ATTA's Annual Field Trip

As the summer months fly by, I find myself busy working with my association in Toussiana and enjoying the gorgeous overcast skies of southwestern Burkina Faso.  It's hard to believe I've been at site for almost eight months now; some days I feel like I am still a newbie.  However, I have found out I am getting a site-mate in a couple of months ( a PCV teacher), and I guess I will have to be the pro then!

Looking back on my blog, I realized I have not done a great job of explaining my wonderful association in village.  I am working primarily with ATTA, Association des Tailleurs et Tisserands Assimiles, an association that runs an apprenticeship program for around fifty young adults.  Most of these teenagers and young adults are Burkinabe who either never went to school or dropped out early due to a variety of reasons (money, motivation, logistics, etc.).  ATTA, with its two training centers and a tailoring workshop, has several trainers that teach the art of couture; in total, the program runs for three to four years (however, we have received funding to develop a faster training program for the future).  At one of the training centers, around twenty apprentices, who come from the great southwestern region, live in dormitories, and the other twenty-five or so stay with their families in the Toussiana area.  After the years of ATTA's formations, the apprentices will disperse throughout the region, and eventually, open their own tailoring workshops.  The mission of ATTA is very pertinent in a country where only subsistence agriculture is the primary means of income generation.  For the young adults who did not have the chance to finish their studies, ATTA offers the kids an alternative to the family farming work.

Throughout the past eight months or so, most of my time and work has been devoted to ATTA.  ATTA is run by a local man, who has been recognized for his work by the international fellowship program, Ashoka.  The president, Ouattara, is very motivated, and he is always coming up with new and interesting ideas.  It's been great to collaborate with him.  Specifically, I have been working with ATTA's accountant (my counterpart) to improve the association's accounting and management.  I also teach weekly English and entrepreneurship classes, which has been a challenge, to say the least.  Many of the apprentices don't speak French well, and as my Dioula isn't the strongest, much of the class time is consumed with translations.  However, I was pleasantly surprised last week by the apprentices' comprehension of "market studies;" it gives me hope for this week's marketing lesson!

Last Thursday, ATTA took its annual field trip, marking the end of the training year for the twenty apprentices who come from the greater region.  We hired a "car," though the term car isn't particularly accurate.  Imagine a cattle truck, rusty and dilapidated.  I luckily got to sit in the cab (though I was a bit concerned when the driver had to jam the dash back into place), and the forty apprentices piled in the open back.  We all took off for SN SOSUCO, the big sugar processing plant in Beregadougou.  At the plant, we had the chance to take a tour throughout the factory, though the machines were not in operation.  Right now, the sugarcane is in the fields, and SOSUCO won't start manufacturing again until fall.  Even so, the machinery was quite impressive, especially to the Burkinabe kids:

ATTA apprentices at SN SOSUCO

For an actually interesting, informative description of the factory, you should read my fellow PCVs' blog, http://mccoull.blogspot.com/2011/03/roll-up-for-magical-factory-tour.html.  I am hoping to get back for another tour when the plant is in operation, but even sans activity, we were still able to sample the sugar cubes!

Listening to the guide explaining the vats used to heat and extract sugar

 After the tour, we took a group picture under the overcast sky, and then we set up for the Toussiana-Takelidougou Cascades.  As we set off down the road, I watched the speedometer with trepidation.  The car seemed incapable of going faster than 10km an hour, and I was petrified that some speeding BMW would smash into us from behind.  I am 99.99% sure I could have biked faster.  Alas, we made to the Cascades in one piece, though more than once, I thought the truck would trip on its trip up the rocky mountain!

All the ATTA apprentices and me (can you find me?)

The Cascades (waterfalls, in French) are situated between my village and Takelidougou, off the Bobo-Banfora road.  During dry season, the falls dry up and all you can see from the road are the rocky cliffs.  However, in the midst of rainy season, the falls gently tumble down the rocks, and it's visible from the road.  From the top, the view is gorgeous!  SN SOSUCO's sugarcane fields are all around, and the Falaises de Bobo make their descent into the Banfora region.  Sometimes I think I live in the middle of a leafy Eden!

Gorgeous, eh?  I live about 5km up the road to the left...

At the Cascades, we ate well, riz gras with fish and soft drinks.  I also had received a request to make chocolate chip cookies, to which I gladly obliged.  I had spent five hours on Wednesday baking cookies in my slow but effective Dutch oven atop my gas stove, and everyone was grateful for the American addition.  After eating, we took many pictures in the water (Burkinabe take the strangest pictures sometimes!) and spent some time hiking up and down the rocks.  Unfortunately, a storm was heading towards us, quite common in rainy season, and we needed to make our way down the cliff before the rain.  Once again, my spot in the cab proved fortuitous, as the rain beat us home and pelted the apprentices in the back.  All in all, we made it back to village in one piece, happy with the ATTA outing (I have added several other pictures to a folder in my online Picasa album; check it out)!

After the trip, I have realized how much I enjoy working with and getting to know the members of my association.  Not only is everyone incredibly motivated and hardworking, but with their help, I have been welcomed into my community.  My setup here in Burkina couldn't be better, and I am looking forward to starting many projects with ATTA in the following year (website coming soon)!