Since coming back to the UK, I've struggled slightly to adjust to life over here. I think that bizarrely, it hit me more how difficult life is in Bangladesh by coming back and being immersed back in Western life and culture, rather than when I was over there experiencing it. In the West, we have developed a throw away culture, whereas everything in Bangladesh is treasured as a vital resource. I feel incredibly lucky to live in the culture I do, as life is so incredibly difficult for so many people in the world. What have seemed like big issues to me have paled into insignificance in comparison with the hardship that others go through on a daily basis, and it has definitely put my life into better perspective.
I know that anyone reading this is going to struggle to comprehend what I've seen, because a lot of these things you can only fully understand when you've seen them with your own eyes. All I can say, is that I have seen first hand what a difference your money can make to someone so please don't think that it doesn't make a difference, or help anyone, because I can promise you - it really does change people's lives more than you can imagine.
Friday, 17 December 2010
A happy ending
Kalshi Takerbari slum in Dhaka was an amazingly inspirational place to end our trip. This slum has received intervention from WaterAid through the local partner, DSK. The community that we met talked about how the partnership with DSK had evolved over time because they were initially sceptical about the help that was being offered. This was due to the number of times that they had been offered help by people who had collected money off them, and never delivered what they were promised. Although I realised how naive it was not to consider this, I found it really upsetting to realise that people would take advantage of a community which has so little in the first place. Thankfully DSK took the time to build up the trust with the community and work really successfully with them.
Before DSK came to work with them, the community's water supply was illegal, so it went through many lines which had various cross connections in them. This made the risk of contamination really high, so despite the water looking clean, it frequently made them ill with diarrhoea and skin diseases. In order to combat the quality of the water supply, the community needed to get the supply legitimised. This was easier said than done though. The water authority were concerned about the slum community being able to regularly pay, so they refused to recognise the slum. DSK however, stood in as security for the slum, ensuring that that they always paid the full amount on time. Once the water authority realised that the slum paid regularly, they finally recognised the slum and made the water supply legal - I've never seen people look so proud to receive a water bill!
Again, I was struck by how much the community were looking to the future. Their plans were to build a new road in the slum, but more importantly, they were in the process of lobbying the government so that they could buy the land from them and not live under the threat of eviction. They also wanted to legalise the supply of their other utilities, such as electricity, and have these set up in the same way as their water.
Meeting Ruma really summed up the whole story of the slum. She used to work in the garment industry, and was forced to collect her water at night. The supply is restricted by the water authority overnight, so it took her 2-3 hours to collect the water she needed, and she then had to cook, clean and do all her washing for the family. Since she has had access to a water pump providing clean, safe water in her slum, it has freed up enough time to enable her to leave the garment factory, and set up her own tailoring shop on the edge of her slum. What an amzing story - someone donating just £15 to give her a water supply turned her life around 180 degrees. I felt so proud to realise what a difference we could make to people who are so much worse of than ourselves.
Before DSK came to work with them, the community's water supply was illegal, so it went through many lines which had various cross connections in them. This made the risk of contamination really high, so despite the water looking clean, it frequently made them ill with diarrhoea and skin diseases. In order to combat the quality of the water supply, the community needed to get the supply legitimised. This was easier said than done though. The water authority were concerned about the slum community being able to regularly pay, so they refused to recognise the slum. DSK however, stood in as security for the slum, ensuring that that they always paid the full amount on time. Once the water authority realised that the slum paid regularly, they finally recognised the slum and made the water supply legal - I've never seen people look so proud to receive a water bill!
Again, I was struck by how much the community were looking to the future. Their plans were to build a new road in the slum, but more importantly, they were in the process of lobbying the government so that they could buy the land from them and not live under the threat of eviction. They also wanted to legalise the supply of their other utilities, such as electricity, and have these set up in the same way as their water.
Meeting Ruma really summed up the whole story of the slum. She used to work in the garment industry, and was forced to collect her water at night. The supply is restricted by the water authority overnight, so it took her 2-3 hours to collect the water she needed, and she then had to cook, clean and do all her washing for the family. Since she has had access to a water pump providing clean, safe water in her slum, it has freed up enough time to enable her to leave the garment factory, and set up her own tailoring shop on the edge of her slum. What an amzing story - someone donating just £15 to give her a water supply turned her life around 180 degrees. I felt so proud to realise what a difference we could make to people who are so much worse of than ourselves.
