Someone reminded me that I haven't updated my block since July last year. Well, life has been turned upside down since then and I've had a lot on my mind. I got back to Denmark at the end of July to get a check up on the nasty malaria that I struggled with for a month plus in Burkina Faso. A few days after arrival to Denmark, I got hospitalized with severe stomach pain. The same day my appendix was removed.
Since then its been uphill getting well and also dealing with an important decision as to my future and stay in Ouagadougou. After much reflection, I finally decided that I would end my contract and move back to Denmark. I was simply send on a 'mission impossible' to Burkina Faso. It was SUCH a difficult decision though. I desperately wanted to finish my contract with the UN and make it work. However, after 1 year of serious struggle at RECIF, I had to face realities. The ship was going down and it would take much more than 1 person's determination to turn things around. I struggled with corruption, threatening mails, bad leadership, lack of cooperation between colleagues, lack of funding, lack of activities, lack of proper housing and I could continue - the list is long!! Shortly after I left RECIF, my colleague from Canada left as well. The latest news that I got from there is that everyone has now been fired and RECIF is closing down.
Although the news was sad, I was also relieved that I took the right decision to leave before the very last pieces fell to the ground. I feel sorry for the people at RECIF who were actually attempting to make some sort of difference. However, the problems we were facing were enourmous and ran deeper than we could have ever imagined. Ultimately, I feel that given the situation at RECIF, the decision to shut down was a good one that also serves the purpose of showing consequences of bad development.
The whole mess has left me with some scares. I've gone through a period being really upset with the whole area of development. It still battles me how enourmous sums of money and human ressources are spent on projects like RECIF. Anyway, I'm not even going to get started.
Status quo is that I'm VERY happy to be back in Denmark and I feel that I'm exactly where I want to be at the moment. Physically I'm okay, though emotionally it takes a while to fully recover from all the stress and disappointment that the African adventure entailed. I'm taking one step at a time, meanwhile enjoying my newborn niece to the fullest. I have a feeling that everything will be okay again -with time!! Patience is the keyword once more.
Since then its been uphill getting well and also dealing with an important decision as to my future and stay in Ouagadougou. After much reflection, I finally decided that I would end my contract and move back to Denmark. I was simply send on a 'mission impossible' to Burkina Faso. It was SUCH a difficult decision though. I desperately wanted to finish my contract with the UN and make it work. However, after 1 year of serious struggle at RECIF, I had to face realities. The ship was going down and it would take much more than 1 person's determination to turn things around. I struggled with corruption, threatening mails, bad leadership, lack of cooperation between colleagues, lack of funding, lack of activities, lack of proper housing and I could continue - the list is long!! Shortly after I left RECIF, my colleague from Canada left as well. The latest news that I got from there is that everyone has now been fired and RECIF is closing down.
Although the news was sad, I was also relieved that I took the right decision to leave before the very last pieces fell to the ground. I feel sorry for the people at RECIF who were actually attempting to make some sort of difference. However, the problems we were facing were enourmous and ran deeper than we could have ever imagined. Ultimately, I feel that given the situation at RECIF, the decision to shut down was a good one that also serves the purpose of showing consequences of bad development.
The whole mess has left me with some scares. I've gone through a period being really upset with the whole area of development. It still battles me how enourmous sums of money and human ressources are spent on projects like RECIF. Anyway, I'm not even going to get started.
Status quo is that I'm VERY happy to be back in Denmark and I feel that I'm exactly where I want to be at the moment. Physically I'm okay, though emotionally it takes a while to fully recover from all the stress and disappointment that the African adventure entailed. I'm taking one step at a time, meanwhile enjoying my newborn niece to the fullest. I have a feeling that everything will be okay again -with time!! Patience is the keyword once more.
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