Third Time’s the Charm: Tanzania 2014

My name is Danielle and I am back in Africa for my third time but this is my second time in Tanzania with Youth Challenge International. I arrived in July and will be here until March 2015! Once again I am working at the most amazing youth centre, the Umoja Centre, in Arusha. I have many roles at the centre including teacher, dance club instructor, sponsorship coordinator and fundraising innovator!

I have another wonderful group of young adults who are at our centre because they want to further their education and improve their futures but they do not h ave the means to do it on their own. As the sponsorship coordinator and careers teacher it is my responsibility over the next few months to advise our students on their options upon graduation from the centre and to ensure that each student has a sponsor that will be able to support their chosen path.

Danielle and Emoja Students

Currently, we have 10 out of 40 students sponsored and able to further their education in January. Unfortunately, without the support of sponsors, our students will not be able to continue their education after graduating even though they have the skills and potential to succeed. I have partnered with a few schools back in Canada who have chosen Umoja to be their development project. Each school will sponsor a student and conduct fundraisers to raise the fees. This will hopefully encourage individual families to also support Umoja and potentially sponsor a student themselves. My current general fundraising campaign are 50/50 draws in the workplace in support of Umoja. Tickets are sold for $2 and at the end of the work week one ticket is drawn from the bunch. Half of the proceeds go to the winning ticket and the other half go to support the Umoja Centre. We hope people will participate because a) they have the potential to win money and b) they are supporting a good cause.

In Careers, students have been identifying their interests, strengths, skills and attributes in order to select a suitable career path. To assist with their search, I have been organizing Careers Days twice a month in which a professional comes to the Umoja Centre to talk to the students about his/her career. In September Adam Bemma, a Canadian journalist from Farm Radio International, came to speak to the students about his work in international journalism. The following week, I took a group of interested students on a field trip to visit Farm Radio and see what Adam does.

Danielle and Adam Bemma

Through my connection with Farm Radio I was also able to connect with their mental health program through the Guidance, Counseling and Youth Development Centre for Africa. This organization is trying to raise awareness in secondary schools about youth issues affecting boys and girls in Africa such as mental health problems, HIV & AIDS, adolescent sexual reproductive health, alcohol and drug abuse. Their program will begin at the Umoja Centre in January and provides our centre with a full mental health curriculum, weekly workshops, training for our social worker, peer education training for our students and mental health support services for our staff and students. This program will greatly benefit our students as many of them are from backgrounds of extreme poverty, stress and disadvantage. This program will provide them with the necessary support to succeed and the tools for resiliency.

In October, the Umoja social worker and I will be attending a ‘Woman’s Career Day’ hosted by AfricAid in which successful Tanzanian women share their stories of how they made it in a male dominant work force and the challenges they experienced. We are hoping to meet with some of these women and ask them to come speak to our young girls at the Umoja Centre. The workforce is not a friendly place for many of our young female students and they often deal with issues such as discrimination, transactional sex and overall gender inequality. I hope that hearing some of these women’s stories will inspire them to push through and know that they have people on their side.

Danielle, Pascalina (office manager) and Chuki (social worker)

As a final note, I would also like to share a section from my personal blog. One of my early careers classes really impacted me and reminded me why I’m here helping these amazing students.

September 15, 2014: This week in my careers course we were talking about the challenges we all face in achieving our goals. As part of the lesson, I thought it would be a good idea to have the students share their stories with the class and tell us how they arrived at the Umoja Centre. In that class, I heard some of the most inspirational stories and I am so grateful for the opportunity to work with these students and hopefully improve their lives. In this post, I thought I would share some of their stories in the hopes that you would want to help improve their lives as well.
The first student, he’s 19. He grew up in an abusive home where his dad beat his mom, siblings, and himself. His mom left and took her children with her. They lived on the streets barely making it by. None of the children went to school because his mother was afraid that the father would find them. This student stopped going to school after grade 3. He lived on the streets for 7 years helping his mom with odd jobs to make a little money. Over the years, he made friends with kids who were in school and would borrow their books so he could try to learn. He heard about Umoja through a family friend. He is now studying in his second year at Umoja because when he arrived last year his education was extremely low. But he is quite motivated and is continuously improving his skills. Next year he plans to continue school to either be a tour guide or an IT technician.