A village in need of help
On Thursday we visited the rural village of Nalbunia. In this village of 26 households, there is no safe drinking water. The villagers drink pond water which hasn't been through any filtering process and is about 2km away. During the monsoon season, the mud comes up to their knees, making the walk to the pond extremely difficult and painful. When we asked about this pond, we were told how good it was compared to the saline water in the rest of the ponds. We met one lady, Openerai, who's husband was currently in hospital with typhoid, and heard of another member of the community who had died the previous year of a water related disease. Diarrhoea, dysentry and skin diseases were common place. It was upsetting to realise that these villagers felt that this dirty water which was making them ill was "the best" and was "very good water". Only 3 households had hygienic latrines, with the rest either using unhygienic ones or openly defecating on the side of the road or under bushes. I was also shocked by the lack of hygiene education and awareness. Only 5% of the village were aware of some hygiene practices, and when we asked about using soap to wash their hands, they told us that only people in cities and towns need soap, and that they didn't need to use it where they were. It really brought home to me how much a little education can go a long way.
Much of the village worked as shrimp farmers, as most of the fields surrounding them had become saline, meaning that it was no longer feasible to farm rice as they used to. They have noticed that there is less rainfall than there used to be, causing high salinity in the ponds. However, there were now 2 issues with the shrimp. A lot of the shrimp had got a virus meaning that it was less profitable than usual, and buying the shrimp in the first place had rocketed from 300 Taka to 1200 Taka. the shrimp ponds are owned by a land owner, and the villagers are paid 3000-4000 Taka a month to farm the ponds. This doesn't provide them enough to have 3 meals a day, let alone medical costs or schooling for their children. If they take out a loan, then it's usually from an NGO or from the bank and takes around 1-2 years to pay back, just to pay for something which we take for granted.
It was really tough to have seen in the previous few days what a difference WaterAid can make, and then to see villages where the situation is so bad where we haven't made a difference yet.
Much of the village worked as shrimp farmers, as most of the fields surrounding them had become saline, meaning that it was no longer feasible to farm rice as they used to. They have noticed that there is less rainfall than there used to be, causing high salinity in the ponds. However, there were now 2 issues with the shrimp. A lot of the shrimp had got a virus meaning that it was less profitable than usual, and buying the shrimp in the first place had rocketed from 300 Taka to 1200 Taka. the shrimp ponds are owned by a land owner, and the villagers are paid 3000-4000 Taka a month to farm the ponds. This doesn't provide them enough to have 3 meals a day, let alone medical costs or schooling for their children. If they take out a loan, then it's usually from an NGO or from the bank and takes around 1-2 years to pay back, just to pay for something which we take for granted.
It was really tough to have seen in the previous few days what a difference WaterAid can make, and then to see villages where the situation is so bad where we haven't made a difference yet.
The rural reality
On Wednesday we saw three rural post intervention communities which Shushilan, the rural partner who works in the area, work with. Saline intrusion is a huge problem in this area, and it is predicted that 17% of Bangladesh will be underwater in 30 years time.
We travelled to Kashimari Care Mazhipara in Satkhira district. Before intervention, the community had 2 tube wells, both of which had been contaminated by saline water and so were only used for washing. This meant that to get safe drinking water they travelled around 2km. Most of the community didn't have any hygiene knowledge, and only 10% practiced good hygiene, such as the proper use, operation and maintenance of a latrine.
The community formed a committee like the one we had seen yesterday, and prepared an action plan of what they wanted where within the community, how it was going to be done, along with who was responsible and what timeline it would be done in. They gained one tube well through Shushilan, and were planning on trying to get another by lobbying the Union (the area in which they live - unions make up districts). The tube well they had post intervention was on 2 different levels so that when they are flooded during the monsoon season, they are still able to get clean water. It struck me how simple some of the solutions are to help people, and how capable they are if given a little knowledge, such as how to lobby the Union.
We also visited Kashipur Mundapara in the same district. This community are an ethnic minority and their closest safe water source in a pond sand filter (PSFs are like mini RGFs) which is 3km away. This community is lucky that they have had a rain water harvesting system, which means that they no longer need to walk this distance for 2-3 months of year, but for the rest of the year, water cannot be stored and needs to be collected. This community are low in the ranking of the Hindu caste system, and this means that when they do get to a pond filter during the months they can't use the rain water harvesting system, then it often takes them 3-4 hours to collect their water because they are constantly moved to the back of the queue due to their caste. It was really upsetting to see what an improvement WaterAid can make for part of the year through the harvesting system, and yet know that this hasn't solved all of their problems.
