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Posted by Sarah Whitney and Claire Bristow, Global Development Fellows
This week, builders laid the concrete slab at the community centre. This marks great progress as the foundation is complete and means that the walls will quickly start to get higher and higher. Finishing the slab required a lot of materials and labour in the hot sun, providing both the Project Steering Committee and the builders with challenges–especially in regards to water.
At the community centre site sits a 5,000 liter water tank, which the Project Steering Committee has borrowed from the family of Uta’s headman. This has provided a supply of water to the construction site in the most efficient way possible in a village with no access to running water. When the communal taps near the community centre are working–for a day or two once a month–the water tank can be filled from a hose by members of the Project Steering Committee. However, construction of the centre takes much more water than these unreliable taps can provide, especially during the recent construction of the slab. The solution, for both the centre and families who can afford to pay for water, is to have a community member with a tractor or a pick-up truck drive to a nearby dam or working tap in another village with thirty or forty 20 liter containers and fill up water to deliver. This is unfortunately both expensive and inefficient, but it is the solution for now.
For some families, having clean water delivered to their homes is just not affordable. Girls are often seen before and after school and women in the hot afternoon sun pushing wheelbarrows to the dry river to dig for water or to a temporarily working tap across the village to fill up their water containers. This may or may not be safe for drinking, and almost always families live on an insufficient amount of water.
The local government is generally unresponsive to the lack of access to water. Living here for eight months, we have seen a municipality truck deliver water to select families in the community only two or three times. The ward councellor, the representative of the Bushbuckridge Municipality for this area, has guaranteed that there will be a permanent solution to the water crisis by 2012–a large dam is being built in the region with pipelines to connect water to hundreds of communities in the area currently without it. Not only does this mean at least two more years without access to water in Uta, but there is little trust among the community that this promise will be fulfilled. Short-term solutions in the area include the digging of boreholes and the repair of existing water engines and pipelines, but neither are easy tasks. This is a dry area, limiting natural water access due to insufficient rains and a lack of underground water supplies. Thus, the water crisis is both a result of current government mismanagement and a lasting effect of apartheid’s land distribution systems.
For the community centre, lack of access to reliable water means higher costs and temporary construction delays when none is available. We will be working with the Project Steering Committee to develop solutions for water at the centre–likely meaning the construction of a borehole in the future. For the community, the country, and the region, the water crisis means so much more. Almost one-fifth of the world’s population lives in areas of physical water scarcity. Almost a quarter faces economic water shortages, in which countries lack the infrastructure necessary to carry water from rivers and aquifers. That is 1.6 billion people living without sufficient access to water. Sub-Saharan Africa has the most water-stressed countries of any region. Clean water is a foundation of human health, and too many struggle to survive without it. The community centre will be a resource in Uta, eventually housing a source of community water and serving as a place where community members can meet to speak with their local leaders and elected officials, demanding the access to water they deserve.
Shangaan word of the day: mati – water
By Sarah Whitney and Claire Bristow, Global Development Fellows
The depth of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa is at the same time palpable and hidden in the rural communities. People often die for unexplained reasons at too young of an age, and the signs and symptoms of the disease are visible even in friends and family members who refuse to acknowledge their presence. And yet those who conquer the stigma of the disease face long distances to even find a testing facility. The nearest treatment—after expensive transport and the unreliability of the country’s ARV supplies—seems unreachable. It is estimated that one in four people in Uta are HIV-positive, and there is not a single member of this community who is unaffected.
The South African government was not only slow to address the issue of HIV/AIDS, it led the way in perpetuating myths and feeding social stigma. Under political pressure in 2002, the government finally appointed a task team to address the epidemic and committed to improving the provision of antiretroviral treatment. While promise from the government is a sign of hope, it is difficult to recognize how this commitment translates into action in rural areas far out of sight from the minds of city officials. Much of the struggle against the epidemic in these areas, therefore, is committed to education and awareness. In a sad reality, testing, counseling, and treatment take a backseat.
With international recognition of the hold that HIV/AIDS has on this country, it seems now that only local commitment and action that will generate forward progress in the fight against the epidemic. As Think Impact Fellows, we have the opportunity to see this take root in rural communities. As we finalize the details of constructing a community hall, we are able to look to the future and see how this will be so much more than a physical structure. The members of the Project Steering Committee, directing the planning and development for the Uta Community Centre, see the affects of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on their community, and are searching tirelessly for ways to reverse the damage and stop the spread. Excellent, Lucky, and Rames—local leaders all under the age of 25—have committed the past few months to attending community health worker courses in HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria. They envision using the hall to share what they learn with their community. There is excitement surrounding conversations of future health workshops and testing opportunities. Furthermore, Angie and Forget—a single mother and a grade 12 student—share a vision of leading learners who will gather at the community hall to watch dramas and participate in after-school activities that will among their various benefits, serve to educate kids and teens about health issues vital to their growth and success.
We are completely inspired by the people we work with here in Uta. Everyday we see the goals of the struggle against HIV/AIDS in South Africa manifested in the visions of our committee members. Each conversation and every new idea are encouragement for the success of the Uta Centre and the immense of potential in the community for future.
Hello from South Africa! Things with the Uta Community Center are picking up speed. The Community Development Forum and the Induna (local representative of the chief) have held a meeting on Monday to approve the location that our committee had recommended for the center. On Saturday, 5 September, the CDF and the Induna will introduce the official site to the community. Next, our committee will work with the CDF to apply for land rights from the Tribal Authority. This has been a learning process for us in terms of South African and community politics and legal matters.
