Net Distribution

Yay free stuff! Universal net distribution was recently in my village and I was lucky enough to be involved in the entire process! Net distribution is a government organized, USAID funded program with the ultimate goal of every person to have a net to sleep under, every night, all year long.  While there are flaws to this plan, it is not because of the project structure.  People just don't like to sleep under nets.  Some people find them too hot, others think the pesticide coating causes itching, and many people simply say they don't have enough money to buy them.  Net distribution addresses the last excuse.

The process for me began with a census.  I went with my counterpart and the other relais from my health area (Bignarabe) and went house to house, asking how many people lived in each compound and looking at each sleeping space.  Why not beds? you might be asking. Not everyone has a bed, and kids often sleep on a mat or mattress on the floor, and other people have areas set up outside.  These are all included in the census.  I hit 7 villages in 3 days and went to approximately 200 compounds.  This was just a fraction of the villages and compounds we were expected to cover, but other relais went to other villages.  Once we were done we brought our results back to the health post, who took them to the regional capital in order to actually request the nets.

Fun midway fact, I was the only female involved in the census.  I pointed this out to my counterpart, who has come to understand my sensitivity to gender differences, and he said it was because women can't ride bikes, and the whole census was done on bikes.  That's ridiculous! I ride a bike.  Then I asked Fatou, my female counterpart, and she confirmed it- none of the women could ride a bike, and the only one that could was a teenager and needed to go to school instead.  Thinking about it later it would have been hilarious to see these cheb mama women riding their bikes through bush-beaten tracks.  But I digress.

We had two days of distribution prep and a full day of actual distribution.  Prep involved unwrapping each net and writing the name of the head of household, town, area, year, and date.  We were provided with four pens, all of which ran out on the first day.  We poured water into them to get every last mark we could, and we able to borrow two pens from the Totstan teacher.  Things would have gone much quicker and a little less frustrating though if we were all able to have pens.

The day of was very simply people coming to my village and picking up their nets.  We tried to give a talk beforehand, but we hadn't told anyone this was a requirement and everyone thought they could just pick up their nets and go back to cooking or the fields.  The rest of the day went well though, and I got to see everyone from my village as well as meet people from the surrounding villages.

Bismillah e Fuuta (Welcome to the Fuuta)

     Hi all! For this post I had my PCV friend Anna from the north give some information about what it's like to live in the North, and she also gives a little information about living in a city!


     The Fuuta refers to the northern regions of Senegal, where I have been living

for the past 10 months. I am a Peace Corps health volunteer and my name is Anna

Adams, though my family here calls me by my given Senegalese name, Halimata Sow.

Specifically, the city I live in, Ourossogui, is in the northeastern region of Matam only

about 10 miles away from the Mali border.

     Although Senegal is roughly the size of the state of South Carolina, the northern

and southern regions of the country vary greatly. The most notable difference is the

climate. Whereas the southern region has a lush, moist and tropical climate, the north is

a dry desert landscape with temperatures that regularly exceed 110 degrees Fahrenheit

during the summer months. Multiple showers in a day are very important! There is

minimal vegetation due to the sandy soil and rain only occurs for one month out of the

entire year. Sand storms are also a frequent event throughout the spring and into the

month of June.

     My site is also different from the traditional Peace Corps site since I live in

a fairly large city with a population of around thirty thousand people. Unlike many

volunteers, I have electricity and running water from a spigot on a daily basis, though

usually not for the entire day, especially during the hot season. Due to the heat, water

shortages and power outages are common. The city is divided into 11 neighborhoods,

each with a chief de quartier that serves as a community leader. There are two main

national paved roads that run through the city and smaller unpaved sand roads throughout

the neighborhoods. Along the main road, many sellers set up stalls to sell fruits, sandals,

and other household goods. There is also a mayor’s office, daily market, and small one-

room stores that sell food products, hardware goods, and cleaning products. Even though

my city is large, there are no chain grocery or clothing stores. All produce and meats are

purchased at the daily market and for clothing, people usually buy meters of fabric to

be taken to a tailor. The city also offers recreational activities and every summer there

is a soccer league that takes place at the local stadium with teams representing all the

neighborhoods. My city also has five schools, eleven mosques, a youth center, hospital,

and radio station.

     The northern culture is a unique blend of Senegalese customs and Muslim

religious traditions, which is reflected in their daily lives. The kids in my family attend

Koranic School, where they study the holy book of Islam the Koran, to receive a religious

education in addition to elementary school. Both men and women are also more reserved

in their dress, for example, long pants and skirts past the knees are required despite the

heat. Shorts are only acceptable when exercising or participating in a sport activity.

But don’t let the harsher climate, sand storms, and more restrictive dress code

scare you. The Fouta is my home and I really do enjoy it here. My family and most

people in my region are ethnically pulaar and speak a dialect of pulaar that resembles

the language spoken in the south. Pulaars are fun, outgoing, and welcoming people that

above all believe in respect and “teddungal” (hospitality). A guest will always be invited

to stay for lunch and three cups of tea will be served after the meal as another sign of

hospitality.

      Traditionally pulaars are herders tending to cattle, sheep, or goats. Since I live

in a larger urban city there are many herder families, as well as those that own food

stalls, shops, or work as clothing tailors or mechanics. Even if a family does not work

as herders, they may still own several cows or sheep as a financial investment to be sold

later or eaten at a holiday celebration. The frequent presence of cattle also allows for milk

production and one of my favorite treats, kosam. Kosam is a sweetened milk drink served

cold or over ice similar to frozen yogurt or a milkshake. It is by far the best thing to get

you through a hot day in the Fuuta.