Understanding Tanzania

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Warning - depressing information enclosed.

In the mornings we volunteer but in the afternoon we have Swahili lessons and guest speakers. Both have been wonderful but I am really enjoying the speakers. Our first guest was a nun from St. Joseph's private hospital to discuss the AIDS challenge. I was in awe of her and her positive spirit. The information she presented was completely depressing though. Sub-saharan Africa makes up 10% of the worlds population but has 70% of the HIV/AIDS cases. 1/3 of those infected are between the ages of 15-24 with most unaware they are infected. There are roughly 15,000 new cases per day and most are young, poor women. The magnitude of the problem is somewhat overwhelming. From trying to figure out how to test people in rural areas, to get those who are positive into hospitals for treatment, etc. Many tribes here practice polygamy so that is the main way it is spread so quickly. This is a large part of the education problem in Tanzania. It's projected that in 2010 106 Million children under the age of 15 will lost one or both parents to AIDS. I really cannot even grasp this. But this accounts for the overflow in orphanages and the lack of teachers in school. It is decimating the country. As a Catholic it was even more interesting to listen to the nun talk about her care of AIDS patients. She said for her conscience and practical purposes she feels she must counsel her patients to practice safe sex but then when her patients return to the village the others don't believe that the nun told her that. What a stuggle. She also told us many time when a married woman finds out she is infected that he husband will throw her out so she will go to her parents. Her parents will also not take her in so she comes back to the hospital. The sisters there let the women stay and help out by working in the hospital. There is still a great Fedheha (stigma) when it comes to HIV/AIDS. Things are improving, but it's just the beginning. Sorry, I don't mean to be very depressing but that is the reality here. The people here are very strong and are up to the challenges they face. Americans just get frustrated and want to fix it but the Africans will tell us Pole Pole which means slowly. They are working on it but it takes time to change peoples attitudes and actions.

We had another guest speaker to discuss the educational and political systems here in Tanzania. They were both fascinating to me as well. The country suffers from a lack of facilities for education as well as a lack of teachers. Teachers do not make much money so it's hard to hire them, and the good ones will leave for better opportunites in other countries. Our speakers son went to Penn St. for a PhD in Geology and was hired on there after he completed. There isn't any animosity from the people here, as our speaker said, "What the hell do we have to offer him here? Nothing." Elementary schools here are taught in Swahili with one English class. But when students go on to secondary school all classes are taught in English. This causes many students to have problems and drop out of school. One of the volunteers asked why they don't just continue to teach in Swahili I was completely floored by his answer. It is only because they do not have Swahili textbooks. They rely upon used textbooks from Kenya and they are an English speaking country. The government doesn't have the money to print new books and no business has decided to create them. Ahhh so frustrating. Tanzania used to be ahead of other African nations when it comes to literacy and school attendance but the oil crisis damaged the economy and when they began accepting help from the IMF they were told they had to eliminate subsidies and could no longer offer free education. Currently only 55% of children complete elementary school. Of those, only 25% can attend secondary school simply because they do not have enough secondary schools. They let them in based upon their test scores so the smartest students are admitted first. They are relying heavily on Kenyan and Ugandan teachers for the teacher shortage which is about 60,000 needed at the secondary level. This is why many of us are utilized as teachers here.

It's been overwhelming a bit to learn all of this information. If it were me I don't know how I would continue on knowing all the challenges that my country faces. What problem do you tackle first?

Here are some of the interesting quotes from our speakers. Very interesting!
- Hungry stomachs know no laws.
- Bush telephones work faster than cell phones.
- The devil that knows you will not eat you all in one meal.
- The one that bites you hides in your own clothes.

That's all for the information sharing for now.

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Comments

[John Beaudoin]

Depressing but real, for sure
Hi Shelley. This was quite a way for me to start your blog. I just picked this one at random, but I am going to go back and look at the others tonight, too. The Catholic nun is certainly in a rough spot. My mom used to volunteer at a hospice with AIDS patients, but I cannot imagine how difficult it must be for the medical professionals there. This is the experience of a lifetime for you, I'm sure. I am off to check out your other entries. Best to you....you are in my prayers while you are traveling. John