Half way into placement….
Posted by Nick on August 7th, 2009
Well, its about half way into the placement and time for an update. Its hard to really know where to begin, it seems like so much has happened since I got here, and life back in Canada feels almost like another world. I guess I good place to start would be my arrival here. I was met at the airport by a WUSC staff member who gave me a ride to a hotel near the WUSC office in Accra. It was about forty-five minutes to the hotel, and that first experience of really getting into the thick of things in a foreign country is a mixture of slight fear and a lot of exhilaration. The traffic is crazy, gridlocked, and the way they drive here I’m convinced Ghanaian’s have absolutely no fear of death. There are people everywhere hawking everything from bread to towels to wallets, and everything (smells, buildings, language) is different from what you are used to. I kept smiling to myself, just overwhelmed by the fact that I was actually in Africa. Though of course, once you are here and settle in you realize it is not that big a deal, some customs and scenery may be different, but people are just people wherever you go, the scenery changes but the fundamentals stay the same.
After spending some time in Accra and getting an orientation from WUSC, it was off to the village of Fotobi to start work for the Forum for African Female Educationalists (FAWE). I have to admit I was a little worried about what the work situation would be like. I had been warned that organizations sometimes request a volunteer just because they can, and then have little or no work for the volunteer to do. Definitely not the case here. After a quick hand shake and hello, I was given an office and a folder of requests for funding to edit, and I was off to work. The current financial crisis has had a devastating effect on many non-profits, and I’m sorry to report that FAWE Ghana is definitely one of them. They are desperately short of funds to run their programs, such as their school for disadvantaged girls which is located close to where I work. The school has lost its funding, and is basically running on the good will of its teachers, who are owed close to four months salary. I have made it my main mission to find funding for this school, so the bulk of my time at work has been spent searching for funders and writing proposals.
The process has been both rewarding and discouraging. It has been rewarding in the sense that I am rapidly developing my professional skills and gaining some truly valuable experience. It has been discouraging because I frankly have not had any success securing funding so far, and will not receive answers to many of the proposals I’ve sent until after I leave. This is frustrating, because the need for funds is urgent, and I whole heartedly believe in the work FAWE is doing. I have had some success raising funds through a new website for FAWE that a friend in Canada generously designed and hosted for free (www.faweghana.org), but it is a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed. Still, I’m learning a valuable lesson: if you want to work in development you have to maintain a certain emotional distance. You have to take heart from the successes you do have, and not dwell on the things that are out of your hands. It may be clichéd, but you do the best you can do and thats all you can do.
On that note, the overall experience of living and working here in Ghana has been amazing. The people have a generosity of spirit and ability to be perfectly happy in the here-and-now that is inspirational to me. I’ve really come to love this country, and feel like I’ve really gotten to know Ghana, with all its beauty, ugliness and its inexplicable quirks. I feel like a part of the community here in Fotobi, and though I miss friends and family I will be sorry to leave this place and the new friends I have made here.
