Managers

In Knowledge for Children Cameroon, most of our staff is Cameroonian. We have a management team that consists of me as the Country Director, our Finance Manager and two Program Managers. They are all Cameroonians. Our managers are essential for our organisation; they have a very important role to play in all decisions concerning the organisation.

This seems to be special. Recently there was an intern in our organisation for one day of research. He was asking me how it is to work with African managers, because it is so uncommon. In many (international) organisations, the field work is done by Africans, but the management is in hands of Europeans or Americans.

Some time ago I also spoke with the director or a partner organisation. He was saying that I am so lucky working with Knowledge for Children staff. They are all working so hard and they are all so committed. According to him that is something special.

Our Cameroonian staff is very committed. They work very hard and try their very best to make our organisation better. I am always very happy that they come with suggestions to improve on projects, structures or even small things. We can’t always take every suggestion they do, but we always consider them, and we always try to improve on the problems they identify. And we always explain why we can’t do something, or we discuss and come up with a better solution together.

Sometimes my white face is opening doors that remain closed for them. But without our staff, our work would not progress. They know which doors I have to knock on and how I should knock. And they tell me. And then I can open doors, without them it would be difficult!

Cameroonian directors are normally very hierarchal. Often they have a bell in their office and they ring it when they want to see someone. I am obviously from a very different culture. I don’t expect our staff to come to my office in the morning, bow and say; Good Morning Madam! We chat and have fun together. If there is an event you will see me cleaning chairs. In Knowledge for Children that is very normal, we are a team and we do it together. But often people from outside are shocked to see the director (or even the managers) cleaning chairs, carrying tables or handing out water. ‘

For me, the strength of Knowledge for Children is this team spirit, working together in everything. And the real strength is in our Cameroonian staff, who will sustain all the work for long and who will always look for ways to improve our work. 

Mud, mudder, mudst!

The rainy season in Kumbo has started. It rains almost every day, or night. Because of all the rain, all roads become big muddy slippery puddles. Yesterday I saw a taxi gliding down the hill where I live. I saw the driver tried to brake, but the mud is so slippery that it doesn’t help. (He slipped into the gutter).

The road to Oku during
the dry season... 

Reaching my house can become challenging. Going up is not so difficult. Our car has four-wheel drive so it can make it. I see a lot of cars which get stuck just below my house because it becomes a little steep and they can’t make it. But for me, the real challenge is to go down. It is difficult to control the car, you can’t brake.

Walking is also dangerous. Not so much because of the walking itself, but because of the cars, bikes and trucks that are still trying to come up our down. They can’t control themselves so they might just slip and hit you if you are not careful. Taking a bike is even worse, and taxis can’t make it up.

Right in front of my house is a depot of Brasseries, who distributes drinks. Many big trucks go there. Of course that is not really helping the quality of the road. They made a rain gate now just above my house. That is a gate which they close when it rains so only normal cars can pass, and no trucks. The heavy trucks destroy the roads too much. So hopefully it will be a bit better.

Last year I wanted to visit the village a bit further up hill. We drove up and met a truck stuck in the mud. We couldn’t pass so we turned around and wanted to take the other road. Just below my house, another car was stuck and we couldn’t pass again. Fortunately the car was removed soon so we could still travel.

My colleagues are very skilled drivers on all these roads. Soon schools will re-open and we will have to go everywhere again. We go to remote places and some roads are extremely bad. Sometimes we have to leave the car to see how we can pass a pothole, especially in the rainy season they can be full of water and you can’t see how deep they are. One road going out of Kumbo had a real swimming pool! But thanks to the cardinal’s mum (see previous blogpost) it is a bit better now.

The rain brings many challenges, but the dry season brings dust. Also a challenge! In general, roads over here are just a challenge and I still try to learn how to master them!

View from my office

Closing and repairing roads

When I came back in Kumbo, it turned out that the road up to my house has been worked on a bit. The mother of the Cardinal died and the funeral passed my road. People say; thank God the mother died, now our road is passable again. Isn’t it sad?

