Several thousand miles away, in cold Saskatoon, Canada, Milagre (my wife and co-founder of MICAIA) is at her daughter’s bedside as Solange prepares to produce our third grandchild. It was on this day, eight years ago (almost to the hour as I write), that Milagre and I met. Needless to say, with three hours remaining of 27 Feb in my part of the world and eleven hours in theirs, I’m urging on our girl!
Rather closer to home something rather special happened that might explain why I felt like sharing my football and family stories. If you’ve read this blog before you’ll be well aware of Ndzou Camp, the eco-lodge that we helped establish as a joint venture with the people of Mpunga, Moribane. The Camp runs on solar power and a few days ago I received a message to say that solar panels powering the pump that takes water from the spring up to the camp had been stolen. It appeared to be an opportunistic theft. The police were informed, but the main strategy was to put the word out in the community. Moribane Forest, home to Ndzou Camp, is a close community and no thief could hide for long.
At the heart of this theft for me was a simple question: would our community partners solve the crime? If we were sole owner-investors then I suspect we’d never have seen the panels again. Instead, this morning I received a call to say that the panels had been recovered. They may not yet be seeing profit flow from Ndzou Camp, but the community of Mpunga most certainly has a very real sense of ownership. So many development projects fail because they never establish connections. If local people don’t feel connected, don’t feel that they have a stake, then the investment will flounder. The recoverey of the panels has saved us a week or more without water for guests, and probably $750 had we needed to replace the system. Far more important, however, is the fact that the Mpunga people were indignant at the theft. Ndzou Camp is their business. I’m not blind to the challenges that lie ahead, but I am quite sure that it is only when people feel connection so deeply that it hurts that change can happen.
Tonight, as one new life emerges, I learned of the passing of an old lady in her early 90s who lived in the same town as my parents. Back in 1990 Lady Betty’s husband, Sir David Huddie, said yes to a young man who wanted this experienced retired industrialist to be the Chairman of a new charity (Village Aid) that he was setting up. On the many mornings that I sat talking to David about the work we wanted to do in Ghana or Gambia, Lady Huddie would bring us tea and biscuits. Sir David died many years ago, but Betty lived on in her indominatble way. As is the way of things my life took me far away and I saw Betty very rarely but she kept in touch via my mother whom she met in town. It was my mother who informed me of the sad news. She also told me that the newspaper announcement made it clear that there were to be no flowers; instead, donations were requested for Village Aid. Twenty years. Connections.
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( 3 / 346 )Well, the Minister didn’t make it (an emergency meeting of Government) but the inauguration of Ndzou Camp was a wonderful, exhilarating if exhausting day.
Where to start? It’s 5.00am and the early light filters into our room, one of Ndzou Camp’s four rondavels. After a full heavy day working on the Camp yesterday it’s a struggle to get moving but the sound of hammers and drills over the usual dawn chorus of Moribane’s amazing array of birds tells us that work is already in progress. Sure enough, builders are swarming over the big family lodge, painting, fixing the door, and checking the plumbing. Nelson, the Camp Manager, is marshalling the first community members to arrive, ferrying barrow-loads of rubble and finishing off footpaths. Zondeye, who advises on the native tree species nursery set up as part of the project, is busy putting trees into locally made clay pots. We join the fray. Milagre works with a couple of builders to suspend bamboo frames for the mosquito nets while I finish off painting the signboards.
It’s 7.00am and the first officials from the Department of Tourism arrive. The President’s photograph is hung on the makeshift platform from which speeches will be made later in the morning. Back at the kitchen there is intense activity. The outside caterers, brought in by the Ministry, are busy peeling prawns and grilling calamari while Ndzou Camp cooks, charged with the task of feeding the community guests and the many others who are not on the VIP list, are preparing vast quantities of goat and chicken casseroles with beans and salad side dishes. There are problems; we’ve run out of charcoal and the new industrial gas stove has a leak and can’t be used – but Robert, the head cook, is still smiling.
The Minister and other VIPs are due at 9.00am and with an hour to go there are signs of stress. Voices are raised, orders barked out by officials worried that things aren’t ready for their boss; cars are sent to carry more community members waiting down in the village. Outside on the road the local cultural group is in full song, whipped up by the local government officer determined to put on a good show. In the rooms Milagre is working with the housekeeping team to make beds and discovering that the sheets are too small for the bespoke (i.e. larger than usual) beds. No matter, the rooms look great.
It’s 8.45am and we hear that the VIPs are on their way. We also learn that the Minister is not coming, and that the Governor too has had to stay in Chimoio. The reasons are vague, something to do with possible strikes by medical personnel. There’s nothing we can do. The T-shirts have been given out and are being proudly worn by community members, and the inauguration plaque will still bear the Minister’s name. The ceremonial ‘ribbon’ (sisal rope twisted with fresh creepers from the forest) will instead be cut by our good friend the Provincial Director of Tourism.
As the official party enters the Camp and is taken off by the Regulo (Chief) Mpunga to participate in a traditional ceremony, we notice for the first time the numbers – perhaps 350 people from Mpunga and the wider area have come to the party. It’s a riot of colourful capalanas (cloths used as wraparound skirts), and the noise from all the clapping singing chanting and whistling and the dozens of children is overwhelming. After the traditional ceremony the Director cut our ‘ribbon’ and opened a bottle of fizz that the Administratotr then poured liberally around to satisfy the ancestors.
Speeches followed, but they were prefaced by a special song written and performed by a MICAIA colleague, Jeremias. He’s an incredibly talented musician and his song, words focused on Ndzou Camp and all the people who helped make it happen and music a kind of Latin/R&B fusion went down a storm. A particular highlight of the day was the Regulo of Dombe (the top man in the area) getting up to dance with Milagre and the District Administrator.
