July 3, 2008

 

Yesterday we flew to Gambella. Our plane was quite late, a little over two hours but apparently that is standard here. Since the plane was so late, we were served a piece of dry yellow cake and soft drinks while we waited. As it turned out the snack on the flight (no meal) was another piece of the same cake. We went without eating a meal until supper time. No one in our group was complaining or surprised at the delay. The AC wasn’t working and made for an uncomfortable trip. Landings in the Fokker 50 were rough, one or two good bounces each landing.  I guess what we heard from the pilot at Victoria Falls when we traveled there in 2000, holds true for Ethiopia.  In
Africa, any landing you can walk away from is a good one.

 

We flew first to Jimma then onto Gambella. The scenery was beautiful from the plane coming onto Gambella. There was ridge after ridge of trees, greenery, and lush vegetation. When we landed in Jimma no passengers got off and none got on that I noticed. But we were allowed off the plane for a ten minute break. Since it was hot, a number of us found shelter from the sun under the wing of the plane. When we landed in Gambella, there was no airport facility, just a metal shed. The passengers who would board after we off loaded were gathering outside the building in a group. Another group of people were standing by to pick up the passengers who were getting off the plane. Gambella was the final stop for the passengers so everyone got off the plane. This area was unpaved. Okok, Ron’s coworker seems to know everyone here. Okok is a very tall, 6’6’, and says he is from the shorter of the two main tribes that reside in Gambella.

 

We were met at the airport by Okelo, Okok’s son, and another man who had brought Okok’s vehicle to transport us to our ‘hotel’. The road out of the airport was a one lane dirt road. A vehicle that was in a bigger hurry than us passed us riding off the road on the wild grasses. From here we went onto a bigger, one and a half lane dirt road that brought us into town. As we reached town, there were two wide asphalted roads. These were newly paved roads and some sidewalks had been asphalted, some yet to be paved. It was hotter here as we are now in the lowlands at a much lower altitude. But lush. My goodness on the way into town the vegetation was lush: vines, trees, and grasses were thick.

 

Our “hotel” was actually a guest house run by the UN’s World Food Program. It is a fenced compound with offices and several rooms for guests. We have a bougainvillea arbor in front that provides shade in front of the house but it is low, maybe seven feet or so off the ground. We entered a screened porch then a sitting area that contained a chair with cushions, a small couch, a round plastic patio table pushed up against the couch and a coffee table against the wall and plastic table. There are two bedrooms, one with a single bed and one with a bed that is slightly wider than a single but narrower than a double. They had thought Ron and I were traveling separately so we told them we would take the one room with the wider bed. The room is about 7 ft by 10 ft. The bed has a mosquito net over it, a small table by the bed and one chair. No where to hang clothes or put things. No problem. Ron and I have been wilderness campers in years past and know how to make do.

 

There were two other areas in the house: a small kitchen area with a stainless sink and a cabinet and a small bathroom with a toilet, sink with no stopper and shower. The bathroom had soft floors which made me think there was some serious dry rot. The floors were worn out, stained linoleum. It was clean but very tired. Okok said this is one of the best accommodations in Gambella.

 

Okok left us at the guesthouse to return in less than an hour to take us around town and to dinner as the guest house didn’t even have water for us to drink. So we changed into cooler clothes and sat on the screened porch and read our books.

 

We drove back into town, maybe a quarter of a mile and bought water for the room, then onto another very small store were we got some juice. I had plain tea cookies and peanuts in case we got hungry. I even had brought granola but realized that there were no bowls, spoons or way to refrigerate milk and juice so discounted that idea immediately. We were totally dependent on Okok for access to meals and we were thankful he had a car and was willing to host us. After the two stores he drove us to the Baro River, the only navigable river in Ethiopia and this river flows into Sudan and then into the Nile.  It is an important means of trade. It was along this river that raiding slave parties transported thousands of captured men. This evening by the river there were many (10 or more) small gatherings of people who were having afternoon tea or coffee being served by vendors from thermos as there were no permanent stalls with power here. Obviously this is the place to socialize in the evening. The vendors with small chairs or stools were located under the shade of the trees on the bank of the river. Further down was the men’s bathing place.  In Sri Lanka people usually bathe with some clothing on but not here so I averted my gaze once I realized the men were not clothed. The river is big with a swift current. There are crocs in the river but the locals know where the safe place to bathe is apparently. The water is muddy from recent rains.

