A Glimpse of My Future

Last week I visited the village where I will be living for my two-year PC service. It's a village of about 300-400 people on the north side of the river, about 30k east of Barra (across the river from Banjul). It was a great visit and I'm very excited to return in mid December and get to work. 

Following my host father to the groundnut fields.

Many of the people in the village belong to the Seerer tribe, a group that historically focused on fishing but these days is more likely to be involved with farming. Indeed, this is a farming village. I was there during the final days of the groundnut harvest; cashews are the next crop in the pipeline, with harvest starting in Dec/Jan. I have yet to learn what other crops they tend.

They also have a sizeable women’s garden. The garden used to provide a bounty of fresh vegetables for the village but the fencing surrounding it needs significant repairs, causing it to be useful for little other than growing millet because they can’t keep goats and other free range livestock out. This may be one project I work on while I’m there. Another priority for the village is securing another source of potable water. They have multiple wells that can be used for washing and watering, but only one – a covered hand pump – that accesses water that is safe to drink. If something happens to the pump they are out of luck. This could be another project.

But our reason for visiting the site wasn’t to identify projects, it was to meet our host family, be introduced to the village elders, Imam and other community members, and see our new digs. Keeping with tradition, I brought kola nuts for my host father, the elders and Imam. Kola nuts are not very expensive but have great value. They are an important part of many ceremonies and celebrations. A gift of kola nuts from a visitor is a sign of respect and appreciation, and begets the acceptance and protection of those who receive them. I’d add hospitality to that list but hospitality is a given in this country, no kola nuts required.

Kunda Ndure is my new home. Kunda means compound and Ndure is my host father’s surname. I’ll be adopting that surname when I arrive in village, so my name will change to Bakoto Ndure.

My new home. The perspective is weird - the four buildings square off against each other around the courtyard, My room is in the building with blue highlights, the last one on the left. They are drying the groundnut plants on the roofs. I pitched in (a little) with the harvest, pulling nuts off the dried plants, and shelling. I pitched in more with the eating.

There are four married couples in my compound and each has a few kids, for a total population of about 30. All of the couples in my compound include a husband with one wife. Polygamy is common among the Muslim population; the Koran allows men to have up to four wives. But plenty of men choose to have only one wife. From a distance – I know, because I used to be distant – it’s easy to view polygamy as an objectionable practice. But when viewed close up it isn’t necessarily the case. In Gambian culture, child brides are a rarity and women are able to choose who they marry. They can also divorce. Having more women in the compound means more helping hands to do all of the work – yes, gender roles are very ingrained and the women and girls are responsible for almost all of the cooking, cleaning, childcare and gardening. Multiple mothers means that childcare can be provided for women who have jobs. But it also means more mouths to feed and other resources needed, which gets harder and harder as the culture shifts to one where people have more expenses (school books/uniforms, cell phones, etc.) and are less able to meet their needs without cash in hand.

Kids having breakfast before heading to school.

Kunda Ndure may be unusual in that it has as many husbands (all brothers or cousins) as wives. But it seems they all get along and have a well-functioning system for living communally. Most noticeable to me was how warm and welcoming they are, and how peaceful and organized the compound is. I anticipate being very happy living with them. More on that later!

My baay (father) and yaay (mother)