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Rural Leaders ― a Travel Log Vol. 4

We are sharing with you a series of travel logs written by ARI staff member Steven, who visited Africa in August.
Their first homestay was at a farm run by an organization of a family of ARI graduates. They have finally arrived at the rural community where the graduates live!
Let’s get started on our trip to Africa!

【An African journey to visit ARI graduates, Day5】

Morning on the EDF farm
As John had predicted, we were awakened in the early morning by beautiful birdsong, with the occasional addition of an off-key rooster crow. When I stepped out of our thatched roof hut, I found him already in the garden pulling weeds and collecting leaves to give to the goats. Finally, I felt I was in the ARI element – living rural life with our graduates.
The goats were just on the other side of the corn field, which lay barren, littered with stalks stunted and dried up from lack of rain. Walking across, I realized I had never witnessed what a drought really looks like. It was heartbreaking, the hard work and the hope for a harvest lay as scattered dry leaves, crunching underfoot. I said to John, “Now I know why farmers cry.” He replied, “We almost cried.”

The EDF (Ecumenical Development Foundation) farm is organic and lively. So far, I have seen goats, chickens, a backyard garden, and lots of fruit trees and bananas. I would love to be here when the mangoes are in season. There are so many of these fruits I think if I just stuck out my hand under tree, a mango would fall in it! We found Geoffrey with a big metal grinder in his hand. The lock on the chicken pen had broken, so he had to cut it open to get in and feed them. EDF was founded in 1996 by John Nyondo (1983 ARI Graduate). He directed the organization for 8 years and then passed the position to his wife Judy (2001 ARI Graduate) after she had returned from her leadership training at ARI. Last year, their son Geoffrey went to ARI and is now working at EDF alongside his parents.

I’m going to refrain from listing up their activities, and instead let you get a feel for how they engage with their communities the same way I did – just by being here for a short while. One thing I love and respect about EDF is how they are part and parcel with the community. John, Judy, and Geoffrey all grew up in the same circumstances they did. They experienced the same hardships and joys of village life in Zambia. But now, as trained grassroots leaders, they seek out ways to improve life, not for themselves, but for all the surrounding communities. And the impact they have made through EDF? I could see it in the warmth and laughter of all the local people I met.

The drought-charcoal connection
After bathing with the buckets of hot water provided by Judy, we headed to breakfast, which was cooked garden veggies, fresh eggs, and a rice porridge flavored with ground nuts (peanuts). Conversation started first with ARI, how Training Assistants (TAs) tend to have such a strong relationship with ARI. John, who was a TA in 1993, said, “We feel we have two homes.” He shared a story about how, when he was flying to Japan, he happened to sit next to a fellow from Sri Lanka. They didn’t talk to each other at all, but when they landed in Japan, found they were both headed to ARI. His name was Salvarage and they still keep in touch.

Talk then moved to the drought. There is a store, or warehouse, nearby where they are selling bags of corn meal, called mielie-meal, at subsidized prices. But even at a lower cost some people can’t afford it, having had no income from the farm last season. Families consist of 8-10 people and one bag lasts about a week. In the villages, they will marry off their 13–15-year-old daughters to rich businessmen, just to buy some food.
“Now you know Africa,” Geoffrey said to Kai, referring to an ongoing conversation they have been having about Kai’s first visit to this continent.

Further exacerbating the drought is the cutting of trees for charcoal, which is sold on the roadside. However, for households who have lost their crops, charcoal is the only income they can get. Furthermore, since Zambia depends on hydro-electric power, and there isn’t enough water in the rivers, the power goes off for long periods every day. They call this load-shedding. Here in Kanakantapa, only about 5-10% of the households even have electricity, facilitating a big demand for charcoal. So, it is a cycle of no rain → no crops → no income → cut trees to make charcoal → reduce forest→ no rain.

The care workers of Kanakantapa
This place is called the Kanakantapa Settlement area and each village within it is named a letter of the alphabet. EDF is in village E. The villages extend to letter L, I think they said, and the total population is now around 20,000. It was started in the 1960’s as a development initiative by ODA (Official Development Assistance), of the Japanese government.

