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June 25, 2006
Leaving Dori
The rest of my time in Gorom and Dori went well, with some more interesting meetings and chats with different people, and today I had to try and find a way from Dori to Djibo
Part 1 - Sitting Under the Acacias
At 08.00 I found myself sitting under the acacias by the side of the Dori-Djibo road, hoping for a passing vehicle to pick me up and take me to Djibo. The sun was already beating down, but I had the woman water-seller for company.
By 12.00, I was still sitting there, with no sign of a vehicle going to Djibo. The sun was even hotter, and conversation with my water-selling friend had become increasingly intermittent. There hadn't been a single vehicle.
In discussion with my new friend, we decided I had three options
1. Stay by the road in the hope of a vehicle to Gorgaji, where I could stay the night, then maybe get from there to Arabinda the following day, from where I might get a lift to Djibo.
2, Take the bus to Ouaga and hope to get there in time for the evening bus to Ouahigouya and from there to Djibo - a round trip of 600km for a 200km journey, which should get me there by midnight.
3. Give up and go to Ouaga.
None of them felt particularly right. What should I do...?
Part 2 - Dancing on the stairs
I decided to go for the Ouaga-Ouahigouya-Djibo option, and headed back into town to buy a ticket for the 1pm bus. At 12.20, having bought my ticket I was sat at the bus station, when I spotted the car of the Catholic sisters from Gorom. The driver told me there is a priest going to Djibo today, so I phoned the priest, a lovely guy from Congo called John, who kindly agreed to take me. I re-sold my ticket and sat down again to wait.
While waiting, a Mossi man drives up on his motorbike, whom I knew from more than ten years ago, when he worked with our Horizons team in Ouaga. He is now working in Dori and Gorom area, trying to start a work to help orphans in the area. It feels like meeting him again was the reason for my delayed flight from Dori, and I am excited to see how we may be able to work together again in the future.
Finally John turns up, with a Fulani driver, and we head off on one of the most hair-raising rides I have had in Burkina. During the year the dirt roads deteriorate and become "corrugated" - a surface known in English as "washboard" or in French "escaliers" (stairs). This surface will rattle your car apart unless you are prepared to drive at dangerously fast speed, when the car "dances" over the "stairs", threatening at any minute to dance off the road and tip over. You can guess which option our Fulani driver took...
Anyway, as you can see, we did arrive safely in Djibo, in time for a shower and a meal of chicken and bread with Steve, before catching the second half of Argentina v Mexico. It's great to see Steve, Cris and Irenaldo again, and we have a lot to talk about. Tomorrow we will join the Fulani church here, and I will be able to catch up with the Fulani Christians here before leaving for Ouaga on Monday.
Thanks for your prayers - the answers to prayer and meetings along the journey make the uncertainties and discomfort worthwhile. Thanks too for your emails - sorry I can't answer them all while in the sahel. I will do when I get back.
More soon
June 21, 2006
The thirsty search for water
Thanks for praying for rain for Djibo. Steve says they have now had a good rain. We didn’t get any of it in Gorom – just the wind and dust that disturbed our night trying to sleep under the stars. Please pray now for rain for Gorom - it is stiflingly hot, and people are longing for a good rain to kick-start the season’s field work.
Gorom-Gorom and Markoye
My time in Gorom and Markoye is going very well – thanks again for your prayers. I have had an excellent time with the pastors here, as well as with Seydou and Monique and others. One Christian here, called Pierre moved to Gorom in 2000 in response to a vision where God offered him the choice between a pile of money or a New Testament in Fulfulde. He has learned Fulfulde, and has put his earnings from his tailoring skills to buy a tv and vcd player, which he uses for evangelism in his workshop.
Seydou and I had a very fruitful and encouraging day in Markoye – though an exhausting one. It was non-stop, from leaving Gorom on the motorbike at 7am until we arrived back home nearly 12 hours later. The road was terrible, and the burning sun reflecting off the sand of the Markoye dunes was draining. But it was great to see the pastor and what God is doing there, to share our hearts for the future, and to walk through the market and meet old friends I haven’t seen for years. The pastor is respected throughout the town for his character and for the work he has done helping people – whether in Aids awareness, food aid, or so many other ways.