Our committee has been working hard to compare local builders in order to decide what is the best route to take for the construction of the center. Right now, the group is in the process of comparing estimates from two local builders and gathering information about the cost versus quality of a variety of building materials. The next step will be to organize a plan for local labor.
While attending a local government meeting we were told that November’s community meeting is planned to be held inside of the community hall, so this is further inspiration for us to keep moving and further proof that the community is eagerly awaiting completion of this project. We are looking forward to beginning construction by the end of the month and continue working on programs that will be held inside of the community center.
Shangaan phrase of the day: U nga vileli, u tsaka – Don’t worry, be happy.
Posted by Sarah Whitney and Claire Bristow (Global Development Fellows)
We have been working on the community center in Uta. We have been here in South Africa for a month now and have been spending our time, so far, reintegrating into the community and talking about community ideas for the center. We have been working closely with our local youth partner, Forget Sithole, and many other young people to evaluate local opinion and mobilize the community around their ideas. This is being done through formal interviews in both Shangaan and English and casual conversations among neighbors and friends. These are just the very beginning stages of this development project and we are really looking forward to getting even deeper into it.
We will attend a community meeting this week during which a planning committee will be formed for the community center. This committee will then be in charge of developing more ideas for the center as well as outlining construction plans. The committee will be made up of both men and women of all ages and backgrounds in order to be representative of the people of Uta.
In order to reinegrate into Uta life, Sarah and I have both joined the local women’s soccer team. This team has only recently started up through the leadership of a few strong females. Its really nice to see the women out getting exercise and enjoying their time together. We practice each weekday and run on Saturdays. Its so fun to play with our host moms with their little daughters on the sidelines cheering us on! We were imagining how funny it would be to watch our own mothers run around a soccer field, aggressively pushing other women out of their way to score goals! (Hi Mom!) We think its nice for the women who don’t work to have something to commit to in the evenings, and those who do work, its something nice to change up their routine. This is definitely a good way to get to know more people in Uta and reach out to those who will be an asset to the community center and also a good way for us to make even more friends in Uta.
Shangaan word for the day: Nhlampfi – Fish
Posted by Sarah Whitney, Global Development Fellow
As I walked past the White House on my way to class this afternoon, I was struck by the memory of election night last fall. Celebrating such an influential election as a first time voter right here in DC was empowering. For the first time in my life, I saw the excitement that could surround a nation of informed and involved citizens, and the power that my generation could have as campaigners, supporters, and voters. As I stood in front of the White House that night, I recalled a photograph I saw this past June as a GDI with SMRC at the Apartheid Musuem in Johannesburg. That aerial photo showed a line of South African voters, coiled around a polling station in 1994, waiting to cast their vote as anxious and empowered citizens in the country’s first general election since the end of apartheid.
This is my last week of classes, and as a graduating senior I have a lot of work to do. But today I have been enthralled with the reports coming in from South Africa. Over 23 million citizens were registered to vote in the country’s fourth general election since 1994, and youth made up nearly 30% of the voting population. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Sarah Whitney, Fellow
Echoing the feelings of our fellow Fellows, Claire and I are amazed and excited that June is just around the corner. We cannot wait to get to South Africa to continue to develop the community center’s potential and begin construction with our local partners.
Last week, SMRC received news of remarkable progress for the Uta Community Center. The project was generously awarded a $13,000 grant from the Oak Foundation. Special thanks must be given to Oak’s president, Kathleen Cravero-Kristoffersson, for her support of our work in South Africa.
This is an exciting time for the Uta Community Center. We are getting closer and closer to reaching our fundraising goal everyday. In the spirit of generosity and support shown by the Oak Foundation, consider making a donation to the project today at www.studentmovementusa.org/center. And if you are in the DC area, don’t forget to join us for dinner and drinks at Madam’s Organ on April 2nd between 5 and 8 pm!
The Uta Community Center project has an exciting event coming up in Washington, DC and we are asking you to save the date! Please join SMRC for dinner at Madam’s Organ Restaurant and Bar in Washington, DC on April 2nd between 5 and 9 pm to help support the future of the Uta Community Center in South Africa. SMRC has been chosen by Madam’s Organ to participate in their weekly “Non-profits Profit” event on April 2nd. Madam’s Organ will generously donate a percentage of the evening’s food and drink proceeds to the community center project. With the opportunity to win some raffles, find out more about SMRC, and support the Uta Community Center project, if you are in the DC area on April 2nd, come on down to Madam’s Organ between 5 and 9 pm. We hope to see you there!
Madam’s Organ is located at 2461 18th Street NW, Washington, DC, 20009.
Posted by Claire Bristow, Fellow
This month has been filled with new academic challenges that remind me of South Africa. As I continue my education in Global Development, I come across information about challenges that impoverished communities face all over the world. I’m working on my dissertation which is going to focus on traditional healing practices in South Africa. So many people in Uta need healthcare but find it unaffordable or inaccessable. There is a building project for a new health clinic that will benefit this community, but a focus still needs to be placed on prevention of disease. This can be achieved using community health days and other advocacy programs to raise awareness and provide information about transmission. The Uta Community Center will be able to provide a location for these awareness projects. I can’t wait to finish fundraising and get started so that Uta can have a healthier future.
As the holidays are upon us and I see all of the letters to Santa adorning my family’s refrigerator, I am reminded that no matter where you’re from or where you go, you will always find that kids tell it like it is. Letters to Santa outline exactly what every child wants for Christmas, and they have no shame in letting him know that the list goes on and on. Read the rest of this entry »
