An IRC vehicle parked in the front yard of our house. I realized I haven't really taken any photos of Kitgum, or even Uganda yet, so I'll try to see if I can do that at some point in the near future.
Life in Kitgum. Very interesting, so far. I'll start off by saying that this is going to be very disorganized, as it's the end of the workday, and the first internet access I've had since I've been in Kitgum, so there's a lot that I want to say, but I also want to get home, relax, and go for my first run in Africa! I was told that there would be tons of expats and that it was a very development-based town, so I was a little bit concerned about how I would adjust with so many Westerners, and a little bit worried about encountering the stereotypical expat scenarios. Thankfully, it's nowhere near as bad as I was expecting, as most of the international development and emergency response agencies have left or are in the process of leaving, as Kitgum isn't seen as an emergency area anymore. From my understanding, there are still numerous agencies in Gulu (about 2 hours away), and many of the agencies & expats have relocated there. I've met a handful of people that I can potentially be friends with, so that's encouraging. My supervisor, with whom I share an IRC guesthouse, has introduced me to some of the people that he knows in town. I've been trying to get to know some staff members here, and the GBV team has been very welcoming. I've had a chance to try some local food, which is nowhere near as bland and plain as I expected! Since Kitgum is somewhat remote (about 100km from Gulu by way of unpaved and very thin one-lane road), I spent my first weekend here hanging out and trying to get used to my surroundings and the town. I have yet to venture too far, but there's not really very many places that I can go, so I think I've seen most of the town. In the next couple of weeks I'll likely go to Lira, as some of the GBV staff spend their weekends there, and have offered to take me along. I'm looking forward to an opportunity to see more of the country, as the only parts that I've seen so far are where the IRC has brought me.
As far as actual work goes, I'm currently working with the hotline team in the Kitgum office. The hotline has been run by the IRC for the past several years, and they currently have a grant supporting the transition of the hotline to a local CBO. The IRC has been working with this specific CBO in partnership for the past year or so, as I understand it, and the plan is to have the agency become the "face" of the hotline within the next couple of months, while the IRC continues to do behind-the-scenes support for the next year or so. My job will be to work with the hotline team to come up with a plan for training and mentoring the staff of the local CBO. It doesn't seem like it will be very difficult, as the hotline staff here are quite experienced and really know what they're doing! I'm looking forward to working with them, but, admittedly disappointed that I will not be able to do any actual counseling or direct practice work (which is something I was concerned/afraid was going to happen). But other than that, things are going well here. It's warm, sometimes hot, but also quite breezy, so I think it tends to be comfortable for the most part, if not, definitely manageable. I've been told that this is the hottest month, which struck me as quite a surprise, and a bit of a disappointment, but after consulting many colleagues and a Bradt Uganda book, I've discovered that there's really only a variation of 3-4 degrees year-round, so it will still be nice and warm here!
Communication has been the biggest issue that i've faced so far - I've had some issues with the status of my phone, and no internet access until today. So far I haven't come across any other major issues here, which I'm quite grateful for.
I'll try to have a more solid thought process, more photos, and more interesting things to share with everyone next time!
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