Some time ago I was in the capital of Cameroon, Yaoundé. I had a meeting at the other side of town. Somewhere halfway we got stuck. The President of Cameroon was expected back from the airport and then the roads are all blocked. I called the person I was supposed to meet who only said; ‘O, yes, just call me when you get close by’.

My colleague, with who I was in the car, was very happy because after 15 minutes the President really passed and we could still have our meeting. It seems that sometimes they close the roads around 11AM and the President only passes by 4PM. Or later… I also hear stories of people who are kept in the airplane at the airport for hours because the First Lady is coming back.

A few days ago I came back from the Netherlands, flying into Yaoundé. The road from the airport to the town was repaired. My friends then told me that President Hollande from France was coming to Cameroon, so the road has been repaired. On TV we saw people wiping the roads, painting the white lines, banners were put up all over town. Hollande was expected by 4PM, but the members of the political party of the Cameroonian President were supposed to be ready to receive him along the airport road by noon. Roads all over town would be closed down. I was lucky I didn’t arrive that day as the airport was most likely closed all day.

For people in Yaoundé, it is a normal situation that roads are closed if the President is expected to arrive or leave. For me as a Dutch it is an amazing thing that roads are closed for hours only because one person is supposed to pass.

PS Ngashie as drawn by a pupil

By the way, these road repairs and all security cost a lot of money. If you like to support a better cause in Cameroon, check our crowdfunding page here and help Knowledge for Children to donate books to PS Ngashie!

Help PS Ngashie to join Knowledge for Children!

‘Finally the Lord has done it, finally finally!’ Even before Knowledge for Children has brought any books to Presbyterian Primary School (PS) Ngashie, the pupils, teachers and parents are already very excited. They sing the famous song to express their happiness and excitement. Only the idea that soon their school will hopefully benefit from the Knowledge for Children program makes them very happy.

PS Ngashie is located in a rural village in the Anglophone North West Region of Cameroon. It has an enrolment of 81 boys and 91 girls. The nursery school has an additional 30 boys and 32 girls In the school, 6 teachers (including two nursery teachers) try to teach the pupils as good as they can. However, it is not easy. Like in almost all rural primary schools in Cameroon, there are no textbooks and no teaching aids. Three teachers did not go for formal teacher training. In both primary and nursery section, half of the teachers were not professionally trained.

PS Ngashie will be the 134^th school to benefit from the Knowledge for Children program. In this program, Knowledge for Children donates government prescribed textbooks to the school. Unique is the co-investment structure in which the parents contribute and pay a total of 30% of all books. Knowledge for Children works with a school for three years. After these three years, every two children sharing a bench have access to one textbook in English, Sound and Word Building, Mathematics and General Knowledge.

Besides donating textbooks, Knowledge for Children also trains the teachers of the school. This is essential as the official teacher training lasts only for nine months. Many teachers are not well prepared to teach. The ones that are trained and experienced still find it difficult to make efficient use of the textbooks as they have been teaching without books for long. Knowledge for Children therefor trains and coaches teachers on aspects like child centred teaching, use of books in the classroom and evaluation techniques.

Not only teachers, also parents are trained. In the Community Leadership Program, the parents choose representatives who will be responsible to ensure continuous investment in the school after Knowledge for Children has phased out from a school. They will learn how to manage the books, how to manage finances etc.

The children, teachers and parents of PS Ngashie can’t wait to see textbooks and to start using them in class. You can help us to make it possible! The children of PS Ngashie count on your support to realize their dreams for the future.

For example, Blessing is a pupil in class five. When she grows up she wants to be a journalist. It will be difficult for Blessing to reach this dream without having access to text books.

The children in class one and two all want to become a ‘Madam’. Their teacher inspires them so much that even the boys want to be her when they grow up. Of course not all of them will become teachers, but with the help of text books at least some of them will be able to become teachers in their future.

