Nurturing community participation?
I work in community health with the Prem Sewa Hospital, Utraula, India. At present we are training two women to join our team as field supervisors.
We also have ten community health visitors. Only two out of the ten are literate so we are limited in keeping records. We have concentrated on immunisation and ante-natal care, rather than weighing children.
We have come across several problems with record keeping. When a base survey was done, the houses were all numbered. But the numbers were soon covered with fresh mud or whitewash. So pieces of tin were nailed to the houses. But the children take them to play with. Few people still know the number of their homes.
Names are also a problem. We are hardly ever told the same name twice for the same child, mother or father. It is like being a detective to find the child’s registered name in the records. Few know their date of birth
Also girls tend to go to their mother’s house to have their babies and may not return for two years. (This encourages child spacing! Ed) So we have children staying in this area for two years who do not live here. Our biggest problem is to encourage participation. There is little interest in change and improvement. It is hard to get people’s ideas. Meetings to discuss development are poorly attended.
We are trying to get people to contribute towards the cost of the project. At present we have outside funding, but this will not always continue.
We hope you can give us some ideas of how to encourage the people to help themselves. We have money budgeted for development, but fear to use it until there is some move from the people.
Eileen Coates, Utraula, India
Encouraged
I am working as a facilitator in a church based integrated rural development programme. I was very much privileged to receive the first copies of Footsteps. I hope to participate in the future sharing our practical situation and how we approach rural families. I wish you God’s blessing as you try to help his servants exchange their experiences through Footsteps.
Ezekiel Sitienei, Eldoret, Kenya
New uses for banana flowers
I work among the Bunna people of SW Ethiopia. There has been relatively little development work done among these people and most of the Bunna have not heard of Jesus Christ, so it is both a challenge and a privilege to live and work here.
We need first to gain the trust of the people, so apart from the curative side, we are spending a lot of time in building relationships and listening. There are few believers and the women seemed eager to learn, so we began meeting with them for Bible study and cooking. Together we looked at alternative ways of preparing foods and new ideas.
Bananas are plentiful here, but the flowers were never used. A Filipino nurse suggested cooking them. Here are two recipes for using banana flowers. (Can anyone tell me what the nutritional value of the banana flower is?)
Sharon Smith, SW Ethiopia
Recipes using Banana Blossom
Separate and cook the petals of the blossom. When tender, cool and chop
The following recipes each use one cup of the cooked, chopped blossom.
BANANA BLOSSOM STEW
1 cup of cooked, chopped blossom
1 chopped onion
1 chopped clove of garlic
1 tablespoon oil
1 small piece of crushed ginger root
1 or 2 chopped green peppers
1 cup of water
Salt and pepper to taste
Mix and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
BANANA BLOSSOM MEATLESS HAMBURGERS
1 cup of cooked, chopped blossom
1 small chopped onion
1 chopped clove of garlic
1 beaten egg
Half cup of flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Form into patties and fry on a lightly oiled griddle, turning until browned on both sides.