IDEX Program Officers, Kat and Vini are in Africa visiting IDEX partners in South Africa. But they also spent one week in Senegal and met with a number of NGOs there to explore the possibility of IDEX expanding our work to Senegal. Vini recently sent us more details about Senegal and specifically Casamance.Very few people outside West Africa actually know about the painful Casamance conflict. Fewer still in the "international community" have done much to build peace in the region. It is the longest running armed struggle in West Africa with over 20 years of conflict. For more information read The Casamance Conflict: Out of Sight Out of Mind.
The 2 sides, the separatist group MFDC (Movement of Democratic Forces of the Casamance) and the Senegalese government, have been fighting over the question of independence for the Casamance region. In the process they have impacted the people of Senegal, Guinea-Bissau and the Gambia, the two neighboring states. Tens of thousands have been killed, almost 80,000 displaced as per numbers from Caritas and UNHCR. Before the separatist movement in Independent Senegal, the region was a colonial battlefield for the French and the Portuguese.
Landmines are still strewn all over the region including the once beautiful national parks. All sides heap blame on each other. Not until 2004 did relative calm begin to return to the region. The impetus for peace came from the people of Casamance. They wanted to bring home their relatives and rebuild the region.
It is in this context that we get to meet with USOFORAL, AJAC and AJAEDO, 3 distinct groups that work in Enampor and Oussaye areas of Casamance. Of the people we meet most are elders. They had returned home in the past decade, having longed to be reunited with their land for over 30 years. They now teach the younger women and men of the region forgotten sustainable agriculture practices, using land and cultivation as concrete peace building methods.
The drive from Ziguinchor to Oussaye is lush, past the Casamance River and through orchards of orange, mangoes, palm oil and papayas. It’s beauty disguising a bloody history.
Chartered airplanes from all over Europe fly into the beaches of Cap Skirring, just an hour's drive from this impoverished region where recently returned displaced people are slowly but certainly rebuilding their homes, communities and lives. Two separate worlds exist in Casamance - the gorgeous luxury resorts of Cap nestled amongst landlessness, broken and displaced families from 3 decades of war that the people of the region never want to encounter again.
Labels: AJAC, AJAEDO, Casamance, Senegal, USOFORAL
After leaving AJAC we met with another community-based organization in Ziguinchor. The Regional Committee of Solidarity for Women in Peace in Casamance, USOFORAL, is founded and led by women. The acronym USOFORAL, means "Let's join hands" or "mutual help", in the local Diola language.We traveled with USOFORAL's coordinator, Cisse, to a rural community called Enampor, 40km outside of Ziguinchor. Enampor is part of the rural district of Niassya, a subdivision of Ziguinchor. This is where USOFORAL has supported the construction of a building that has become the main women center for Enampor.
The president of each woman's group meets monthly and before this building, they didn't have a common place where they could meet. Now, at this center, Vini and I were invited to meet with the presidents of more than 20 groups in 14 villages for one of their monthly meetings.
After we introduced ourselves the women told us about their different activities. They are involved in several income-generating projects such as textile dyeing to produce clothes for the local ceremonies, rice farming in the mangrove swamps, civil rights awareness, and savings and credit groups. Most recently, they have created a community health insurance fund. All the presidents spoke highly of the support they've received through USOFORAL. They emphasized that because USOFORAL listens to their needs USOFORAL is able to provide them with relevant support and technical assistance.
It was a long meeting because of the multiple translations from English to French to Diola to French to English. Whew! At the end of the meeting the women did a rhythmical routine of rubbing their hands, saying in Diola "It's rumbling" 3 times and then they clapped loudly and announced "It's done." This reflects their work in the communities and the way change happens with a gradual rumbling. It was very empowering to see them do this united. After the meeting, several women got on their motorcycles to go home, while others took a ride with the USOFORAL van.
On the way back to the office Cisse told us how she got involved with USOFORAL. She's originally a teacher who came to Cap Skirring, a tourist beach town in Casamance, to promote education for children. She arrived in Casamance just before the conflict started. She and 3 peers (who later became the co-founders of USOFORAL) wondered about the role of women in the conflict and decided to organize a forum of women to discuss the issue.
This led to the initiation of USOFORAL. Gradually they became more involved in the Casamance peace process. They encouraged conflict-resolution together with income-generating activities as they recognized that these are important elements to building a peaceful society.
