::::I've Left Copenhagen for Uganda::::

Changed Priorities Ahead

Others are reading their daily starsign with enthusiasm - I am guided by the road signs in Uganda. Sometimes, however, I feel they are talking a bit too direct to me. This one in particular seems to indicate my life in a nutshell.

Last week my sister suggested that we all went for Zanzibar for her 35th birthday. Isn't it nice to have a sister as far away as Iceland incorporating Africa (and me) in her holiday plans?!

Hence, I got a little embarrased when I realised that my answer went something like; 'Let's see, I'm not sure where I will be in January 2008'. Seems to have been my standard phrase for the past 15 years, we both noted.

Same same, but somehow different

In the blogosphere I am very often being referred to as an aid worker. I am not. I am a development worker. And more specifically my job description says 'Information Advisor and Organisational Capacity Building Facilitator. Most often that one is too long to use for any good, so I usually call myself an 'organisational advisor'. Sometimes I refer to my original education 'teacher',  which in Africa still has some social value...

Considering the developing world, we most often hear about the disaster or emergency areas. The place where I work, north western Uganda, is/used to be such a place, depends on which way the Peace Talks in Juba are going. It is close to Sudan and the areas affected by LRA, and it shares a lot of characteristics with those areas.

But aid workers are typically working in disaster or complex emergencies. Humanitarian or disaster relief work calls for highly specific skills and experience (eg, in engineering, health or logistics). Due to the environment, which is often stressfull, insecure and chaotic an aid worker mainly does short term contracts. My guess is that an average aid worker also makes more money than an average development worker due to some of these conditions.

A development worker is not supposed to engage in disaster or complex emergencies. We are not supposed to be gap fillers, but facilitators. Some work on long-term development projects in areas of water, sanitation, urban/rural/small business development, health, forestry, agriculture, enabling poor communities to improve their economic conditions and create sustainable livelihoods. Others are engaged in areas which has an emphasis on capacity building, empowerment and advocacy. The latter seem to be a growing trend.

A development worker usually stays for contracts of longer periods of time (2-5 years). Regarding personal qualities and professional skills there is often an emphasis on experience and practice with training and facilitation, and an expectation of alliance-building and links to the emerging international global civil society. Add to that a component of playing a role regarding intercultural exchange with the local community. It is valued highly to have a creative, openminded and patient personality.

I know why these terms confuse people, even people within the aid and development world. North western Uganda is a grey zone between humanitarian aid and development. I have deep respect for the real aid workers, who go where the development workers won't or can't go, and who knows exactly what they are doing. Development work is a different challenge as it is usually long term, and you might never see the results of the work you started. Besides, it's difficult to measure the impact of advocacy and lobby work.

I know there can be added many more nuances to these divisions, and that this is a brief one. I appriciate that none so far has taken me for a missionary or mercenary ;-)

An impulsive review of the Last King Of Scotland

Last week 'The Last King Of Scotland' was shown for the first time in Uganda. President Museveni was there and he admitted to the press that he hadn't been to a movie theatre for 47 years. He excused himself 'that his life has already been very dramatic'. And I thought that the president had no sense of humour....!

It is big in Uganda - and even Forest Whitaker took time to visit Uganda last week.

On Sunday I found a pirate copy of the film for sale in Kisementi. Man, the Ugandan underworld is fast. But out of respect for copy laws (!) I invited a good Ugandan friend, Catherine, to join me watching 'The Last King Of Scotland' in an authorised cinema, too.

And we really liked the film. Forest Whitaker is amazing impersonalizing Idi Amin - the body work, the language, the expressions. His way of speaking Ugandan-English is amazing. I also enjoyed the young actor acting Nicholas Carrigan, this naïve, European, young man coming to Africa for the first time, letting himself go off the Scottish boundaries.

