Whilst at Livingstone, Zambia, Tita Bic and I were able to visit a local village and learn about their ways--how they go about with the everyday. Pretty interesting, actually!
Hello, Simonga Village.
We came from a tour of Victoria Falls, and arrived at Simonga Village during midday.
Translation = 40 degrees = nakakabaliw na init!
So, most, if not everyone, were having siesta inside their houses. It too, was a Sunday and a holiday in Zambia, so we weren't able to see children at school. And the people were busy preparing for the holiday celebrations.
A local guided us around, explaining the usual happenings in the Village.
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| A family fetching water from the pump. |
I don't recall how big the Village population is, but if I remember correctly, all families of the Village get their water supply from this water pump. (Is this the same as our poso?)
There's no plumbing nor electricity in the village. And, I can't imagine their winters. :(
Agriculture is a major source of income for the community.
Our guide recounts how they finally solved the problem of elephants ransacking their crops. Fences didn't do any good--their trunks could easily get thru; they eventually found out that peppers do the job!
And, I quote Miss Rebecca McNeese, "The people burn elephant dung and peppers in a circle around the village at night to keep the elephants out."
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| Here are locals walking under the African 12nn sun! I wonder where they're off to? |
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| This pretty girl sharing her smile and a thumbs up! :) |
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| I think this structure is supposed to be their version of our sari-sari store. +++++ There's a head lady who oversees the Village. I researched a bit and found this picture of her. Meet Inonge, who has been faithfully taking care of the Village for a long time already!
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Inonge's in-charge of almost everything. She allots land for families in the community, and when people need more land, they have to ask for her permission. In a nutshell, she makes all decisions concerning the village.
In a piece of land, each family has a house and a kitchen, depending on how big the family is. When the kids turn 7 years old, the parents have to make a separate room/house (within their piece of land), for the boys and for the girls. They also eat separately, the males with their father; females with their mother. This is because they sit on the floor while eating (does that explanation suffice? Use thy imagination.)
Basically, their houses are made from wood, mud clay and leaves. The husband is in-charge of building the skeleton of the house, and then, followed by the wife who makes the clay walls, and collects leaves for the roof.
Because the children help in food preparation, all of the cooking is done outside to prevent fires. And as for the toilets, about 5 families share a bathroom. They just dig a hole in the ground, once it fills up, they cover it and dig another hole.
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| Here's somebody's piece of land. :) |
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| A new kitchen roof is being made. |
+++++
Now, in the Village is a school: Simonga Basic School.
They have 300+ students, with 13 teachers doing the job.
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| Here are the school buildings. |
What struck me most about the importance of education for them is the fact that it helps increase awareness and knowledge of HIV/AIDs.
Since most of the grown-ups did not receive proper schooling, and most are unaware of such diseases, there is greater initiative to teach about these in school. And it is the children, who help increase awareness in their homes.
Just to give you some statistics:
1. Zambia has a population of 10.2 million, and the average life expectancy is only 37 years old.
2. Sixteen percent of their children die before the age of five.
3. The national HIV prevalence rate of 17 percent among adults ages 15 to 49.
4. Only 43% of the population have access to safe water.
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I always forget how blessed I am, and that sucks. I can't imagine the how diseases like malaria and AIDS have killed the population. Since 1982, 30 million+ Africans have died of AIDS. 12 million children were left orphaned. How many of these kids have HIV due to mother-to-child transmission? It's crazy.
I would like to end with something positive. But, as of the moment I can't.
Life goes on, and this is our reality.
Be safe,
Beat :)
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