It is hard to believe that our stay in Dodoma and Tanzania has come to an end. Our time here, almost a year and a half, has never dragged. I do not think there has been a moment when we have wished time to move on a little quicker. In fact, mostly it has felt like time was rolling along at an accelerated pace. Be that as it may, we have now come to the point of saying our good-byes and returning home. December has been a time of bringing the school term to a close with mid-year exams, a Christmas [View Full Entry]

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Sitting over lunch with her teaching assistants at the Early Years Centre, Gerry became curious about the food they were bringing to eat. There were some very typical Tanzanian foods that one sees a lot - rice with beans, pillau, mendazi, chapati, fruit… But Gerry’s attention was caught by the bread that Pendo, one of the members of her staff, brought to school - lovely, fresh, golden brown, white bread. Pendo told Gerry that she made her own bread. She baked it on her jiko, Swahili for stove. Jikos come in a number of forms. Pendo’s jiko is a deep pan [View Full Entry]

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Given the October school break, Gerry and I decided it was time for a little travelling. Gerry, our daughter Karen and a friend visiting from Canada planned a trip to Zanzibar and Mikumi National Park. I decided this time to go on my own so I opted for something a little out of the ordinary. My plan was to ride the Central Line of the Tanzanian Railway west from Dodoma to Kigoma on Lake Tanganyika. After a couple of days in Kigoma I would board the MV Liemba and take passage to Mpulungu, Zambia, at the south end of the lake [View Full Entry]

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I have read on a number of occasions that agriculture is the foundation of the Tanzanian economy so I thought this month I would pursue that theme a little. As we have visited the north of the country as well as the eastern coastal region and live in the central part of Tanzania we have been able to observe from the road at least a sampling of Tanzanian agriculture. The regions to the north and east have fairly consistent rainfall and quite fertile soils, so they produce a great deal of the food that enters both the domestic and export markets. [View Full Entry]

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In the same way that people around the world associate mounties, mountains and hockey with Canada, I expect Mount Kilimanjaro, large animals and the Maasai often come to mind when people think of Tanzania. These are, of course, what tourism in this country is built on - elephants, giraffes and exotic safaris. Along with mining and agriculture, tourism in Tanzania is one of the three largest sectors of the economy and generates more foreign exchange than any other industry here. In recognition I expect of the importance and value of the environment and ecology of this country, Tanzania has [View Full Entry]

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Tanzania is among the poorest countries in the world. A few stats - the national budget is roughly one-ninth that of BC and 1/138 th that of Canada. Close to 40% of the population is considered to be malnourished. Foreign governments and agencies through grants and loans provide roughly 45% of the national budget. With so little ‘disposable income’ the Tanzanian government is in no position to finance a social safety net for its 40 million or so citizens of the type we enjoy in Canada. As a result, Tanzania is awash in non-governmental organizations (NGOs), faith based organiz [View Full Entry]

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Recently, we were in Dar es Salaam to meet our daughter at the airport before having a little holiday with her in and around Tanzania. One morning we were at a loose end in Dar so we visited, with the help of a local guide, the Dar es Salaam fish market. I thought you might be interested to learn a little about fisheries in this country and see some pictures from the market. Like agriculture, the fishery in Tanzania is predominantly a subsistence activity. While there is a commercial side to it, people fish largely for their own needs, selling only [View Full Entry]

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The Carpenter’s Kids Programme was established two years ago to address a problem faced by many of the children of this Diocese. Since 2002 Tanzanian children have been entitled to a free primary education, from Reception (Kindergarten) up to Grade 7, known here as Standard 7. Prior to that time, fees had to be paid to attend and as a result only about 50% of children actually went to school. While there are now no fees for primary school, to attend, a child must be in possession of a school uniform, black shoes and school supplies. So, if a child cannot [View Full Entry]

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This month I thought I would give you more of a look at the city of Dodoma where we live. Actually, there are three Dodomas - Dodoma Region, the Rural District of Dodoma and the city of Dodoma. Dodoma Region is much like a province of the country. It is roughly 200 km east-west, 300 km north/south, has a population of 1.7 million and sits geographically in the centre of Tanzania. The principal population centre in the region and the third largest city in the country is the city of Dodoma with a population of 325000. The Rural District of Dodoma [View Full Entry]

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The Buigiri School for the Blind is one of five schools operated by the Diocese of Central Tanganyika. It was founded in 1950 by an officer in the Church Army and is situated in the village of Buigiri, roughly 20 km east of Dodoma. It was the first school of its kind in the country, which at the time was the British protectorate of Tanganyika. The choir from Buigiri School attended our church one Sunday and then a month later, Gerry and I visited the school. Buigiri is a residential primary school with a current enrollment of 96 students, offering grades [View Full Entry]

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