BTS NEWSLETTER January 2013 Volume 11, Issue 1
www.btsociety.org www.tanzdevtrust.org ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
BTS WELCOMES THE NEW BRITISH HIGH COMMISSIONER TO TANZANIA
Ms Dianna Patricia
Melrose has been
appointed British High
Commissioner to the
United Republic of
Tanzania.
She will succeed Ms Diane Corner who will be
transferring to another Diplomatic Service
appointment. Ms Melrose will take up her
appointment during February or March 2013 and
will also be UK representative to the East African
Community.
Ms Melrose was Her Majesty’s Ambassador to
Cuba until July this year. She joined the FCO in
1999 and has since worked as Head of the FCO
Policy Planning Staff and as Head of EU
Enlargement.
She has extensive international development
experience and a long standing interest in
working closely with African partners to achieve
positive change, including as Head of
International Trade at DFID, and previously as
Oxfam GB Policy Director.
On her appointment Ms Melrose said: “I am
honoured and delighted to have been appointed
British High Commissioner to the United Republic
of Tanzania. It is a country with great potential,
with which the UK has a strong partnership. I am
greatly looking forward to working in Tanzania to
further strengthen our political and economic
relations and achieve our shared prosperity and
security objectives, including in the wider region.”
Ms Melrose has already been in touch with our
Chairman, Willie Fulton, and hopes to meet
before her departure for Tanzania next year to
learn more from and about the Society.
RON FENNELL, VP At the 2012 AGM, Ronald
Fennell was elected Vice-
President of the Society.
He writes,
Dear Friends,
I am very honoured by
the vote at the Annual
General meeting appointing me as a Vice
President of the Society. Thank you!
I have always felt it a great privilege to be among
a deeply committed group who give so much of
their time to the affairs of the Society and the
welfare of the people of that great country.
My four years in Dar es Salaam in the Eighties as
the World Bank Resident Representative and my
frequent travels within the country since have
convinced me that Tanzania is one of the leaders
in Africa and has a great future.
The Society has done much to raise the profile of
the country. I will continue to make every effort to
serve the Society and the country.
Asante Sana
BTS MEMBERSHIP FEES Our membership fees have remained unchanged
for about 18 years. Following a spirited discussion
at the AGM, it was unanimously agreed that, from
2013, the annual fee should rise to £25 per
household, with students paying £5. This reduced
rate will also apply to pensioners, on the
understanding that nobody should actually pay
less than in previous years. Revolt averted.
NEWSLETTER APOLOGY The editor regrets that this issue is shorter than
usual owing to time constraints of various people
involved in compiling and distributing the
Newsletter.
CURRENCY CONVERTER
In mid-December, there were TSh. 2575 to £1 UKP
PAGE 2 - 3 News
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY AGM: Saturday 9 November, 2013 Committee Meetings (BTS & TDT) will be held in London on Tuesdays: 27th November, 2012; 22nd January, 2013 7th May, 2013; 17th September, 2013
BTS SCOTTISH GROUP 16
th February 2013 - Next meeting: talk by Martyn
Edelsten on “A veterinary perspective on
development in East Africa”. If you are in
Edinburgh you are very welcome to join us.
Details from Ann Burgess
The BTS Scottish Group hosted a lively meeting of
the Tanzania Scotland Network on 1st December
2012. At this the future direction of the Network
and Group was discussed; the many suggestions
will inform future activities –so watch this space.
During 2013 we expect to contribute to the
events marking the bicentenary
of the birth of Dr David Livingstone (see below
and www.davidlivingstone200.org/).
SOAS COURSES, Spring 2013 2 Feb: Young African Diaspora Entrepreneurs -
Exploiting your USP (Unique Selling Proposition)
Certificated course.
8 March: Women Mean Business
Conference for companies working in Africa
8 May: One Billion Hungry: Can We Feed the
World? Presented by Sir Gordon Conway
These are open conferences/courses with fees of
£25/£30 including refreshments. For further
details and to register, contact: [email protected]
GOVERNANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT
IN AFRICA INITIATIVE Current opportunities with SOAS, University of
London, funded by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation
Scholarships. One PhD Scholarship and three MSc
Scholarships in Governance and Development
related subjects are offered for next year.
Application deadline, 30 April 2013. Details to be
found on www.soas.ac.uk/cas/gdai
Residential school. The next school will take place
in Accra, Ghana, on 6-10 May 2013. Application
deadline, 15 Jan 2013.
Dr LIVINGSTONE, I PRESUME National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh
A new exhibition on the life and achievements of
one of Scotland’s most famous explorers (born
1813), continues until Sunday 7 April 2013.