With your help, PS Ngashie can become a Knowledge for Children school. Be assured that the day Knowledge for Children will bring the first books, the song will even be louder; ‘Finally the Lord has done it!’. 

We started a crowd funding page to raise money. If you want to help, you can donate through this page. You can also donate through me in cash or through my Dutch bank account (contact me for details). 

Thanks a lot in advance!

Marching!

Cameroon is fighting Boko Haram. We hear about successes of the military in fighting them every now and then. The nation is really behind the army to secure peace in this country. And with a reason! Cameroon is a safe haven in the middle of countries with a lot of violence, Boko Haram in Nigeria, wars in Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo, security issues in Chad. Cameroon is really safe compared to all these places.

For me, being Dutch, I understand that people are proud of their army. I can even understand that people and councils are collecting money or food to support the army. I am not happy that the construction of the road from Kumbo to Bamenda is put on hold as the budget reserved for that seems to be going to the army now to fight Boko Haram, but even that one I can kind of reason.

What strikes me here all the time though, is how militarized national holidays are. On Youth Day, school children march in front of the oga’s or big men of Kumbo. On Women’s Day, women march, on Labour Day, workers march. This marching is taken serious. The school right in front of the Knowledge for Children office has practised marching for Youth Day for weeks. So, weeks of teaching are disturbed because children will march and have to practise to march in line. Apparently marching is seen as more important than reading or counting.

People here are always shocked when I tell them I never marched in my life. I joined parades, I joined protest marches but I never really marched like a soldier. For Cameroonians, it is impossible to think about that. They start in nursery school and many continue until they are adults.

The 20^th of May is National Day. This day celebrates the unity of the Anglophone (British) and Francophone (French) Cameroon. Sounds like a reason to celebrate to me indeed! But again, everyone comes out to march. The focus during National Day is on the army, police etc. In short, during National Day, men in uniform march. I can’t help that I find it difficult to take a too fat man, stuck in a too narrow uniform, marching very seriously very funny. So at least I enjoyed that part of the day.

In Kumbo however there are only few men in uniform. So the school children march again, political parties march and before you know it you find yourself in the Grand Stand of Kumbo for three hours, watching how people march.

I hear that in some places (or some years?) the marching is more like a parade with dancing and shows. At least in Kumbo this year, that was not the case. The MC even announced that this day was to honour the army, so all marching should be like the army.

Celebrating Queens Day, dressing up in orange!

It is understandable that people want to support the army in this time. But is all this marching really so serious? Is there not a more fun way to honour the army and celebrate the peace and unity of the nation? Or am I just weird that I think marching in the burning sun, waiting for hours and marching for five minutes, is not a fun way to celebrate your peace and unity?

I went to a school the next day and many children, boys and girls, said they wanted to be a soldier when they grow up. So apparently, the message is reaching them. Maybe I am very patriotic, but I am afraid I prefer our crazy orange events for Kings Day over all the military show off!

Water is Life

When you live in Europe, water is always there. You take it for granted and you can’t imagine that you will be without water. Here in Kumbo, there is a yearly water crisis around March and April. This is the end of the dry season and that is causing problems. However, this year even my Cameroonian colleagues say it is very bad, much worse than normally. And nobody knows why.

In the past two years I found out that being without light is annoying, especially if it takes for days. You can’t charge your computer or phone, you can’t keep food for long as the fridge doesn’t work and the nights are very long and boring as it is dark by 7PM.

Tap water...

But being without water is much more complicated. Did you ever think about for how many things you need water? Try to cook without water, you can’t wash your vegetables, you can’t even boil rice or pasta or potatoes. Or, think about all the dust that you catch when you walk home. If I wear my sandals my feet are totally red of the dust and there is no water to wash them. Or, how hygienic is it to flush your toilet only twice a day to save water?

I store water and I really learnt techniques to save water. For example; flushing the toilet twice a day, washing dishes once in two days and use that water again to flush the toilet. Or wash your vegetables in water in which you can then wash the dishes (and then you can also flush the toilet again).

