Richard and I have been busy settling in and getting to know our community. We have been walking around and introducing ourselves in our free time. Richard and I managed to find a poultry farm a mile outside town. There, we can buy fresh chicken fairly cheap.
We also added to our pack of dogs. The newest member of our pack is a 8 week old puppy who has yet to be named.
Last Saturday, I was invited to baby shower, which was a nice opportunity to get to know some people from the Rural Administration Center (RAC) where I work. When a woman goes to a baby shower here, she is supposed to bring the present wrapped in a cloth diaper. That way the expectant mother has a supply of diapers when the baby is born (although disposable diapers are readily available and often used). When opening the gifts, the expectant mother has to guess who brought each one. Finally, after the gifts are opened, all the women at the baby shower offer the expectant mother advice and words of wisdom.
On Monday, Richard left for a workshop on HIV prevention in Francistown (2nd largest city) sponsored by NACA (National AIDS Coordinating Agency). There, he got a chance to see some of the other Peace Corps DACs from the region. He returned on Thursday night. I stayed in Gumare to work this week. I am getting a better sense of what S&CD (Social and Community Development office) does at the district level, compared to the community level. I’ve been able to meet most of the social workers who work within our district. In my office, we deal strictly with administering orphan care for the district, while the community social workers deal with all issues, including orphans, destitutes, needy students, home based care, home economics, etc.
This week the Home Economics officer asked me for help with the district craft show, which is going to be in Gumare on August 2. Okavango is known for its crafts, especially baskets. For the show, I am working on publicity, which includes making and distributing fliers, creating a show program, making business cards for the artists, etc. Richard is currently working on the newly formed committee to establish a Mens Sector in Gumare. There is going to be a soccer tournament and horse race next weekend to encourage HIV testing for men.
We finally have a new a post office box:
Richard Rain and/or Stacy Wallick
P.O. Box 546
Gumare, Botswana
An account of our time in the Peace Corps in Botswana
About Us
- Richard and Stacy
- New York, NY
- Richard and Stacy have been married since June 2003. They will be serving in the Peace Corps in Botswana from June 2008-June 2010 (with in country training from April - June 2008). Richard's assignment is working with a District AIDS Coordinator and Stacy's assignment is Community Capacity Building for HIV/AIDS Project in Home-based Care and Orphan Care/Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission.
LINKS OF INTEREST
About Botswana and the Peace Corps
According to the BBC's country profile, "Botswana, one of Africa's most stable countries, is the continent's longest continuous multi-party democracy. It is relatively free of corruption and has a good human rights record. It is also the world's larger producer of diamonds and the trade has transformed it into a middle-income nation. Botswana is trying to reduce its economic dependence on diamonds. Safari-based tourism- tightly-controlled and often upmarket- is an important source of income."
Independence: 1966 (there has been four decades of
uninterrupted civilian rule since)
Capital: Gabarone
President: Khama
Population: 1.9 million (UN, 2007)
Area: 224,607 sq. miles (slightly smaller than Texas)
Major languages: English (official), Setswana
Life expectancy: 40 years (UNAIDS, 2007)
Literacy Rate: 81 percent (CIA Factbook)
According to the CIA Factbook, "Botswana has maintained one of the world's highest economic growth rates since independence in 1966, though growth slowed to 4.7% in 2006-2007. On the downside, the government must deal with high rates of unemployment and poverty. HIV/AIDS infections are the second highest in the world and threaten Botswana's impressive economic gains."
According to PEPFAR, which Includes Botswana as one of its 15 focus countries, "At the household level, families face increasing health expenditures to meet the needs of family members with HIV/AIDS. At the same time, they are experiencing loss of income as productive family members become sick and die. Botswana's workforce is being depleted as many productive adults develop AIDS and are no longer able to work. Between 1999 and 2005, Botswana lost approximately 17 percent of its health care workforce due to AIDS and by 2020 the loss in agricultural labor force could be more than 20 percent. High levels of HIV/AIDS among teachers reduces both the quality of education and the number of hours taught. School enrollment is expected to fall as children drop out of school to care for sick family members, to contribute to household income, or become too sick to attend school. Finally, stigma continues to be an issue that needs to be addressed."
National HIV prevalence rate among adults (15 - 49): 24.1%
Adults and children (0 - 49) living with HIV in 2005: 270,000
AIDS deaths in 2005: 18,000
AIDS orphans at the end of 2005: 120,000
According to the Peace Corps website, Peace Corps started working in Botswana in 1966, but closed the program in 1997 due to the country's economic success. "However, in 1998, the government declared HIV/AIDS a national crisis, and President Mogae dedicated his first five years in office to fighting HIV/AIDS, poverty, and unemployment. The government of Botswana has enlisted the aid of civil society, international agencies, governments, and volunteer organizations to help the Botswana people address the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In 2003, Peace Corps returned to Botswana. Currently volunteers are:
-Helping build capacity at the district and village levels in HIV/AIDS service organizations
-Assisting in mainstreaming HIV/AIDS prevention activities into development projects
-Providing technical assistance to the government's home-based and orphan care programs
-Helping to promote the prevention of mother-to-child transmission in four selected districts
Disclaimer:
The views/contents included on this website are solely that of Richard Rain and Stacy Wallick. It does not reflect the position or views of the U.S. government, the Peace Corps, or any other persons and organizations.