Ruaha National Park - Iringa State

Hamjambo!

Happy New Year. Time flies. It’s 2009 now. The rest of my stay is one year and three months. It seems very short, but thinking that I will spend Christmas and a new year again in Tanzania, it seems to be long. As my new-year resolutions, I am thinking to work hard to master Kiswahili further do more exercise, and try to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro.

(Family of elephants?? I met so many elephants there)
On December 27, 2008, I left Dar es Salaam after 5 months stay here and visited the State of Iringa and the State of Morogoro, where our colleague volunteers live.

Iringa is located in almost centre of Tanzania and on the mountain. Here in Dar es Salaam, it is mid summer now. The temperature is about 32 or 33 degree Celsius and furthermore it is very humid. However, in Iringa it is very cool, and I felt even cold at night. I saw someone wearing even down jacket, but it is actually too much even in Iringa. However, it seems many Tanzanians that Iringa is a very very cold place. I was impressed that Tanzania has various aspects. I spend four nights and five days in the State of Iringa, but in two days of them, I spent my time in Ruaha National Park, where we drove for three hours from Iringa city.
(This mail lion had eaten a few days before and was feeling full, we heard. He was taking a rest.)

When I was a small child, there was a TV program called “Wild Kingdom”, and my family used to watch it together. In Ruaha National Park, the very landscape and the view which I say in that TV program spread in front of me in reality. That made me feel finally I came to Africa. It is a rainy season at that time, so it is difficult to predict where the water is and at the same time it is difficult to come across animals. Since I heard that it is not easy to see animals in this season, I did not expect so much to see many animals. However, fortunately the game guide whom my colleague introduced me has more than 25-year experiences and he found us many animals.
Thanks to his professional guide, we could see the family of lions although we saw them from far. At the same time, we could see the lions attacked a hippo, which had never happened to even our professional guide until then.

At night we had dinner together in the restaurant in the national park. We talked about many things such as about Japan, Tanzania, our family and jobs and so on. The guide is in the same generation to me. He started working after he graduated from primary school. He was a very smart boy, so some people found his talent and gave him various chances. At the end he became a game guide. Even now he study about animals and he said to me that he was writing about animals and plants which he knows. He told me that his dream is to publish his own book. Thinking of my childhood, I did not think of anything seriously then.

Anyway I was very pleased to see such a wonderful person whom I can respect from the bottom of my heart in Tanzania.
　

(This is the view from the restaurant on the hill on the way back to Iringa city .)

Tutaonana

December 1, Tanzania without HIV/AIDS possible!!

Hamjambo!

Here in Tanzania, I have often hear Christmas songs these days. In a supermarket well air-conditioned, Christmas trees were sold. Local tailors made cushion cover with Father Christmas and are selling them. I am not accustomed to Christmas in summer, but little by little, Christmas items remind me that now is the end of the year.

December 1st was the World AIDS Day, and here in Tanzania events were held in many places. In Temeke Municipality, Dar es Salaam, where I am now, the event was held by the sponsorship of the Temeke Municipal Council.

(The children whom I teach at schoo)

Many Community Based Organizations (CBO) formed by women, People Living With HIV AIDS, youth and so on gathered in a ground near the VCT centre. Pupils from the primary school where I regularly visit also came there. They danced and sang a song.

Several people showed dance, drama, song and so on. The place of VCT centre was introduced.

Within the Temeke Municipal Council, the special committee is formed. My colleague is one of the members, who actually took me to the event on the day. Other members are from other department in the Council, People Living With HIV/AIDS(PLWHA) and so on. A woman who is a member of the committee infected with HIV virus, but she has not become AIDS for quite a long time. She had her photo taken and made posters for public. She told me that she talk in the radio program to eliminate discrimination against PLWHA and AIDS patients. I was impressed that she is very brave.

It is repeatedly said that the issue of HIV/AIDS is the issue of we ourselves and anyone can have HIV virus. However, to be honest, it seemed to me that the issue of HIV/AIDS was something far from me, but here the issue is something we cannot ignore nor avoid.

Tutaonana

Welcome to Dar es Salaam

Hamjambo!

