I Ask, I Answer

I write this from under a grass thatched roof on the magnificent shores of Lake Malawi. I’m sitting on a little patio in a backpacker’s lodge in Cape Maclear with my back to the crystal clear, yet bright blue waters of the lake lapping against the shore. The sky is blue, the beach is white, and it’s hard to believe that this is the same country that I just spent three months in. I’ve taken a little two day holiday before heading back to Lilongwe for the JF debrief, and it’s time for some reflection. I’ll spare you a Dickens-length look into my every thought on the experience and instead just answer a few stock questions that I presume will be asked when I get back. On that note, can I make a request for when I do get back? Please, I beg you; don’t ask me “How was Africa?” or “Was your summer fun?” I’m laying down a rule: Specific, and ideally, thoughtful questions only. Africa was good and I had fun sometimes. Does that give you a good idea of what happened in these past months? Not so much. The complexity of what I’ve seen and what I’ve tried to accomplish here can’t be squeezed into a box the size of “good” or “fun.”

With that said, here are some standard questions with some not-so-standard answers:

1. What surprised you most about Africa, and especially Malawi?

Before coming, I was a victim of those World Vision commercials and expected to see sad people everywhere I looked. But Malawians, generally speaking, are remarkably happy with what little material wealth they have. Sure, there are a lot of Malawians who would like more money to pay for more food, better schooling, or a metal roof, but until they get those things they will make the best of each and every day with a smile on their faces.

2. Who would you call your best friend for the time you spent overseas?

I have a number of close friends in Malawi, but topping the charts, I would say, are Jones Katanga, Evance Kapito, and Chipiliro. Jones is a man of about 30-35 who works for an NGO called Tanard in the same office block as the district water office. He went to school in the UK and was a wicked friend for long chats. Evance is the father in the Kapito family that I have stayed with. He’s a family man who loves his two brilliant sons more than words can describe. He runs the office at the assembly for dealing with the property of the deceased. We grew very close over the weeks as I shared countless memorable moments with him and his family. Chipiliro is about my age and is currrently finishing the last level of former schooling. He was endlessly interested in how Canada compares to Malawi and is akin to a sponge in the way he learns. Chipi will certainly be succeeding in whatever he chooses to pursue.

3. What was your favourite thing that you did?

I learned to play Bawo when I moved into the village with the Lupales. Bawo is a deceivingly complex game involving a wooden board with 32 “pots” and 64 marbles or “ngomo.” The game proved to be an amazing way to connect with people who didn’t speak English. I will never forget the evenings playing Bawo around the fire against, James, Aubrey, Gloria, or Lucia, with a crowd of eager onlookers calling me out on every poor decision. Then, when I moved back to the Boma with the Kapitos, Evance and I declared that we will play Bawo every night so that there is no rule that I don’t know when I go home. That declaration led to many late nights playing Bawo by a candle and laughing over the most random topics imaginable.

4. What frustrated, saddened, or angered you the most during your stay?

As I have mentioned in the previous couple posts, I am really bothered by the way in which the whole “aid/development” system is set up. I won’t go into detail because you can just check out the last post, but ultimately there are no market structures or competitive mentalities in the sector. People are not encouraged, with greater rewards, to do good work, and people are not punished when they do awful work. It’s deeply frustrating when I see all of the potential of Malawians tied up in the web of backwards incentive.

5. What is your favourite traditional Malawian food?

Nsima with boiled eggs. On the other hand, nsima with fried eggs (60% oil, 20% salt, 20% egg) just doesn’t do it for me. Also, there is an array of food that you can buy on the go from the window of a minibus that I have come to love. Obamas and Mendasi are two of these bread/donut variations that fall into one of my main food groups.

6. Do you know how to speak Chichewa now?

Learning Chichewa, the local language, was a huge priority for me in the first month or so of the placement. As time passed and work got more intense, I found myself sacrificing the Chichewa study sessions to do work-related tasks. Soon, I’m ashamed to say, language was on the back burner. However, I can still get by with what I know. I know basic sentence structure and some necessary vocabulary, and I’m able to ask people simple questions and understand simple answers. Pang’ono pang’ono.

7. What was the most beautiful place you visited?

Although the sunsets seen from the ridge I often ran along on the opposite side of a hill from Machinga were off the meat rack, I would have to say that the place I’m sitting right now is the most beautiful. If you’re ever in the Mangochi District of Malawi, Cape Maclear is a must-see, even if getting here is like solving a big mystery.

