"nothing is easy"

Work

CBI--CHIPATA: The past few weeks since our travels have not been anything too exciting. Kyle has had meetings with CBI--Chipata spending time re-writing the Constitution and Policies. The challenge here continues to be our ability to assess the commitment that exists.

CCS: Two weeks ago we facilitated a Board Training for Chipata Christian School Board and Administration. The focus of this training was to distinguish between the responsibilities of the Board vs. the responsibilities of the Administration. We found this time to be very successful and the beginning of discussion about how things can change in the future. Already people involved are reporting ways that they are making small steps toward change. We are excited and encouraged by the progress. *Special thanks to Rebecca Alleman who provided us with some fabulous resources to assist us in developing this training.

CBI--Lusaka:On Tuesday of this week we traveled to Lusaka (the nation's capital). The primary purpose of this trip is to attend a meeting on Saturday February, 14, with the CBI-Lusaka group. This meeting for general members of this business group, to assess continued participation and to introduce Kyle Stob as the Partners Worldwide Partnership Manager. Like CBI--Chipata, this group is working to adjust policies and procedures to include more training.

Registration: While in Lusaka Kyle is also working hard to begin the registration process of Partners Worldwide in Zambia. Currently, we are represented under the CRWRC. Registration will give Partners Worldwide an independent legal recognition within the country. This is one of the priority tasks that we have been assigned and will prove to be challenging as we navigate our way through government offices and policies.

Side-Work
I have been doing some side-work with my spare time. To help out a friend, I offered to conduct business training series with four community women who volunteer for an italian NGO in Chipata. I plan to write more about this in the future, but we have been off to a good start. It is challenging as we are working with some language and comprehension barriers, including one woman who cannot speak English nor can she read and write in her own language. She never had a chance to go to school either. However, she is one of the most enthusiastic participants. This has also given me a chance to test out some training materials to see how we can adapt them more to the local community.

Life: "nothing is easy"
This phrase is common for us as we navigate our way through life in Zambia. The simplest task can take half an hour, half a day, or even half a year; and the cause of this is often a mystery. While in Lusaka we took our car in for a tune-up and routine check. Turns out there is a part on the engine called a "timing belt." If not changed on a scheduled basis, this part can snap on you at anytime causing your engine to cut off. We were instructed that it would be wise to change this ASAP as our is long overdue. Kyle agreed only to find out one of the three parts necessary for this repair has to be ordered from SOUTH AFRICA! Thus our stay in Lusaka will be delayed a few days as we wait for this part to arrive and our car servicing to be finished. The other option was to risk making a 7hr drive back to Chipata and wait there for the part to arrive and then drive 7hrs back. Perhaps in the USA this would not be a big risk, but here that drive is mostly bush country with no one around who could fix the problem should the engine die.

At home I could not imagine having to order a car part from another country, normally it is at most 45 minute drive across town to another dealership or a day as it is brought from the other side of the state. But within the entire country of Zambia, this is the only Isuzu dealer with the proper parts. So next time you have to wait an extra 15 minutes for an oil change, do not get frustrated, just be grateful that you are not waiting an extra three or four days, 7hrs away from home :).

"nothing is easy."



**Note: the blog is currently under construction until I can find a new look for the page.