One of the best parts is the soundtrack, 70ties style, African, moving and full of colours and drive. Another good part is the scenery, the colours are blurred in red, green and blue - African colours. I really like how they used Ugandan characteristics in everything from the puf made of cowskin you buy in Banana Boat to Dr. Dick Stockley (our doctor from the 'Surgery') who plays the Times journalist and earns half a minute of fame.

This is my first impression. I know there is a lot more to say about how the film doesn't match the book (but the book never was the real story), how Amin is portrayed too kind (according to the people who suffered from his regime) and how he is portrayed too much of an idiot (to the ones who supported him).

Maybe to take out 'precision' of Precision Air?

I can't possibly be the first one to suggest that the Tanzanian airline company should opt for a far more realistic name. Saturday night when I thought I was leaving Tanzania, in KIA Airport at Kilimanjaro, my name wasn't on the departure list. And I wasn't the only one, in fact Precision Air had overbooked the plane to Nairobi with about 20 passengers.

In stead of letting it all out on the nearest person with a Precision Air tag, I congratulated myself for all the other times I have flown in Africa - where no irregularities happened, and where I really needed/wanted to be somewhere in time. As I counted, I realised I have been extremely lucky. I have flown Arua-Kampala several times without cash, paying the ticket later. I have flown Harare-Victoria Falls, sort of on stop, also with no huge amount of cash. And the first time ever I flew to Africa I went from Luxembourg-Abuja-Jo'burg - with a cargo plane for free. This Saturday night, I had none waiting for me in the other end, and nothing which couldn't be postponed.

However, I was the only one in KIA Airport who regarded myself a lucky person that evening. Next to me a group of middle-aged Americans (now left without their guide and ahead of them a complicated iteneary) competed to ask as many questions as possible. Two African business men (of Nigerian resemblance) went mad, shouted at the staff, and with violent expressions they made it clear for all that this was the end of the world as they saw it. Not exactly the time for a white woman to remind them that 'This is Africa', but I couldn't help it.

I understand why both Americans and Africans get provoked by the Precision Air's approach to problem solving. I did, too. But for an exception I was less noisy. The airline's suggestion was to promise us all a seat on the next flight out of KIA to Nairobi - 'we give you the highest priority'. To me this was an umistakenly expression of conflict resolution African style; 'We make them shut up, time will pass, and the problem will go away'. The Dane then asked; 'What about the passengers on that flight - wouldn't it just be the same scenario over again?!' (as it occurred that the reason why our flight was overbooked was due to the fact that Precision Air had given passengers earlier on 'first priority'?)

The overbooked plane took off for Nairobi, and left us, the uneven group, behind. The inevitable facts occured; an extra night in Arusha! When the Americans realised what I had realised hours ago, they actually relaxed. One of them got the idea that a benefit of another night like this could be 'to hear more about me and my work in northern Uganda'. Hence I answered questions like;  'Where you there when Amin was there?', 'Aren't you scared all the time?' and 'Do you live in a real house in Uganda?'. After a while my patience finally ran out.

To make a long story short, after another session in KIA Airport the morning after, they finally put us all on a plane to Nairobi. It wasn't really untill back in Entebbe Airport that I could congratulate myself again; only one piece of my luggage lost! Funny thing is that the item missing was aposter display with the MS Uganda democracy poster, which on all other occasions have been confiscated at crossing borders in East Africa. At that point, it was only hilarious to find myself seated in the 'Lost and Found Dep. ' in Entebbe Airport, describing the content of my missing luggage item, when being asked what exactly is on the poster' . 'Oh, you know, the democracy posters which were confiscated last year before the elections, because the Electoral Commision found them partisan'. The woman in the office, laughing; ' Oh, I know them...'.

What a nice treat to have my car parked in the long term parking in Entebbe Airport.

Tempting Tanzania

The annual meeting of MS Tanzania is over, and now there is only the grand party to do.

An annual meeting is an annual meeting, but because I was a guest here. I concentrated on my report, I didn't scrap big parts of the meeting (to go somewhere to have coffee), but stayed and listened. Additionally, last night I also drank beers with the general secretary of MS and the country director of MS TZ untill the bar closed at MS TCDC.

