I take no credit for the text below. My old school friend, Robin Bacon, has spent 2 years working for the VSO in Kenya. Here is his last news letter from the front line.

(Information and thoughts from Eldoret Kenya August 2007).

A Double Length Feature Edition!

Hello and farewell, another period of time has passed and although I still have some while in country this letter will be my last from Kenya. I can picture the tears and the sadness that you now all feel, after who would not miss an opinionated rant from a curmudgeonly old cove like me once in a while?

In considering what to write in this final letter it has struck me that there are a lot of issues that I wish to try and make some sense of; to be here and think about the issues of poverty and development has been educational, edifying, inspirational, humbling, depressing and frustrating all at the same time and in different measures; we are warned when we came out to our placements that it can be a rollercoaster of emotions, well if it is a rollercoaster it must be one of the giant corkscrew types that leaves you feeling thrilled but also disorientated and slightly queasy debating whether to vomit or not. In the following paragraphs it would have been difficult to articulate well any of the thoughts I possess had I not had some help and a place to refer you to that can give clarity to my ramble. Recently I have read a book called Poor Story, it was written by an ex DFID (Department for International Development) employee and I found my self by in large screaming agreement at his analysis as I turned the pages. If you have been interested in what I have had to say but wish to get a far clearer and joined up idea of the issues that Africa faces then please buy the book, read it and then pass it on, I particularly like the fact that he extols the virtues of personal responsibility both in our own lives but in those we help too. Poor Story by Giles Bolton. Ebury Press. ISBN 978-0-09-191434-9.

When considering what I have learnt, how I feel, what I have achieved and what I will depart Kenya with both in terms of the things I leave behind and the things I take with me I believe that the balance sheet is heavily tipped in my favour, what ever I have done I have gained far more than given and that feeling has been growing on me for some time. I will try to relate the sense of what I mean by that, but in doing so I know that I will find new areas that I have not considered in my work, character and life and that this is the effect Kenya and suppose Africa has on you, I feel that in my time here I have been pulling aside thin veils behind which you thought you saw the outline of certainty only to realise once the veil is twitched aside nothing is what you thought it was and you’d better think again.

What have I given to Kenya? Well I have been one of the very lucky volunteers who came to a well funded project and was able to hit the ground running, it is also the case that what I do is very relevant to a rural community and tangible, it is after all easy to measure an increased quantity and quality of vegetables and to see the people receiving extra food, thus I can give my self a big pat on the back and walk away with my head held high? The production and system based changes were of course essential, however just as important to me and I am sure to my local colleagues has been the sense of sharing and empowerment that you can bring to your placement, with these being perhaps one of the major influences of the volunteer ethos. Volunteers are usually motivated to give and to empower, so in my teaching, my training, my patience, my encouragement and my belief it was possible to help Kenyans who by enlarge belong in a very disempowered, structured and hierarchical society to have a sense of self belief and confidence, for them to start to make decisions and trust in their own ability; I would never have thought that the phrase “you can do it” could be the source of so much satisfaction and happiness. So that is what have done, VSO would be proud of me “Sharing Skills Changing Lives” is their tag line, I have certainly passed on my skills as limited as they are and in a way that I believe was relevant to the circumstances I came to. Have I changed lives? Well in a small way I am sure I have, I have certainly seen individuals grow in their abilities and self belief and I have pointed to the fact that the people can learn, know, and implement skills and processes in their own lives, they do not have to be wait to be told or for some one to do it for them.

What has Kenya and the VSO experience given to me? Here follows a long list of experiences followed by a summation. I have been able to travel and to live and work in new place, learning the language and sharing in part of a different culture. The satisfaction of doing some thing that feels as if it has true value, I had spent my working life until now growing non essential food commodities, to now grow food to feed the destitute and hungry felt fantastic, to be able to teach the process to people so that they can continue to do it has felt even better. It is worth relating here that I have had people stand and applaud me after teaching sessions, that people thank me regularly for my help and participation and that people tell me that have changed their lives and empowered them. I do not know of any circumstance in my previous working life that this very ordinary man could feel that for however short a period he really mattered and had made a difference in a way which is largely with out material self interest; (at this point I would have to suggest as an adjunct that if the development of a person is truly reflected in their spiritual growth then I have been more than amply remunerated). I have lived in one of the most beautiful climates and sceneries in the world; I have visited wild and remote places; I have ridden my motor bike on empty dirt roads; I have in short been free in a place that feels like it is still a frontier and where risk is a daily reality and not a dirty word. In particular I have been free of the things I dislike most about modern Britain, rampant materialism, risk aversion, rampant over regulation, a press full of speculation and conjecture that it relates as fact, a society that has lost touch with its responsibilities to each other and that hides behinds the rights of the individual, and to me seen from here a country that has lost its sense of self, what is it about and what does it stand for? A friend of mine in Scotland had a T shirt that read “if you are not on the edge you are taking up too much space” I have always thought that that phrase had the ring of truth about it and in Britain I see a country about as far from the edge as it is possible to be, materially secure but ultimately spiritually adrift. Personally I have found that taking the step to VSO and a change in life has taken me nearer the edge if not on to it and I do feel more alive after my experiences here than I possibly could have done previously in the UK.

