Final Chapter from Mozambique

This will be my last blog before leaving Mozambique, but with this one I wanted to make some closure on a process I started some months ago that now seems to be making some exciting progress.

On one of my trips first to a village location north of Beira called Nhangua, we had arranged a courtesy call with the Administrator of the region around Nhangua, a Mrs. Simango, to tell her the things we were planning to do in her region. During our hour-long conversation while we were describing our “Water for Gardens” program I mentioned that we were looking for a beneficiary for one of our Rope and Washer pumps. We also told the Administrator that in a few weeks when our gardening expert Eric Crowther arrived we wanted to have someone that she might recommend to work with Eric on some garden projects in the area. She said she would look around for someone who might benefit by having one of our pumps installed on their property and also someone we might work with on the garden program.

Maria working on her new pump.

On our next visit to Nhangua Mrs Simanga told us about a widow in the village who needed a pump for a garden plot she was working on. Her name was Marie Da-Conceição. Maria was there on the government property that day and we went out to visit with her. In a few moments talking with Maria, we learned that she wanted her life to be different. She wanted a real life for herself and her nine year old daughter, and she was willing to work for it. Maria is a 48 year old widow and at the time was living in a cluster of small one-room homes built by a humanitarian organization working in this area, Care For Life. These homes were provided for widows and orphans in Nhangua Region. She was living in this hovel with her daughter and two other women.

We loaded Maria in our car and made our way out a muddy track that led into the bush where we eventually were asked to stop where this property she owned was located. It was about 3 km from the main road by the Government Administrative Offices. We learned that Maria was frequently walking this 3 kilometers to where her deceased husband had acquired the small plot of land some years back. There she was attempting to work the few pineapple plants that were yellow and crowded with weeds, but it was a hopeless job as there was no water except when it rained. That didn’t stop her, however. In an effort to have her own home, she had cleared a small part of the land, gathered sticks and had begun to build a mud and waddle one-room shack.

We looked over her property at several possible locations where a well might be drilled for a water pump and Maria immediately saw the vision of what was possible when she could use water from a new well and pump for irrigation. Days later with Maria’s constant help we had the pump installed and operating. Maria had carried all the sand in a bucket on her head from some source hundreds of meters from her farm that we needed for the pump’s concrete base; plus she was there through every stage of the construction leaning about tool use and building and maintenance of the pump. Between our visits there she cleared the land around the pump and began to cultivate some of the property for a vegetable garden. She also obtained some tomato and lettuce seed, and had planted seed beds that were already growning.

The house built with help from Maria's neighbors.

Villagers heard about her pump and came by to see it, and then we heard that on the Sunday after we finished the project a dozen or more villagers had all showed up to finish the building of her house. With a home of her own, she and her daughter would now have a chance to change their lives forever. In addition we promised her that with instructions she would receive later from our Gardening Interns she could become an entrepreneur produce vendor selling her vegetables in the village market.

We continued working with Maria on her garden project, first by bringing her a sprinkling can that she could use to water the plants she was starting on her own. On one visit we made to her place she had a huge area already planted and vegetables of several kinds that she had grown in her seed beds and transferred were coming up. I caught Maria on video on one of the trips using a large axe and a machete cutting out a large stump that was in the middle of an area she had started to cultivate for more garden room.

Maria's garden today.

Eric Crowther finally came to her place and began working with her with all due diligence on planning techniques for her vegetables along with some strategies for irrigation of the plot and marketing of the vegetables she was planting. The included photos show her progress.

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At the same time that we started working on Maria’s pump and garden we were introduced to the young woman who Mrs. Sinango said she would find for us to possibly be a garden coordinator for this area. We hoped she who would eventually work with Eric Crowther. On several of our visits to Maria’s home we picked up this young woman, Feliciana, a 16 package of dynamite known in the village as “Nene.” She immediately became an active part of our team building Maria’s pump by carrying sand in a bucket on her head, mixing cement, and assisting Maria cultivating her garden. I was so impressed with this young woman that I was determined that some way we should continue working with her and committed to find a way later on to hook her up with Eric.

Feliciana

That day came a couple of weeks after Eric arrived in May. We were on our way out to a part of the village where we were working with another client building a pump when we happened to see Feliciana next to the school where she was attending 7th grade. I had told Eric about this young woman and at first he was hesitant to have us make contact with her because with him being single and the other intern who was helping him also young and single, Eric didn’t think it was ethical to work with this young single 16 year old woman. Before we saw Nene that day by the school, Eric and I had several conversations in which I finally convinced him that he at least needed to meet with the woman if nothing else. That day of our chance meeting we stopped the car and Eric got out to meet Feliciana. When Eric got back into the car after only talking with Feliciana a few moments, he was committed to finding some way that they could work with her.