 

From here we went to the Baro Gambella Hotel where we had drinks on the veranda outside then went inside for dinner. We had spaghetti and bread. It is hot so I have little appetite (maybe I will be able to shed those pounds I gained on the two month road trip last fall.) The hotel where we ate dinner seemed quite nice. Okok said the only problem is it is not air conditioned. Not so much a problem right now but the temperature can reach 41C here according to one team member from Portland who visited earlier in the year. That translates to 105.8 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

Okok took us home. We decided to look at a movie as we had brought a DVD to view on the computer. Bucket List was entertaining but the sound track had a problem so the volume was quite low. Did I mention you can only buy pirated goods in this part of the world? We sat side by side on the bed to view the movie, holding the laptop on our laps and at times bending over to hear the dialog.

 

As I mentioned, the bed was small but we were delighted to discover that we could lay flat side by side with no room to spare. We were blessed to have AC in the bedroom. And we slept well.

 

The next morning we discovered that the large bucket of water was probably for bathing not bucket flushing the toilet. When I turned on the cold water only shower, there was a steady drip, not a flow. I was actually glad as it reduced the shock of the cold on my skin.

When it came to washing my hair Ron passed a bucket of water into the tiny shower stall for me to rinse the shampoo from my hair as I might still be there otherwise

 

Okok picked us up at 8:00 a.m. and we went back to the hotel for breakfast. We had a new trainee for a waiter. I ordered toast, coffee and scrambled eggs. Ron had the same but an omelet. Okok order coffee with milk. Somehow we got four coffees but Okok realizing this man was new and decided it was easier to accept the mistake rather than try and correct it. The food was good. I ordered another coffee and asked Okok to explain what I wanted which was the equivalent to an Americano (a shot of espresso with hot water instead of milk). The new waiter got nervous so he agreed to bring the water to the table. So all told we had two breakfasts, five coffees and a liter of water and our bill with 10% service was 35 birr. ($3.50 USD)

 

After breakfast we went to Okok’s office, a series of concrete one story buildings. Most of these were municipal offices.  He has a small 8 x 12 office and today there is no power so I am sitting in the dark writing this from the little bit of light coming in from the window. There are shade trees and Ron is between me and the window so there isn’t much light. I will correct my mistakes later as I worry when I will run out of battery power. Outside there is thunder and light rain. Ron and Okok are planning the day’s activities.

 

Okok is married and has nine children. His oldest daughter was born deaf and mute and now is a teacher of the deaf and mute. His son Okelo (which means born after twins) whom we met yesterday will start college in the fall, hopefully in an architecture program. Okok has a daughter studying nursing. I don’t know about the other children. Yesterday he had his youngest daughter at the airport in Addis where she was living with an older sister while she attended school.  She was returning to Gambella for the school break. Her name is Omega, meaning the last child. Remember “I am the alpha and the omega” from the Bible, meaning I am the beginning and the end?  Omega is six and her oldest sibling is 26! She was most impressive. She speaks exquisite English. She was quite and very observant. Okok says she takes it all in then later will talk about what she has observed. She was dressed in an adorable outfit of a matching jean jacket and skirt. Each piece had pink beads forming flowers. She had on a coordinating blouse. She has just spent a year separated from her mother, living with her sisters who live in Addis. She is in Addis to get a better education as they teach English starting in K-1. In Gambella she would not have English until starting in grade six or so. At breakfast today Okok was explaining a bit about naming to us. There are about seven tribes in Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya that share a similar language and culture so men’s names start with O, like Okok, Okelo, and Obama and women’s names start with A. So if the child born after twins were a female her name would be Akelo as opposed to Okelo. Interesting.

