By Elizabeth Sung, Consultant for CCF-Chad

It has been over a month since I arrived in Iriba. I have seen the moon waxing slowly until I didn't need a flashlight to walk home from another NGO's base. Now, the moon is waning. It seems like the moon is peeking out of a hat that sits on an angle. The radio handset crackles with static, crickets chirp without taking a breath, groups of donkeys snort loudly, and come 4:30 a.m., I hear the first of the hourly wake-up calls from the rooster.

"Ca va?" My neighbor's little boy and girl call out sweetly, waving their hands to me. Last month they would hide behind others when I approached, not responding to me, but now when I sit on the mat next to them, they offer their hands in greeting. I have been trying to teach them to slap a five or ten… that's coming along each day.

By now, I have trained my staff about survey administration. In Iridimi, a three-day training was held for twenty refugee volunteers about survey administration. See the above photo of Aziza and Deye demonstrating to the prospective interviewers how an interview is conducted. The survey will roll out in the next week in the three camps of Iridimi, Touloum and Am Nabak… here's to hoping that everything goes well!

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By Elizabeth Sung, Consultant for CCF-Chad

Dear Readers:

The clouds have amassed in the sky, the guards' radio sings faintly in the background while our hens cluck in the yard. It has been a productive day at the office, as we have been planning activities for the next month with the program supervisors.
I have the good fortune of working closely with my colleague TchiTchaou, the supervisor of Sexual and Gender Based Violence activities, who is very passionate about these issues, and who has provided me with a lot of insight as to how the program works and how it should progress in the future. Tomorrow, we will visit Am Nabak Refugee Camp to make formal introductions to the camp leaders before CCF begins programs there.

Yesterday, Caroline, the Child Protection Coordinator (pictured above), Adolf, the Program Manager, and I joined the staff who work in Iridimi Refugee Camp (est. 2004, population over 17,000). This involved squeezing into our Landcruiser and joining the convoy of NGO Landcruisers (accompanied by the local police) for the drive to Iridimi to insure our safety. This was the first time for Adolf and myself to visit the camps, so it was very exciting for both of us.

We went to visit the child-centered spaces in the camps. Many of the children rushed over to us to shake hands and meet the new visitors. Though most speak an arabic dialect, a few sang out in falsetto tones: "Ca va-ah-ah?" (In French: How are you?) Some of the children played with lego sets, a young boy teased me with his teddy bear, and a few children waited for their turn for a brief washing. I watched as one boy poured a stream of water from a plastic teapot into the outstretched hands of another boy squatting near the ground. His eyes were squeezed shut, his face and hair covered with white soap bubbles, and as the water gathered into his cupped hands, he splashed the water onto his face and washed the bubbles away. When the bubbles were washed off, I showed him the photo that I had taken, he stared, then grinned widely as other boys clambered for a closer look at the camera screen.

In camp, it was the first day for monthly food distribution in the camp. We stopped by the food distribution center to observe. At first glance, the colorful rainbow of head coverings contrasted drastically with the drab desert-like environment of the camp. Women waited in different lines, their distribution card in hand (which stated how many people lived in the household). Inside one room, women waited in line to have their new (Save80) stoves checked for loose parts. At another side of the building, some women and children carried their boxes of soap on their heads, women dragged their sacks of grain to the weigh station. Jerry cans full of vegetable oil sat in piles on the ground. Outside of the roped area, men waited next to their donkeys for hire to carry the burdensome sacks and cans of foodstuffs home for the women.

It was so amazing to visit the camps after weeks of anticipation. Exhilarating, fatiguing, inspiring and encouraging all at once. There is so much potential for collaboration with different organizations and the refugee population so to improve the quality of life in the camps. During the next couple weeks, I will be holding focus group discussions with camp leaders in all three camps to assess the effects of CCF interventions and find out how CCF and partner organizations can work together. This is definitely a very exciting time to be working in Eastern Chad!

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By Elizabeth Sung, Consultant for CCF-Chad

I send my best wishes from N’djamena, Chad!

I went into town yesterday with the DDR program coordinator, Sandra, to help with distribution. CCF’s newest program in Chad is the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) of child soldiers in transit centers. In general, the youth are 11 to 17 years of age. At the transit centers, they receive education and health services among other interventions for approximately three months while CCF collaborates with relevant local and international organizations to arrange for reunification with the boys’ families.

As you can imagine, the former child soldiers have witnessed and may have even caused violence. Working with this population is extremely challenging since many are severely traumatized and some are accustomed to the ways of the military.

Since many of the youth arrive at CCF centers without any clothing and possessions, we helped to distribute basic hygiene items, clothing and shoes to the boys. First the boys were organized into groups according to general size. Then each boy was called up to receive his new possessions. “Présent!” each boy called out as he quickly walked up to the front. As each walked back to his group, he proudly examined his new shoes.

The youngest group of boys sat quietly apart from the rest of the groups, under the shade of the classroom, neatly folding their clothing on the ground, and placing their new possessions into their bags. They contrasted from the older boys who took the clothing, examined it, threw it into their bags, and chattered amongst themselves.