Over the next few weeks Eric and Adam (the other intern) continued to make visits to Nhangua to conduct business with Feliciana and to work with other farm projects they had scheduled for that area. Every time they went there and saw what Feliciana was up to in the community they became more and more impressed with her. On one of their visits they found out that she had begun to buy lettuce from a local lettuce grower and was walking several kilometers to the beach and a resort that was located there selling this produce for a small profit. Leaning that, they decided that somehow they were going to assist her with a startup loan so she could start her own garden, grow her own vegetables and make a small business out of the project. Their excitement grew every visit they made to Nhangua when they met with Nene. More and more they were impressed with her drive and spirit.

They came back just yesterday (June 13) after a long visit with her and her family with a story they had not heard about Nene until then. Their purpose in going there was to start drilling a well on the small property she had by the housing complex where she was living. Without having heard about this before, on this visit they discovered that she and her sisters owned another small bit of land some distance from the complex; and after looking at it were convinced that this was a better place to drill a well, find a cheap way to lift water from the well and start a garden. They went back to the house to meet her other sisters and found out some other news that was considerably different than any of us had heard about her family or expected. She has two sisters, one older and one younger. Both their parents are dead. The older sister who is about 22 years old is chronically ill with Malaria and possibly HIVAIDS. She spends most of her time in bed. The younger sister, a girl of 13 is about to have a baby. There is no aid for this family from any source, so Nene is the sole bread winner of the family and completely takes care of and supports her sisters at the same time as she is going to school. The boys also learned yesterday that the even though there are cousins, an uncle and an aunt living nearby this young group of orphans get no support or attention from any of them. By what they learned yesterday, our interns are even more motivated to get this young woman off to a good start in her new business. And I am sure they will do just that.

The Issure of Sustainability

June 7, 2008 Blog

The issues of sustainability and my contribution to it have plagued me ever since I first started the work with Engage Now Foundation (which is now Ascend, A Humanitarian Alliance) in 2004’s. On all the projects where I have worked and introduced new technologies for the poor people who are our target beneficiaries for the technologies I have introduced, it has been my goal that these things be sustainable. Each one has required a small amount of skills and in some cases tools in order continue making new items for theirs or their neighbor’s uses or to keep the items going once they were in the owner’s hands. In almost all cases where I have walked away from one of these projects the last part of this process has not taken place. The programs simply have not been sustainable. This is a matter of concern for me and one for which I have yet to come up with a solution. Here are some examples of what I speak:

In Ethiopia in 2004 through 2006 we were building simple latrines for poor people who had no latrines and were creating a terrible and dangerous sanitation and hygiene problems around their homes. The latrines that were being built when I got there were cheap to build and solved one problem—that of getting human waste into one central location rather than all over homeowner’s yards and farms. That was okay, but it created another problem that needed to be examined and that was that all the pests (flies and other creatures and unpleasant smells) were also now centralized where they could really be effective. So while the latrines were solving one problem, they were creating another.

A Cmmunity VIP Latrine Under Construction in Ethiopia

To mitigate that potential problem and create a latrine that would eliminate flies and smells I introduced and built a few Ventilated Improved Pit Latrines (VIP Latrines). This is a simple technology solution for sanitary latrines that have been proven to completely eliminate the fly and smell problems of the old style latrines. These VIP Latrines are being built in many places all over Africa and other developing countries with great success. They required a simple modification of the latrines we were building in Ethiopia that included a cheap piece of PVC pipe that would be used for a vent and a door that could be closed on the latrine so the interior of the latrine could be kept dark. The total additional cost of this modification was about $5, making the total cost of the latrine in the neighborhood of $15 each, but required a change in the way latrines costs were put in the budget. After I left the change was never made, so the idea eventually went dry. Everyone on the Engage Now Foundation staff were excited about the idea, but as time went on, interns came and went and staff changes came about there was no longer any emphasis being put on sustaining this idea with the additional budget that was needed, so the entire concept is now forgotten.