 

Recently Gambella has paved several main roads in town. One of Ron’s projects will involve a public awareness campaign regarding safety for pedestrians. Because roads have always been dirt, people walk in the roads, cars have moved slowly because the roads weren’t paved, and people could hear cars coming as they were noisier on the dirt. Now there are more cars on the road, they move swiftly and people can’t hear them and this results in many accidents. Ron’s project plans include painting bicycle paths and doing a public awareness campaign using banners across the street showing where pedestrians should walk, bicyclist should ride and where traffic should go. He hasn’t figured out as to where animals should go. Yesterday we had to stop the car as a large herd of cattle were being moved along the road. Today there was a smaller herd of goats on a different road. Interesting, working in developing countries where you have very different issues to deal with.  So here many people are on the road because the asphalted sidewalks have not been completed due to a cement shortage and the rainy season is upon us so construction has to be halted. It is much easier to walk on a paved surface than an unpaved one but since forever people have walked in the road. This will be a major endeavor to change an engrained habit.

 

Unlike Addis we find people on the street will stare at us but not respond with a smile or acknowledgement. We read that the people here are reticent and deeply suspicious but quite hospitable. There are five tribes here but the two main tribes are the Nuer and the Anuak.  Anuak huts are characterized by low doorways and thickly thatched roofs. The eaves, which stretch almost to the ground, keep out both the torrential rains and the baking sun.  The Nuer tribe uses cicatrizing which is considered sensual. The skin is raised in patterns to decorate the face, chest and stomach. Rows of dots are often traced on the forehead. Today we met the deputy mayor who had about six rows of tiny dots across his forehead. If you didn’t look closely you would think he had a creased brow but upon closer examination I realized these were scars. I have since seen it on several people.

 

There are no beggars here and children are discouraged from hassling tourists. In some towns tourists are followed by young people and taunted with slogans such as ‘you, you, you’ or ‘faranji faranji’ (foreigner) or worse ‘fuck you’. So far we have been spared. We count our lucky stars for many blessings every day.

 

The offices of the public employees are quite meager. They are housed in small concrete buildings, most interiors need a coat of paint and furniture is worn. However those with a lot of responsibility seem to have nicer desk than most people we saw in Sri Lanka. Many were large, newer wood topped desks and comfortable desk chairs. Most seem to have AC although it isn’t needed now in the rainy season. It is quite humid here however. In the US the AC would probably be on but we haven’t had much electricity today, none in Okok’s office. The electricity went off in the office of the transportation engineer’s office while we were meeting. Nothing changed once it went off. The meeting continued in the dark uninterrupted

 

We went to Okok’s house for lunch. He has a large house that he built himself in stages as money was available. His lovely wife, Nuno, had prepared a traditional feast for us. We had chicken stew and a beef and okra stew with sorghum, injera, rice and Italian bread. Okok said sorghum is the main staple here. It looked like bread dough that had risen but not been cooked. It was in a gourd that had been cut in half and I would guess that it was steamed. We each tried it and it was soft and bland. The two stews were delicious. In addition we had fresh sliced tomatoes with onions, hot peppers and fresh squeezed lime juice and fresh sautéed greens. Afterwards we were served traditional coffee and salted peanuts. Nuno is a member of the local parliament and very active in the community particularly helping the poor find a way to improve their lives by selling produce in the market here. Nuno is probably five feet tall and standing next to her husband who is about 6’6” looks quite small. She is a very strong woman however!

 

Okok revealed that he had been imprisoned for three years after unrest in the area about five years ago. He was taken to Addis along with other people in the opposition party. His sons were hunted by the police but escaped unharmed into Sudan and Kenya. During the time Okok was in prison a church in England helped sustain the family. Okok told this story with no bitterness or anger. In fact, he said it was a learning experience. Okok showed us a vase that had an intricate pattern of bead work covering the surface. Nuno had created this while he was imprisoned as a way to maintain her sanity. It was truly beautiful!

