Monday, August 12, 2013
Greetings from very cold Tanzania
I am back in Katesh and working with two groups: Katesh AMCOS (Agricultural Marketing Cooperative Society) and Heikima SACCOS (Savings and Credit Cooperative Society). I had worked with Heikima on a previous trip but the attendees are mainly new to me. We are meeting in a government building which has been fine.
I arrived in Kilimanjaro airport after 3 flights. The first two were Delta and I was upgraded on both! The third is a KLM flight from Amsterdam; 8+ hours with no ghost. Ah well. The Immigration at Kilimanjaro is always a challenge with few officers and hundreds of passengers. As my visa and CTA (Certificate of Temporary Assignment) were both valid until August 14th, the officer waved me on- a stamp requiring that I check in with a Regional Immigration Office within 2 weeks. This has been a challenge as Katesh is a small village. I was going this morning to the RIO at Babati but the CNFA car is not working.
I stayed several nights in Moishi, a small city near Arusha.
On the 5th, we traveled to Arusha for the annual Agricultural Trade Fair for northern Tanzania. Many wonderful demonstration plots by the best farmers in each district. I purchased shoe polish, wine (from the Roselle plant – Lynfred Winery in Illinois also lists) and groundnuts (peanuts). That evening 24 CNFA-assisted farmers arrived at the hotel for 2 days of meetings and trips to the Trade Fair. It was wonderful to see former clients: Gende Cooperative in Babati; USOMAMA; Takauma from Lake Basuto and meet some new friends. The hotel was awful: no hot water and a night club that went non-stop from sundown to sun up.
Travel to Katesh included a stop in Babati for rice, beans and green vegetable with Red Gold Chili Sauce. That is my favorite meal in Africa. Arrived and went immediately to meet the Board of the two clients. Set the logistics and topics for the next 8 days of training. It is my Finance 101 with special emphasis on banking and loans. The classes have gone well with very active participation.
Saturday was the District farmers’ market – fields of second hand clothes and shoes; herds of cattle, sheep, goats, and donkeys for sale; meat grilling with local alcohol brews. It was sunny but cold and very windy so I only stayed a short time. The rest of the weekend was quiet. I visited Mama Duncan, the wonderful 70-ish lady who has organized women into a cooperative that makes beautiful jewelry, leather, and fabric items. Worked on flip charts for the next week. Sunday Haji picked me up and we attended the Heikema SACCOS meeting. At this meeting each week, the members make contributions to their savings accounts.
Monday was to be a trip to Babati to accomplish several things: Immigration, ATM withdrawals, and the purchase of water, candy, and more chili sauce. Alas, it was not to be as the car has stopped working. I will get to class by walking or taxi. It was extremely cold last week; this week starts cool but sunny. I am still wearing my fleece jacket inside the bedroom! Hope that everyone has a great week!
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