The ideas expressed below are not endorsed by or representative of the U.S. Peace Corps.

Also, I'm aware that "obviousment" is technically not an officially accepted French word.

Monday, October 5, 2015

Meeting Called due to Rain...and a Funeral


I had my final monthly farmers’ group meeting today. No one came. I shouldn’t have been surprised; attendance is spotty at best, and more often simply nonexistent. But I have been trying to work with this group for much of the past two years and had to hope for the best during what was to be my last meeting.

This isn’t to say I haven’t learned anything during my time in Cameroon. I showed up to the meeting a solid 45 minutes late after confirming with my counterpart Pa Max, the group president that the meeting was still going to take place. But 20 minutes after I arrived I was still the only attendee. And then the rain started coming down.

A quick call to Pa Max resulted in the reason for the lack of attendance: in addition to the ever-present rain (a permanently acceptable reason not to show up somewhere), a member of the local church community had recently passed away and thus all the members of the farmers’ group were paying their respects at his family compound. Pa Max had forgotten about this when we had talked earlier in the day. It’s an easy thing to forget; it seems like there is always a funeral going on somewhere in the village and attendance is all but compulsory.

It’s easy to get frustrated in situations like these. Weekly meeting attendance seems like it will be a minimum requirement to get the group functioning more smoothly. But honestly, I can’t really blame people for not coming. They have farms to tend, children to watch, and a plethora of church and church related activities to attend. And the meetings tend to start late, spend a lot of time rehashing past meetings, and rarely serve any tangible benefit to attendees. And all attendees are required to give a small amount each month for the upkeep of the group bull. As far as I can tell, if you don’t attend the meeting you don’t have to pay your share.

Max arrived at the meeting and offered to take me back home. He had to pick up a few of the group members on the way-they were all headed to the funeral and it happened to be right around my neighborhood. While we were waiting for one of the members to get in the car Max apologized for the group’s apparent lack of motivation. The conversation continued with the other members got in the care, albeit with a slightly different tone. Augustin asked me (as he has many times in the past) what I have learned from my time in Cameroon and if I have any recommendations as I prepare to leave. I find this question to be a tricky one-I want to give an honest opinion and offer recommendations that are within reach. So with a quick glance to Max I suggested that Cameroonians would do well to respect standing commitments and learn to keep time. The members in the backseat were instantly full of explanations and were quick to remove themselves from any sort of blame. If Cameroon had the levels of infrastructure or professionalism found in the developing world, it would naturally follow that people would be better about keeping to a schedule. But as it is, there are too many delays and barriers and unexpected events!

And that leads to one of the frustrating aspects of life here. My opinion, that it all comes down to individual accountability and responsibility, was all I had to offer in response. And I do believe what I told them: that change happens at an individual level and blaming the larger system is both pointless and frustrating. But it’s really a tough sell. Why show up for a meeting on time when all the other members can be counted on to arrive an hour late (at least?)

I came to Cameroon without a real sense of international development and its complexities. My life in a village directly adjacent to a regional capital has allowed me to experience development in many of its forms, ranging from governmental programs and international aid organizations to much smaller “common initiative groups” typically based in villages. And all I’ve learned is that there isn’t a set path to success. But the one thing that my experience has taught me is that the best predictor of success is motivation at the individual level. So I’m really hoping that the frustrations of working with Unity Farming Group are surpassed by the successes of its individual members. And that they see Pa Max for the leader that he truly is.