The exhibition draws together a wide range of
artefacts, documents and artworks with a
personal connection to Livingstone. This
exhibition traces his life story from humble
beginnings to national hero. From his early
working-life in a cotton mill to studying medicine
and divinity and becoming a missionary in Africa,
as well as the legacy which has led to strong
modern-day links between Scotland and Malawi.
Livingstone had a vision to end the slave trade
and to open up Africa to Christianity and lawful
commerce. He was the first European to cross
Africa from west to east and whilst he made few
converts to Christianity, his success as an explorer
and his work as an abolitionist secured for him a
lasting reputation.
Livingstone himself collected material for what is
now National Museums Scotland. These include a
weaving loom, mineral samples and African
artefacts. Highlights include the hats reputedly
worn on the occasion of the famous meeting
between Livingstone and the American journalist
Henry Morton Stanley who tracked across Africa
in pursuit of the missing Scot and uttered the
immortal phrase which gives the exhibition its
title. There will also be the tools of his trades,
both as a missionary and an explorer. Collars and
chains that he himself removed from African
slaves provide poignant evidence of Livingstone’s
first-hand observation of the slave trade.
BTS SEMINARS, 2013 At the time of going to press, Dr Andrew Coulson,
BTS Vice-Chairman with responsibility for training,
is planning two seminars for the spring, both
interesting and currently relevant topics.
• The impact of gas exporting on the SE coast
• The Masterplan for Dar es Salaam.
[Final titles to be confirmed]. Dates may be
available by the time you read this. To contact
Andrew, email: [email protected] or tel:
0121 475 4615.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE: An Evening with Dr. Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall gave a brilliant talk on
Monday 3 December to a large
audience including BTS members at
the Royal Institution. We were
enthralled by her knowledge and
empathy with the natural world.
She recounted her childhood interest in animals
and how it had led her as a young woman to work
with Dr Louis Leakey in Kenya. With his
encouragement she started her pioneering
research in Gombe over 50 years ago. She was
the first to see that chimpanzees used tools.
Working for years in the remote forest gave her a
grasp of environmental issues and the importance
of communities – both animal and human. In the
past ten years her Roots and Shoots network has
expanded world wide, involving schools in
support of conservation and preservation of
animal habitats. As Jane said “How can we even
try to save chimps and forests if people are so
obviously struggling to survive?” She established
TACARE [pronounced take care] programme and a
powerful force for conservation was born.
TACARE seeks to preserve and restore the
environment while helping villagers’ most basic
needs such as clean water, health education and
arable farming. The programme has helped
hundreds of families around Gombe.
Despite the spread of forest destruction and the
pollution of the environment, Jane quietly but
firmly insists that humankind can restore the
planet. The evening certainly made a difference to
our thinking about the world and its people.
The evening was sponsored by Steppes Travel.
See www.janegoodall.org.uk
Thanks to Liz and Ron Fennell for this report
REPORT: GETTING MORE FROM
AGRICULTURE, 23 October 2012 “Feeding a growing population: The essential
contribution of agriculture in Tanzania” was the
topic for this seminar in the Palace of
Westminster arranged jointly by the All Party
Parliamentary Groups on Tanzania, and on
Agriculture and Food for Development, and BTS.
The topic was introduced by Andrew Coulson,
who summarised the debate between the
proponents of large farms and those of small, and
made the case that small farmers usually know
what they are doing, use techniques that
can be scientifically validated, and can
produce much more if they are sure of
being paid good prices for their crops and if
good seeds and agricultural supplies are
available.
He was followed by Monique Mikhail from
Oxfam who made a strong case that women
are “female food heroes” (the title of a
reality TV show where thousands voted by mobile
phone to choose the winner), and not necessarily
victims or unimaginative. But small-scale farming
is threatened by large-scale investments in land,
many by foreigners. There is need to implement
the Village Land Act of 1999 which promised title
deeds for villagers, including women.
Daniel Hulls, of AdDevCo, helped to prepare the
investment blueprint for SAGCOT, the Southern
Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania,
launched with a fanfare by the President at the
World Economic Forum in Davos in 2010. This
project will be anchored around very large farms,
but also relate to and provide access to markets
for large numbers of small farmers.
Professor Andrew Westby of Greenwich
University spoke about the need to think in terms
of whole value chains: transport, storage,
processing and manufacturing
and not just production. His
special interest is in cassava,
where products based on the
crop have the potential to
replace products based on wheat
and other imports, but this will
only happen if processing capacity, reliable
markets and manufacturing are developed
together, alongside improved agricultural
practices. Andrew Coulson
PAGES 4 - 5 TDT News
TANZANIA THANKS
CHRISTINE LAWRENCE Christine Lawrence, who
died in 2011, was one of
a remarkable group of
people who came to
know and love Tanzania
through the influence of
Bishop Trevor
Huddleston, who with
others founded The
Britain-Tanzania Society
and the Tanzania
Development Trust.