It was wonderful to meet many energized women and good to get to know Cisse. Cisse invited us to a conflict-resolution workshop where different community members give their perspective on the challenges and local conflicts they face in their communities. USOFORAL staff facilitates the workshop. We were excited to be invited but unfortunately had to decline due to our hectic schedule.
It's been exciting to learn so much about the organizations working Casamance, Senegal. Many villagers who left Casamance due to the conflict are now returning. All the organizations we've visited are helping people develop skills. This not only encourages other to return, but they provide people with the means to stay by securing a source of income. We've learned so much, yet there is so much more to learn. We’ve appreciated visiting each group and hope to visit them again.
Kat.
Last Wednesday we visited AJAC (Casamance Young Farmers' Association), an organization based in Zinguachor. AJAC works in 46 villages with women, youth and mixed groups.AJAC helps group members build skills and offers technical assistance to generate income and develop work opportunities in Casamance. As a result of the conflict in Casamance, many families moved to other parts of Senegal and nearby countries such as Guinea-Bissau and the Gambia. Since the region has become more peaceful many families are now returning to Casamance. Thanks to organizations like AJAC, they can learn skills that will allow generating income for their families.
AJAC recognizes that women are at the core of community development and peace building. At the same time, AJAC is aware that to ensure sustainable peace you can't exclude men and youth, as they are part of the local communities and thus, AJAC works with them too.
AJAC facilitates training in several income-generating activities, with a focus on sustainable agriculture. They encourage the development of vegetable gardens, where people grow crops like tomato and cabbage. But they also encourage planting mangrove trees to promote fish farming.
There are 10 staff members at AJAC, 7 in the office, 2 community promoters and 1 agricultural technician. Most of the staff has been chosen by the groups they serve due to an organizational structure where each group selects a representative each for AJAC's General Assembly. The General Assembly selects who becomes a Board members and the Board will then select the staff of AJAC. Having staff directly selected by the groups AJAC works for ensures a trustworthy relationship between AJAC and the communities.
Not only that, AJAC is also aware of the need to be transparent in their work. AJAC ensures that all groups are aware of how much funding AJAC receives and when they receive it.
We had the opportunity to visit a training session where a group of women (all widows from the conflict) were learning about making compost. The women welcomed us so warmly and shared with us papayas that they have grown in AJAC's main vegetable garden. The women grow vegetables and fruits such as banana and papayas. It was so good to eat fresh fruit straight from the field. The women here were so energetic, it was great to feel their positive vibe. We could observe how the women were eager to learn and work as well as having a great relationship with AJAC staff.
Unfortunately, we couldn't stay too long, and had to leave the dancing in time to head off for our next meeting. The AJAC staff stayed behind to continue the workshop on composting.
On Tuesday, March 31, we took a small jet plane to fly to Zinguinchor - the largest town in southern Senegal. From here we will travel to community-based organizations in Casamance.It was only a 50-minute flight but when we landed in Zinguinchor we sensed immediately that we were in a tropical, rural area. The humidity hit us as soon as we left the plane. Seynabou, the director of USOFORAL, an organization that we're meeting with, came to welcome us at the airport. It just so happened that we had also flown with a couple of members of USOFORAL on the same plane.
Once we settled in into our new lodging we were ready to go visit the first organization in Casamance, AJAEDO (Association of Young Farmers and Animal Breeders in the Oussouye Division of Casamance).
We drove for an hour into Casamance-Basse. This is a region that has suffered from many years of conflict waged over independence for Casamance. As with many conflicts between government and rebellion forces, those who suffer the most are civilians. On our drive to Oussouye, where AJAEDO is based, we were told about how these same roads were quite dangerous at one point and car hijackings were the norm. Nowadays, the region is stable and displaced community members are beginning to return to Casamance, which happens to be the richest in natural resources.
When we arrived we met with Paul Emmanuel. Paul is the Coordinator of Programs at AJAEDO and he told us a bit about AJAEDO and its work.
AJAEDO works with 392 members represent community groups. There are 21 groups in total, 12 women groups and 9 male groups. Each group has a representative that sits on AJAEDO Board. As a result the women hold the majority on this Board.
AJAEDO provides skills-building and technical assistance to women in agriculture, sewing, soap making and pottery. Three years ago they introduced a microcredit program. Since then they have had good results as the women are now able to access financial support. Many of them have taken at least two microcredit loans since the launch of the program.
AJAEDO is an organization that is regularly monitoring and evaluating their activities. Every 15 days the coordinator sits down with the supervisors and group promoters to create an action plan. At the end of the 15 days they then evaluate what they carried out and see if they followed their plan or not. AJAEDO also accompanies the groups to see where the priority needs are and facilitate discussions for community members to find solutions to problems. Once they've identified the solution, the coordinator in turn helps them find financial support for them.
