Six Months In Botswana

Six Months in Botswana: The Past, Present and Future
Wow! It is hard to believe that I have been with Peace Corps for six months. A great deal has transpired. I survived two months of intensive training in the language and culture, which immersed us into the new environment along with a family home stay for three months. But the training did pay off in preparing us to live, work and survive in a new part of the world. I feel very lucky to have had a team of coaches along the way. When I think of what refugees experience in terms of coming to the US with all that support, I am amazed they survived and even thrived. During the past four months, I have been on site at my senior secondary school with thousands of students and over one hundred teachers. Certainly, I have made my share of mistakes and have a long way to go to be accepted by students and teachers. Visibility I have when I walk around the school. Acceptance and trust are things that I have to earn and will take time. I thought the first part of my service would be the hardest, but now I am not so sure…
The next six months will be much warmer, to say the least. The weather is generally in the 90’s during the day although somewhat cooler at night. It has been very dry without much rain to date. I think I tend to melt and have become lethargic. Nothing seems that important. At times I just want to sit rather than move.
With my training mostly over, it is now up to me to implement life skills into the schools in all disciplines. These skills include goal setting, self awareness, assertiveness training, decision making and more, all as an effort to prevent behaviors which spread HIV and AIDS. That is a tall order. There are no blue prints, although there are some classroom materials and resources. Since I am supposed to build capacity at the school, it is import to partner with teachers and students. My goal includes networking both in the schools and in the community. One of my goals is to work with the Ministry of Health to provide better healthcare for our students who getting pregnant, being raped, and in some cases committing suicide. Life is difficult for them. Most do not live with their parents, who are working elsewhere. Most are poor and without adequate resources. If one could wave a wan and create jobs in the area that would be great. When most students graduate, they are unemployed and cannot afford higher educations. The world economic slump will not help markets for Botswana diamonds and economy. The high price of oil is making all the prices rise. Inflation is a problem and hurts the poor even more.
In addition to being an advocate for student healthcare, I am trying to assist with a variety of workshops for teachers and students on HIV and other topics. Since I am attached to the Guidance and Counseling Center, I counsel students from time to time and basically refer them to qualified social workers.
I am also working with another volunteer to assist a juvenile rehabilitation center with some programing other than vocational skills. They have social workers but no training in regards to rehabilitation of young criminals. The ages are 14-19. The young men need health information, life skills and in some cases literacy skills. Most dropped out of schools early. Not sure where the training will come from at this point. It all must be in Setswana since English is not an option with the young men.
Livng here has not been difficult, since I have water, electricity, a stove and refrigerator. My little house is on a family compound with about three other houses including both young and old folks. The capital city is about one hour away. I have been there several times to buy things at large shopping centers to supplement what I can purchase locally. My life is relative simple. The Peace Corps provides me with an adequate living allowance. In addition to learning more Setswana and seeing how I can assist the teachers and students, I also hope to see some of the country in the next six months.
Over all, it has not been an easy ride both in terms of the training and the job. I have had good days and bad days. My mood goes up and down. The work is challenging and I tend to stay busy. I am enjoying getting to know some of my fellow teachers. I am also very fortunate to have a wonderful counterpart who is head of the counseling department and guiding me along the way in addition to going back to school half time.
I find working around the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health bureaucracy very frustrating. With over half of the people in the country employed by the government, it is like working for city of Chicago and abiding by lots of rules. The school itself is also very hierarchical which presents many problems in getting permission to do things. The fact that teachers use and abuse the stick to discipline students creates problems on many levels. I realize this practice of disciplining students is part of the culture and even the traditional authorities beat people as a form of punishment. However, I cannot accept this. To date I have not figured out easy effective, alternative strategies for teachers to use. If anyone has good solutions, please comment below.
I did get what I asked for in joining the Peace Corps, but not exactly what I expected. The reality has been harder than I anticipated. I have learned a great deal since my arrival six months ago. I hope to learn much more in the next six months.
Sorry for the long report. Do feel free to make suggestions and observations.