There is only one health center to service the entire area and people have to walk 10-20 kms to reach it. Pregnant women will hire a truck to take them, but often the baby comes “along the way.” For this reason, EDF has trained 40 local Community Health Workers, or “Care Workers.” They assist with births at home and if there are complications, help them get to a hospital.
They also distribute medicines. When there was a TB outbreak, they went house to house every day to ensure patients regularly took their medication. People often don’t take medications as prescribed, but through the diligence of these care workers, there is now no TB in Kanakantapa.

At the EDF compound, they do an “under 5 clinic,” where Judy arranges for the local clinic staff to come and check the children and pregnant women, referring those with serious problems back to the clinic, saving these young mothers and pregnant women a long walk! Programs like these, however, do not come without expenses, and these are borne by EDF.

Belvin Pamba
After breakfast we headed out to meet Belvin (2016 ARI Graduate). He is currently working in Nakonde in the far northwest of Zambia, around 1,000 kms from here, but he is in town for the National Agriculture and Commercial Show in Lusaka, a yearly event that brings people from every province.

Belvin started his community work in Kanakantapa 17 years ago with a goat project for women, with the assistance of Mr. Nakamura of JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency). The group’s activities soon expanded to cassava processing and milk production. At one location they have a building for cassava processing equipment donated by JICA, with an adjacent facility holding a corn grinder. The grinder brings income from community members, who come to have their corn ground. We happened to see a lady there for that very purpose.
At another location there is a milk collection center or MCC. The refrigerated tank has a capacity of 1,800 liters and they have no problem filling it up, paying the local farmers monthly according to the amount they bring. The “off takers” (buyers) come every three days to take the milk into town.
The problem for both projects now is the load shedding caused by the drought. This drought is permeating society in ways I never expected; a stark reminder of how interconnected we truly are to our physical environment. With unreliable electricity, they cannot run the machines, and they certainly can’t keep the milk refrigerated, so they are very much down. Their hope is to get funding for solar panels. But those are expensive! The second problem they shared about is that they don’t have good animals. They use a Frisian crossbreed but would love to have cows that produce more milk. However, in the style of ARI, likely inculcated by Belvin, they also shared their successes. They get lots of manure which they use in lieu of purchased chemical fertilizers to grow maize, soya, ground nuts, sunflowers, and more.

No longer needed
When we first stepped onto this farm, called Chisango Farm, Belvin said with his characteristic smile, “This is my starting point, and these are my farmers, dairy farmers. We are 17 years together – through thick and thin.” He is clearly proud to see that his pioneering efforts are still running, long after he has departed. This is a true measure of success, in my book. When people can get along fine without you, your work is done, and it is time to move on. Though, as you can see, they remain friends and I’m sure he advises them from time to time. Well done, Belvin.
That day, fifty women from the group were at the agricultural show exhibiting and selling their goats and other products. It is one of the biggest events of the year for them!

Back at EDF, he shared a few more challenges. For example, communities often start looking to him to sort out their problems for them. It is his constant challenge to build a sense of self-reliance in people, such as what has taken place in the “goat group” above. Also, in the workplace people sometimes become jealous of his successes or those in authority may feel threatened. Hierarchical systems and just plain pride are often the cause successful endeavors being blocked or pulled apart. Sigh.

Next on the horizon for Belvin is to start a business of producing bokashi for sale. This is something I have seen other graduates doing successfully and I am happy to see his initiative. If big fertilizer companies can sell chemical fertilizers, then why not our graduates sell high quality organic fertilizer? He is trying to collect $6,000 to build a system he saw in a Chinese company that can make bokashi at scale with less labor and hopes to get funding from JICA.

Kanakatapa community luncheon
The big event for the day was a grand lunch with the EDF co-op members (The Ecumenical Agricultural Multi-Purpose Cooperative), all ladies, coming from all the different letter villages in Kanakantapa. The beauty of this community, as Judy mentioned in her interview, is the diversity. This being a settlement, they hail from different tribes all around Zambia. This group included speakers of Showa, Tonga, Seng, Renje, Ngoni, Chewa, Bemba, Lozi, and Tumbuka. I would have loved to learn a few words in each tongue, but everyone was too hungry and ready to dig into the feast. Our meal consisted of broiler chicken, pork, baked beans, maize somp, kapenta (small fish-like sardines), lumanda (vegetable cooked with ground nuts), and nshima, naturally. Sharing food is a celebration that crosses all cultures, and it was beautiful to take part in this local meal with this lively community. Afterwards, a nap was in order, which Judy very much encouraged! We didn’t need any supper that evening.

