Monday, January 26, 2009
Cultural Attitudes
The other day as we drove to work we had to pull over and let troops of Congolese soldiers pass. You see, they were doing their morning run. In a very public way – running straight down the main road for all to see, essentially shutting down all other movement! About 6 platoons passed us as they ran in formation, each singing a different song or chant, and some had a soldier maintaining the pace by beating a makeshift drum. It was quite a sight! I have deduced from our staff comments that Congolese don’t necessarily take pride in doing something well. But, from this display, my colleagues and I deduced that Congolese are proud to be recognized for doing something important. At least the men. So the wheels in my head start turning – I wonder how FH/DRC could use this cultural phenomenon to engage local women as Mother Leaders to teach health principles to their neighbor women? Will shaping the Mother Leader role as an esteemed position create a pride that will enable the work to become sustainable? Hmmm…
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2 comments:
Yep, we were talking about incentives for Leader Mothers tonight in Bukavu. Staff said that nice shoes were huge, as well as nice certificates, small animals (e.g., guinea pigs), cell phone credit, competitions where winners get to participate in radio shows/dramas, and radios. We'll have to tell you about the radio drama and call-line ideas we have for the CS project.
I guess the bigger question is how you ensure that the Mother Leaders really are taking pride in their role... and if they're recognizing the importance of what they're doing.
Do you remember how I told you that in Potolo, everyone wanted a bathroom when PLAN came through with that project? Yeah, bathrooms are important... but the Potolenans wanted them for the wrong reasons. They saw it as a status symbol, not for its true value.
So... yeah... that's my thought. ;)
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