In summation to come and take a small part in the development of the Kenyan nation has been a privilege, it has given me the privilege of perspective one of the many that I have had in life. I have reflected to others before that I feel for many in the generations, one of those born say between 1945 and 1970 in the UK, we have been some of the most privileged in the history of the earth; we have had no major wars, medical knowledge leapt forward to extend our health and life span, we have had the NHS, we have been free of endemic and pandemic disease, there has been work and opportunity, travel has become cheap and easy such that an average person like me has visited every continent on the earth except Antarctica. Then in my personal life I have been loved, cared for, nurtured and encouraged, I had a childhood that was outdoor, active and free roaming, devoid of the fears and social morays that restrict the life of children today. I had a largely free education until the age of 23. My earning potential has been more than adequate and effectively luxuries have become more affordable every year of my adult life.

When I compare my past and present to some of those I am now amongst then the contrast is stark, there is no war in Kenya and yet insecurity is high due to tribal conflict and ineffective policing, there is no free medical care so you are as healthy as you can afford to be, diseases are both endemic and pandemic, education is only free at primary level there after you pay, there is little work, opportunities are difficult to find and travel is expensive relative to income. Considering Kenyan family life next, then of course there are many in the wealthier sections of society that do well, but for the poor it is often a different story; for example a father dies of AIDS and so the mother cannot support all the children, thus a child gets put on the street to fend for its self as best it can; there are no authorities to pick the child up and help, there is no education, there is no health care; maybe the child lives on the rubbish tip, is a nobody to every body, is despised and feared and becomes target practice for the police; need I go on. The privilege I feel is of a degree of self knowledge, I have not created the injustices of the world, I carry only my fair share of the blame for the current situation, I feel no particular guilt about what I see on a daily basis and yet I do now appreciate how so very lucky I have been and I hope remember to give thanks for that, also that I need to stand up and perform my share of my responsibility to my fellow human beings less fortunate than I.

I have not so far talked much about the frustrations of being here, although indeed in previous letters I have highlighted many and there are numerous more that I have chosen to ignore. To prevent my self rambling too far and wide over sundry issues I will restrict my self to one frustration and that is around the subjects of both Agriculture and Horticulture. Here are some facts about the farming sector in both the UK and Kenya. In the UK; the number of people employed in Agriculture is around .5% – 1% of the population; its contribution to the GDP of the country is <>

What will I miss when I leave Kenya? The people for sure, what ever the societal and cultural issues that contribute to the slow pace of development Kenyans are by enlarge friendly and warm. I will miss waving to 10 school kids and receiving 10 big smiles and waves back. I will miss having a laugh and a joke in my bad Kiswahili, I will miss the people who ironically applaud me on me nightly jog. On the subject of running there was a fun run recently and I am proud to say that I was the first mzungu home; I thought the time of 22 minutes for 5km was OK (especially for a 40 some thing at altitude) but it still meant I finished behind several 10 year olds and the compound gardener who never runs at any other time. During the run the former 3000 and 5000m world record holder Moses Kiptanui ran with me for a hundred meters, he asked me “how I was doing”. Seeing as I was at that point bright red, sweating profusely and making a noise like Thomas the Tank Engine who has been asked to pull a freight train up the hill (because Gordon was sick) also having taken on board a particularly wet batch of coal, I could not answer; Moses looked at me with wry amusement and then sped off. I will miss the weather, the cold nights, the clear blue morning sky, the warm days and the starry night skies. I will miss the sense of freedom and unhurriedness, I will miss cold Tusker lager and good conversation, with no TV and no distractions it means that you talk, read and interact far more. I will miss the place because it has become home and what was strange is now normal, and in truth despite the wildness and uncertainty of the place I feel less at threat and more at ease in many ways here than I would on Friday and Saturday night in many town centres in Britain.