The second student is 23. He grew up in a Masai village and did not attend school. His parents wanted him to stay home and help with the farming. He always wanted to go to school but couldn’t because of his parents and the 4 hour walk to school. At age 11, he was finally old enough to make the journey to school on his own and asked to enroll. The school denied him because they didn’t want an 11 year old starting primary school (grade 1). He persisted for days until the commissioner of that area was contacted and ultimately let him attend school. He studied hard and was at the top of his class. At 17 he was ready to start secondary school – which is grade 8. He worked hard to save his money and convinced his parents to sell a cow to send him to school. His parents agreed but on one condition – if he failed once, that was it. The first 3 years he did well and passed, but in the 4th year he studied hard but failed. That was it for his schooling. He stayed at home for one year, working on the farm while his family tried to set him up with a wife. But he knew that this was not the life for him, he wanted more education. One day, he received a call from a friend who told him about the Umoja Centre. His friend had just finished his year at Umoja and told him that they were having interviews the next day for the class of 2014. He was hours away from Arusha and had no money to get to the city. So he went to the nearest shop in his village and sold his phone to get enough money to make it to Arusha. He made it to the interview and was accepted into Umoja. He is now doing well and plans to pass form 4 (which is in secondary school) and become a doctor.

The third student is 14. He came to Umoja last year to interview to be a student. He failed the interview and did not get in. After that, he sat outside the gate of the school from 8-4 every day waiting and asking to be able to come to school. The teachers kept saying no and told him to go home. However, once the director heard about this stubborn boy sitting outside she knew she had to talk to him. He had so much motivation and determination that she had to let him in. After a while of being at Umoja, the teachers realized that he was a broken kid who was getting severely beaten by his step father. Everyone could see he was a great kid with a lot of potential, but his home life would not allow for him to succeed. The director referred him to live at a local children’s home called House of Happiness where he now lives. He has flourished and become the happy kid everyone knew he could be. He is in his second year at Umoja, since he lied about his age the previous year to get in. He is thriving at school and will go to secondary school in January. His plan is to be a journalist.

These are just three of the stories of the many students that Umoja helps. It is heartbreaking to hear their stories, but they all realize that education is important and they want to succeed. If helping these youth is something you are interested in, please consider visiting the Umoja Centre website www.umoja.com.au or emailing me at sponsorship@umoja.com

Danielle is a Youth Innovator currently working with YCI at the Umoja Centre in Tanzania. To learn more about YCI’s Innovator positions and how to apply, click here!

Like a Breeze

My first morning here I woke to red earth, yellow hibiscus and a massive, waxy banana tree outside my window. Be present, I told myself. These six weeks will blow in and out like a breeze. …Today I mark the half-way point with this blog entry. It has been three weeks since I left the snow and chapped skin of an inhospitable Canadian winter, since the airplane landed and immediately filled with steam when cabin doors clicked open to a humid Accra night.

Bananas growing outside my bedroom window in Accra

I feel most at ease in the early mornings, when the temperature has not yet begun its ascent, when after a cool shower I feel momentarily refreshed and ready to press start on my work day. Following a simple breakfast of fresh bread and instant coffee, I begin my commute with a ten-minute walk along a meandering dirt road. Strewn with garbage and fallen bougainvillea blossoms it is a striking contrast of rot and beauty.

Bougainvillea along the dirt road

I head towards Asylum Down Circle, a bustling traffic circle where city dwellers converge to catch taxis. All around, vendors sell phone credit and coconuts, toiletries and water sashes. Pots of oil sizzle with deep frying fish and bofrot, (sweet gooey balls of dough). In the distance I watch as the taxi I hoped to join putt putts away. Another will be along shortly to fill with passengers.

