Mambo!* Adam from the UK here!

For a long while, I had been thinking about escaping London and doing some voluntary work abroad. Having reached and exceeded the ripe old age of 30, I figured now was a good-a-time as any to do so. I have absolutely zero regrets regarding the decision I made – I have really enjoyed myself out here! Prior to joining Cedar Tanzania, I worked as a consultant for a FinTech company in London, and, prior to that, I spent 8 years in glorious Bristol, studying a MSci and PhD in chemistry.

Adam Nunn - Volunteer at Cedar Tanzania Head Office in Mwanza, Tanzania

What inspired you to volunteer with Cedar Tanzania?  

An up-to-date website is a rare thing for NGOs in these parts. It was great to get a real-time feel for the amazing and inspirational work that Cedar Tanzania are doing here in Mwanza and in the Nyamatongo Ward. I had a chance to speak to Claire Michelotti, the Executive Director, who was a delight and very reassuring with regards to what I might be able to contribute to the team. The diversity of projects being run here was immediately appealing, as well as the clear vision that Cedar Tanzania sets out, which I also don't find with many other NGOs that I researched. In addition to that, I was quite keen to skip a cold, bleak, grey British winter for once.

How long is your volunteer placement?

Three and a half months.

What is your role at Cedar Tanzania? 

I'm helping transition the Cedar Tanzania Accounting Team from MS Excel to an off-the-shelf accounting software system, which will provide significant improvements to their accounting abilities as well as efficiency savings for accounting team and the NGO. I've also been involved in writing an application to a section of the Tanzanian Government and teaching some of the staff at the Kamanga Health Centre how to cook chilli con carne (which isn't strictly speaking in my job description, but it's been fun).

Can you mention highlights of some of the activities that you have been involved in whilst you have worked for Cedar?

Well, all of my colleagues are great, which is always a good start. It was immediately evident when I started working here that everyone is really passionate about their work and about delivering upon Cedar Tanzania's vision. I've been given a lot of autonomy over what I do, but with plenty of support when I've needed it. Accounting isn't a particularly glamorous job, but it's been really rewarding supporting an NGO and knowing that my small contribution helps the NGO operate more efficiently and continue to deliver their outstanding work within the Nyamatongo community.

What things have challenged you so far?

Navigating in the dark around the potholes in the pavements here. And not succumbing to the temptation of eating ‘chips mayai’* every day.

What things have you found enjoyable or surprising about Tanzanian culture either socially or at work?

I love the Tanzanian attitude to life. It's much more relaxed and friendlier than what I've experienced in the majority of Western Europe. Almost everyone here is keen to chat and seem to enjoy my very broken and limited attempts at speaking Kiswahili. No one seemed to enjoy that on the London Underground. Also, the food you find at the little hawkers dotted along the roads or in the villages is delicious, and almost everyone here is a great dancer. I'm not a great dancer, if you were wondering. But I've picked up some moves that I execute poorly.

What would you say to anyone who said that they could not volunteer because they didn't have a skill to offer?

If you are already interested in volunteering abroad, if you already have that desire to take yourself out of your comfort zone and do something different, if you want to immerse yourself in a totally different culture and give your time and energy to help others who live a very different and likely less fortunate lifestyle than yourself, then you already have what it takes to volunteer at Cedar Tanzania. There is no shortage of work to be done, no shortage of inspirational projects to get involved in, and I don't doubt that you'd have a great time volunteering here. I certainly have.

*Mambo - kiSwahili for ‘What’s up’, popular greeting amongst friends.

*Chips mayai – a Tanzanian dish of fried chips in an omelette.

By Adam Nunns
Volunteer - Admin and Office
Self-professed Chilli-Con-Carne Chef
Cedar Tanzania

It's finally here!

We are so excited to announce that Kamanga Health Centre has received the brand new neonatal resuscitation table that was bought by funds raised by the crowd-funding campaign of December 2018.  The arrival of this life saving equipment will mean safer and better treatment for all our new babies born at our health centre. At the moment we average a birth a day but numbers are increasing as Kamanga Health Centre gets to be known in the region as a first class heath facility for mothers to deliver their babies safely.  

Kamanga Health Centre’s staff has received training in its use and is ready to give quality care to babies born at the centre.  

The neonatal resuscitation table became a reality through Australia for Cedar Tanzania’s first crowd-funding campaign. We were amazed by the fantastic support you all showed and we were able to raise funds not only for the neonatal resuscitation table but also for two portable cots as well. The cots have been ordered and are on their way to Kamanga, Tanzania. As you can imagine, getting good quality medical equipment to Kamanga Health Centre can be difficult and can take a lot of effort and logistical planning, but we shall announce the arrival of the cots as soon as Kamanga Health Centre receives them.  

From all of us at Australia for Cedar Tanzania and from the mothers of Nyamatongo Ward we thank you for making the purchase of the neo-natal resuscitation table possible. You did it!