 

Many people here are quite tall and slender and much darker than other Ethiopians. Some are very poor and wear a hodge podge of western clothes, mostly jeans and t-shirts, often torn or ragged. This is interspersed with men and women wearing more traditional African clothes. There is an abundance of West African fabrics that are bright prints and tie dyed clothes: beautifully embroidered shirts that are tie dyed or brightly printed fabrics in highly contrasted colors.

 

The day was spent meeting various people who would be involved with the project Ron is working on or with whom he would need to coordinate. At the end of the day, Okok took us to a community garden. Here he had worked to obtain a lease from the government to use the land for a church community project. All land in Ethiopia is owned and leased by the government, perhaps a leftover from the communist era. Okok shared his vision of this project whereby they would raise food both to be consumed and sold to generate income, to train rural people in a number of skills such as fisheries management and baking. This would help them become more self reliant and have a means of earning an income. They had planted a field of maize that was 12-14 feet high. I have never seen anything like it. The field was HUGE and all planted by hand! It will be harvested within a week and sold to generate more income for the project. As a thank you for his hospitality we made a cash donation to his project. He is such an impressive man. On the way back to town we passed a young man and Okok told us the man had come to him, saying he was an orphan and wanted Okok to be his father. Okok has helped him by giving him work and taking him under his wing. There was a little boy we met the second day we went to Okok’s home. This little boy doesn’t know who his father is but again Okok has taken him in. Okok is an incredibly generous man of great faith. He inspired us both. No doubt he will do a tremendous job on the project. He has a Masters degree from the UK and many years experience in development work in Gambella.

My work in Ethiopia generally and Gambella specifically is oriented around helping local governments do a better job for their citizens through capacity building and demonstration projects.  My role is two fold;  First I am here to help ICMA get the project organized so it can be managed properly.  It is so strange to me that an organization that has Management as its middle name has so few systems for the international work that it has.  But I guess that’s good for me because it provides an opportunity for us to travel to these locations.  So I’ve been building a detailed step-by-step project plan with start and stop dates, assignment of responsibilities, etc, to track our progress and monitor activities.  I am also trying to leverage our program activities with programs from other NGOs and agencies.  This piece involves meeting with other agencies and seeing where our programs overlap…. And hopefully find common ground for some partnerships.  One other aspect of this part of my work is working with USAID on the registration ICMA needs from the Government of Ethiopia so we can officially work here.  The application was submitted in September of 2007 and it still has not been issued.  Ah  Bureaucracy!  And we’re trying to do work that’s funded by USAID that was REQUESTED by the Govt. of Ethiopia.  Amazing.

 

The second part of my work is to provide technical advice on some of the specific projects we are working on.  In Gambella these include a demonstration transit project, and traffic management plan for a brand new paving of the main roads in town.  Here   are looking at community and school education programs on how to use the roadway.  We are also doing a demonstration project in 6 villages for trash collection (the city does not collect trash now…. And the town shows it).  Our aim is to establish this as an enterprise operation that is self supporting.  We will also be rehabilitating one of the city’s 8 non-functioning public toilets (they only have 9 in total) and set it up on a sustainable basis.  We will add a male shower and a female shower that can be used only by the people that maintain the toilets.  A small fee for the toilets will be collected to offset operating costs.  We will also rehabilitate the city slaughter house and set it up in a sustainable manner.  Finally we will provide advice, training and guidance in collecting revenues that are owed the city.  This is a very ambitious program especially given the short timeframe (1 year) and a meager $125,000 in direct project budget.

 

We left Gambella around 1:30 and drove out to the airport. Our plane was delayed somewhat. First we entered the metal building that I would guess is 30 feet square. Here one man took our tickets, and issued a boarding pass while another man used a manual typewriter to create the rooster of passengers. Then our luggage was inspected manually as there was no x-ray equipment. We went back outside. After about 30 minutes everyone went back inside to go through a pat down (no body parts spared) and an inspection of carry-on items. We were crammed into a tiny room of classroom style setup of chairs while we waited for the plane to board. Fortunately the AC worked on this plane. It was a non event returning to Addis by way of Jimma. We were grateful to see yet another part  Ethiopia and extremely honored to have met such wonderful people as Okok, Nuno and their family.