Along my path from the home stay in Nima to Asylum Down Circle

Back in Toronto I often shut out the city soundscape by listening to a news podcast. But here, I want to hear all that I can. The shouts of “obroni” (white) from street children, requisite Bob Marley layered over chart topping dance hits and the morning call to prayer, wonky horns and ringing bells warning me to get out of the way.

A few minutes later I hand the driver one cedi thirty pesewas (approximately 65 cents Cdn) and wait to alight at the cathedral. Landmarks, rather than numbered addresses are used here to navigate the city. From the cathedral I walk a few more minutes, past Accra’s psychiatric hospital (hence the area name, “Asylum”) and past Paulina, a local merchant who has befriended me. She is stoking a fire in preparation for roasting yams, plantains and groundnuts.

Once at the YMCA I greet the staff and settle at my desk. The six of us will gather shortly for prayer and morning announcements. Today, in addition to updating the Facebook and Twitter accounts, I must finalize a press release for the upcoming Inter-Cultural Youth Festival. The festival will be held in Cape Coast, July 19-29, 2014. I was fortunate to visit Cape Coast my first weekend in Ghana. I remember lingering on the castle balcony, lost in the long stretch of sand, crashing waves and a fat, pink lollipop sunset…

The sun sets on Cape Coast, Ghana

Yes, these final weeks will blow in and out quickly and before I know it I’ll be back in Toronto, riding the subway to work, ordering a grande extra hot soy misto from Starbucks, wishing for the breeze that as I type this last sentence, I presently savour.

 

Andrea Paolini, Youth Innovator, Ghana 2014

To read more about YCI’s programs in Ghana, click here. To read more blogs from our volunteers in Ghana, click here.

YCI is currently recruiting for a 4-week project in Ghana this July 29th to August 26th to work with our partners on entrepreneurship initiatives. 

 

Where the Girls Are

YCI Ambassadors lead the girls in a warm up

As a YCI Marketing and Communications Innovator I will assist the Ghana YMCA in creating a vibrant and sustainable social media presence to engage youth and promote its programming. Towards this goal, I travelled to Takoradi, where in partnership with the Ghana YMCA, YCI provides mentoring and youth training to girls in junior and senior high school. Upon arrival in Takoradi, located four hours west of Accra, I met with YCI Ambassadors Rachel Ouellette, Edna Quan and Rakshin Saroha. The following morning I accompanied them, first to the YMCA to conduct a physical education class for some forty teen girls and then onto Nana Brempong Yaw, a local junior high school. Here the Ambassadors spoke to girls, ages 13-15 about the importance of education and then they facilitated a workshop on public speaking for ten girls selected to be peer educators. As Frederick Dadzie, Senior Program Manager at YCI Ghana mentioned in a recent blog post, these workshops are part of a larger strategic plan to help girls promote and achieve the Millennium Development Goals. I was immediately struck by the confidence and poise with which they told their stories. They sought a future rich in magnificent colour, one in which they succeeded and supported their families.

Students on campus

I do not know the exact circumstances and complexities that were these girls’ realities. Perhaps it is for this reason that I took such comfort in what I did know. At that exact moment as girls across Ghana hawked wares along polluted and dusty motor ways, these girls — among them Mercy, Patience, Cristobel, Lovely, Gracie, Millicent and Elizabeth — were in a classroom. Safe. They were not statistics or factoids. They were captivating and inquisitive young girls who, in addition to enjoying music and dancing hoped someday to be doctors and teachers, journalists and mothers. How I hope, that despite the very real obstacles that face them, these girls continue to thrive… I am here in Ghana for and because of these girls…

The girls with their teacher

– Andrea Paolini, Youth Innovator, Ghana 2014

To read more about YCI’s programs in Ghana, click here. To read more blogs from our volunteers in Ghana, click here.

 

Staff Q&A: Introducing Kiran!

Kiran Alwani has recently joined YCI as the Volunteer Program Assistant. She has newly moved to Canada from Pakistan where she worked with underprivileged children and their communities as a Fellow at Teach For Pakistan. She graduated from Lahore University of Management Sciences in 2011 with a major in Social Sciences, and Anthropology and Sociology as her concentrations. During her undergraduate program, she was selected as 1 of the 7 students from across Pakistan as a Student Leader to meet prominent leaders in the United States and work with a diverse group of young individuals from different countries. Kiran also worked as a Leadership Facilitator with high school students in Bangladesh and is extremely passionate about working with youth. She has a strong interest in International Development, and is excited about working with YCI volunteers and supporting them as they prepare for their trips abroad!