Another blatant example was the program I introduced in Ecuador in 2007 when we built our first horno or brick bread-making oven and then before I left built another six of the units. I was on a short schedule to get as much done in the 16 villages where we were working. All of my time was consumed in the logistics of getting these seven stoves built and working (along with several other water and garden projects). Time ran out on me and I was required to leave three months earlier than I had expected to leave so when the stoves were all completed, I had time to do only one training program on their proper use. The Program Coordinator who was in charge of getting people together for the training was not doing his job properly so when the training occurred on the last day that I spent in the field, only a few people were present. I had created a manual for the building of these hornos that included a detailed section on use of the ovens with recipes and safe use of them. I had translated the manual into Spanish so that the local Program Coordinator could distribute copies to the people who had the stoves and to anyone who might build one later. Essentially everything was in place when I left for the program to continue and for it to be a success.

Before I left the country I transferred all my records and handed over the books I had made for the hornos to the Intern who would be there for four more months following my departure. I handed over the same information to the Program Coordinator who would be ultimately responsible for making the sustainability of these ovens a reality. The Intern first of all had no interest in the ovens, as he believed his primary mission was to teach classes in Spanish on how to start a small business, so he had his own agenda and ego to manage and didn’t do anything about the training for the ovens. I had been campaigning for some time to get the other man, the Program Coordinator, fired, but had no success in that effort, and he was a man about his own agenda too—that of creating a name for himself in the villages where we worked; so he was of no value in sustaining the program.

So there I was leaving with no confidence that any training would be provided to the other six horno owners that were waiting for instructions on how to use the units, and with dozens of others who had seen the units that wanted one built or wanted instructions on how to build them themselves. Neither the Program Coordinator nor the Intern did anything to provide the six owners of hornos any training. Nor were any more built, except one that may have been built that was promised to be done by one of the home owners who had an horno that we had constructed, who had contracted to build one for his neighbor. One woman, therefore, had received the training and it was a good possibility that she would continue to use her oven.

An Horno for Baking Bread. Galte San Juan Village, Ecuador

As it turned out months later a family unit and a couple of friends (about five people) went to Ecuador on an expedition with the intent of building another horno in one of the villages. I provided this expedition group with all the materials to do this and encouraged them to do the training on the other stoves while they were there. They built one stove, but provided no training for its use. Later, still, a married couple went to the same region as interns and was given the charge to follow up on the work that had been done prior to their arrival (the building of these hornos). They were there for three months of the four they were under contract to stay when I received an E-mail from the woman who said that several people in the villages were complaining about having these hornos and didn’t know what to do with them. She wanted to know if I knew anything about this matter. I encouraged them to get the manual from the office computer or find a hard copy that must have been there and do the training. It would be easy to follow and all they had to do was buy some materials to make bread for the demonstration and put together a meeting time for the one-day training. Two weeks later I got word back that they could not find any of the information, so I sent the material I had to them. By that time it was too late and nothing was done. I suppose by now there are at least eight of these wonderful hornos sitting around in the villages that are left open and are being used by the owner’s dogs who would believe that they are a nice dog house where they can stay out of the weather.

Example after example comes to mind and it is no different here in Mozambique. I have labored to train the Program Coordinator on how to build a quality rope and washer pump. He was building a model before I came that was so bad looking and worked so poorly that I insisted that the model be changed to one that would be sustainable. However as we proceeded to build the new model there were no proper materials here in Mozambique to build them with. We built some with the unsuitable materials and as I had predicted, they all started to break down soon after they were built. I will be leaving in a week and we have for the time being stopped building the pumps for lack of this material, but I am certain that the Program Coordinator will find a way to revamp his old idea and get the program going again for his own personal ego and status, and will be doing the same as he was doing before I came here—building pumps of inferior quality.

It’s a sad but true commentary that people in this country on average are not interested in quality and sustainability. If something works, even though it works poorly or will soon break down, they are satisfied with it as it is. If it stops working they will simply quit using it and go back to the old method. There’s a simple example right here in the office that stands out in my mind as to the way it works here and will continue to work that way after I leave. Here at the Mozambique Ascend office we are using a home that was built at least 50 years ago. The plumbing is old and in very bad condition. The city water supply is unreliable so water is here only about four days of the week then it is off most of the other times. The Ascend staff had been in this building over a year when I came. Their solution to the water problem was to have two barrels in the house; one in the bathroom and one in the kitchen that would hold about 80 liters of water (about 21 gallons each) that are filled during the times when there is water, and used by dipping the water out with a one liter pitcher to flush the toilet, bath or wash dishes. Everyone was okay with that system. I was not.

