Zambia Trip 31 January - 7 February 2009

As the plane descended towards Lusaka International airport I peered through the window for my first glimpse of Africa.

My parents had invited me to join them on their trip to Zambia so that I could learn more about PestalozziWorld on the ground.

In the dawn light, pockets of mist were still lifting through the dark green vegetation of the countryside. It was six in the morning, at the end of January in the middle of the wet-season, and already 19oC.

You can see lots more photos here.

My first impression was that the land had not been spoiled by humanity's footprint. The fields were not laid out in the patchwork that one is used to in Europe or North America. The boundaries were virtually invisible and most of the countryside seemed to be shared. A few roads cut through the countryside and some signs of habitation were dotted about, but signs of human intervention were limited. Lusaka was not visible, being some kilometres away.

At the airport we passed through immigration where a visa is bought, met a missionary who is always there to welcome various people, picked up a couple of bags from the luggage carousel and walked out of the building. There was a small crowd of families and taxi drivers seeking to pick up passengers. We were immediately met by Nelson, boarded the PW Mitsubishi Pajero and headed off for Kasisi Village. I learned that Nelson is a great help in maintaining the vehicles and buildings and works well with Eva. It seemed that he was helpful in many ways.

Just a few kilometres from the airport is the Kasisi Village. Approached along a wide dirt road, it is adjacent to a large missionary school and convent which has a good reputation. The village itself is in a large walled garden and is comprised of single storey rooms set about a courtyard, plus a three other buildings. Some are classrooms, some dormitory, some utility.

It is an extraordinary welcome that one receives from all in the Kasisi Village. The children, dressed in schools uniforms, and the teachers lined up at the gates, clapping in rhythm and singing “Welcome”. It made me embarrassed to receive such a greeting. Though I think it is part of the courteous culture of Zambia. Mum handed out jelly babies to everyone – a little treat for them and her. We met Eva and Beauty, teachers and gardener and many of the children and received a tour. It is a peaceful community.

After a brief stay we left for Lusaka with Dad at the wheel of the Pajero. On the way we met the head of SOS Villages Zambia to discuss their work. And then we went to check in at the InterContinental. Everyone seemed to know my parents – well I suppose they've been working in Lusaka for nearly two decades and it is not a big place. In fact, Lusaka seems more like a town than a city, which is a pleasant feature. There are few high buildings, the density is low and because of this, although it is not a rich place, it is clean.

After checking in we headed off for Ibex Hill, a suburb of the city. We stopped at a what seemed to be South African owned supermarket in a shopping centre where we picked up a few provisions. It seemed that packaged goods were no cheaper than they might be in Europe. The we went on to the International Village at Ibex Hill.

Here again we were treated to a singing welcome. Embarrassed again to be treated so grandly, but the music is fun and everyone seems to be amused by the new faces. I met staff and volunteers as well as some children and had a brief walk around.

The main building had just been completed a few weeks previously. It is a “C” shape and opposite another similar building which should be finished soon. In the middle is a large room for eating, classes and gatherings. That is where we were welcomed. Then along the back and at the ends are dormitories, kitchen, loos and wash-rooms.

After a short visit we went to Leopards Hill, which is a residential site where the school was prior to construction at Ibex Hill. We had a quick walk around the two bungalows and garden, which are lovely, before returning to the hotel, where we met Florence a school administrator who might help in future projects.

The following day we met Justin, a director of the Zambia trust to chat about management issues and Ray, who is designing the garden at Ibex Hill. Between the two meetings Mum and Dad gave me a tour of Lusaka in the Pajero.

By now, impressions of Zambia had started to gel. Having lived in Asia for a decade and having travelled in some poor areas of India, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, China and Thailand I had a frame of reference for the development of Zambia. Three main impressions had formed. The people and culture were gentle and polite – I found this very attractive. Secondly, the inequality was great – a few very rich, a small middle class and the bulk of the population with few resources. Thirdly, it was relatively clean. At this point I was undecided about the level of corruption, but the end of the week it was apparent that it was a significant part of the political and economic scene – as might be expected anywhere.

The following day, Monday, we set off on a trip to the far west of Zambia to visit the UNHCR refugee camp. Mum and I travelled in the back of the PestalozziWorld Hi-Lux with Michele and Alfred driving the 600 kilometres to Mongu. Dad met up with the UNHCR team in Lusaka to travel with them.

I was fortunate to see so much of the country. The road is straight, single lane and good all the way to Mongu, except for a couple of potholes. Much of the countryside is wooded or open plains, particularly where the road passes through a game reserve where we saw impala, hogs, birds and signs of elephant. There are speed bumps in the park to keep drivers aware of the danger of running in to wild life. Where the land has been planted it is generally for maize or casava. Maize is the staple food and is used to make a fine flour which is the main ingredient for nsheema – in Zambia “you haven't eaten if you haven't had your nsheema”. Perhaps a bit like potatoes for us in Ireland.

The road is used by pedestrians too, so we would regularly pass people walking or cycling to and from work or school, or selling fruit, veg or charcoal. When it rained to tended to be heavy downpours that would bathe the road in water and reduce visibility. The rain would also drop the temperature by at least 5oC. We stopped a couple of times for snack food and petrol, but otherwise drove for about six hours straight to Mongu, a town in the far west populated mainly by the Lozi tribe.