 

1)     How did you get involved in YCI?

I am passionate about working in International Development, especially for children and youth issues. After my graduation, I did a fellowship with Teach For Pakistan for two years which gave me the opportunity to work with underprivileged children and their communities. I also worked with high school students in Bangladesh and conducted leadership, teambuilding and mentoring sessions with them to help them form earth clubs at their school, and design projects to make their country more environmentally friendly. Apart from this, I was a student leader and got to meet individuals from different countries and diverse backgrounds, and work on social development projects during my undergrad degree. These experiences strengthened my interest in youth development and the role youth can play in changing the world.

So when I moved to Canada recently, I researched different organizations that are working for youth development and YCI was amongst the top ones. I especially like the idea of connecting youth from developed and developing countries to work together to make a positive difference in the world, and hence be truly global and socially responsible citizens.

2)     What does your position at YCI entail?

As the Volunteer Program Assistant, I manage volunteer applications, conduct interviews, prepare project materials and orientation guides, and help with the selection process. I love the opportunity I get to connect with volunteers to learn about their experiences and see their passion to volunteer. I help prepare these motivated youth leaders for their trips abroad with fundraising advice and ensure that they are ready for their projects. It is exciting to learn about all the creative ideas our volunteers have and to share their enthusiasm for youth development.

3)     What do you think is the biggest issue facing youth today?

In my opinion, lack of educational and economic opportunities are the biggest challenges we face as youth today. I believe that youth all over the world, regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds, deserve access to excellent education and the freedom to create their own life paths. The aspirations of youth in both developing and developed countries are largely unmet due to limited educational and economic opportunities. Access to these is important to empower youth, so that they can participate actively in civic and social domains as socially responsible young individuals.

4)     Outside of work, what are some of your favourite things to do?

I love singing and listening to different genres of music. I used to host a radio show back in my days at university, and maybe I’ll get to do that sometime in the future! Besides being a huge fan of Dan Brown novels, I like to read all sorts of random articles in my spare time. I love watching tennis and am one of the biggest Federer fans you’ll ever meet! I also love traveling, meeting people from different backgrounds and exploring new cultures. I lived in Pakistan, and have been to Tanzania, Bangladesh, and the United States. I hope the list keeps growing as time passes!

But we just got here!

Kingston Fan is currently a Public Health Innovator with Youth Challenge International in Zanzibar, Tanzania. To read more from Kingston read his blog at: http://kingstonfan.wordpress.com

“It’s hard to imagine that more than 4 weeks have passed since we first step onto the Far East coast of Africa, on the island of Zanzibar. But adjusting to life, the culture and work has certainly kept us constantly busy making us now savour every moment we still have left here.

Currently there are 4 of us innovators in the field in Zanzibar and are each having quite a great and unique experience with our home stay families. My family consist of my mama and her daughter who both don’t speak a lot of English. While it’s been a fair bit difficult communicating with them at times, my Swahili has definitely improved in waves and have been having some interesting conversations during the day….”

Alisha Kalyniak – Alumni’s Sustained Passion in Working with Youth Takes Her to Mexico

During my 10-week placement in Ghana, which took place from September to November 2012, I had the opportunity to work with youth at the YMCA Vocational Training Institute. Along with my fellow volunteers, I facilitated workshops with the students, designed and implemented a “train the trainer” curriculum, as well as worked in partnership with the students and teachers to plan, coordinate and execute a World AIDS Day event. It was an amazing experience which sparked my desire to continue working with youth in the education sector.

Most recently, I have been working with World Vision Canada as an Education Intern in rural Mexico. I have been in Mexico for more then a month now, and I credit YCI for helping me develop the skills I needed to get to where I am now.