Huddleston, who had gained fame from his
principled opposition to
apartheid in South Africa,
was the Anglican Bishop
of Masasi in Mtwara
region and a close friend
of Mwalimu Nyerere.
Huddleston invited
Christine Lawrence to
become the
Administrator of the
Mahiwa Young Farmers’ Training Centre in 1965
and her experiences there gave her a lifelong
commitment to Tanzania and its people.
Following a brief return visit in 1972 to Tanzania
at a farm school on the slopes of Mount
Kilimanjaro, Christine became Treasurer of the
Britain-Tanzania Society and wrote articles and
book reviews for our journal, Tanzanian Affairs.
THE WONDERFUL EFFECT OF
LEGACIES In her will, Christine left the Tanzania
Development Trust not only £5,000 but a share in
the sale of her house. To date, the Trust has
received £55,000 from her estate. The result is
smiling faces all over Western Tanzania and adults
and children who will be saying ‘Asante sana, Bibi
Christine, Tunamshukuru Mungu kwa wema
wako!’
LEGACY GOES FISHING In the Karagwe District of Kagera Region, in
Tanzania’s far north-west, the local Credit Union
will be blessing Bibi Christine. Her legacy has
enabled TDT to
make a grant of
nearly £3,500 to a
very efficient
group to develop
three fish ponds
with plans
approved by the
local agriculture
and fisheries officer. This is going to be an
excellently managed scheme which will have no
detrimental effects on the environment, and
greatly increase the protein available to the
community involved and strengthen the finances
of the Credit Union and with it local prosperity.
LEGACY GETS READING
There are going to be 350 smiling faces at Kibeta
Secondary School near Bukoba in Kagera Region
and delight on the face of the Headmistress,
Mama Lydia Bwahama, when she tells her pupils
that Christine Lawrence’s legacy will mean that
for the first time in Kibeta’s history there will be
textbooks for every pupil.
Like many of Tanzania’s new Community Schools,
resources are very inadequate. Through READ
International TDT has helped the school get a
library, but now a grant of £3,500 will transform
the young people’s learning and improve their life
chances.
LEGACY POWERS UP COMPUTERS
For the 1000 youngsters and staff of Bulyakashaju
and Kibanga Secondary Schools in remote
countryside in Kagera’s Muleba District,
Christine’s legacy will turn the power on. Lots of
children travel considerable distances to the
schools but no evening study is possible because
there is no electricity. These schools are far from
the National Grid, so an excellent local NGO,
KADETA, is working with TDT to provide an
extensive solar array for the schools. Muleba
Council has promised each school computers.
This project is costing £11,000 over two years
LEGACY LIGHTS BABIES INTO THE
WORLD Sunuka Dispensary is 120 Km south of Kigoma
and beyond the River Malagarisi Delta.
Mwamgongo Health Centre is 60 km north of
Kigoma near
Gombe
National park,
accessible only
by boat.
Neither of
these crucial
rural health
facilities has
electricity -
but in both many babies are delivered, often at
night. Christine’s legacy will enable TDT to provide
solar installations to provide lighting in the wards
and operating theatre and power for refrigeration
of medicines and specimens. This is a 2 stage
programme costing about £7,000.
LEGACY LAYS GOLDEN EGGS The Ebeneza Group in Shinyanga has a special
programme to support orphans, widows and
people living with HIV/AIDS through helping them
set up in poultry farming and with dairy cattle.
Christine’s legacy will support them with £4,000
to help them buy cattle and chickens, build sheds
and have veterinary assistance - and the aim is to
make the members self-supporting and to
increase their livelihoods.
These are just 5 examples (and there will be
more) of how one woman’s legacy will benefit
the lives of thousands of Tanzanians in different
ways. TDT and all the beneficiaries in Tanzania
will remember Christine and bless her for
generosity.
TDT has a Legacy Leaflet. If you would like to
include TDT in your will, just ask Vice Chair, Dan
Cook: [email protected]
TDT Chair, Julian Marcus and his wife Ann will be
visiting 35 of the Trust’s projects in Tanzania in
January 2013. Arriving in Dar on Jan 6th, they immediately fly to
Mwanza and from there go to Shinyanga, then
Tabora and Kahama. Key visits in Shinyanga and
Tabora will be to the Ebeneza Group projects for
orphans and widows (see the article about the
Christine Lawrence legacy), the Tabora Albino
Society and the Goodness Association of Women
Bee-keepers. The next region is Mara where they
will be visiting mainly agricultural projects
including maize mills and goat rearing. After that,
it’s across Lake Victoria to Bukoba. Kagera region
has the largest number of TDT projects including
3 schools where there is a 3 year support
programme largely sponsored by the Hilden
Charitable Fund. In Kagera visits will also include a
mango tree growing project and a village water
project which TDT may aid. The last major centre
of the tour is Kigoma where key visits will be to
two Vocational Training Programmes which are
also supported jointly with Hilden. There will also
be visits to dispensaries and schools and to a
group TDT has sponsored to deliver anti-malaria
bed-nets in the villages.