It’s lunchtime. The VIPs and assorted guests (including the Regulos of the area) are shepherded into the Matchesa dining room where their fancy buffet is ready. Back in the kitchen Robert is looking stressed. We prepared for 100 people and we have 300+ to feed. All plans are out the window and it’s now a massive logistical operation working with local leaders to make sure everyone gets fed. It takes time but we manage and everyone is happy.
It’s night time now and most people are gone. I can’t tell you how proud I am of the Ndzou Camp team who today worked for the first time in their staff roles. They were wonderful – efficient, respectful, professional. There is a buzz from all the positive comments passed on by visitors, a sense that this might just succeed. For now though everyone is exhausted and happy that it’s over, but this is a day that no one in Mpunga will ever forget.
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( 2.9 / 412 )The collective energy at Ndzou Camp today was inspiring. More than 40 members of the community were spread out gathering rubble and piling up building materials on what is still essentially a bulding site. By end of Thursday Ndzou Camp needs to look like it could receive guests. As our community colleagues started the cleaning process, the builders continued to paint, plaster and fill in trenches where earlier today the final electrical cables had been installed. We were still waiting for doors to be delivered and the plumber hadn’t arrived with taps for the kitchen sink, but we still have two full working days….
As the day drew to a close a magical thing happened; the lights came on! The nearest mains power is 30km away so to see all the buildings suddenly illuminated was quite a sight. It also meant that the solar system was working.
Regardless of future benefits for the community, more than 4,500 days of labour have been given and paid for in the construction and landscaping process. In a forest community with low cash incomes, this is a serious boost to the local economy. Local people (men and women) have learnt new skills assisting carpenters, bricklayers, thatchers and plumbers. The President of the Association, Sr Rueben Seda Chiquare, has shown himself to be an effective leader, marshalling his people and negotating business arrangements. The President and other members have been closely involved in procurement and financial reporting. They’ve made repeated visits to Maputo to engage with Ministry of Tourism and World Bank officials, and closer to home they’ve confidently hosted senior government officials and casual visitors alike. This community has changed.
We left the camp in the early evening, the light of a full moon dancing around in the trees, and the typical sounds of a building site disturbing the usual forest stillness. Work was to continue into the night. This has turned from a project and a contract into a true joint endeavour in which pride and determination are overcoming tiredness and the ticking clock.
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( 3 / 455 )This morning we had the opportunity to present the key findings and recommendations of MICAIA's study on tourism to the Governor and her cabinet. In fact, the Provincial Director of Tourism made the presentation and we then took questions.
This was the point at which it showed that our Governor is a former National Director of Tourism...serious questions!
The study's excellent, but if it's not simply going to gather dust on the shelf, we have to act - what's next?
The Governor turned to the head of finance and asked him what contribution tourism makes to the economy of the Province. The answer? 0.8% of the total economy.
We have to change this. You've made recommendations; when will these be actioned? I want to see a plan, with a timetable.
The questions flowed and we were left in no doubt that we have the Governor's support but also that the stakes are now raised. As our time slot came to an end, the Governor gave her final remarks.
In our Province, in which natural resources have to be the heart of our tourism offer, our communities must be central in our plans. Tourism is hardly making an impression in the Province, but we can make a difference.
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( 2.9 / 400 )For the next week I’ll be writing a blog covering Tourism Week in Manica Province. This is because MICAIA has been working extensively on what we call ‘Community Responsible Tourism’ – in essence, tourism which enables communities to benefit in a range of ways and that is responsible to the wider environment, culture and economic context of the community.
Today, 20th September 2010, marked the start of Tourism Week here in Mozambique. It’s an important week especially for the Provincial Director of Tourism as he seeks to push tourism up the agenda of the Province. For MICAIA this is a huge week, not least because on Friday the Minister of Tourism will inaugurate Ndzou Camp.
It’s a huge week for other reasons too. We’ve been working on community responsible tourism for the last 18 months. We’ve set up Ndzou Camp with our community partners, and got the go ahead for at least two more initiatives in the Transfrontier Conservation Area on the border between Mozambique and Zimbabwe. We’ve trained more than a dozen communities throughout the Province so they understand more about tourism (its opportunities and risks). In some of those communities, including an area along the River Zambezi, plans are in place for tourism initiatives ranging from managed visits to historical sites to new camps and lodges.
For the first time in the Province, communities are at the heart of the developing tourism sector. We’ve worked closely with the Provincial Director, receiving constant encouragement as we’ve shared our research and discussed plans. We now have an opportunity to inform and help shape the tourism strategy of the province, placing community engagement at its heart. In turn, we can make Manica Province the leader in Mozambique in terms of community responsible tourism.
Today we had a round table to discuss the key findings and recommendations of the study we did in which we looked at the opportunities in each District for Community Responsible Tourism. We also looked at some of the major practical issues across the Province, including the big challenges: lack of services/info for visitors; poor standards/poor value for money; inadequate development of key assets throughout the Province. The negatives were well balanced by the positives, not least the many examples, District by District of (in most cases) yet-to-be-developed attractions.
The Round Table, the first event of tourism week, was opened by the Governor of the Province, a former National Director of Tourism, and attended by senior officials from all Districts as well as the Province, and by the private sector. Milagre gave MICAIA’s presentation, highlighting the famous and less well known attractions of the Province but not shying away from the challenges. It went down well.
As the meeting closed, the talk was of ‘what next’? In his closing remarks the Provincial Director assured participants that this was only the beginning – that the many recommendations made in MICAIA’s study would be discussed and worked on further. We’ll be happy to participate, but most of all we’re happy that our core message – the opportunity and need to enable communities to participate in and benefit from tourism – hit home and received such high level public support.
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