By Nina Hjortlund
Founding Director and CEO
Australia for Cedar Tanzania

Habari Kamanga! Hello Kamanga!

My name is Katherine Anne Lee. I live in the beautiful city of Zug in Switzerland and, a few weeks ago, was given the unique opportunity to visit the Kamanga Health Centre in Tanzania, which was opened by Cedar Tanzania one year ago. My friends and family back home have been very excited to hear about my latest Africa journey, in which I saw many things, some beautiful and some hard to grasp, even painful. They are all stories about everyday life in Tanzania and the wonderful work the Cedar Tanzania team is doing. I’d like to share my first story about my visit to Peruzi, and maybe I can share some more later on. I hope you will enjoy reading this, and see how your support for the project matters.

Peruzi’s light

It’s only a short drive from the Health Centre in Kamanga to a small village nearby. Clay huts line the busy, graveled street. It isn’t a classic street as you would imagine in the western world - the main street of Kamanga is along stretch of dusty gravel that connects remote communities. Sooner or later, everything that is making its way from A to B, has to end up on this street, dodging portholes and stray dogs. Overloaded buses, children who walk for miles to go to school, cattle in search of a new grazing spot and locals on their way to the market or maybe the Health Centre, pass by. It’s a bustle you could watch for a while if you wouldn’t become coated in red dust every time a heavy lorry passes by. But we’re not here to observe the street. We are here to visit Peruzi. Jackie and Neema from the Outreach Team project are showing us their work. The Outreach Team is to offering quality health services to those unable to reach any form of medical support.

It’s only a short jump down the bank from the dusty road and we’re standing in front of a tiny mud house with two simple doors. Both are open, but it’s dark and difficult to guess what’s inside. An elderly lady is nervously sweeping the floor outside, and greets Jackie and Neema. She is missing some front teeth but nevertheless has a happy smile, and points us towards one of the small doors. As we come a little closer, I can see an old, weathered mattress on the floor. There are colourful sheets on top of the mattress, all muddled up. And there, in between the colours, I see a face and part of a leg sticking out between the sheets.So small and fragile, as if it were a child lying there. It’s Peruzi, a 40-year-old woman, marked by her heart-breaking past.

Peruzi is challenged with epilepsy. The illness was more under control in her younger years; she lived within the village and even gave birth to a son. In her twenties, her epileptic outbreaks increased to the point where she was no longer in control of her own destiny. Her mother, a small lady, closely interwoven into the local community and swayed by social stigmas, was unable to cope with her daughter’s deteriorating situation. Embarrassed by the local talk that her daughter was afflicted due to the failure of her mother, she thought the only thing she could do was to tie Peruzi to a rope and lock her into a small dark room. There, Peruzi vegetated for a full twelve years on the bare, cold, clay floor, without any form of comfort, light or proper nutrition. It was a pure coincidence that the Outreach Team found Peruzi. The degeneration of her body left the team with no option other than to transfer Peruzi to the nearby hospital. While Peruzi received care, the team patiently educated her mother to correct her misbelief about disabilities being a consequence of personal failure, and persuaded her to share her old - and only - mattress with her daughter.  

Peruzi’s situation left me feeling ashamed, and reluctant to enter the dark room. I didn’t want to disturb her; maybe she would be afraid or feel uncomfortable at having us all looking down at her. On the other hand, I didn’t want to appear rude by not visiting her. While I waited, I deeply wished I could do more for her. A new mattress, some fresh clothes, sanitary material; this would be easy for us to organise. Having so much, but having nothing in my hands to help gives a feeling of powerlessness. Her big brown eyes gazed up as I entered her room. I wished I could comfort her, tell her it will be better now that Jackie and Neema have found her.

A few weeks later, back home, I was happy to hear that the Outreach Team had been able to improve Peruzi’s situation. They brought her a wheelchair, bedding and sanitary material. I can picture Peruzi sitting outside, enjoying some fresh air and finally feeling the sunlight touch her cheeks again after twelve years in the dark. It must be an exciting moment for her to be part of the community again.  

Only a few days later, I received the terrible news that Peruzi has sadly passed away. Her poor health and missing nutrition had taken its toll. Were we too late? Or could we have made a change? While frustration and deep sadness cloud my heart, I decide to light a candle for Peruzi. Gazing at the flame, I whisper to her and thank her for her time. The candle burns all night in our window. In the morning, the flame flickers one more time before turning to smoke and I realise that Peruzi’s story matters. Peruzi’s light has been seen.

By Kathrine Anne Lee
Katherine Anne Lee is a published author with her first novel "From Dust to Dust and a Lifetime in Between"receiving public acclaim.

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Australia for Cedar Tanzania will regularly give you updates and news here.

Until we get our first blog posts posted you can read all about our work on Cedar Tanzania’s blog here