8. Describe the balance between work-life and trying to integrate into rural Malawian culture.

All along, my goal with this aspect of the placement was to keep work and home-life as separate as possible. For the most part this worked, but there were times when the intersection of the two was not so smooth. For instance, explaining to your family down in the village that you need to be in the office all day (it’s a Sunday) is a challenge. Office jobs in themselves don’t make a lot of sense to Malawian villagers. Similarly, you may have a meeting early in the morning but there is no possible way to grab a fast breakfast. Breakfast in Malawi is slow. You might be watching the time tick by, minute by minute, past the meeting’s scheduled start as you wait for those sweet potatoes to be boiled – but there’s nothing you can do.

9. Did you ever feel unsafe, or at risk of picking up the notorious diseases of Africa?

Not once did I have a close call in respect to my safety. Though it’s important to differentiate between unsafe and uncomfortable, the latter of which I felt rather frequently. Ripping down a pothole filled road at twice the speed limit in a minibus in the dark is uncomfortable – but Malawi is safe, this is a fact. As far as my health was concerned, it was off and on. I sometimes worried about TB when I was sitting beside an intense cougher on the bus, I may have had Malaria during the JF retreat in Senga Bay, and I had diarrhoea quite frequently (it’s essentially guaranteed when a westerner comes cold turkey into this environment.) But aside from those things, I felt great for the majority of the time; I’m still kickin’.

10. What is your greatest regret?

Abandoning my language learning. There were countless times when I wished I knew just a little bit more Chichewa to build just a little stronger connection with someone. Being able to speak to locals and not being able to speak to locals – consider that... it’s like night and day. (or maybe day and night)

11. What are you most proud of accomplishing during your stay?

I can’t say that I’m really proud of any particular task or project that I took on at work. (although I know the project I contributed to has tremendous value) Although, two more broad accomplishments related to work do come to mind. I was able to building a great relationship with the DWO. (my boss) We never really worked alongside each other, but we really trusted one another in what we were working on ourselves. The relationship helped to make my job, for the most part, a fun one. Secondly, I am pleased with the amount of experience I was able to get in the management of projects and people. I know that knowledge will be the foundation for more learning to come, as I am very interested in management/leadership oriented work. A third thing that relates to work as well as every other facet of life is the fact that I could probably count the number of times I said no to trying something new this summer on just one hand.

12. What are the most notable similarities and differences between Malawians and Canadians?

Similarities: Friendly, apologetic, ..., this list is kind of ridiculous because Malawians are just people, like Canadians, Americans, Italians, and Icelandic folks... they are trying to get by in life by remaining as healthy as possible, making enough money, and having some fun. They have their problems like we have ours, but we are in a slightly more advantageous position to solve them. Perhaps a “differences” list is more appropriate.

Differences: I find Malawians to be very fixed on traditional ideas, and closed to strange new, progressive ideas. Of course, a lot of Canadians share this quality, but in general, I think Malawians may be less willing to change their views and perhaps even less creative. Malawians also value materials less, don’t understand sarcasm, and are much friendlier towards strangers than Canadians. I’ve also noticed that problem solving in Malawi is usually geared towards an instant (and not necessarily lasting) fix, rather than the long term solution.

13. What did you miss most from Canada?

My family and friends of course... but cheese, ice cream, real coffee, fast breakfasts (just a bowl of cereal with milk, that can be prepared in less than thirty minutes), seasoning, hot showers, reliable power that will work all day long, and golf were also dearly missed.

14. Do you feel like you’ve created some sustainable change?

Yes, I did take some steps towards rooting this waterpoint monitoring system more deeply in the district assembly at Machinga – players in the system have a clearer picture of their responsibilities for the system to operate properly. I was able to provide some guidance on everything from the production of forms, to the distribution of forms, to the entry of data when forms come back. But was I the only guy for the job? Certainly not – a Malawian would have been perfectly capable as well. I feel that the most sustainable change took place in me, not in Malawi. I learned so much about people, organizations, culture, and myself, that I would venture to say that I took more away from the placement than Malawi did. With that said, you might ask “Was the whole thing a worthwhile investment?” Well... I won’t go into detail because the answer could be obscenely long, but in short – yes. The learning I’ve done will, if all goes as planned, be transformed into more knowledgeable EWB chapter members and community members alike. From there, who knows what could happen?

15. Would you ever consider becoming a long term volunteer for EWB or some other NGO in the undeveloped world?

I’m completely undecided on this one. It’s not something that I will do right out of university, but I feel like the opportunity may start to look better and better after working for a few years in the engineering world in Canada. For now, I’m set on seeing what engineering and business looks like in Canada before I go back overseas. Maybe, just maybe, my future could hold something that blends “development” work with Canadian professionals. It’s exciting to see what organizations like Google and Microsoft are doing to provide tools for developing countries to use in moving forward. These companies are using their business expertise to develop effective solutions in the aid sector.

So that’s a little bit of basic Q&A, but please feel free to ask lots of tougher questions when you see me next, or by email, or homing pigeon. Comin’ home!

Take er easy,

Ian