Alisha at the Pyramids of Teotihaucan

I am currently living in the municipality of Copainalá, in the region of Chiapas (Southern Mexico). Chiapas is extremely beautiful. Being here has completely altered my preconceptions of Mexico. I’m constantly surrounded by beautiful rolling hills. It is so lush and green here, that I feel as though I am living inside a painting, and it takes my breath away every day.

Also, I have the privilege of working in three different municipalities; Copainalá, Ocotepec and Bochil. The education system is fairly poor in Mexico, especially in rural areas. I am working with World Vision on two projects within the education system, a reading project and a tutoring project targeting children of 6-12 years old. These projects are meant to help keep the kids on track and at the level they should be at. I have had the opportunity to go to several different communities so far to see these projects firsthand. It has been amazing to interact with the children, and watch them excited to learn and participate.

Community Visit to Sarabia, Chiapas

After my internship, I hope to continue pursuing positions overseas working with youth. I will always remember my time in Ghana fondly. While in Ghana for my YCI placement, I learned a lot from the YCI staff, and also from the students & teachers at the YMCA Vocational Training Institute.

–Alisha Kalyniak, Youth Leader, Ghana 2012

Reflections on Local Hospitality and Hosting Environmental Awareness Workshops in Ghana

May and Alec with some students from Fijai Senior High School

It’s the week of June 9th, 2013 and we’re already in our 4^th week in Takoradi. I am amazed at how quickly our time here has passed! Its been a such a wonderful time and we’ve had the pleasure of working with some great people at YMCA – Madam Winifred and Rhoda, Madam Emelia and of course Nana and Ama our key partners who have been such a joy to be around and get to know over the last few weeks. We’ve felt so comfortable and at home here, all due to the hospitality and warmness of the people we’ve met. From the staff at the Worker’s College which includes Cudjoe who is always smiling, to cab drivers, to people walking on the streets who stop to greet you, to the merchants at the market like Auntie Rose who helped me find some materials I needed for one of our workshops – everyone is friendly and a willing to offer a helping hand.

Madam Winnifred, Vice Principal of YMCA Vocational Training Institute

Most recently we worked on environmental awareness workshops, which we had planned to host at 3 different schools: the YMCA Vocational Training Institute, Fijai Secondary School and Bompeh Secondary School. The number of students for these workshops is much smaller than the last workshops we delivered on personal hygiene. The lattar had about 1200 students and although we were able to interact with the students and successfully carry out the activities, the interactions were a bit impersonal due to the large number of people and the activities were a bit rushed. The environmental workshops, however, were with a total of 150 students, with about 50 students in each workshop, which made it much easier to handle and allowed for more interaction between us and the students. The smaller number also allowed for more flexibility with the material we presented.

A local plastic collection point for recycling

At first I found it difficult trying to create a workshop on waste and plastic waste management given that waste management issues stem from the lack of provisions for adequate supply of trash bins in cities, separation of waste and recyclable materials, and regularly scheduled municipal waste pick ups. Sadly, due to this lack of regulation, sometimes people resort to their own ways of disposing of the accumulated garbage if the pick ups are late for days or maybe weeks or if there are not enough trash bins around the city. Also, at times people might not be able to afford the polluter pay system here or are not willing to pay for it and so the best option for them is to improperly dump their garbage, burn it or dig a hole to burry it. The polluter pay system is basically people paying for the amount of garbage they create and this can be anywhere from $10 a month for 240L bin collection to about $140 for large communal bin pick ups. After reading some articles about some of the initiatives taking place around environmental awareness put forth by the municipal government and private garbage companies like Zoomlion it became clear to me that educating the students and creating awareness about things like the dangers of improper dumping, burning garbage and plastic, and littering are a vital part of the overall efforts to improve the system. 

