were many wild animals in London. On a side note, hunting and alcoholism in the area had declined during the program.
KWIKUBA
Kwikuba was in the Mosoma Rural area, this was relatively close to where we were staying at the Paradise hotel. The town and surrounding area has 19 SHG’s, they were first started in the church in 2004, and the congregation grew as a result with the Umoja & SHG program. Another theory of change was that outlying villages saw the progress being made in Kwikuba and asked for help to change theirs. Since 2004 a clinic and pharmacy, church and a factory for grinding grain had been built. Testimonies from various members of the church and SHG’s were made before we ate a meal. Many spoke about the transformation that has been seen in the town and surrounding areas, church attendance has risen, yield in agricultural crops had increased and buildings had been built. Local Muslims had come to the church and asked for help in starting the process of Umoja with-in their community, this has brought the whole community together and are working to further the town as whole not as separate religions. Carpenters SHG had been started, part of their vision is to see their trade passed on to future generations. As a result of the program they now train apprentices and most of the village buys products made from the consortium.
Tearfund Haiti, African Inland Church and us.
A beautiful clinic built through local resources, great progress with the village working together.
It was a special time, we are still processing all we saw and experienced.
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