October 2nd was the last day of the fasting, Ramadan. The 1st and 2nd were national holidays. However, the thing was very complicated for outsiders like me, because Tanzanians say that they never know when exactly is the end of the Ramadan until two or three days before the end since they judge it seeing the shape of the moon two or three days before the end….

Now, today I am going to introduce about the city, Dar es Salaam, where I am living now. I have wanted to show you some pictures on the blog, but it was difficult to take photos in the city. Here we are not encouraged to take pictures in the city as it is not safe to take out cameras in the middle of the city. Also some public buildings are not allowed to be taken photos. Moreover, I was told that some people hate to be taken photos. Anyway, I have managed to have some!
Around the centre part of the city, the condition of the roads are quite good, and probably over 90% of cars running on the roads are Japanese used cars. Traffic lights are exactly the same as the ones we see in Japan, so somehow I, as a Japanese citizen, feel at home and am familiar with the scenery. You will see some urbane people so called business men and career women in the centre. Also, there are many Indian descendents living in the centre, whose ancestors immigrated from mainly Gjarat in India about 100 years ago, that I heard
　

On the other hand, if you drive your car about 20 minutes and go out of the centre, you will see different scenery. You can reach the Ward of Temeke, where I am working now. In some areas, people live in dense. Houses are built so closely each other that the paths between them are quite narrow enough for just one person to pass barely.　
In other areas in Dar es Salaam, such as the opposite side of the gulf, where you can reach by ferry, the things are completely different. There, the roads are not paved and houses are dotted in the area. The area is no more city but village.　You also see cows on the road.
Let’s go back to the centre. On the sea side, there are several hotels including Kilimanjaro Hotel, which is the most prestigious in Tanzania. Also if you want to go to the Zanzibar Islands, which has the area nominated as the World Heritage, the ferries leave the port near here. As for the Msasani Peninsula, the north of the city, some parts here is a fashionable suburb, and you will see large residences, a few fashionable supermarkets, and hotels.
People in Dar es Salaam are from various areas all over the Tanzania. Also people from other countries live here. You see also Westerns and Asians. You often see East Asians, but many of them are Chinese rather than Japanese and Koreans. There are quite a number of Chinese restaurants in Dar es Salaam. Also you can enjoy various cuisines all over the world here, as far as you have enough money.
Now would you like to visit Dar es Salaam? Karibu Tanzania, Karibu Dar es Salaam!! (Welcome to Tanzania, Welcome to Dar es Salaam)
　　

Standard Seven National Examinations

Hamjambo!

On 10th, 11th of September, the Standard Seven National Examination was held for the students to mark the end of the Primary Education. Since the end of August, the officers in my office have been busy for the preparation for this big event. Several meetings were held, and the seminars for the teachers in the area were held to make sure the examination will be held smoothly. As security was really tight at all the schools, I waited in the office on those two days, but my colleagues came to the office early in the morning around 4:30 a.m. and visited 5 or 6 schools to supervise them.

According to the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training in Tanzania, some 1,047,200 students were expected to sit for the Standard Seven National Examinations this year. This is an increase of 31.87 % over the past year. One of the significant reasons of this increase is the success of the Primary Education Development Plan (PEDP) of 2002-2006, which boosted enrolment in schools.

On the contrary to those articles admiring the success of the PEDP, there are also some articles describing the issue of mainly the girls who fail to complete seven years of primary education due to pregnancy, truancy, teenage marriage, child labour and so on.
After the success of the PEDP, now the Tanzania government is trying to expand Secondary Education. It is of course a good thing for the society the opportunity of the education is expanded. However, I wonder if the same problems will be shifted to secondary schools in the future.

Nevertheless, we can see the hope in this country. Now the government spends quite a large extent of the budget to education, since many people believe that education is crucial and the only reliable tool to enable pupils to get out of poverty.

Here, if you visit primary schools, you will see how students learn with the insufficient state of the school equipments. Students have to share textbooks with other 6 or 7 students, insufficient number of desks, no water supply and insufficient number of toilets in some schools, and so on. However, pupils look very happy to come to school and learn. When I visit those primary schools, I am encouraged and feel very happy to see those children. I hope that their bright future will be guaranteed.

Tutaonana tena.

People Living With HIV/AIDS

Hamjambo!

