Msaranga Business Project - Moshi

Karen Hoeller March - June 2009

Today is my last day in Tanzania, I am leaving for Nairobi tomorrow morning from where I will catch a plane back to Europe. I have been living in Moshi for the past three months where I was working on two business projects. I helped a group of fifty local artists (painters and wood carvers) to increase their sales by trying to get more visitors to come to their shops, and provided assistance with some marketing and advertising (www.kiliweb.com/tingatinga). My friends from Germany and the UK donated 1,000,000 Tsh and with this generous contribution we were able to replace four bridges to the site, set up some signs, advertise in a local map, put flyers out in restaurants and hotels and invite local tour operators to take their clients there. Secondly, I assisted with the roll out of a so-called Small Business Grant Project in Msaranga (a suburb of Moshi) where 11 HIV+ women were selected and given a grant in form of goods (worth approx. £50 each). This was done with the support of my homestay mother Glory who is also a MondoChallenge Community Volunteer Co-ordinator and a local Community Volunteer. Since Msaranga is a rural area I found myself at a pig farm just before Easter buying 6 piglets for 3 of these ladies who were rather excited about the prospect of starting a pig breeding business. We also bought ducks, goats, a sewing machine and 2nd hand t-shirts.I very much enjoyed being so involved in these projects and get real hands-on experience. It was very insightful to get to know some Tanzanians, see how they live and get by on almost nothing yet still be so happy and positive. My last day of volunteering (1st June) was just amazing and made the whole experience even more special. On that day I had planned a handover meeting with my artists, the so-called ‘exit interview’ with Kate, our fantastic TZ Country Manager, and then had been invited once again by my business grant ladies for a final farewell (although I had already said good-bye the previous week).At the arts centre I presented my activity report, summarised what we had achieved together and then presented them with ‘my’ gift of 235,300 Tsh (£120) with which they can now buy some new wood carving tools and paint. This money was left over from the generous contributions and several wood finishers had mentioned that they could do a better job if they had the right tools. So I hope this is going to be useful to all of them. In return I received several small presents and a proper ‘Certificate of Appreciation’ which was really sweet and thoughtful. Glory is going to do some business training there in the next few weeks and then it waits to be seen what the artists are actually doing themselves to take the business forward. I sincerely hope they don’t disappoint me.When Glory and I arrived for the meeting with the ladies in the afternoon, I didn’t see any of them waiting outside but when we entered the room, they were already all there. It turned out later that they had arranged to meet for 2pm and anyone who knows about ‘African time’ will appreciate the thoughtfulness behind it because the ladies just wanted to make sure that everyone would be there by 3.30pm, the time I had been invited for. After a short prayer Vumilia, the tailor, got up and made a short speech on behalf of the group thanking MondoChallenge once again for the grants they had received and the business support along the way. The women are all very grateful that the money had been given directly to them in form of grants and that no other organisations or middlemen had been involved. Then they got out a present for me. Vumilia said that I (ie. MondoChallenge) had given the ones ‘living with hope’ (HIV) a shelter and that they – although they didn’t have much do give in return - would now shelter me. The women then started singing this beautiful African song while taking me into their middle dancing around me and slowly unwrapping the present. In it was a beautiful piece of batik material which they then wrapped around me. Giving a piece of fabric is a very symbolic gesture here in Africa, as it is used in many ways, eg. to protect the body from the sun or rain, carry a child in it tied on to the back and so on. I was so moved and overwhelmed by this kind, loving gesture and their appreciation, I just started crying. My God, it was one of the most beautiful things that has ever been done for me. For us £50 is an evening out having dinner and drinks in a restaurant, for all of these women it is a new start. They are all just so proud and thankful that they are now running their own little businesses and have the support from someone who believes in them. This gives them the chance to relax a little, to look after their children better, feed them properly, sometimes even pay the school fees and for the women themselves to stay relatively healthy for a long time.During my stay here I had many frustrating moments and have overall become a lot more critical of ‘third-world-help’ but in my opinion this programme provides the kind of help which seems useful. It is supported by local community volunteers and due to the continued support most businesses prosper and become sustainable over a long period of time. I therefore feel that my time here has not been in vain and that makes me very happy.