The Marcuses travel round with a large bag
containing gifts for the projects, especially
footballs and netballs for schools - these are
hastily blown up in the car before they arrive at
each project! After that the Julian and Ann go to
Dar for meetings with colleagues in the Britain-
Tanzania Society (Tanzania section). They come
back via South Africa, where Julian has relatives
including the famous ‘blade-runner’ athlete,
Oscar Pistorius. There will be reports of the visit in
future issues.
PAGE 6 Technology
MOBILE ‘PHONES –
VITAL FOR THE POOR Ron Fennell sends a copy of a report from Kenya
which describes the sacrifices made by the poor
there to buy and keep a mobile phone.
AFRICA’S “mobile decade”, when telephones
reached most corners of the continent, has meant
a huge improvement in the lives of the poor. But
quantifying it is hard. How useful can a mobile
phone be to someone living on less than $2.50 a
day, the World Bank’s standard benchmark of
poverty? Researchers in Kenya have given a
partial answer. They find that people will skip a
meal or choose to walk instead of paying for a bus
fare so that they can keep their phone in credit.
The weekly value of these sacrifices averages just
over 72 Kenyan shillings (84 American cents)—not
a trivial amount, seeing that the daily wage of a
Kenyan labourer can be as little as a dollar. The
report by iHub, an incubator for Kenyan tech
start-ups, suggests that discretionary spending by
the poor is now influenced greatly by their
expenditure on mobile phones. Interviews
conducted at half a dozen spots around the
country showed how fine the margins in the
decisions made by the poor are. Some would, for
instance, forgo meat at meal time, in the hope of
making a call or sending an SMS that would
enable them to put more food on the table later.
Almost half of those surveyed in Kenya were using
internet-enabled smart or “feature” phones.
Scratch re-charge cards have begun to advertise
their value in terms of data rather than talk time
and entice customers with free access to sites
such as Wikipedia.
Still, only 16% of respondents said they were
using their phones to browse the internet. The
real breakthrough in the Kenyan market has been
in people’s ability to send and receive money,
with more than two-thirds doing so by phone.
East Africa’s biggest success has been M-Pesa, a
mobile-based money-transfer system pioneered
by Safaricom, a leading Kenyan operator. Its
simple interface, which works on any phone, has
brought financial services to Kenya’s poor
majority, enabling the movement of some $8.6
billion in the first half of this year.
Pedal-powered mobile charger. In Kenya it sells
better than the Nokia official product!
M-PESA in Tanzania. In developing countries, the rates of financial
exclusion are astounding. Tanzania is no
exception; less than 13% of the adult population
have access to formal financial services (FinScope
survey, 2009). But Tanzania may be an exception
when it comes to innovative solutions to address
financial exclusion. In recent years, the increased
penetration of mobile services across the country
have made it a fertile ground for “mobile money”,
and in particular for M-Pesa.
Tanzania is now one of the most dynamic mobile
money markets. In an environment dominated by
cash, a service like M-Pesa represents
convenience and safety. Its affordability and
simplicity also explain its uptake. By enabling
electronic transactions across the country, it helps
individuals and communities manage their
financial lives more efficiently. It also connects
them to a wider range of financial service
providers, including from the semi-formal or
informal sector. The potential for businesses,
small or large, whether payers or payees, is
significant too.
WATTS UP ON THE LAMP FRONT ? Here’s another
innovative idea
from across the
border – how to
make a kerosene
lamp…..
out of a LIGHT
BULB!
PAGE 7 Meetings
Meeting with SEIF SHARIF HAMAD,
FIRST VICE PRESIDENT OF ZANZIBAR
At 24 hours notice, the High Commissioner invited
BTS members to an informal meeting with Seif
Sharif Hamad on 13 September at the High
Commission. Six members of the Executive
Committee - David Brewin, Dan Cook, Andrew
Coulson, Ron and Liz Fennell, and Valerie Leach
were able to make it.
Seif Sharif Hamad gave a brief outline of the
process by which the current coalition had been
established after a referendum. The distribution
of ministerial posts between the two according to
the number of seats held in the legislature was
working well. There was a much more peaceful
atmosphere in Zanzibar. Backbenchers were
active in holding the government accountable.
The timetable for the consultation process
and revision of the Union Constitution was a tight
one with the end of April 2014 being the target
date for a draft document to be followed by a
referendum.