After a few weeks of living with that program I insisted that we use some of the money we had in the budget to purchase a large plastic tank that we could install on the roof of the house and plumb into the existing water system as a backup. Everyone thought it was an okay idea, except that there was little enthusiasm for it. I purchased the materials and the tank and materials sat around for over a month. Finally after much harassment on my part, on a Friday just before a wave of four Interns was supposed to arrive that would greatly exacerbate the problem, I finally got the Program Coordinator to assist me to set the system up. Of course the only material (galvanized pipe and fittings) available for the job were the sub-standard materials that I had said were no good for the pumps we were building, but I went ahead with the job anyway. As it was installed, as I had expected it would be, the pipes leaked and one cheap valve broke and created a continual leak in the system. The solution that I watched happen over the month or more since the system was installed was to put buckets under the leak. The Program Coordinator made no suggestions to me to repair the system nor did the Director who seemed also oblivious that we had a problem.

Further out in the yard where the Guards cook there meals there is a water line that comes from the house with a stand pipe and spigot so they can get water for their cooking. This spigot has been leaking a steady stream of water since I have been here (going on four months) and the solution to that problem was to tie a small piece of rubber inner tube from a bike tire to the handle of the spigot to keep it partially closed and reduce the amount of water that was leaking. Everyone knows this problem exists, but no one was willing to take care of it or even mention that it was a problem. Inside the house I noticed when I got here that the toilet didn’t flush with a handle and a bucket had been put by the toilet to be filled each time from the barrel standing by so that the toilet could be flushed with a partially filled bucket of water. No one had even questioned why the toilet didn’t work, and they all seemed okay with it. When the water was on the toilet reservoir filled okay, but there was no way that the handle would lift the float so the toilet would flush. I asked about the toilet when I saw the problem and was told that it was broken ever since they took up residency in the house. After a few days that I was here, I lifted the lid of the toilet reservoir and discovered that the chain that lifts the float had fallen off. In about one minute I fixed the problem and we have had a flush toilet ever since. It was the same story with the shower heater. In this country water is heated at the shower head by an electrical device that heats the water as it flows out of the pipe into the head. This unit worked only on High and was so hot it could not be used. The Program Coordinator uses this shower every day because, I suspect, he does not have running water at his home, but he never complained or wanted things different. I looked into getting a new head for the shower and offered to change it. The thing only costs about $5 to replace. Two months later after several reminders, the unit was purchased and in minutes I had a working shower. This was also done in the last minutes before the group of U.S. Interns arrived.

Outside with the leaking pipes and spigot I waited and waited and even asked the question of the Program Coordinator and the Director if they were okay that we were losing all that water from the leaking pipes and paying higher water bill than was necessary. Neither seemed to care nor were any suggestions or questions asked if we should take care of the problem. I was amazed at their responses and the sort of lackadaisical attitude they had to this problem that also created a mud hole in front of the entrance that allowed all of us to carry mud into the house every time we entered. Finally, yesterday, I found some time available, enrolled the one Intern who was here to assist me and we would dismantle the piping and fix the problem. I took the Director to a hardware store to pick up a valve and a spigot (at a total cost of $18). When I got to the hardware store she had such a low motivation for this effort that she had not even brought her wallet to pay for the items so I used my money to do so. When we got back to the office I asked for my money to be returned and she said she didn’t have any; that she had not budgeted for this item in the monthly budget. I insisted on getting my money back so she reluctantly paid me out of some money a client gave her that day for partial payment of one of the pumps we had installed for the lady. In a matter of an hour working on the problem we had a partial solution. The substandard pipes are still leaking a small amount and will continue to do so after I leave, and I am sure no one of the local staff or the guards will give a damn.

Tank and Piping for the Ascend Office, Mozambique

A Poorly Constructed Rope and Washer Pump That Failed Soon After Construction was Completed

A Rope & Washer Pump Built to Last with Quality Materials

So that’s where I leave this place as I have left others during my quests for doing quality humanitarian services to people in these developing countries. As I told my daughter last night while I was talking to her using a sub-standard internet system that kept breaking up our conversation over the phone, the light that has shown me the way and motivated me over the last five years to do this kind of work is slowly getting snuffed out. My discouragement is about a high as it has ever been as I ready myself to leave after four months of struggling for excellence. Don’t get me wrong that I feel that I have failed. In no way do I feel that way. I have continued to do my best and have accomplished many good things. There’s just this nagging complaint that I have that I have been ineffective in influencing some of the people I work with that caring for excellence is better than being okay with the normal. I mentioned in one of my earlier blogs that I had asked everyone locally that I knew what they wanted this city and country to look like in five years, and if they were okay with how it was right now (broken down everywhere, unkept, unsanitary and dirty). None of them had an answer to the question, nor do I believe that any of them ever thought to ask the question.