Things generally seem to be coming together very well, as I spend time with these excellent guys, and I should be able to tell you about some of our plans soon after I get back to the UK.
I also managed to fit in watching the England-Sweden game in a friend’s yard. England are gathering a bit of a following here – it is quite fun to hear Tuaregs in their turbans extolling Joe Cole’s abilities with the ball, or barefooted kids knocking a ball about on the sandy streets claiming to be Beckham.
The next few days
Tomorrow is market day in Gorom, which is always a fascinating day, and will be an opportunity to catch up with more friends. On Friday I will head back to Dori (if the rain hasn’t cut the road off), then on Saturday try to get to Djibo to catch up with Steve. This will be hard as there is no regular transport, so I will be sitting at the side of the road hoping for a vehicle to come by and pick me up. Since time is short, if I don’t get a lift on Sat, I will just have to head straight to Ouaga on Sunday, so please pray for this. Thanks.
More whenever I can next get to a cyber-café.
June 18, 2006
Gorom-Gorom
I am now in Gorom-Gorom, without cellphone contact as it turns out it is a different network here from the south of the country.
The journey to Dori was surprisingly easy – the previous night’s rain had cooled the air, and the newly-tarmacked road made it a comfortable ride - so different from past experiences of arriving exhausted and covered in red dust. On my way into Bani, with its dramatic mud mosques, I spotted two Fulani girls walking along the road, hair braided, milk pots on their heads – and wearing Arsenal shirts. A few minutes later I received a text message from a friend telling me England had beaten Trinidad 2-0. Is this globalization…?
My meeting with the pastors in Dori went really well. Thank you for praying. I am now trying to see the pastors in Gorom-Gorom and Markoye over the next few days, and will then return to Dori again for another session with the guys there. These are key meetings as we talk and pray about how we can work together in the coming years, and I appreciate your prayers. I think there is a lot of vision and commitment, and I am excited to see where it will all lead.
Seydou and Monique are doing well. “W”, who had been thrown out of his family for becoming a Christian has passed his exams and will pass into his final school year. “B”, a Fulani Christian girls who got baptised this year is also doing well at school and growing in faith. “Yusufi” is doing well, and tells me my cows are in good form.
Tomorrow Seydou and I go to Markoye on his motorbike, planning to come back the same day if rain doesn’t cut the road off.
More soon
June 14, 2006
Heading north
Unfortunately I haven't been able to get use of a vehicle, so will be heading north to Dori on the bus tomorrow.
In Dori I will be meeting on Friday with some local pastors to talk about how we can work together over the coming years. These are wonderful men of God who are key for the work in this region. Please pray for these discussions that God leads us by his Spirit.
Afterwards, I hope to continue to Gorom-Gorom, then to Markoye, and hopefully Djibo - though this last is now looking unlikely without transport. This is quite frustrating, but I trust God will help me see all those I need to. I will definitely catch up with Steve in Ouaga if not before.
It has been hot and humid today, and the skies have just opened up wit a good rain here in Ouaga, preceded by a strong dusty wind and a short powercut.
However, I spoke to Steve on the phone yesterday, and he said Djibo has a real problem with lack of water - please pray for rain there. He and Cristiano and Irenaldo are enjoying the world cup and hoping for an England-Brazil final!
Thanks for your prayers and encouragements. More soon.
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso travel sahel
June 13, 2006
Arrival in Ouagadougou
Well, the plane was over 3 hours late, but I finally landed in Ouagadougou to temperatures similar to those I'd left in England. It was 30C - but it was midnight. Daytime temperatures are around 40C - check them out here
I managed, with the kind help of my good friends at SIM, to get quite a lot done today, including - appropriately enough - getting a new SIM card in my mobile phone so I can use it in Burkina.
Unfortunately I still don't have transport. So, if things don't come together tomorrow, I'll be heading north on the bus on Thursday.
More soon.
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso travel sahel
June 11, 2006
What's happening in Burkina?
