NAIROBI HALF LIFE

I am Ghanaian and a participant at the 2013 Global Citizens’ Course in Kenya and Tanzania. My interest in the Global Citizens’ Course started from my passion in young people’s action and in community development. As an upcoming change agent, I have since my school days been an advocate for young people through clubs and student associations and my interest in young peoples’ development grew from there. As a development worker, my main schedule is working with community groups such as Girls’ and Boys’ Clubs, Community Based Associations/Organizations, Youth and women groups.

When I heard about the course, I thought that this was one way I could echo the voices of the mostly poor and vulnerable groups that I was working with, aside developing my skill and expertise in International Community Development. I believe that every available resource that can be given to these groups should not pass them by. And with what the course will provide, I could help empower the Youth and vulnerable groups to speak up and advocate for better live. My other motivation was to learn more about the people, culture and the world outside my country.

It’s been three weeks since I arrived in chilly Nairobi. I was told about the weather so I came into Nairobi prepared to fight the weather boot for boot. I soon learnt here, that there was a big difference between Ghana and Kenya or East Africa. Never mind that I have not been to any other East African Country.  Both countries (Ghana and Kenya) are supposed to be part of Africa, as a country (Some of my white friends refer to the whole of Africa as a country). Here, the assumption is that our way of life, food and everything are the same. I noticed the difference when dinner was served in the plane from Accra to Nairobi. I had told the person sitting next to me, who was also Ghanaian that the main dish was going to be served, as what was served as dinner seemed like a starter to me. Little did I know however that this “Starter” and its kind is what I will be having every time, for breakfast, lunch and supper and that’s the food people in Kenya eat, very balanced and nutritious though, as against Ghana’s mostly carbohydrate laden foods.

24 young activists from 5 different countries driven by their interest to change the world are participating in the 2013 Global Citizens Course for four months. In these four months, we are supposed to, as a team undertake activities and lessons that will expose us to the realities of the world outside our various countries. In the three weeks that I have been in the course, I have seen and experienced the diverse thoughts we each have on various issues like Prostitution, Abortion, Culture, Democracy, Politics and Development. But as Global Citizens, we don’t really have to agree on anything, we just have to accept each other’s differences. 

The participants are a lovely bunch and the level of interests in international development is really amazing, even though it is not pretty clear to me how we can collectively create the Global change we all see in our minds’ eyes. We have interacted and understood and appreciated the lives of people from all walks of lives. We met with people living in slums, advocates, graffiti artists and musicians all of whose activities evolve around advocating for the rights of the common people. We got to express our ideas using street/graffiti arts in the Kibera slum, recorded a song to preach oneness to the world. Citizen Journalism was a session that awoke my spirits on the different ways of publicizing community issues. This is done through evidence gathering pictorial, audio or videos of happenings and making it public. This can be used both for advocacy and educating people on issues and events in a community, city or country. 

In the next three or so months, we continue learning new ways of projecting global citizenship values through article writing, team building, citizen rights and advocacy. I also look for to the celebration of the world food day with the locals and youth activists in Nanyuki town. I am looking forward also to the trip to Tanzania where we will look at geopolitics and international institutions, globalization, urbanization and how it affects the cultural fabrics of the average citizen of the world. The training is not strictly based on the normal classroom procedure as its mixed with some fun and I expect to have as much fun as I can for the rest of the three months while learning to impact positively both in my country and the world at large.