Untitled
on Um Zayd wa Atheer (Uganda), 24/Jan/2012 15:44, 34 days ago
Dropping in on MiiryaI've been back to Masindi. I felt I had to go before starting my new placement in Gulu. I needed to know how the Miirya Village Volunteer Project was doing. I was last in Masindi in August 2010. Whilst back in the UK I naively hoped to receive a monthly email report about Miirya but of course it could never happen. Miriam who had been left in charge of the project as 'the co-ordinator' lives in two lock-up rooms, not fit to be called a house but they are her home, without electricity, water or windows. She survives on the edge even though she is the In-Charge of a busy health centre. How could she ever be expected to type a report and send it in an email to Upton Upon Severn? Hence I had to go to Miirya myself to see if the Project was still alive.I didn't set my expectations too high. I feared being disappointed. Miriam and I soon got together. She painted a rosy picture of falling cases of malaria, increased uptake of childhood immunisation and less diarrhoea among small children. She also told me that most volunteers were still active and were determined for the Miirya Project to continue. I was happy to hear all of this but needed to see the volunteers also, to hear their side of the story. We decided to call 3 Quarterly Meetings, 1 in each Parish. I was soon off to Radio Kitara to launch the announcement.I was apprehensive. How many of the volunteers would turn up? I needn't have worried. Kigulya, Bigando and Isimba opened their doors once more. The first meeting was held in Kigezi and as I approached the Catholic Church I could easily see the huddle of blue under the shade of the mango tree. Soon this blue was wrapped around me in massive hugs and smiles filled the space in the absence of forgotten Runyuro vocabulary. Gradually the words magically reappeared and we were able to greet one another. I had 105 names to remember. Some escaped me but others will never be forgotten.The purpose of the meeting was to greet, to share and to think about the future. We were able to do all of these things. The turn up was good and all the volunteers had their chance to talk about their achievements, disappointments and concerns. Miriam had not been exaggerating and the rosy picture was painted 3 times over by each of the Parishes. Four years ago when I first met most of these people they were timid and reluctant to stand up and speak. Now they were proud to have their say. It was impressive and moving. Even their fears and complaints were realistic.Through the continued hard work of the volunteers there is indeed less malaria in the Miirya villages and more women are bringing their babies to be immunised, more pit latrines are being dug and there are fewer cases of diarrhoea. Village people have grown to respect them and consult these people who move around in their distinctive blue t-shirts. The volunteers have also earned the respect of other organisations and many of them have been picked to work on other health projects. One unexpected off shoot of the Miirya Project has been that the volunteers armed with more knowledge and confidence have become more ambitious. Some like Wilfred, Mohammed and Silvio now have other roles in local 'politics', they have been elected to represent their communities at different levels. Friday and Sunday have jobs. They have prospered because they have discovered the joy of giving of yourself, volunteering.Of course, all is not perfect. The biggest disappointment has been the failure of local and central government to recognise the value and hard work of the health volunteers. Following on from John's and my trip to Bangkok last February we are pledged to lobby for this to change. John was so impressed with how the volunteers spoke at our meetings he says that they should go to Parliament themselves. This is a big mountain to move but we have to start somewhere, somehow.Going back to Miirya was great!