Now a section for VSO and those ex VSO volunteers who read this; some one asked me recently whether I would recommend VSO to others and the answer was yes but certainly not an unqualified yes. In respect of what is done well, VSO are a well recognised employment / development agency and so people gravitate to them, I was drawn to VSO as it appealed to my sense of what I wanted to do and obviously organisations seeking capacity building on the cheap come to them from developing countries too. VSO provided some perfunctory screening for volunteer suitability and I would say mostly good training and preparation systems even if arrangements for such seemed a bit chaotic at times. I however feel that the whole training scheme was too straight jacketed, what would the buzz words be, consensual, participatory, holistic and culturally sensitive; it is all very well but there is still a place for a size 10 welly up the jacksy too which is appreciated in any language, just make sure that it done once you have established respect and the ground work, thus applicable in week 52 not week 1. My real point is that it is all a bit; I think the current phrase is “on message” and fails to take account of the vast amount of experience that the volunteers bring in to the placements; most of us have been implementing skills in the real world and not a conceptualised one that VSO seems to inhabit. The arrangements to get you in country are good, flights, visa, reception and most importantly a written placement profile which really helps define what you are there to do, with out that it is possible to be completely lost and be expected to do every thing. The in country support has been variable from the Kenya office, I have however been lucky to have a very good program officer who has been very professional and supportive; this does not appear to have been the case in all regions when talking to my colleagues, however I stress that is anecdotal and some volunteers expectations are not realistic. Next let’s talk about the areas that did not work. In general the communication around the London office was poor in my experience, and many others complain of the same; my original placement officer was so distracted that he forgot to tell me my departure date! No volunteer in Kenya can really understand the placement process, most feel that if the placements were advertised on line people could apply to the jobs or locations that suited, as it is there seem to be some unusual decisions being made and people being directed to some what unsuitable areas but that might suit VSO. The in country training week is interminable as too many VSO policy and technical details are raised, in reality every volunteer does not give a damn about those issues at that stage, so some language, some culture, a matatu ride, a visit to town, meet the office staff and then out to placement, policy issues should be dealt with at a separate time once volunteers have settled in. Lastly I would reflect that VSO is an organisation caught between a rock and a hard place in two ways; firstly it is largely funded by the UK government and as such is subject to targets and goals to the extent that it is funded in response to the volunteer numbers on the ground, hence a move to more short term volunteering. Most current volunteers I have spoken to see this as a danger in this in that quantity will overcome quality and that volunteers may be placed in inappropriate places. Secondly I referred to VSO as an employment / development agency as it is totally dependant upon well meaning individuals who volunteer to be employed to carry out what I am sure VSO sees as its core aim which is development; some times I feel that we volunteers are regarded as a necessary evil to that aim rather than reason for the organisations very existence and the livelihoods that it provides to all who work with in it; (having said that some of us volunteers are a complete pain, can you imagine having to deal with me on a regular basis).

So what is next for this retiring VSO? In truth I have lots of thoughts and plans but no certainties and most of the planning will have to wait until I am on the ground back in the UK, where despite my gloom about the state of the nation I still have a lot anticipate with happiness, loved ones and real ale in particular. Two things are certain however, firstly that I look forward to the next challenges and not knowing does not worry me unduly, perhaps that is another lesson of the uncertain life of Kenyans, it is important to live your life in the present for tomorrow who knows? Secondly that having climbed out of the box society put aside for me I do not much want to get back in it, I am a very average bloke but I would like to keep surprising my self.

Pen-ultimately I realise that I have rambled on in my usual disorganised way but I hope it has been worth persisting with. I think I should leave you on a positive note, I do think that there are hopeful economic signs and after all “it’s the economy stupid” was never truer than here, Kenya, Africa needs the opportunity to trade its way into development, it does not need hand outs, it does not need the WFP (World Food Program) shipping subsidised grain, it needs to be buying grain in Africa and developing a market. I do believe that collectively we can all make a difference and that no one is too small to do so, he who thinks he is has never been in bed with a mosquito to paraphrase Ghandi; I also believe that Africa is the working face of humanities relationship with its self; a failure to act here and soon, will set a depressing tone for our species future.

So that is it for the last time, from a currently sunny and warm Eldoret Sunday afternoon, with sun birds, ibis and fire finches cavorting around the garden, if you have been reading thanks for doing so, regards Robin.

P.S. A reminder about the following book, it is at once shocking, enlightening and hopeful, please give it a read.
Poor Story by Giles Bolton. Ebury Press. ISBN 978-0-09-191434-9.

Robin Bacon
PO BOX 7637
ELDORET 30100
KENYA

TEL +254725430396