“The start of the training keeps being pushed back. We were supposed to start two hours ago, but half the participants are still missing. In addition to the fact that time passes here in Kenya very differently than it does at home (and much more slowly), it is also raining as if on purpose. This may also mean that, in the end, those we are waiting for may not show up at all. Busia

I have been living and working in Kenya for the second year. As a field worker for Človek v ohrození, I am responsible for a project supporting rural development in Western Kenya through capacity building in entrepreneurship, employment development, and strengthening community participation. The terms may be somewhat complicated, but the goal is simple and clear: to educate local people so that, despite difficult living conditions, they can better care for themselves and their families. To teach them to “catch fish.”

Kenya is indeed one of the most visited countries in Africa and a popular tourist destination, but in the district of Busia, where I am currently working, you will not find many tourists.

This region is grappling with several problems, and although the Kenyan government is trying, it is still not enough. There are not enough job opportunities, wages are low, and startup capital for starting a business is not available. The level of education is also very weak. People rely mainly on agricultural production, but it comes with problems of low productivity, soil degradation, and unclear ownership relations to the land itself.

Healthcare services are expensive and hard to access, and road infrastructure is almost nonexistent. On top of all these problems, deeply rooted traditions such as gender inequality and the resulting vulnerability of women are added. As if that were not enough, the share of the population suffering from HIV/AIDS is far above the national average.

After more than a year of work in another district of Western Kenya, Emuhaya, where we provided women with microloans to start or expand their small businesses, we launched the project in Busia.

We kicked it off with training. It lasted six days and focused on business skills. We trained future trainers who were selected by their own communities so they could then return and share their acquired knowledge. In this way, the knowledge of the thirty trained trainers will reach about 600 people, mostly women. This is what the project is about.

Yes, the training eventually worked out, even though from the beginning of my article it did not seem so. I have, however, learned to accept the fact that the value of time is low here. “Hakuna matata” in practice. This also means that local people really live for the day and do not look at what tomorrow will bring. The most important thing is to go to bed fed, and then one will see... If they got a larger amount of money, they would most likely use it for rich food for close and extended family, paying school fees, or buying clothes. Saving for harder times does not really take hold here...

But entrepreneurship is also about saving, and that was the focus of our first training. We did start with a delay of several hours, but in the end we had full attendance.

Learning through play

How did it all take place? Right at the beginning, I divided participants into four groups, and each had to run a business during the training. As initial capital, each group received a loan of 2.5 € (for this amount, you can buy six loaves of bread here), which they had to repay by the end of the training.

The whole training thus became a large educational game. The groups in turn presented their business plans and budgets, cash flow, profit and loss statements, and balance sheets. During breaks, they actively marketed and sold their products.

Their ideas truly surprised me. They offered all kinds of things—from newspaper delivery, to selling sweets and mobile phone credit, car washing, evening theater performances and film screenings, to supplying a hotel with fruit. All groups successfully repaid the loan, and by the end of the training they shared net profit between 5 and 10 EUR.

I was glad that initial expectations of the participants, such as receiving a certificate, being able to eat well, or immediately receiving a microloan, had changed after the training into satisfaction with new knowledge. Without that, the microloans we plan to provide to the community could not be “turned” into that famous fishing rod with which one can catch every day as many fish as needed...

The author works as a field worker of o. z. Človek v ohrození in Kenya You can find the blogs of field workers of o. z. Človek v ohrození from Kenya, Georgia and Haiti at: http://blog.pelikan.sk/?s=clovek+v+ohrozeni

The article was published in the bulletin Rozvojová pomoc - Jar 2010. It is issued by Platforma mimovládnych rozvojových organizácií (MVRO), which is an association of legal entities—the umbrella organization of 31 (23 full members and 8 observers) Slovak nongovernmental organizations, which mainly focus on foreign development and humanitarian aid.