Team Botswana
Almost 5 months ago, I boarded a plane heading 12528 kilometers across the Atlantic Ocean to what I would soon call my home for the summer. For three months this year, I was in Southern Africa, living in the quaint little village of Maun, Botswana as a QPID intern. Located in the northwestern corner of Botswana, Maun is the tourism capital of the country, being the gateway into the Okavango Delta, the largest inland delta in the world and the 1000th UNECSO world heritage site. Before arriving, I didn’t quite understand how privileged I was to be able to surrounded by such a natural wonder, but I quickly realized (while casually seeing hippos and giraffes on my way to work) that my life was a scene straight out of a Planet Earth episode. Slowly, Maun went from a place where I considered myself an outsider, to where I felt right at home
My intern partner Hannah and I spent our three-month placement working in two different NGOs in the area, where we were given a very honest and real perspective into the world of development work. One of our placements was based out of a children rehabilitation centre called Bana Ba Letsatsi, and was focused on providing support, mentorship and counseling for the street children of our village. Botswana has been recently classified by the UN as a ‘middle income country’, causing many international donors to pull out of the NGO scene in Botswana, leaving these organizations in sticky situations.
One of these many organizations left hanging was Bana Ba Letsatsi. When we arrived, we were informed that the centre was looking at closing down due to an extreme lack of funds; but, working alongside the help of an external consultant, we were able to bring the centre back to a functioning state where the centre was able to continue to run sustainably on a continuous basis. It was such a rewarding experience to be a part of the revitalization process of BBL. Never before have I worked with a staff team that was so passionate about the work that they did– willing to keep the centre operating even without wages–and I could not be happier to see that the centre was able to keep their lights on.
If there’s anything I’ve learned from this experience this summer, it’s that yes– development work can be challenging, and yes– development work can be a slow process, but heck yes– the feeling you get when you do start moving forward is unlike any other.
From the memories I have in Maun, to road tripping 16 hours across the Namibian desert to kayak with seals and climb sand dunes, to sitting at the top of Victoria Falls, QPID has given me more than just an experience–QPID has given me a new found passion for seeing the rest of this world.
Justin Lim, Botswana intern Summer 2015