So in the workshops, we placed emphasis on plastic waste management which is a big issue here. Drinking water is almost entirely consumed out of plastic water sachets or water bottle, which creates a lot of plastic waste. In fact, water sachets make up about 85% of waste in Ghana alone and it’s almost never disposed of correctly. We had an activity planned called ‘pollution plays’ where groups of students were given scenarios such as ‘you just finished your water sachet and there is no bin close by’ and they had to make a 1 minute play acting out the right and wrong ways to handle the scenario. We found this game to be very effective and the students really took it above and beyond by doing their own debrief at the end of each skit discussing the actions that took place in their play as they related to real life. It was really wonderful to see them get so engaged with it and have fun with it. We are hoping to have our last environmental workshop at Bompeh next week which would wrap up the workshops in Takoradi and then we are off to our next city – Kof Town! 

– May El Ali, Youth Ambassador, Ghana 2013

Alec Lynch – Learning About Ghanaians Eagerness to Learn & Their Boundless Ambition

It’s Wednesday, June 12, and today we did the second of three workshops on hygiene and hand-washing. Our workshop was at Adiembra Secondary School for about 700 students! There actually wasn’t a physical space for that many students, so we had to split up. I took half inside, and my fellow YCI volunteer May, worked with the other half outside. Both of us were supported by Nana Peperah Antwi – YMCA’S Western Regional Clerk , Fred Dadzie – Senior Program Manager of YCI Ghana, and Ama Josiah – a YMCA Volunteer.

We ended up with more time and people then we had planned on, but we still managed to have what seemed to be a successful workshop. Although we were primarily lecturing, students were attentive and appeared interested in what we were saying, which was just wonderful.

From Left: Nana, May, Ama and Alec.

On Monday, we gave a workshop to 50 students at the YMCA Vocational Training Institute. A less daunting task, the workshop at the YMCA was just straight-up fun. We played a few games designed to give different messages about hand-washing, and it seemed like many of the students understood the messages we were trying to convey. The games had been developed partially by Alex, an intern at the Accra YMCA.

Students Listening to the Hygiene Workshop

Alec, Ama and May Helping to Engage Students in an Activity Demonstrating How Cholera Spreads

Last week was mostly focused on administering the Youth Entrepreneurship survey we wrote in conjunction with our project manager, Fred Dadzie. Administering the questionnaire was a truly fascinating experience for me, because it gave me a glimpse into the daily lives of several entrepreneurs in Ghana. Both May and I traveled all around the Sekondi-Takoradi area talking to different young entrepreneurs with the help of Nana and Ama. The contributions of these two individuals truly cannot be emphasized enough. The research would not have been remotely possible without their assistance.With their help, May and I got to speak to ordinary business people about their experiences starting and running businesses.

Living every writer’s dream, I got to walk up to people operating their businesses and ask them to tell me their stories. Of course, our interviews were structured around pre-determined questions, but each interviewee told a unique story. It was fascinating to see how each individual story unfolded as the questions progressed. We interviewed a wide variety of people, ranging from someone selling shoes on the street to running an online tech sales company. Regardless of the type of business, each entrepreneur demonstrated an impressive business capability and a drive to succeed.

It was really interesting to me that many expressed an interest in importing, exporting, and manufacturing because traveling for international trade is viewed as a particularly important marker of success in Ghana. This aspiration seemed to be related to a hope on the part of many business people that they could have a transformative effect on Ghana with their business. I was greatly impressed by this strong concern for the general welfare of others.  Now, I just hope I can match it!

– Alec Lynch, Youth Ambassador, Ghana 2013

 

“An Exercise In Empathy and a Chance to Encourage Thoughtful Discussion”

Live Below the Line‘s Campaign Manager Erin Deviney interviews YCI Alum Shanna Sunley.

Many of you who signed up for the Live Below the Line challenge on behalf of Youth Challenge International (YCI) already have a personal connection with the organization, just as Shanna Sunley does. I had the opportunity to catch up with Shanna as a Live Below the Line participant and YCI volunteer to find out why she had volunteered with YCI, why she had taken on the LBL Challenge and most importantly her thoughts on both of these actions.

Shanna went to Tanzania as a YCI Youth Ambassador earlier this year to facilitate project management and to provide leadership training to local youth in Zanzibar. Along with other Youth Ambassadors, Shanna was taught how to carry out a community health needs assessment in the local area, and later presented the findings to key stakeholders to inform future project planning. In addition, the YCI volunteers used their training to organize and host a local International Women’s Day event.