He spoke of the concern about unemployment,
and the government development priorities in
tourism, agriculture and deep sea fishing. The
issue of Zanzibar rights in the oil and gas sectors
was raised, but his view was that a way forward
could be found to satisfy both Zanzibar and the
Mainland.
Seif Sharif Hamad welcomed the opportunity to
meet BTS again and hoped that members would
call at his office when they were in Zanzibar. RF
Dr HARRISON MWAKYEMBE
ADDRESSES THE BTS AGM On Saturday 10th November, many members and
members of the Tanzanian diaspora gathered at
the Central Hall Westminster, to listen to a talk
from the Hon. Dr Harrison Mwakyembe, Minister
of Transport in the Union Government and MP for
Kyela.
Dr Mwakyembe, a constitutional lawyer by
background, began his talk by giving members an
update on the current review of the Constitution.
However, he then moved into a very frank talk
about the problems that he was facing within his
ministry. He stressed the importance of improved
transport facilities for assisting development, not
only within Tanzania, but in the surrounding land-
locked countries, which relay on Tanzania for
gaining access to world markets.
He told us that a recent world Bank report had
highlighted the Port of Dar es Salaam as one of
the worst ports in the world. He has therefore
sacked the Board of Directors of the Port
Authority and appointed a new board, which
includes former BTS Executive Committee
member, Hildebrand Shayo.
He also told us about the opening of the two new
commuter train services into the centre of Dar
and his plans to really shake up the railway
network.
Dr Mwakyembe was happy to deal with many
questions from the floor and stayed on
afterwards to chat with all those attending. WF
TANZANIA BLOGS At a very informative discussion on the media in
Tanzania at SOAS on 6th December, Ben Taylor
listed a number of Tanzanian blog sites, which
may be of interest to members:
Jamii Forums - www.jamiiforums.com
Ben Taylor’s blog – www.mtega.com
Freddy Macha’s – www.freddymacha.com/blogs
Francis Godwin –
www.francisgodwin.blogspot.co.uk
Mjengwa - www.mjengwablog.com
Michuzi - www.issamichuzi.blogspot.co.uk
Bongo Celebrity – www.bongocelebrity.com
Jestina George - www.jestina-george.com/
Mwanamke wa Nyumba –
www.rosemarymizizi.blogspot.co.uk
[also www.mikochenireport.blogspot.co.uk - Ed.]
PAGE 8 Reports
KIKUKWE BOOK PROJECT On October 4th, 2012, Kikukwe Secondary School
took delivery of 327 textbooks as part of a project
to try to improve the disappointing examination
results they have been experiencing. TDT
coordinated this project which was proposed by
KDCI, a local NGO operating in this impoverished
ward north of Bukoba. The funds were kindly
provided by Food for Thought (East Africa), a
small UK based family Trust.
The handing over ceremony was attended by
headmaster, TDT representative for Kagera
region, Mr Elias Mashasi, as well as student
leaders, teachers, the ward executive officer, and
the KCDI management. The students have
'promised to honor the assistance by performing
better in the 2013 national form 2 and form 4
examinations, and further more have promised to
avoid poor handling of the books and guarantee
that they will be sustained for a longer period'.
MALAIKA KIDS On 20 November, Trevor Jaggar attended a
reception in Moorgate given by Malaika Kids, a
group which runs a project for orphans about
20km. south of Dar es Salaam. There was a very
interesting illustrated presentation during the
course of the evening during which, incidentally,
thanks were expressed for the help provided by
the TDT in paying for some of the beds in the
children's village. As a result of some of his
conversations, he is hopeful that a number of the
people present will join the Society. Some of
them, of course, already are members.
NGO MEMBERS CHALLENGE Dan Cook writes, The BTS committee asked me to
conduct a survey of UK based NGOs working in
Tanzania to try to find ways of attracting them to
become members of BTS. Whilst this is an
ongoing project, the results I have back so far
from over 40 NGOs reveal a few interesting
trends. Every NGO that has so far responded has
either attended a BTS seminar or would like to be
on the mailing list for future seminars, thus the
hard work that Andrew Coulson is doing
organising these events is clearly much
appreciated by those interested in Tanzania. We
would hope to be able to turn this enthusiasm
into increased membership of BTS. There was also
a lot of support for opportunities to network with
other NGOs working in Tanzania with BTS acting
in a facilitating role. This could well fit in well with
BTS efforts to set up interest groups, the first
being on Education which will be coordinated by
Dr. Anne Samson.