Although Burkina Faso doesn't make the news a lot, that doesn't meant there is nothing happening there! Here's a brief round-up of some news from Burkina Faso in the last couple of months since I left in March:
Rains, locusts, and hunger
The rains have started in the south of the country, and good rains are predicted for the Sahel. Steve tells me there has even been at least one rain in the north, although this is too early to be the start of the season there. Last year's harvest was good, but as we enter the toughest time of year, long-term effects from the 2004-5 food crisis continue due to "depletion of household assets including high livestock mortalities and indebtedness, notably in the northern part of the country, where very high malnutrition rates continue to be reported." The UK is giving £1.5 over the next three years to the West African Sahel region to try and help tackle the vulnerabilities of the area.
Locusts fortunately seem unlikely to be a problem this year.
Elections
In the country's municipal elections, the ruling Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP) won nearly two-thirds of Burkina Faso's local council seats. The elections seem to have passed off peacefully, but with a low turn-out - just under half of the country's 3.8 million registered voters cast their ballots.
Health
Meningitis. There was a serious outbreak of meningitis in March, leading to the deaths of over 600 people. President Compaore has been heading up a vaccination campaign.
FGM. Burkina Faso has been continuing its vigorous campaign against FGM. A recent study has shown clearly for the first time the evidence of increased dangers and fatalities for women in childbirth who have had FGM, and the WHO has called FGM "a form of torture", calling for a complete end to the practice.
Economy
Paul Wolfowita, the World Bank president, notes Burkina Faso as one of several successes in his call to keep Africa as a priority. Burkina achieved over 7% GDP growth in 2005, with the IMF predicting 5.6% for 2006. This was in spite of a fall in cotton prices and surge in oil prices. The rise in oil prices has also caused a hike in petrol costs at the pump in Burkina Faso, leading to recent strikes.
The World Bank and African Development Bank have both approved the writing off of Burkina's debt, with the goal of helping the government channel resources into poverty relief, and also stimulate economic growth. The Burkina government has been urged to resist Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) as a threat to West African economy, and instead examine wider regional integration through the West African Trade Regional Liberalisation scheme. The African Develoment Bank suggests abolishing visas within the region, and developing infrastructure to improve regional integration and trade. In this vein Burkina and Ghana are increasing co-operation, including a joint tomatoes venture.
Aid
Hilary Benn, the UK’s International Development Secretary has said, following a report, that allowing governments in poor countries to decide for themselves how to spend aid money has led to more schools and hospital for the poor. The reporton seven countries, including Burkina Faso, found that handing aid money to the treasuries in poor countries made the flow of overseas assistance more predictable and helped governments plan long-term anti-poverty strategies.
France is giving $387m for education, infrastructure, water, and sanitation. The World Bank has approved $47m in aid for health sector in Burkina Faso, including $12m for malaria, a massive killer in the region.
The US is giving $20m to West African states to help develop their cotton industries. West Africa, including Burkina Faso, has some of the most efficient cotton producing in the world, and is the world's 3rd largest cotton-producing region, but this has been undermined by low world prices caused in part by the $4.2 billion US cotton subsidies. The US is beginning to deal with them, but the West African nations are calling for more severe cuts in subsidies.
Gold
Companies continue to scramble for their bit of the potential gold fields in Burkina, with action by Orezone, Goldcrest, Goldrush, Semafo, Cluff, High river, and Riverstone
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso aid trade sahel health economy gold cotton fgm meningitis
June 10, 2006
World Cup Watch
In the absense of Burkina Faso at the World Cup this year, I will be following our West African neighbours Ivory Coast and Togo, alongside England of course.
I will of course be in Burkina for the most of the first round, so will try to catch a few games there. Football is big in Burkina, and the country virtually came to a standstill a few years ago when the African Nations Cup was held there.
The World cup will be followed avidly. A few enterprising individuals with the means and foresight to have bought a tv, satellite dish, and generator, charge people 10p/game to come and watch. Crowding into someone's yard with 100 others to watch a game under the stars in Burkina is a real experience.