MS TZ is way ahead of MS Uganda regarding strategy and new ways of working as a development worker, and I feel a little bit envious of the dynamics and structure in place. Maybe MS Uganda shouldn't have send me on this mission to Tanzania. Whenever I have visited TZ I always end up wishing this should be the country to live and work in.

Hm...I wonder how long it would take for them to discover back in Uganda, if I stayed a little longer....?! (I have enough material to post on my blog as if I were in Uganda....)

Kilimanjaro

Landed tonight at Kilimanjaro  Airport 18:30 local time. Was picked up by a taxi and taken to MS TCDC at Usa River - also called MDanish, where MS Tanzania is having its annual meeting during the next couple of days.

The Kilimanjaro was clear. Blue. In comparison with Uganda, Tanzania is free space, open land, and an occasional old mountain. The most beautiful mountain. And the best thing is that when you have passed that, there is another one - Mount Meru - on the right hand side.

The best compliment I had in a long time...

What can I say, but thanx, you made my day?!

This compliment here is almost as good as the one I got from a South African guy some months ago, who read along, and thought I would be the type he would either invite a) on a date in Mali for the music festival; b) to Zanzibar; - or if it all got serious - c) to do the drive through Africa - London - Cape.

Kudus for Karma

Muti is a new blog on the content of interest to Africans or those interested in Africa. But it is a bit different than all the other fora trying to gather bloggers. Here you submit an article and members can vote for it in different categories. I.e.:  Voting is achieved simply by clicking on the arrows (,) which appear to the left of the submitted items. Only registered users may vote. Voting also determines the "kudus" of a user. Kudus (a word play on both "Kudos", and also a southern african antelope) are similar to what many other sites refer to as "karma". Kudus are earned (or lost) by other users voting for a submission. Thus if I submit an article and ten people vote it up whilst three vote it down, I will earn seven kudus for that article.

Takes more than a minute to figure out. Interesting, though.

Visit Emin Pasha

If you are a 4½ year old Icelandic boy you are allowed to jump in the beds in one of the best hotels in Kampala. Especially, considering the pricy rate of the rooms (which in no way reflects the salary level of a Danish development worker - in spite, the Emin Pasha actually offers an MS Uganda discount).

My Icelandic nephew came last week with his parents to visit me. In my eager to convince them that Uganda was a safe place full of amazing places absolutely on level with the best, I sent them the link to the Emin Pasha. The parents aren't, mildly spoken, in favour of long-distance driving to northern Uganda and when checking out the web site, they were convinced they had to stay at the Emin Pasha Hotel.

And, well, it is worth it. The Icelandics are happy. And I have never slept in such soft bed linen. The design is consistent. The place smells of gardenia and yasmin. It all oozes of comfort in an umistakenly African context. Just watched the BBC - a programme on 'The Last King Of Scotland', where Forest Whitaker was interviewed - on the lawn just outside. You don't acutally have to sleep here to enjoy the comfort of the Emin Pasha - The Fez Brasserie and Wine Bar are open to visitors from outside - and the food is fantastic. And did I mention the swimmingpool, the Internet (high speed) access, the gym, the wine bar...?!

However, how much I do enjoy luxury on these levels, personally and in the long run, this would be too much of a vacuum for me...I can't even hear Africa from here...

Bed-Shaking Earth Quake?

This morning around 05:20 I woke up in Jinja by something which felt like an earth quake. Only bed shaking, and so wague, that I start wondering if it actually did take place.

But then I read this blog post, however referring to Sunday. Very strange. What actually happened here? Was it Sunday or Monday? I have absolutely no experience in earth quakes, and my Icelandic brother-in-law who slept some rooms away claims that nothing took place. (However, he also practised the sleep after the intense take in of the Nile Special...)

So - what is what?! Have I finally gone crazy?