It is thrilling to know that individuals such as Shanna are dedicating their time to improving the wellbeing of communities. However, I was a pleasantly surprised to learn of her decision to make another personal commitment towards the eradication of extreme poverty after having returned from Tanzania. On this topic Shanna said,

“I think it (LBL) is an opportunity to be a global citizen. It stimulates reflection about the huge inequities that exist in our world, and takes a massive international issue down to the personal level. It is an exercise in empathy and a chance to encourage thoughtful discussion.”

Shanna’s efforts in the Live Below the Line campaign have had a significant impact on many levels – from raising awareness of global youth development to raising awareness of the issue of extreme poverty. Shanna has successfully raised over $300 to support the work of YCI, an organization that she knows to be effective and sustainable. In fact, in knowing that there are over 1.8 billion people between the ages of 10 and 24 in the world, YCI is unique in that they believe in, and embrace, the power of young people to contribute to their own development.

Also, every conversation that Shanna has had with friends and colleagues about LBL has raised further awareness about the issue of extreme poverty. Yet this challenge is very personal to Shanna having had come back from Tanzania recently. The Live Below the Line experience gave her further insight into the everyday realities of her host family and community members in Tanzania.

As Live Below the Line‘s Campaign Manager, I am continually inspired by Shanna and the hundreds of other Canadians who dared to partake in the Live Below the Line challenge. If you haven’t had the opportunity to embark on this unique challenge or to fundraise, you can still participate until June 30th.

That’s less than 2 weeks away. So, join Live Below the Line before it’s too late. Your efforts will raise awareness of extreme poverty and help support the critical work that Youth Challenge International is doing to end it.

 

Emma Luker in Nungwi – Community Youth Development In a Fisherman’s Village

Emma and Justeen teaching a Climate Change workshop in Mwajuni (a village close to Nungwi)

Daily Life in Nungwi

Every morning here in Nungwi I am excited to wake up and get out of bed. Why? The breakfast of course! I am only 3 weeks into my placement in rural, northern Zanzibar and I already know that when I go back home to Canada I am going to miss the food like crazy! Chapati (fried, flatbread), maandazi (deep fried doughnuts) and sweet, spiced tea (chai); what else do you need to kick start your day? After brushing our teeth and a quick “Siku njema, Mama!” (“Have a good day, Mother!”), Justeen De Ocampo and I are out the door.

Another one of the best parts of my day is walking to work. After about 15 called greetings of “jambo,” (“hello”) from the local children heading to school, all decked out in their white shirts and blue pants, who wouldn’t have a smile on their face? That is just the way things are here in Nungwi. Everyone knows everyone, everyone is incredibly friendly and everyone is ALWAYS “nzuri” (“fine”). I love walking down the street and seeing familiar faces, some of them my own English or computer class students, and overall I just feel at home here.

Our morning destination is Labayka, a community-based organization which is currently overseeing the Zanzibar Employment Enterprise Training (ZEET) project. This means our days are filled with helping to build the capacity of local businesses in order to increase their productivity and sustainability. That is not all, Justeen and I are also in charge of teaching daily professional English and computer classes to local youth and drafting two future action plans for the local community, one to do with eco-tourism and the other to do with climate change adaptation strategies.  We are always busy, but between us and the amazingly energetic and hard-working Labayka staff, our days are consistently dynamic and satisfying.

Every day we walk home past the small local businesses and the dala-dala stop with the usual chorus of “jambo!” from all directions. Amongst the children walking home from school I sometimes spot my eldest host brother, proudly sporting the Canadian flag pin I gave him on his uniform shirt. That is definitely something I look forward to every day: coming home to my three host brother’s smiling faces, and watching Swahili soap operas of course.

I am 3 weeks in and I already never want to leave. Every day is an adventure and I am incredibly grateful that I am experiencing this amazing opportunity!

Emma walking on the beach in Nungwi.

– Emma Luker, Youth Ambassador, Tanzania 2013