Prior to leaving for The Gambia Sarah and were a bit concerned about what would we have to offer. For example, who were we, with no real gardening experience, to tell Gambians that despite the fact that they have been gardening a certain way for generations that what they are doing is all wrong and in fact they should do _______. Basically, as recent college graduates without a career full of experience, how can we go tell a 60 year old Gambian that he/she is doing it all wrong. That thought process is a bit daunting. However, we have come to realize that there are many things we took for granted that in reality are not so basic.
These can be grouped into four main categories - basic health and sanitation, basic business sense, basic preparedness and basic computer skills.
Health and Sanitation - We know that it is important to wash a cut with soap and water. In contrast, some people here will rub battery acid, manure, or ink on a cut. The ink at least makese sense because rubbing ink or your skin has a similar coloring effect to rubbing iodine on your skin, and based on peoples experience in health facilities it is known that doctors rub something on a cut that looks like ink. Tellingly the Mandinka word for iodine is Inkoo. Oops...
Business Sense - If an American were to start a business the first thing he or she is likely to do is think - will someone buy my product? Another common first thought is - are other people already selling my product? That line of reasoning doesn't really occur. Take gardening for instance - our village has two large gardens (2-3 hectares total) and the following three crops are grown - mint, potatoes, and hot peppers. Even in the smaller garden with a good fence to protect more delicate crops from goats/donkeys/chickens, no one bothers to grow a different crop to sell at market. Also, everyone sells the same thing at markets. If you want a chance at being successful try selling something that is low in supply. Again - go figure - apparently we do have something to offer.
Preparedness - When leaving home for a long time we will bring some food and water or money to buy some. That sort of preparation rarely if ever occurs. For instance, it would not be out of the ordinary to go on a bike ride and not bring any water. Likewise, it is not considered unreasonable for someone to leave for the morning and not bring any food, water, or money.
Computer Skills - Our trainers said that in The Gambia, every American is an IT expert. I didn't quite realise the truth of this until I was asked by several people to set the time on their phone. Training in how to use Word or Excel would also be very useful. Just knowing how to turn on a computer and create a folder is a useful skill we can transfer.
So while I might not be able to teach much about gardening, there is apparently much that I once took for granted that I actually can teach.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
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1 comment:
Your comments about what you have to share and teach are very interesting. It reminds me of my reaction, when traveling in Kenya, that the amount of basic infrastructure in the US creates a standard of living that in certain respects far surpasses the standard of living in developing countries -- merely because of the availability of sanitation, indoor plumbing, electricity, neighborhood schools, basic hygiene, functional roads, outdoor lighting and free museums. You do both have a lot to offer, just because you have lived in a more sophisticated country.
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