It was quite striking to see the difference between really simple solutions that make such a difference, compared to the areas where it is really difficult to help solve the issues. The salinity of this area has increased due to an increasing sea level and an increasing number of cyclones and storm surges. When we asked the community how they feel about the fact that they are experiencing the effects of climate change, despite Bangladesh not being a large contributor, they answered that because the West has predominantly caused the issue, they expect that the West will help them to solve it. It was incredibly humbling and embarrassing to hear this response, as I wondered how many people in the West feel the same.
We travelled to Kashimari Care Mazhipara in Satkhira district. Before intervention, the community had 2 tube wells, both of which had been contaminated by saline water and so were only used for washing. This meant that to get safe drinking water they travelled around 2km. Most of the community didn't have any hygiene knowledge, and only 10% practiced good hygiene, such as the proper use, operation and maintenance of a latrine.
The community formed a committee like the one we had seen yesterday, and prepared an action plan of what they wanted where within the community, how it was going to be done, along with who was responsible and what timeline it would be done in. They gained one tube well through Shushilan, and were planning on trying to get another by lobbying the Union (the area in which they live - unions make up districts). The tube well they had post intervention was on 2 different levels so that when they are flooded during the monsoon season, they are still able to get clean water. It struck me how simple some of the solutions are to help people, and how capable they are if given a little knowledge, such as how to lobby the Union.
We also visited Kashipur Mundapara in the same district. This community are an ethnic minority and their closest safe water source in a pond sand filter (PSFs are like mini RGFs) which is 3km away. This community is lucky that they have had a rain water harvesting system, which means that they no longer need to walk this distance for 2-3 months of year, but for the rest of the year, water cannot be stored and needs to be collected. This community are low in the ranking of the Hindu caste system, and this means that when they do get to a pond filter during the months they can't use the rain water harvesting system, then it often takes them 3-4 hours to collect their water because they are constantly moved to the back of the queue due to their caste. It was really upsetting to see what an improvement WaterAid can make for part of the year through the harvesting system, and yet know that this hasn't solved all of their problems.
It was quite striking to see the difference between really simple solutions that make such a difference, compared to the areas where it is really difficult to help solve the issues. The salinity of this area has increased due to an increasing sea level and an increasing number of cyclones and storm surges. When we asked the community how they feel about the fact that they are experiencing the effects of climate change, despite Bangladesh not being a large contributor, they answered that because the West has predominantly caused the issue, they expect that the West will help them to solve it. It was incredibly humbling and embarrassing to hear this response, as I wondered how many people in the West feel the same.
Intervention makes such a difference!
WaterAid has worked in Khulna and the south west area since 2005 with the help of their partner organisations, Nabolok, Shushilan and Rupantur. We went to visit a slum in the city of Khulna where Nabolok had worked. There was a national strike by the main opposition party in Bangladesh that day, and no vehicles were being used (except rickshaws) between sunrise and sunset, so we walked to the slum. This was brilliant as it enabled us to experience city life instead of just viewing it out of the car window. We did end up being followed by a huge crowd of children by the end of our journey though!
When we reached Aziz Bosti, I was immediately struck by the difference to yesterday's slum. The pathways between the houses were wider, and were paved. The people of the slum greeted us and invited us to sit with them as they explained the project, and they looked healthier, happier, and more well-kept than the people of the slum we'd seen the day before in Dhaka. We sat with the community who explained to us how they had set up a committee to prepare a social map of the slum. They mapped the community, detailing the situation of each house, as well as identifying adequate and absent services, such as tube wells and latrines. Each household was split into categories: extreme poor, poor, or middle class, dependent on their income. The people in the extreme poor category can't afford to eat 3 meals a day on a regular basis. 'Poor' means that they can usually afford to eat 3 meals a day but can't afford any education for their children, or any medical supplies or doctors when they're ill. The committee then established links with Nabolok (the partner organisation in Khulna) to identify the infrastructure needed in their community and develop the options together. The really refreshing thing for me was to discover that the community themselves all contribute towards the wells and latrines. Each household contributes a set monthly amount, which is dependent on which category they are in. It struck me that all people need is a little bit of financial help, and some advice and knowledge - they have the passion and desire to improve their situation. After the required infrastructure had been decided on, a second committee was created which was in charge of sourcing labour and materials, and a third committee monitored the quality of the work as it was being built - it was incredible to see a mini version of a water company in a community in a slim, half way around the world.
The difference that really struck me from today compared to yesterday was the future plans of the two communities we met. In Dhaka, when I asked about their hopes for the future, the women talked about hoping that their children would marry one day. When I asked the same question in the post intervention slum in Khulna, they went through a long list, including repair and maintenance of their existing assets, building new ones, and even going as far as improving the slum in general by building new roads and erecting lampposts. They can see a future for themselves, and aren't just existing day by day. It was so inspiring to realise that someone giving so little in this country has such a profound effect on someone's life in Bangladesh.