READ: A Tanzanian Summer Our summer programme is now over and our
amazing UK student volunteers have returned to
the grey of the UK. This year we shipped over
156,000 books to Tanzania and 34 UK student
volunteers made the trip to Tanzania for 6 weeks,
working alongside our 3 Tanzania Project Co-
ordinators, our Volunteer Manager Francesca and
our outgoing Country Director Rose. Our
volunteers travelled to 8 different regions in
Tanzania including Dar es Salaam, Morogoro,
Lindi, Mtwara, Shinyanga, Singida, Mbeya and
Tabora. It was the first year we have worked in
Dar es Salaam, and were able to do so due to
support from BG Tanzania and the Rotary Club of
Bahari.
Our volunteers renovated 15 libraries across the
country, taking an unused space, cleaning it up,
making refurbishments, getting furniture, and
using our books to create a fantastic library. While
renovating the libraries our volunteers work with
school students to form a Library Committee who
will monitor the library and ensure students make
the most of the books. Amazingly we have seen a
14% increase in examination results with the
schools we have worked with, just showing that
we are making a direct impact on the lives of
Tanzanian students!
PAGE 9 Letters
NOREEN IBBOTT, R.I.P. Members will be sad to hear of the death in
September of long-time BTS member Noreen
Ibbott, a stalwart of our BTS Scotland branch,
whose commitment made a deep impression on
all who met and worked with her.
Apollo Temu writes: “The GRAND work Noreen
was part of in Southern Tanzania during the early
days of the formation of our Young Nation will
inspire scholars for many years to come. You will
be terribly missed Noreen!”
Ralph Ibott writes, “My darling wife Noreen, after
several years of ill health, died suddenly on 24th
September. In 1962 we moved to Tanzania into
two grass huts in the Ruvuma Region with our
three children, then aged 8, 6 and 3 years old.
This was in support of 15 young men and their
wives who, following the call of Julius Nyerere,
were setting out to build a modern farm working
on a communal basis. By the end of the decade
there had developed fifteen other communal
villages, all working together in their Ruvuma
Development Association (RDA) spread over an
area much the size of Switzerland, the Ujamaa
project strongly supported by Nyerere.
Noreen was very interested in keeping a watch on
the babies in the village and was able to help
mothers who were having difficulties. She
suggested a scheme where some women came
home early to prepare food for all the children.
This led to the setting up of a children’s nursery,
later copied by other RDA communal villages.
In those days a very large number of children
never reached adulthood. One of the big killers
was measles. In Litowa, Noreen worked with the
mothers to set up a mini clinic for affected
children, concentrating on special feeding. No
children died.
In Litowa, women usually went to the mission
hospital some nine miles away to have babies.
Once, when the transport was away, one of the
women in labour was brought to Noreen. Her only
experience was having her own babies, but she
had a useful medical book. At that time, the
women only used the local tribal language. Our
daughter Clare, by then 6 years old, had friends
her own age and had become proficient in Ngoni.
During the birth, Clare sat in the corner and acted
as interpreter for her mum. After that, Noreen
always kept a bundle of clean sheets and other
necessities ready. She successfully delivered 7
babies. At one time a nearby government project
included a flock of sheep for wool; Noreen had
taught herself to spin when we were in Rhodesia,
and now she was able to teach the children in the
RDA school to prepare the wool, spin it, dye it and
later knit it. She even constructed a loom from
bamboo poles to weave woollen cloth. She also
experimented with making glazed pots using a
kiln brought by a visitor from overseas. Shortly
afterwards, we were forced to leave.”
Ralph IbbottRalph IbbottRalph IbbottRalph Ibbott _____________________________________________________________
DON BARTON Don Barton writes, “Re. Tom Unwin’s obituary.
I never met Tom Unwin, but know that he was
highly regarded in the Service. So it was good to
read the abbreviated version of his Daily
Telegraph obituary notice. However, this struck
one wrong note, and I mention this particularly
for the benefit of BTS members who have no
personal knowledge of Tanzania’s colonial period.
The notion of treating Africans as equals was not
“unfashionable at the time.” Of course it depends
on what you mean by equals; is an undergraduate
the equal of his professor, the private soldier of
the general? In this sense there were clear
inequalities, as in all societies. There were, of
course, some expatriates, official or otherwise,
who had little regard for Africans – as no doubt
there still are, but these were a small minority.
Most of us related to Africans on a man to man
basis and with mutual respect; we could probably
not have functioned otherwise. This was,
remember, a period when Colonial Office
Selection Boards were apt to ask the question
“How would you feel about working under an
African senior officer or minister?” – although
this did not appear to be an immediate prospect.