AJAEDO showed us round their office, which includes a conference room, dormitories, a small vegetable garden and an extra room that serves as the base for a community radio, which promotes a dialogue among the multiple ethnic groups in Casamance. Right next to the radio office AJAEDO has a space that they hope to convert into an IT Center to Internet access to community members.
There were several young men hanging out at the community radio station and I asked them why weren't they talking on the radio. "Our electricity has been cut off," they answered. We took the opportunity to talk with them about their music that includes hip-hop, and mbalanx. The men demonstrated by dancing and singing their favorite songs. We didn't think it was necessary to return the favor.
Paul, the coordinator, told us a bit about himself during the tour of the office. He comes from Casamance and lived in this area until he moved to Dakar for his university studies. He has now returned to Casamance and wants to support his fellow community members in improving their livelihoods. His hope for Casamance is that the region becomes what it was before the conflict started, a beautiful, peaceful environment where the society is non-hierarchical and all people are considered equal. Many people have come back to Casamance to revive this tropical land once again.
Photo: IDEX Program Officer, Katherine Zavala, with AJAEDO staff.
Labels: AJAEDO, Casamance, microcredit, Senegal, Sustainable Agriculture, Women
IDEX Program Officers Kat and Vini have made it to Senegal, but not without a few hiccups! Read Vini's story of their arrival in Dakar below.On our flight from JFK to Dakar, I was struck by the beautiful people dressed to the nines in each row of seats. I was inspired. As an immigrant to the US, I remember I used to be this way when flying home, back to India, was an event and the return to see your family demanded nothing less than the most festive of clothing. I mentally resolved to get back to dressing up a little for flights and laughed at my sweats. Little did I know at that moment that I would be in them for another 2 days.
During the flight, both Kat and I watched the films Sarafina and then Red Dust. Both films are a stark, sometimes hopeful, always outrageous reminders of life under apartheid. These films focus on important times. The first documents the Youth uprising of Soweto in 1976, and the latter covers the work of the Truth and Reconciliation commission. Although we had planned to sleep and do nothing on the flight, I felt motivated to read more about the organizations we will visit. I appreciated that IDEX's work is on the right side of history, and had a clear conviction that the work against oppression is still not done. It has been over a year since I last came to Africa and these movies combined with several million feet above sea level make me emotional.
After landing amidst reuniting families, we quickly realized two not so wonderful things about our own situation:
- Our luggage has not make it with us.
- Our ride was not there to pick us up.
Just when we were ready to take a long nap, we discovered that our budget hotel had dirty sheets. Luckily, at this point, we had our first encounter with legendary Senegalese Teranga. Teranga is proudly considered Senegalese hospitality but not just a one time thing, its considered a spiritual practice, a lifelong belief that when one is kind to guests, they too will extend the same to you in the future. The hotel attendant took our dirty sheets as a personal affront and not only did he correct the situation immediately, he saw to it that we are accompanied and taken great care of, all during the next 24 hours.
We had a non tourist tour of Dakar. Along with the usual sites of the central town, we got to see the beach and dip our toes in the Atlantic, and even had a lovely lunch. Never mind that we have no clean clothes and have not yet heard from our hosts, I was deeply grateful to be easing into a relaxed and patient rhythm. We ended up in the industrial area of Dakar while our folks from the hotel bought some tools.
This was the best part. We got to watch the comings and goings in the street - a group of young men playing football with a rock, a few elderly women watching and keeping and eye on the street, a group of brilliantly dressed young women giggling at the seamstress store, a lathing machine set up on the sidewalk outside the tool store with two men finishing a piece of wood. In the background we could hear the afternoon call to prayers. To me, it all seemed familiar, reminiscent of the Swahili coast of Kenya and yet new.
The interesting afternoon renewed my faith in the ability to have fun... I learned again that you cannot be impatient in Africa. Lost luggage, oh well. Dirty sheets, not the end of the world. No food, that's okay.
Buzzing from the first day's excitement and determined not to let jet lag get the better of us, we went to a club famous for the best in local live Jazz and Mbalanx music. Although it was a Sunday night and people had to go to work the next day, I was amazed to see how full the place was with people really engrossed in the terrific music of a live band.
When we returned to the hotel a few hours later, I fell sound asleep within a few seconds, filled to the brim with all the day's sights and sounds, waiting for more ahead.