Tony took over from Toshi on March 23 – he’s even taking over Toshi’s room – it has more light. Tony is pleased to have his help.
“We can walk to the office which is absolutely beautiful, through a park and along a residential street most pleasant. The building I’d love to live in – white, lots of space, wood windows, wooden cabinets in the kitchen, spacious, with a view over the green countryside and surrounded by trees and a garden. There are flowering trees here – blues and oranges – and I can see Mount Meru from the office window.”
The first day Tony was at the office was spent reviewing info about the WFP. He says, “The WFP is really high finance to me and busy, busy with analysis of just about every move they make. There are administrators and logisticians and data processors and and... I’m trying to grasp the how and the why of the WFP – (while) working at who is who and what they do in the office. It’s happening – slowly.”
Tony had his first initiation into the farming area where he will be working: “We went deep into the country; first across a broad plain toward a mountain ridge, then we climbed into a different climate and found lush growth and lots of farms with deep, rich soil – essentially in the middle of nowhere. Yet all along the highway were Masai herders with goats and cattle, often feeding at road’s edge – and lovely gentle gray coloured donkeys. I have changed my mind about jeeps – Nyagawa, our driver, took us where we would not go otherwise. Farm folk were walking but few vehicles could cope – it had rained and it was slick. Nyagawa is one good driver – a quiet fellow and totally professional. Some fields were being plowed with small, delicate oxen and a few with tractors. The trucks that were coming to pick up the maize from the co-op storage shed got stuck – eventually a tractor came to free them. We went to talk with a farmer’s organization about the contract they had signed with World Food. In brief, the prices are now higher than when the agreement was made and the growers are in need of cash now and not later after delivery to the warehouse. Problems just like home but compounded by an isolated environment with few amenities and difficult transportation.”
The compensation for the long day was the beautiful scenery and the “three giraffes and the baboons. The baboons were sitting on the corner of the highway hustling bananas. They learned this from the tourists. Also a tortoise was crossing the road and if there is a God, the Kobe will make it...”
Now Tony will “tackle the PC - tomorrow and all the days after!”