I was interested to read of the BTS / VSO
relationship. In the 1960s, VSO had no Field
Officers overseas, The British Council – I was a
member – acted as their overseas arm. In this
context I oversaw about 40 & 30 VSO projects and
volunteers in Nigeria & Malaysia respectively;
very rewarding it was too. I wish I’d had a few
VSOs (& / or Peace Corps volunteers) on my patch
when a District Commissioner! Don BaDon BaDon BaDon Bartonrtonrtonrton
Views expressed are personal, not those of BTS
PAGE 10 Chairman’s Page
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS Our 2012 survey of members demonstrated a
desire for us to form groups on specific subjects
relating to Tanzania. There is interest in forming
groups relating to education, health, rural
development, women’s issues, history, Swahili,
agriculture and the environment. Also many
members came forward to offer hospitality to
students.
We have received three offers to start such
special interest groups, so we are now launching
groups for Education, Swahili and Hospitality.
Anne Samson ([email protected] ) has
agreed to chair the new education group. She has
set up a group on Linked-In, so if you have an
interest in Education in Tanzania, do please
contact Anne at the above address. She will be
delighted to hear from you.
Rachel Lindley ([email protected]) has
agreed to start a group to help people improve
their Swahili or just to converse in Swahili, via
Skype or Viber. Rachel is looking for help with this
group, but if you would like to get involved, do
please contact Rachel.
Phil Grant ([email protected] ) has
offered to start a group offering hospitality to
students. Many members welcome Tanzanian
students into their homes. However, we are
currently looking for ways of finding out where
these students are studying, before we can really
get going with offering hospitality. If you know of
any Tanzanian students currently studying in the
UK, do please contact Phil.
We are very grateful to these noble three, but
wait for other members to come forward to offer
to start some of the other groups.
UK BORDER AGENCY A number of members have also raised
complaints about some ridiculous and very unfair
treatment of Tanzanian visitors applying for visas
to enter the UK. We are planning to take these
concerns up with the UK Border Agency. So, if you
have DIRECT experience of visitors being refused
visas on. Please contact me on
VOLUNTEER BLUES At the “Tanzania @50” celebration at the Royal
Commonwealth Society in September, His
Excellency Peter Kallaghe invited members to
inform him of any problems that they or their
organizations may be experiencing in Tanzania.
The Balozi has asked the Society to co-ordinate
these responses. So, if you or your organization is
experiencing difficulties, do please contact me,
William Fulton, on [email protected].
So far, I received a very helpful statement from a
member in South Wales who highlights the
concerns of a number of NGOs in and around
Arusha about the inconsistent application of the
new Permit C visas for volunteers. If you have
similar experiences, please feed these into me
and I will arrange a meeting to discuss these
frankly with His Excellency.
BTS Chairman Willie Fulton pictured with HE Peter
Kallaghe at September’s Tanzania@50 gathering at
the Royal Commonwealth Club.
BUDGET FLIGHTS COME TO TZ Fastjet (www.fastjet.com/tz ) has started to
operate in Tanzania at VERY competitive prices. A
single flight to Mwanza is currently TZS 32,000,
with and additional TZS 8,000 for a checked-in
bag. This compares very favourably with the bus
fare! Currently, they are offering two flights a day
to Mwanza or Kilimanjaro ( TZS 32,000 + taxes
one-way), but they will be adding other
destinations soon.
At these prices, Fastjet will be giving Precision Air
and the smaller operators, like Coastal, Zanair,
Auric and Flightlink a run for their money. It will
be very interesting to watch how these
companies react to this new competition on their
patch.
PAGE 11 Feature
John Kilaka - Artist & Storyteller John Kilaka is a born storyteller. But he is also an
artist with a distinctive style of painting which he
has used to great effect to illustrate some of his
own stories now published in book form. He is
one of those people you never forget – at once
both diffident and warm-hearted, but always
with a cheeky smile and an endearing chuckle.
I first met John 12 years ago when he worked as a
freelance artist at the Village Museum in Dar es
Salaam. Along with Peter Martin and Jeremiah
Emmanuel, he was one of a group of artist friends
painting mainly in the Tingatinga style for the
tourist market. They were all what you might call
“real characters”, though John’s fluency in English
often made him the spokesperson for the craft
group. When I needed a break from the office (or
the power was down) I would often wander over
to the dusty veranda where they worked to
inspect their latest creations.
John was born in Sumbawanga in SW Tanzania in
1966, but did not enter primary school until he
was 11. He already showed signs of artistic talent,
though his first efforts were mere sketches in the
sand. At school he found paper, pencils and
coloured chalks, though his funny sketches on the
blackboard did not endear him to his teacher.
John was stripped of his role as class leader,
labelled “class noise maker” and punished for his
efforts. John left school in 1983 to help his family
hunt, fish and farm, but then in 1987 moved to
Dar es Salaam hoping to improve his art.