Many Cameroonians have a borehole and a pit toilet on their compound. We don’t have any of these in our house. So I need to bring jerry cans to fill in the office if there is water there. And be careful to not spill water and fill everything as soon as water comes on. That means that I might find myself filling jerry cans and buckets by 3AM or so.

Years ago I saw a TV program in which Paul Rosenmöller was visiting women in Niger. I still remember that he was following them to the well were they were getting water. That well was something like 7km from their houses and they had to walk there, fill their jerry cans and walk back.

They were telling that sometimes the well was dry and they didn’t find water. Rosenmöller asked what they did in these cases and the women said; well we walk back and try again tomorrow. And we sleep thirsty.

I remember it very well as I couldn’t imagine a life like this. How horrible should it be? Now I feel it even more. I am lucky enough to be able to find water in town and have someone who can help me to carry it in a car to my house. But when the water is off in both the office and my house I really start to worry. I can’t imagine how it would feel to always wonder if you would find water today. Or to walk every day for 14 kilometres to get water, and then you can only pray there is really water when you arrive.

Water will become scarce in the world in the next decades. I have learnt here how horrible it is to be without, and I also learnt how to save water. If everybody would save water like we are forced to do here, the scarcity will become less. So, save water to save lives!

Malaria is a very bad sick

Marching trough Tatum to create awareness

Many people know that the 1st of December is World Aids Day. But did you know that 25^th of April is World Malaria Day? I think in the Netherlands it is not really commemorated. With a reason of course, there is HIV in the Netherlands, but no malaria.

Yearly, almost 600.000 people in the world die from malaria. Most of these are children below than five years old, living in Africa. This means that every minute, a child in the world dies from malaria. In Cameroon, malaria causes 40% of all deaths of children below five.

Compared to other regions in Cameroon, the prevalence in the North West Region is quite low. But still, malaria is an issue. Therefore, we decided to commemorate World Malaria Day with our Health Scouts. Together with our partner organisations Afoni Children of Hope Foundation and Rural Development Foundation we organised a day in Tatum.

Knowledge for Children invited the Health Scouts of four schools in and around Tatum and also the Mayor of Tatum was represented by his fourth Deputy. Unfortunately, the population of Tatum did not really come out. We were already warned by Afoni Children of Hope Foundation who are based in Tatum that it is very difficult to bring the people of Tatum together for events like this.

Two mosquitos trying to bite children under the net

But, the children of the four schools showed that they are very well aware of malaria and know how to prevent it. We marched through Tatum while the pupils were singing a song about malaria. We dressed up two children as mosquitos and made them bite other children. When we reached the grand stand, some children were hiding under the mosquito net to show that the giant mosquito could not reach them.

It was interesting to see how much the pupils know about malaria and how to prevent it. A nurse came from the Health Centre to talk to the pupils and even the class one children knew very well what we were doing (malaria day!) and what to do to prevent malaria. They all know how to use a bed net, they know they have to keep the environment clean, clean away bushes and wipe out puddles of water to prevent mosquitos from breeding.

Health Scouts of IPS Tatum singing and dancing

The children were showing all of this in sketches, songs and dances. One Health Club was acting out a community which showed wrong behaviour; using donated mosquito nets for fishing, to protect crops in the farm from birds, to carry beans from the farm etc. The second Health Club showed a community which is being sensitized in which parents help each other to understand the use of net. In the first sketch, the last Club showed a community which is sensitized very well, where people sleep under the net and clean the environment. Children also read poems, sang songs and danced. Two secondary school students read poems as well.

We are very proud of the Health Scouts. Not only because they showed that they really know what to do, but also because they are able to sensitize other people through their sketches and songs. Although their parents didn’t come for the event, I hope they will listen to their children as they really know what to do to prevent malaria. 

Junior Health Scouts of GS Tatum Dancing