ICS blog

Arriving in Binga has been so different to what I felt the media has made Africa out to be.

In Binga the people are so friendly, everyone is so happy to meet and greet us in both Tonga and English.

Meeting the national volunteers

During orientation week we first met the national volunteers, which was daunting at first as we didn’t know if the language barrier would cause any miscommunications. But we found the nationals to be so welcoming, greeting us with Mwapona Biyeni, meaning 'how’re you?'.  

OUR first official working week began, as our team (from here on out known as Los Fuegos) started digging through our mountain of projects. 

Quite literally digging, we worked on a reforestation project in the Dipilto region of Nicaragua. 

For two days we toiled, learning how to wield barras (long steel spears used for breaking through the harsh Nicaraguan soil) like professionals while enduring sweltering tropical heats of 30 degrees +. 

Jack writes:

It’s been a long first week of volunteering here in Nicaragua.  However, despite the hard work and the intensity of the midday sun, it’s certainly turned out to be a rewarding one too. 

Empowerment. The new buzzword on every development worker’s lips. A concept embodying the biblical principle of feeding a man for life by teaching him how to fish over giving him a fish. The very principle of “teaching a man..” evokes negative connotations and viewed through less than rose coloured lenses, can be interpreted as a patronising concept but rest assured it is a departure from the old ways of yester years in which developing countries (not ok to say 3rd world anymore) relied on handouts rather than a hand-up.

From the Marcala Team:

With our partner-organisation FENACOOP, we recently carried a workshop in the town of Dipilto on the topic of gender, a complex and sensitive topic, especially in Nicaragua, which is steeped in ‘machismo’ culture. Machismo culture can take many forms. It can be the belief that men are superior to women, both intellectually and physically. It can be the belief that men are the sole bread winners of the family, and that women are the property of men and should be treated accordingly.

Photo: by Dani Mansfield

La Laguna is situated 1080 metres up in the pine forests of northern Dipilto. From Dipilto Nuevo, it takes 30 minutes by truck, making it the most off-the-beaten-track coffee farm in Dipilto. The farm, all 80 hectares of it, sprawls up the mountain side, next to a lagoon, with its bright, colorful flowers, and an abundance of fish. Due to its secluded location, Pedro, the farm’s owner, wanted to create an ‘’adventure’’ farm, and he’s done just that! 

After the Levenson Inquiry, the British media became hyper-aware of the issues many publications face, regarding media ethics and how they should report. The situation in El Salvador paints a far different picture in which freedom of the press is not recognised and where the right-wing hold the most influence. 

It’s a Tuesday, and once again we are trundling along an undulating road towards Palacaguina through the mountainous terrain of northern Nicaragua.  We are on the way to a centre that is split in to two sections: half is a pre-escolar (pre-school) and the other is Asilo de Ancianos, a care home for the elderly. To hear of such necessities in Nicaragua is a rarity, but a much-appreciated service for those that get to obtain the education or receive the tender loving care in some of the most vulnerable years of their lives.