Umuganda Hands

Today was the first time I was able to participate in Umuganda (community work), the national day of community service which is set for the last Saturday of every month here in Rwanda. The idea of it seemed a bit Utopian when I first heard about it. Community work done by EVERYONE? Could it be? Today after an hour and half hike South of Nyanza, I realized how impressive and humbling it is witness and participate in umuganda.

The job today was to cultivate a field for cassava to be planted, possibly the project for next umuganda. It was amazing to walk up to the site and see over a hundred people from the local cell working together to clear a football field size area. It was overwhelming at first, not really knowing how or where we’d fit in. We were probably quite a sight, a bunch of confused muzungus that showed up without hoes, or any sense of direction for that matter. The confusion ended quickly however as I was handed a hoe and pointed to fill in for someone that was getting tired. From then on I realized the organized chaos that was happening. Shifts of people worked until they got tired, then they’d sit down as their replacement would take over. This process repeated itself throughout the morning until the hill was sufficiently churned and our hands were sufficiently blistered. The mark of hard work consisted of the scale of how blistered your hands were. I didn’t notice this until I finished my third shift and looked down at my 'umuganda hands'. One of the organizers noticed them as well, gave me a thumbs up and a subtle smile. After that, I knew that it was my first successful umuganda.


On a different note, this week we were given our site assignments which finally answered the question of what I will be doing for the next two years. Drum roll please…..I’ll be working in Microfinance with the African Evangelical Enterprise Rwanda (AEE Rwanda)! AEE works with cooperatives and Savings and Internal Lending Groups (SILGs), Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVCs) and People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs). Specifically they offer market development, business planning, and incoming generating opportunities.

Also, I’ll be living in Nyamagabe town in the Southern District of Rwanda, near the Nyungwe Forest...Chimpanzees anyone?

I will have the chance to visit my work and house next Wednesday so I’ll have more info soon enough.