Email Number 7
April 2005
Windhoek, Namibia
Email Number 7
Hi Everyone,
This will be our next to the last email - one more coming probably on May 10 or 11, just before we return home. That one will feature our last trip and we hope will have nice landscape and animal photos, and hopefully some portraits as well.
This one will be a bit shorter than our others, (aren't you glad?).
We just spent a week in the north and northeast doing some training and program evaluation. We were in Rundu in the Kavango Region, and Katima Mulilo in the Caprivi Region. Both of these places are very different from the rest of this country - both are located on major rivers and there is much greenery. Wildlife include hippos and crocodiles which of course you don't see in the rest of desert Namibia!
Just to prove that we do work, we have included a photo of Peter teaching proposal writing to a class of caregivers (for orphan and vulnerable children). Most of the rest of our time in the north was spent doing grassroots program evaluation, and "light" strategic planning. Never the less, we were able to get one small group going after they had stalled for the past two years, so we are pleased with that.
We visited a clinic in Katima and here is a sad story and sad commentary as well. The clinic has only 1 person, a nurse (Ellen). Ellen told us that morning she had seen18 patients - all children, and most with malaria. The only problem was that Ellen had run out of medicine and the Ministry of Health has not given her any more. Pretty hard to treat these problems without any medication. Do you know that 160,000 people die each month around the world from malaria alone? Also no money to give out mosquito netting. The worst of all is that Ellen told us about a child who came in with a fever of 4o, (104). In addition to not having medication, she couldn't call an ambulance because the phone bill was not paid by the Ministry of Health since they had spent the budget on "other things". This clinic is located quite far from town - too far to walk. Hopefully the child survived, but it is easy to understand how these 160,000 people die each month from malaria. Malaria is preventable with netting, long sleeved clothing, etc. But all of that takes money. Ellen also told us that one of her patients was a 5 year old who weighed 22 pounds!
Well there wasn't much we could do, but we did write a letter to the Minister of Health, and hope that some action will take place. It is pretty frustrating.
On this same trip we brought 5 gallons of paint that we were able to get donated which will be enough to paint the outside of one of the kindergartens that we evaluated. We will give 5 gallons each also to 3 more kindergartens. Sometimes just freshening up a place makes it a bit more cheerful.
The goat project is going very well thanks to those of you who have helped, ($50 per goat). With your help we have bought 10 goats, and CAFO will also buy 9 or ten, so that with the goats the project already has, there will be enough milk now to feed all of the 72 orphan kids in the project. This program will be used as a model. Soon, we expect it to be income generating, and not just self sustaining. This is one of the best things we have done with your help. THANKS!
Here is a nice story. On our last trip to the north, we met with a small group, (the woman was related to the King) who needed some small grant to fence in a "mahangu" field. (Mahangu is a grain, kind of like corn which is mashed into a gruel or porridge and is a staple of the north.) To find this woman in the village, the directions were as follows: Drive to the village. Look for a yellow telephone on a pole. Look across the street for a tree and there in the house would be this women. Well, these directions actually got us there. Unbelievable! While talking to her we told her that we were surprised that there were no basket sellers on the road side. She said all of the women were busy in the mahangu fields but she would try to find us some baskets. That was about 6 weeks ago. Last week, a man walks into our office asking if there were "two white guys around". We said no. only 1 white "guy" and 1 "women". He was carrying a plastic bag and jokingly we asked if it was filled with money. He opened it up and there were some beautifu baskets which we were happy to buy. End of story.
End of email. You'll be hearing from us in another 2 weeks and then you'll see us in person after that.
Love,
Peter and Hinda
Windhoek, Namibia
Email Number 7
Hi Everyone,
This will be our next to the last email - one more coming probably on May 10 or 11, just before we return home. That one will feature our last trip and we hope will have nice landscape and animal photos, and hopefully some portraits as well.
This one will be a bit shorter than our others, (aren't you glad?).
We just spent a week in the north and northeast doing some training and program evaluation. We were in Rundu in the Kavango Region, and Katima Mulilo in the Caprivi Region. Both of these places are very different from the rest of this country - both are located on major rivers and there is much greenery. Wildlife include hippos and crocodiles which of course you don't see in the rest of desert Namibia!
Just to prove that we do work, we have included a photo of Peter teaching proposal writing to a class of caregivers (for orphan and vulnerable children). Most of the rest of our time in the north was spent doing grassroots program evaluation, and "light" strategic planning. Never the less, we were able to get one small group going after they had stalled for the past two years, so we are pleased with that.
We visited a clinic in Katima and here is a sad story and sad commentary as well. The clinic has only 1 person, a nurse (Ellen). Ellen told us that morning she had seen18 patients - all children, and most with malaria. The only problem was that Ellen had run out of medicine and the Ministry of Health has not given her any more. Pretty hard to treat these problems without any medication. Do you know that 160,000 people die each month around the world from malaria alone? Also no money to give out mosquito netting. The worst of all is that Ellen told us about a child who came in with a fever of 4o, (104). In addition to not having medication, she couldn't call an ambulance because the phone bill was not paid by the Ministry of Health since they had spent the budget on "other things". This clinic is located quite far from town - too far to walk. Hopefully the child survived, but it is easy to understand how these 160,000 people die each month from malaria. Malaria is preventable with netting, long sleeved clothing, etc. But all of that takes money. Ellen also told us that one of her patients was a 5 year old who weighed 22 pounds!
Well there wasn't much we could do, but we did write a letter to the Minister of Health, and hope that some action will take place. It is pretty frustrating.
On this same trip we brought 5 gallons of paint that we were able to get donated which will be enough to paint the outside of one of the kindergartens that we evaluated. We will give 5 gallons each also to 3 more kindergartens. Sometimes just freshening up a place makes it a bit more cheerful.
The goat project is going very well thanks to those of you who have helped, ($50 per goat). With your help we have bought 10 goats, and CAFO will also buy 9 or ten, so that with the goats the project already has, there will be enough milk now to feed all of the 72 orphan kids in the project. This program will be used as a model. Soon, we expect it to be income generating, and not just self sustaining. This is one of the best things we have done with your help. THANKS!
Here is a nice story. On our last trip to the north, we met with a small group, (the woman was related to the King) who needed some small grant to fence in a "mahangu" field. (Mahangu is a grain, kind of like corn which is mashed into a gruel or porridge and is a staple of the north.) To find this woman in the village, the directions were as follows: Drive to the village. Look for a yellow telephone on a pole. Look across the street for a tree and there in the house would be this women. Well, these directions actually got us there. Unbelievable! While talking to her we told her that we were surprised that there were no basket sellers on the road side. She said all of the women were busy in the mahangu fields but she would try to find us some baskets. That was about 6 weeks ago. Last week, a man walks into our office asking if there were "two white guys around". We said no. only 1 white "guy" and 1 "women". He was carrying a plastic bag and jokingly we asked if it was filled with money. He opened it up and there were some beautifu baskets which we were happy to buy. End of story.
End of email. You'll be hearing from us in another 2 weeks and then you'll see us in person after that.
Love,
Peter and Hinda
posted by Peter and Hinda Schnurman at 6:56 AM
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