August 7^th

We have been in Bukoba a week now and our little house is starting to feel like home.  We still have Mr Charles and the mafundi* visiting most evenings.  They consistently arrive as dinner is just ready no matter how early or late we decide to eat!  We now have a frame over our bed for the mosquito net, a new security light on the shed and wooden pelmets for hanging curtains in all the bedrooms.  We still don’t have a kitchen sink that we can use but the fundi* is (probably) coming tomorrow.

I walked to work and home again Wednesday and Thursday.  Steve walked with me, as did a varying trail of small children singing “mzungu*, mzungu” and giggling at our KiSwahili.  (We also get a lot of “Good morning/afternoon/evening, Madam/Sir.  How are you?” irrespective of time of day or which of us is addressed.  Our “Very well, thank you.  How are you?” is usually repeated by them to make sure they will have it right for next time.)

Michelle and I share an office with Mr Josiah (our BRDC liaison) and Mr Mr Mankunda, an academic officer for secondary schools.  In our building (the BRDC Education Office) there are offices for the District Education Officers for primary and secondary schools and their PA, the District Academic Officers for primary and secondary schools, officers for Adult Education, for Culture and for Sport, a Teacher Services Department (for appointments, promotions and discipline) and a Registry Department.

The Registry Department is very important – if there is no documentation or form for it then it doesn’t exist!  Copies of all correspondence in and out are stamped, dated, holes punched and fixed with string into bulging cardboard folders.  Then a note is added to the list of contents on the front cover.  These folders are stored in the registry office and in piles on officers’ desks. 

Records of exam results are also kept in the Registry Office.  These are all hard copy records – BRDC Education Office has two computers that I have seen – one on the primary school DEO’s desk and one on his PA’s desk.  Mr Josiah has a laptop of his own that he brings to work.  Jim & Sue, the previous VSOs were helping him increase his IT skills and we will continue – it is a very little thing to do compared to what he does for us.  Mr Josiah is our link with BRDC – we rely on him to translate, to find what we need and to make sense of the system we are working in.  When we start our school review visits next week he will come with us to get us to the schools (no maps are available) and to aid communication and smooth over misunderstandings of language and culture.

Michelle and I have spent our days planning our school review visits – looking up vocabulary that could be useful and putting the schools’ Standard 7 exam results (the exam all children sit at the end of primary school which determines if they can move on to secondary school) into a spreadsheet to analyse and understand.  We have also spent a lot of time greeting people and chatting as wazungu* are still a novelty and everyone wants to meet the new ones!  When greeting and chatting it is important to show proper respect especially to those in authority or those with age on their side (I am respected by everybody!).  Some of the Head Teachers of district schools have popped in and we have met a couple we will be working with, also some of the Ward Education Coordinators (WECs) who will be important to our success.

Our school review visits start in the coming week.  We will visit 20 schools over 3 weeks.  We will be finding out how they are progressing with the SMART targets (management lingo) they set themselves last year.  We will also be finding out what help Michelle and I can be as administration and mathematics ‘experts’.  I am really looking forward to seeing what is happening in the classrooms to find out what the challenges are. 

We need to get these visits done in August.  In September the WECs and the Head Teachers will be too busy with the national Standard 7 exams (there are five 1½ or 2 hour exams – KiSwahili, English, mathematics, science and social studies) to be wanting interruption from us.  In October the WECs will be too busy with their responsibilities in running the national election (organising polling places, electoral rolls, etc.)  Once we know what we can do best to support teachers we can spend September organising it and hopefully by October we will be running our first lot of workshops.  Anyway, that’s the dream!

Yesterday was also momentous for two great events.

Event 1.

 I became the Registered User of a Tanzanian Postal Commission post office box – and I have the photo ID to prove it!  On Tuesday we went to Posta to apply.  I explained in my best KiSwahili that we would be living in Bukoba for one year and that we would like to rent a PO Box.  He told me (in English) they didn’t have any left.  I asked (in English) if there was a waiting list.  He sent me to the next counter.  I tried again with “I would like to rent a PO Box” and the young woman behind this counter pointed to an office out the back and fled!  A man come out from the office to which she’d gone and motioned us back to the first counter.  I asked (in KiSwahili) if he spoke English.  I was relieved when he said yes!  I repeated the story about why we were here and he told me I could have a PO Box but not today – it would take at least 2 days to find one.  I filled in the form, gave him a copy of my passport and visa and told him we’d be back on Friday.

Friday morning we went back to Posta.  The English speaking man from Tuesday was there and he said I should go to counter 2 to pay, then I could have my PO Box.  I queued, then paid, then returned to the first counter.  The woman from counter 2 came around too, with all the forms and the receipt.  “Where are your 2 passport size photos?”, she asked.  Right! “I’ll be back this afternoon with the photos” I said and headed for the door, then remembering advice from a friend who’d been an AVA in Zimbabwe, went back to the counter and asked if I’d need anything else.  No, just the photos were needed.  (I must be from Mars if I don’t know that!)

After momentous event 2 (soon to be related) and a rest at home we returned to Posta with the required photos (which were twice the size of the space allotted on the card and have been radically trimmed!), I signed all the forms and my Registered user card was handed over.  The only thing now is to get the key to the box.  My English speaking friend informed me it hadn’t arrived yet – he didn’t say from whence it was to come.  I am to go back next Friday and hopefully the key will be there. 

Anyway – now you can write to us at our new address

Jennifer Clark

PO Box 1951

Bukoba

Tanzania

Event 2

The Bukoba equivalent of Sheepvention, known as “Nane nane*” is currently on and Mr Josiah insisted we took yesterday off work to attend.  It is a celebration of all things agricultural and horticultural held nationally, culminating on an August 8^th public holiday. (A Sunday this year so no long weekend!)  Each of the regional district councils had a display highlighting the products its farmers grow.  Many industries had displays – we spent quite a bit of time hearing about the sugar and coffee industries – and there are animals and vegetables on display too (though no sheep!)

As at Sheepvention there were commercial organizations wanting to sell the stuff they were demonstrating – a small scale oil seed press, a foot powered water pump – and lots of food and beer tents.  I bought 5 matching kangas – pieces of printed cotton cloth about 120cm by 4m - to use as curtains under our newly installed curtain boxes.  They were 3500Ts each. (Less than $3)  The hardest thing was choosing a print that would go with the décor. 

There were also a lot of vegie crops growing.  I’m hoping they inspired Steve to get our vegie garden started as everything grows so quickly here.  I n our garden we already have self sown tomatoes which are flowering and African eggplant almost ready to harvest.

It was a great morning out!

More soon, love Jenny

*Essential Vocabulary

mzungu – white person,  wazungu – white people

fundi – skilled workman, mafundi – skilled workpeople

SMART targets – Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic & Timed

Posta – Post Office

Nane – eight