When we reached Aziz Bosti, I was immediately struck by the difference to yesterday's slum. The pathways between the houses were wider, and were paved. The people of the slum greeted us and invited us to sit with them as they explained the project, and they looked healthier, happier, and more well-kept than the people of the slum we'd seen the day before in Dhaka. We sat with the community who explained to us how they had set up a committee to prepare a social map of the slum. They mapped the community, detailing the situation of each house, as well as identifying adequate and absent services, such as tube wells and latrines. Each household was split into categories: extreme poor, poor, or middle class, dependent on their income. The people in the extreme poor category can't afford to eat 3 meals a day on a regular basis. 'Poor' means that they can usually afford to eat 3 meals a day but can't afford any education for their children, or any medical supplies or doctors when they're ill. The committee then established links with Nabolok (the partner organisation in Khulna) to identify the infrastructure needed in their community and develop the options together. The really refreshing thing for me was to discover that the community themselves all contribute towards the wells and latrines. Each household contributes a set monthly amount, which is dependent on which category they are in. It struck me that all people need is a little bit of financial help, and some advice and knowledge - they have the passion and desire to improve their situation. After the required infrastructure had been decided on, a second committee was created which was in charge of sourcing labour and materials, and a third committee monitored the quality of the work as it was being built - it was incredible to see a mini version of a water company in a community in a slim, half way around the world.
The difference that really struck me from today compared to yesterday was the future plans of the two communities we met. In Dhaka, when I asked about their hopes for the future, the women talked about hoping that their children would marry one day. When I asked the same question in the post intervention slum in Khulna, they went through a long list, including repair and maintenance of their existing assets, building new ones, and even going as far as improving the slum in general by building new roads and erecting lampposts. They can see a future for themselves, and aren't just existing day by day. It was so inspiring to realise that someone giving so little in this country has such a profound effect on someone's life in Bangladesh.
Maleker Bosti slum, Dhaka
On Monday morning, my group and I visite Maleker Bosti, a slum in Dhaka. Assisted by Kaniz, my translator who worked for PSTC (Population Services and Training Centre), one of the NGOs which WAB works with in Dhaka, I visited a group of women who lived in the slum. I was led to one section of slum whilst the rest of my group went to two different parts. The bit that I was in was about the size of half a tennis court, and it housed 77 people, each with 6-8 people in each family. That's over 460 people crammed into that space. The first lady that I met, Anowara, lived with her husband, Nizamuddin, her son Delwadr, his wife and their 1 year old daughter, and Anowara's youngest child, a 10 year old girl in their 6ft square home. Here previous 4 daughters have already married and moved out. Nizamuddin is too ill to work and Anowara is unable to find any work, so the only income to their household is what Delwadr earns as a rickshaw puller. This is around 100 Taka a day (about £1). I was so shocked when I heard this. The previous night in the hotel, some of the group had drunk a can of beer each, which had cost them 300 Taka per beer. I couldn't believe that I was now sitting talking to someone who lived on a third of that everyday. Anowara struggles to provide 3 meals a day for her family, and when they go to the market to buy food, she is forced to buy the food which is beginning to rot because it is all she can afford. She told me that eating isn't a pleasure - she eats because she has to in order to survive. I couldn't help but think of the Western culture of going out for dinner in comparison to this.
The water supply into the slum was illegal, and the inhabitants lived in constant fear of it being turned off, especially as there was no maintenance of the line. In summer, it often dried up, and leaks in the network caused mud and raw sewage to get mixed in with the water supply. Anowara said that the water sometimes smells bad, and often gives them diarrhoea - in fact the children almost constantly have it. What I realised was that water is not an issue in Bangladesh - it's an incredibly wet country. What is a problem is the quality of that water, and the impact that has. The families pay 2000 Taka rent which covers their water and electricity supplies. A legal water supply would cost around 200 Taka a month instead.
The sanitation block housed 5 latrines for 77 households. The latrines were connected to a pond where their waste goes, and in between the latrines and the pond was an enormous pile of rubbish. And next to this, was the water pump. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, except for the fact that I was seeing it with my own eyes.
PSTC has plans to implement projects in Maleker Bosti, and when I asked how long it they thought it would be before the situation improved, the answer I got was 2-3 years, because of the time it would take to introduce hygiene education and break the current habits people have. The only thought I had was how good this was compared to the slums where WaterAid and its partners aren't working yet.