Sigh of relief for England's first 3 points, but Ivory Coast's first game against Argentina tonight looks less promising...
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso football world cup soccer ivory coast togo england
June 07, 2006
Going back to Burkina, you are
My identifying of my church leaders with the Jedi Council caused some amusement here in Cardiff, with several people asking me which of the church leaders was which one of the Council members - a question I have resisted answering.
Maybe you want to decide for yourself:
The decision of the Council
The key decision that came out of our meeting is that it is time for me to return to the ministry, but that I will explore some new ways of working in Burkina.
I will actually be "re-commissioned" (which I'm told makes me sound like an old boat or boiler) on the 30 July. But I am beginning now to put things in place and to explore how I should approach this next phase. So, on Monday I fly out to Burkina Faso again for another short visit, to start to look into this.
Please pray for this trip. I will be there from 12-30 June, and will be trying to meet up with some of the key people out there, to find out how we can work together for a way forward in God's purposes.
Thank you.
June 05, 2006
Fulani Proverbs - how to become a crocodile
Ko leggal booyii ley ndiyam, laatataako noora.
Even if a log stays ages in the water, it never becomes a crocodile.
(We came across the crocodile above, just basking in the sun in a lake by the side of the road on our way from Boukouma to Dori back in February.)
I have sometimes been told by Fulani - more, I am sure, as a gracious response to my attempts to adapt to life among them, than from serious conviction:
"A laatake pullo!" - "You have become a Fulani!"
To which I reply:
Ko leggal booyii ley ndiyam, laatataako noora.
This always causes general hilarity, as proverbs are such a deep part of pulaaku (traditional Fulani culture), expressing commonly held Fulani wisdom in pithy expressions. Non-Fulani are not expected to be able to know the language and culture well enough to use them. The Fulani say that you can only speak Fulfulde properly if you have drunk it from your mother's milk. To use Fulani proverbs well - which I don't - is really key to becoming the crocodile.
A few proverbs
I was asked recently to put a few Fulani proverbs up on my website, so here are a few culled from my colleague Steve's post from last year:
Proverb: Heba cofel heba ngoofoondi walaa
Translation: You can't have both a chick and a yolk
Meaning: You can't have your cake and eat it too
Bernde feewa teppeere feewa kaa, walaa
You can't have both a cool heart and a cool heel
If you send someone to do something they'll get it wrong and you'll be upset, but if you go yourself you'll get tired
Mi wadii wootere doobal
I have done the 'one' of the doobal-bird (a bird which lays only one egg)
Said after doing something which you will never do again
Duroowo paabi, kam anndi layooru
The shepherd of frogs recognises the limping one (whereas anyone else would think they are all limping!)
The one who has experience has the accompanying knowledge (i.e. ask the expert)
Alla anndinaay gujjo de bangi munaafiki
God didn't tell the thief he was marrying a gossip
If I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have done it. I didn't know that what I was doing was unwise!
Mbuuku bumdo nde wootere yaabetee
A blind man's testicles are only stood on once (i.e. he'll move or cry out to stop it happening again!)
Once bitten twice shy - said regarding unpaid loans, bad experiences etc
Si neddo fiyii howru banndum fuu, nyoofa howru mum
He who hits his neighbour's knee curls up his own legs
If you do something bad to someone, they are likely to avenge it, so watch out!
Si mawdo wi'ii modan jammbere ni nannganaa dum leggal
If a man says he will swallow an axe, hold the handle for him
Don't try and talk someone out of something if they've already made up their mind to do it
For a long list of proverbs, helpfully broken down into categories, go to the Jam Tan website - an excellent site with the best background information on the Fulani that I have seen on the web.
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso fulani proverbs sahel wisdom fulfulde crocodile
June 02, 2006
Burkina Faso travel guide
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the tourism potential of Burkina Faso. Well, I have just discovered and bought the new Bradt travel guide to Burkina Faso.
At first look, it appears accurate, and certainly much more in-depth than the Lonely Planet or other alternatives. I'm looking forward to reading it more, and seeing how it matches up.
Tags: africa burkina burkina faso tourism travel sahel travel guide