It was a good move. John met Damian Msagula
(who had been taught by Edward Said Tingatinga)
and Peter Martin and became their pupil. Through
Peter he was taken on as one of the resident
artists at The Village Museum, selling enough of
his work to visitors to support himself. Gradually,
John developed his own distinctive style of
painting. Through his pictures, he began to tell
some of the traditional stories he had grown up
with in his village back home. It was a chance
meeting with a Swiss publisher that led to John’s
first commission, to write and illustrate one of
these stories for children. The book, Frische Fische
(now also in English as Fresh Fish) featured at the
2001 won the Blue Cobra award at the Basel Book
festival. The publishers, Baobab Books, wanted
more, and in 2004 John’s story Gute Freunde
(True Friends) won the Bologna Ragazzi Award.
John’s third book The Amazing Tree also appeared
in German,
but was then
taken up by
New York
publishers
North-South
and published
in English in
2009.
John Kilaka’s gifts as a teller and illustrator of
traditional stories were nurtured in far-off
Sumbawanga, but now have an international
appeal. In 2002 he came to Britain to deliver a
week of children’s workshops at The Manchester
Museum during the Commonwealth Games. Since
then he has led storytelling sessions at book fairs
in Germany, Sweden and Denmark, and painted
illustrations for Penguin Books and animations for
a BBC / Walt Disney film. His paintings have been
exhibited in Botswana, Scandinavia, the Czech
Republic and even Reunion Island. He is a popular
visitor to schools in Tanzania, too, where three of
his story books have appeared in print.
Today, John lives in Dar where he undertakes
private commissions, and when not painting (or
telling tales), runs a chicken farm with his wife
and children. His greatest sadness is the
premature death of his great friend and teacher
Peter Martin who passed away in 1997 while
working on a major contract with a Japanese
publisher that might have finally him brought
much-deserved fame and fortune. Richard Barton-Wood
To find out more about John Kilaka, or contact
him, see his website at www.kilaka.org. All his
books are available on Amazon.
PAGE 12 BACK PAGE
BTS Who’s Who & Contacts President: HE Ali Hassan Mwinyi, former
President of the United Republic of Tanzania
Vice Presidents:
Sir Andy Chande, Derek Ingram, Esther
Mwaikambo, Ron and Liz Fennell, Trevor Jaggar
William Fulton (Chair) 01513 367393
David Brewin (Editor, Tanzanian Affairs)
020 7727 1755 [email protected]
Ann Brumfit (Membership Sec)
24 Oakfield Drive, Reigate, Surrey, RH2 9NR.
01737 210532 [email protected]
Jill Bowden (BTS Treasurer) 020 8886 8141
17 The Green, London N14 7EH
Dr Elizabeth Taylor, (Executive Secretary) Phone:
+44 (0)1869 243479
Julian Marcus (Chair, TDT)
02086 685230 [email protected]
Robert Gibson (TDT Treasurer)
Tim Watkins-Idle (Web Editor)
Richard Barton-Wood (Newsletter Editor)
BTS Tanzania Chapter contacts:
Enquiries & Membership
Hon. Paul Rupia (Chair) +255 713 605151
BTS (T) Hon Sec (post vacant) [email protected]
BTS Scottish Group contacts:
Ann Burgess 07858 481038
Next Newsletter deadline:
1 April, 2013.
Send to: Richard Barton-Wood,
15 Church Street, Wymondham, Norfolk NR18
0PH. Tel: 01953 600800.
Email preferred: [email protected]
Sally Penman’s Kili climb has raised over £800 so
far. Members may engage with her via the
Facebook page.
Tanzania@50 Event. L to R: Mrs Nelly Nsemwa-Fungo, the wife of Tanzanian High Commissioner to UK, Hon. Joyce
Kallaghe, Ms Sheilamina Mallewo, Mrs Elly Njau Benichou.
“Women can be the rock on which a freer, safer,
more prosperous Africa is built. They just need
the opportunity.” – Hillary Rodham Clinton
KARIBUNI We welcome the following new members.
Dr Martin Pickett, Sevenoaks, Kent
Miss Molly Carter, Stockport, Cheshire
Mrs Hamza Hassan, London
Mr Jan Bell, London
Ms Anasia Maleko, Reading, Berks
Mr Navnit Davda, Bushey Heath, Herts
Miss Angela Mullens, Wimborne, Dorset
Mrs Samara Hammond, AMREF, London
Mr Ben Taylor, Manchester I worked in Tanzania between 1999 and 2012, on
various projects. I founded Daraja in 2009, in Njombe, working on local government accountability through media projects.
Below: seen on a wall at the Bagamoyo Mission
Roy Galbraith has stepped down from the BTS
Committee after 24 years’ service. Roy has strong
family links with Tanzania, where his daughter
Prudence Eliapenda is a Pastor in the Evangelical
Lutheran Church. We shall miss him.