In the afternoon, we travelled down to Khulna, in the south west of the country, where we going to spending the next 3 days of our trip. The 8 hour journey on country roads was hair-raising at times, but we arrived all in one piece, although with possibly a few more grey hairs than before!
The water supply into the slum was illegal, and the inhabitants lived in constant fear of it being turned off, especially as there was no maintenance of the line. In summer, it often dried up, and leaks in the network caused mud and raw sewage to get mixed in with the water supply. Anowara said that the water sometimes smells bad, and often gives them diarrhoea - in fact the children almost constantly have it. What I realised was that water is not an issue in Bangladesh - it's an incredibly wet country. What is a problem is the quality of that water, and the impact that has. The families pay 2000 Taka rent which covers their water and electricity supplies. A legal water supply would cost around 200 Taka a month instead.
The sanitation block housed 5 latrines for 77 households. The latrines were connected to a pond where their waste goes, and in between the latrines and the pond was an enormous pile of rubbish. And next to this, was the water pump. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, except for the fact that I was seeing it with my own eyes.
PSTC has plans to implement projects in Maleker Bosti, and when I asked how long it they thought it would be before the situation improved, the answer I got was 2-3 years, because of the time it would take to introduce hygiene education and break the current habits people have. The only thought I had was how good this was compared to the slums where WaterAid and its partners aren't working yet.
In the afternoon, we travelled down to Khulna, in the south west of the country, where we going to spending the next 3 days of our trip. The 8 hour journey on country roads was hair-raising at times, but we arrived all in one piece, although with possibly a few more grey hairs than before!
Welcome to Bangladesh!
After an extremely tiring day of flying, we finally arrived in Dhaka airport at about 8am in the morning. We got picked up by the hotel and had our first experience of Bangladeshi driving, which is interesting to say the least! People seem to drive where they want when they want, regardless of who else is on the road. Some of the sights we saw out of the window were quite shocking. The city seems really bustling, and we drove through some really affluent areas, but also areas where families were living on the side of the road, with just material strung between some bamboo as their home.
We grabbed a quick snooze for an hour at the hotel, and then had some lunch before heading off to the WaterAid Bangladesh (WAB) office. We were greeted by some of the staff who gave us flowers as we arrived. This is something that was repeated more than once when we visited places - it's amazing how a country with so little is so giving and hospitable. The staff at WAB gave us some more insight into the issues faced by the country and the work that they are doing. There are 164 million people living in a country the same land size as the UK, and 36% of these people earn less than $1 a day - can you imagine living on $1 a day? Some of the challenges being faced by the WAB team are rapid urbanisation, as people flock to the cities, btu Dhaka in particular, as this is where the majority of jobs, industries and best quality schools are. Exclusion is also a big challenge, as lots of groups such as the ethnic minorities, disabled, and transgender populations are ignored. Arsenic is a massive issue, and can come and go in the same area, or affect a well one week, but not the next. I wonder how you can ever fight an ever changing enemy like that? Climate change is a big concern for Bangladesh - it's ground zero. 20 million people will get displaced by a 1m rise in sea levels. And each area of Bangladesh suffers with different challenges, be it saline intrusion, or flooding, or seasonal famine. WaterAid makes sure that it's solutions are tailored to the needs of the area, because there is no "one size fits all" solution.
We grabbed a quick snooze for an hour at the hotel, and then had some lunch before heading off to the WaterAid Bangladesh (WAB) office. We were greeted by some of the staff who gave us flowers as we arrived. This is something that was repeated more than once when we visited places - it's amazing how a country with so little is so giving and hospitable. The staff at WAB gave us some more insight into the issues faced by the country and the work that they are doing. There are 164 million people living in a country the same land size as the UK, and 36% of these people earn less than $1 a day - can you imagine living on $1 a day? Some of the challenges being faced by the WAB team are rapid urbanisation, as people flock to the cities, btu Dhaka in particular, as this is where the majority of jobs, industries and best quality schools are. Exclusion is also a big challenge, as lots of groups such as the ethnic minorities, disabled, and transgender populations are ignored. Arsenic is a massive issue, and can come and go in the same area, or affect a well one week, but not the next. I wonder how you can ever fight an ever changing enemy like that? Climate change is a big concern for Bangladesh - it's ground zero. 20 million people will get displaced by a 1m rise in sea levels. And each area of Bangladesh suffers with different challenges, be it saline intrusion, or flooding, or seasonal famine. WaterAid makes sure that it's solutions are tailored to the needs of the area, because there is no "one size fits all" solution.
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