We have completed our work in the interior of Liberia and we had some trouble with the internet last week so I will try to give an update of the many things that have taken place.
Sunday: 3/13- We visited the Cote d'Ivoire refugee camp in Bahn, Liberia. The UNHCR is prepared to accept more than 15,000 refugees that are fleeing the conflict zone in the western part of Cote d'Ivoire. These people are given minimal food rations and must live in shelters made out of sticks and tarps. Diarrhea and other sicknesses are fast to spread throughout the camp and many of the children do not have clothes. This also puts pressure on the Liberians living in Bahn as many of them live in poverty and have limited resources. On Saturday we visited a refugee camp in Saclapea, Liberia that held about 1,500 refugees from Cote d'Ivoire that fled the 2002 war.
Monday: 3/14- We traveled to the capital city of Nimba County, Shaniquellie. There we met with the land commissioner of Nimba County and he then produced a document ordering the land surveyor to proceed with the survey of the land that was given to us in Zahn Banla. This process should have taken about 30 minutes, but this is Liberia, so it took about 5 hours!
Tuesday: 3/15- We crammed 12 persons (Our team, the driver, and 6 surveyors), all the surveying equipment, and all of the food for the workers in our Mitsubishi pickup and set off for Zahn Banla. The survey began but there was much arguing amongst the 30+ spectators about where the boundaries actually were. We left the land frustrated and still unsure of the boundaries.
Wednesday: 3/16- The work began at 7:00 AM and ended at 7:00 PM. The men were clearing brush and marking the territory all day. There was more bickering throughout the day concerning who owned what land and what they were actually giving This is West Africa. In the end, it turns out that the villagers' perception of an acre is a bit skewed and we ended up with 10 acres and not 30. We feel that 10 acres is more than enough to build the type of school we are envisioning, so all is well and the villagers are happy, too.
I will update the last half of the week later and we will try to upload more pictures on facebook as well.
Sunday: 3/13- We visited the Cote d'Ivoire refugee camp in Bahn, Liberia. The UNHCR is prepared to accept more than 15,000 refugees that are fleeing the conflict zone in the western part of Cote d'Ivoire. These people are given minimal food rations and must live in shelters made out of sticks and tarps. Diarrhea and other sicknesses are fast to spread throughout the camp and many of the children do not have clothes. This also puts pressure on the Liberians living in Bahn as many of them live in poverty and have limited resources. On Saturday we visited a refugee camp in Saclapea, Liberia that held about 1,500 refugees from Cote d'Ivoire that fled the 2002 war.
Monday: 3/14- We traveled to the capital city of Nimba County, Shaniquellie. There we met with the land commissioner of Nimba County and he then produced a document ordering the land surveyor to proceed with the survey of the land that was given to us in Zahn Banla. This process should have taken about 30 minutes, but this is Liberia, so it took about 5 hours!
Tuesday: 3/15- We crammed 12 persons (Our team, the driver, and 6 surveyors), all the surveying equipment, and all of the food for the workers in our Mitsubishi pickup and set off for Zahn Banla. The survey began but there was much arguing amongst the 30+ spectators about where the boundaries actually were. We left the land frustrated and still unsure of the boundaries.
Wednesday: 3/16- The work began at 7:00 AM and ended at 7:00 PM. The men were clearing brush and marking the territory all day. There was more bickering throughout the day concerning who owned what land and what they were actually giving This is West Africa. In the end, it turns out that the villagers' perception of an acre is a bit skewed and we ended up with 10 acres and not 30. We feel that 10 acres is more than enough to build the type of school we are envisioning, so all is well and the villagers are happy, too.
I will update the last half of the week later and we will try to upload more pictures on facebook as well.
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