It’s September now. Here in Tanzania, the National Exam for Standard 7 will be held on 10, 11 September, so the staff in the Department of Education in Temeke are very busy for its preparation. This is the exam held at the end of the education in primary schools. The results influence students’ allocation to secondary schools.

As you see in the title of today’s diary, I’ll write about the People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Tanzania briefly. Here in Tanzania, it is estimated that about 7 % of people aged 15 to 49 are infected by HIV virus. It is quite a big number, so you cannot avoid coming across PLWHA.

The other day, I visited several families who have HIV patients at home. There are several local groups doing activities for HIV issues in Temeke area, where now I am working. The members of one of those groups escorted me then. Also some of the members are PLWHA. They look very fine and can do any activities. They said that they started taking medicine and proper treatment so that they are fine now, but before some of them were suffering very much. Now I see HIV is not necessarily fatal any more, though it is still serious disease.

Then what makes HIV/AIDS so special among several disease? Probably, still there is discrimination and segregation for the patients and infected people, and they are somehow afraid that they may be victims, I guess. However, I have an impression that in Tanzania, those people are relatively well accepted by society, and people know about this disease well. Children are well informed at school.
If I think about the situation in Japan, my country, probably many of us still lack of knowledge and concern about this disease. Or some of us may misunderstand this disease or how to prevent this disease. Probably there are many things we should learn from the experience of Tanzania about this issue.

Totaonana tena.

(The booklet explaining the national policy to prevent HIV/AIDS for young people.)

About my work in Tanzania

Hamjambo!

I started my work in Department of Education in Temeke Ward Council from this month. I travel from the centre of the city to suburb by daladala(city bus) every day. I leave my house around 6:20 in the morning and arrive around 7:15. I am supposed to be in the office by 7:30.

Some of the officers in my department come around 6:00 in the morning. One of my colleagues come very early, so she does some work before I arrive. Then, "chai time" starts around 9:00. Tanzanians have tea and some snacks, such as chapaty, donuts, kitunbuu(snacks like a donut made by rice) and so on. Here, chai means "breakfast." Everyday, my colleagues give me chapaty, donuts and so on...

I need to used to this cycle of meals. Normally I have lunch around 2 p.m. Or sometimes I don't eat anything until dinner, since I don't feel hungry.

About my work, I decided to work as an assistant at a certain primary school. I am assigned to work for the youth out of school, which means the youth who dropped out from school. However, I thought I need to know about the educational system in this country, so I decided to visit schools. Here, the government is now enhancing secondary education, so in Temeke Ward where I am working, more than 20 secondary schools opened this January.

I visited just two primary schools, but there weren't enough number of textbooks, desks, teaching materials and so on. I guess, secondary schools are in the similar condition...

I have no big fund support from the Japanese government, so now I am thinking what I can do here in Tanzania.

I am going to visit more schools and visit more youth groups out of school.

Tutaonana tena.

One month has passed

Hamjambo!

Hi. I am really sorry I didn't renew the page.

Then what have I done until now??? The JICA office gave us several lectures such as security, traffic, health and so on. We even visited the hospitals we may use in Dar-es-Salaam. Though we cannot see so many good hospitals, the hospital we visited are very equipped. I can say one of the hospitals is bigger than the hospital in my local city in Japan.

Also, we had a language training. We had very intensive Swahili training again here in Tanzania. Then, in the middle of the training, each of us visited our working place and met our colleagues. I visited the Department of Education in Temeke region in Dar-es-Salaam. I am excited to start working there, though I am concerned about my language ability as well.

Last week, I also visited another senior JOCV menber in Dodoma, which is actually the capital city of Tanzania. Dodoma is located in the almost central of Tanzania. It took about 7 hours by bus. Since the road from Dar. to Dodoma is quite good, the travel was really comfortable.

The senior volunter works in the Department of Education in Dodoma. Elementary schools in Dodoma are now promoting educational program for AIDS. She visits schools and supervise how the program is going on. At the office, I was shocked to hear that more than 10 girls of elementary schools were pregnant last year. However, the number has dicreased since the program was introduced.

I may have to come across the similar issues after I started working in Temeke. Two weeks later, my work will start.

Tutaonana tena.