As the boys tried on shoes to check the fit, one of the staff members would call out, “Un 44!” Then Sandra and I would scramble around checking the shoe sizes to find a size 44.
A couple boys modeled their new shirts and shorts for us, twirling around, as the staff and the crowd clapped their hands and laughed.

The boys loved looking at themselves in the photos when I showed the camera screen to them. They pointed to the faces and grinned to themselves. I think that is one reason why we continue to work so hard—they remember how to smile and enjoy themselves. It is a strong sign of their resilience and, hopefully, their ability to reintegrate into society.

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By Elizabeth Sung, Consultant for CCF-Chad

Dear readers:
From the CCF office in N’djamena to wherever you are, I send warm greetings and hope you are well. It’s presently raining giving us relief from the humid warm weather, though the rain also means that the side roads will be swamped.

Last Saturday, I arrived in N’djamena from New York (stopped in Richmond, DC and Paris on the way). As I stepped off the cold airplane, a wall of heat struck me. The scent of burning woodchips enveloped me, and I recognized that I had finally reached Chad, my final destination.

A brief introduction about myself: I am consulting for CCF-Chad during the next three months, conducting a Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practice study (KAP, for short). Until recently, I lived in New York City where I studied social work and international public health. I love traveling, writing, photography and crunchy peanut butter.

Over the next three months, the KAP study will be my primary focus. A KAP study is a very common means of assessing how people think and live.

Here are examples of questions:

Knowledge question: Name one way that HIV is transmitted.
Attitude question: What do you think about girls going to school?
Practice question: How often do you go to school?

In Eastern Chad, CCF implements Child Protection and Gender-Based Violence programs in refugee camps. In regards to child protection, issues in the East include access to education, health services, and reduction of trauma. As for Gender-based violence, relevant topics include female circumcision, early marriage, and forced pregnancy. These are the main topics that will be covered in the KAP survey.

The staff has been wonderful as I make the transition to the new environment. Over the next few days, I will be collaborating with the staff to plan my work. I am very excited, and I can’t wait to fly out east!

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By Nicole Duciaume, Documentation and Sponsorship Support Officer

Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Today is Monday and I have not been able to write for a few days, principally because of traveling but also because I am now on a borrowed computer in the lobby of a quaint hotel in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. The weather is surprisingly dreary, cold and wet…which is unexpected for a town known for its warm, sunny and pleasant weather nearly year round. According to my very knowledgeable taxi driver, the weather should be less than ideal up through Wednesday, coincidentally the same day I am scheduled to return to the US. So I continue to wrap my alpaca shawl tightly around my shoulders and continue on.

Santa Cruz, Bolivia
As far as an update is concerned, Friday was spent in La Paz at the National Office giving a briefing on the events of the week and the objectives going forward. It was a very fruitful conversation and it lasted until late evening. I think between the US delegation offering support and the Bolivia team’s knowledge and experience, the programs in the new area will thrive. The day ended with hand shakes, hugs and promises to remain in contact throughout the process.

Saturday was quite a treat. We left La Paz and within two hours we were at Tiahuanacu, the ancient ruins of a civilization that gave birth to modern day indigenous cultures throughout Bolivia (and into several neighboring countries as well). The culture predates the Aztec, Mayans and Incas that we have all studied throughout our schooling years. The ruins are incredible and yet mostly still hidden beneath the surface. According to our guide, Benedito, only 10% of the structures have been unearthed thus far. There is something very surreal about walking on sacred ground, taking photos and learning the ins-and-outs of this vast culture while anthropologists are literally over your shoulder still uncovering the treasures and keys to the past.

Sunday morning was dedicated to another trip to the Witches Market to pick up a few remaining gifts and then lunching with a friend from my previous trip to Bolivia. The early afternoon comprised solely of trying to fit all my purchases into my previously already full suitcase. I truly should have had more restraint when it came to the market deals. I am not sure if was the thrill of the bargain or just my dedication to helping the local economy, but my suitcase is now officially stuffed to the brim. Sunday evening I left for the airport to start the final leg of my trip. We landed in rain-drenched Santa Cruz at about 10pm and I quickly settled into my hotel room and drifted off to sleep.

Today I visited three projects in the outer rings of Santa Cruz. The city is a set of concentric circles which begin in the city square and then the poverty increases as you ripple out into the outskirts of the town. The areas in which we work are part urban and part rural and yet entirely comprised of smiling children who are in need. In the afternoon and evening I participated in enrollment trainings and small group discussions with members of the communities. We explained the general criteria for enrollment and then helped the communities define the specifics for their individual circumstances. For example, it is a CCF guideline that we enroll the neediest, the most vulnerable, the most excluded, so we had the communities define what is the base level and then how to reach the children and families who fall below that line. This participatory approach is a cornerstone of CCF’s partnership with the communities.

As I am on the only internet-connected computer in the hotel lobby and a small line is forming, I will bid you a fond adieu from Santa Cruz.

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