Arriving in Mongu we met up with the UNHCR team at the Hollywood Motel II. We checked in then set off for the UNHCR office where we met Agnes the local chief representative and other members of the team, Christopher, Maureen and Marian. We discussed the refugee camp, which is an open area of some 160 km2 in which about 10,000 people live in small villages. And we discussed PestalozziWorld.

After the meeting some of us had supper in the motel. Michele and I went in to town to buy some provisions for the following day and then had dinner in the garden of the Blue Nile Restaurant. Mongu is a modest town where we bought dry goods in a small (20 m2) general store, bread, rice, tomatoes and eggs on the street and meat from a butcher where the beast is carved on the floor (I guess). It was a boon to be able to speak English with all vendors.

The next morning we set off at 7 o'clock for Mayakwayukwa. (I doubt that is spelled correctly and I still can't say it fluently!) The drive is only a couple of hours though the last 30km or so is on a dirt road. It was pouring when we arrived at the guest house, so Onemetre, our host, had large basins under the eaves to collect water for cooking and bathing. Onemetre and Grace looked after us beautifully, preparing food and hot water for bathing on a charcoal stove just outside the kitchen, since the generator was out of commission.

After a brief meeting with our UNHCR hosts, we set off for meeting with the head teacher of the Basic school, Freddie, and the head of the community school, Emanuel. There are some 2,000 children in the camp. We discussed selection with the head teacher and it was valuable to me to hear Dad (battling a nasty bout of flu) explain the importance of the selection process. It is important that those on the ground understand the main criteria so that they can help the initial selection. PestalozziWorld seeks to help the poorest (so families with some assets, like a small shop, are inappropriate), bright and healthy children (so that they can get the most benefit and then continue the virtuous circle of good work). He and Michele also emphasised that children over 12 will not be accepted. The selection process was an important part of the work since it lays the ground for a successful scholarship. We agreed to return in March or April for selection testing if we reached an understanding with UNHCR (which we have now done).

We met a few of the children at that school house and then went on a tour of a few villages in the camp, meeting half a dozen families. The resources available to people are limited. They are also restricted by low fertility soil, which has been spoiled by sand blown from the Kalahari desert. Food is so limited that many go hungry every other day and children skip school to work or hunt for food. While residents are Angolan, they are culturally close to the local Zambians because they are from the same Lozi tribe and have lived in the camp for many years. We met one chief who had been in the camp since 1966.

Visiting the villages and meeting some of the families showed clearly the great value of what PestalozziWorld does. The contrast between the bare minimum in the village and the purpose built, utilitarian school environment provided to scholars in Lusaka is wide. It is the sort of investment that really can change the world because it is leveraged in resources and over time – the positive benefit of education continues to return on investment for the full life of the scholar and is further leveraged back in to the poor communities from which they come. And the children appreciate the scholarship – that is a fantastic contrast with the attitude of children in our western communities.

That evening we dined in the guest house by candlelight – the generator being out of order – and had an early night. The next morning we had a quick breakfast before leaving early for the drive mack to Lusaka. This time Mum and Dad both went with the UNHCR vehicle which is probably lucky because Michele and Alfred let me drive most of the way back!

The next day, I sat in on meetings at the Ibex Hill Village with builder, architect and local team. Progress is being made in construction of the village, but keeping to budget remains a challenge. Everyone has their heart in the right place but few recognise the demanding budget which the PestalozziWorld group maintains. I joined everyone for lunch and got my first taste of nsheema. In the afternoon I spent a bit of time in the office helping with computer issues.

That evening we enjoyed a special gathering hosted by John Cruickshank and Brigitta. I met some more of the dear people who have been so important to steering the growth of the Zambia Trust. John has been a stalwart of Zambia for decades and his ability to get things done and great sense of humour shone through. I also enjoyed the company of Greta Hudson and Carolyn Carpenter with whom I had conicidental areas of mutual reference. Greta was originally from Ireland and is good friends with a "neighbour" and Carolyn's previous posting was in Bangkok, where we lived for three years. I briefly met Greta's husband John, who has Zambia in his blood and Carolyn's husband Tom. Also in the gathering was Sally Dean, another dynamo supporting PestalozziWorld, who I hope to see more of in future.

The following day I went with Mum to Kasisi and examined all the computers there, getting them all working in one way or another. Then in the afternoon spent time back at Ibex Hill looking at the two computers there. Unfortunately viruses and a buggy CD drive impeded progress and by the time we left it was apparent that more first aid was needed. On a positive note, though, Vincent, one of the teachers seemed to have an interest in computers and can probably get up the learning curve fast so might become the IT hack for PestalozziWorld Zambia.

The next morning I left at dawn to catch my flight back to Europe. I was very happy to find free wireless internet in the airport so caught up on some festering emails. I had really enjoyed my first visit to Africa. I hoped I could earn another trip back and find something useful to do. If you get the urge, go to Africa; Zambia is a good place to start, and pencil in a visit to Kasisi or Ibex Hill PestalozziWorld villages to meet some wonderful people.

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