Briefly getting back to tribes and languages, Judy is Ngoni and John is Lambia. Nyanja is the language spoken widely throughout this region, like a local Lingua Franca.


Written by Steven Cutting (Graduate Outreach Coordinator)
Travelling with Kai Shinoda (Admissions and Recruitment Coordinator)



Click here to read the series of articles

Vol.0 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Prologue】

Vol.1 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 1-2】 

Vol.2 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 3】

Vol.3 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 4】

Vol.4 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 5】<== Now, you’re here

Vol.5 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 6】To Be Continued …

Rural Leaders ― a Travel Log Vol. 3

We are sharing with you a series of travel logs written by ARI staff member Steven, who visited Africa in August.

Day 4 was another long day of travel.
Then, finally, they arrived the final destination for the day!
Guess who was waiting for them..?
Let’s get started on our trip to Africa!

【An African journey to visit ARI graduates, Day4】

Loading the bus for Lusaka
The departure time of our UBZ bus to Lusaka was 7:00 AM, and after many warnings that “this bus leaves on time!” we were sure to get there well before 7:00AM. Normal departure times for busses in Africa are…when the bus is full, which is, in fact, much more efficient from the fuel conservation point of view! It was fun to see what was being transported. Among the many suitcases were boxes of chocolates, mysterious metal cases, and one whole truck engine. Or was that a spare for the bus? Maybe not, because it was a modern vehicle, spic and span clean inside and out.

Meet Mike Chongwe, my seatmate
Kai and Geoffrey sat together, and I had the pleasure of being next to Mike Chongwe, a retired government officer. He worked for many years as a diplomat at the embassy of Zambia in Washington DC and has traveled to more than 40 countries. Five of his six children live in the US. The youngest one is here in Zambia close by! In his retirement he started two NGOs. One is to promote awareness and prevention of prostate cancer, which seems to be a serious problem in Zambia. The death rate is over 60%. He is advocating for the government to build better treatment facilities. The present facilities are horribly inadequate and anyone who really wants to have a chance of recovering needs to travel to India. “It is risky to get sick in Zambia,” were his exact words. I guess he has had some success on this count because one facility is due to be completed next year, in Kitwe, and the following year another will be built in Livingstone.
His other NGO is for vulnerable children. They sponsor 56 kids to go to school and want to get that number up to a hundred. As a future activity they are hoping to build a “transition home,” a place where children coming from abusive home environments can live while they go to school. Mike said he has seen terrible abuse and neglect due to poverty and alcoholism. The big dream is to build a school as well, and he is working with his son’s church in Atlanta to get the funds.
Since all this isn’t enough to keep him busy, he also has several farms raising village chickens, cattle, soybean s, cassava, ground nuts, sweet potatoes, peas, and of course, maize.
As you can expect I told him all about ARI and he was interested in the organic farming aspects, explaining how the additives and chemicals we eat in food these days contribute to cancer. As we were entering Lusaka, he pointed out his golf course and how it is dried up from lack of rain.
Hmmmm. That may be more than you wanted to know about a stranger on a bus, but isn’t this one of the things that travelling is about?

More random Zambia things
En route we had one longer stop where Geoffrey introduced us to a food called shawarma. It is especially designed for travel because they put all the meat, chips, pickles, and everything right inside wrap so you can eat it easily in your hands. Never mind that it drips everywhere. They provide a napkin! From later research, I learned this is a middle eastern food, introduced by Arabs in the region. Some people may not like immigrants, but we all love their food!
The highway follows a train line built in 1902. Apparently, they are still using some of the wagons that were made in 1911! The whole way the landscape was brown and arid, but with the first rain of the rainy season it will turn instantly green.
Near Lusaka we passed a 20,000- hectare sugar cane plantation. Just as in nearly every country in Africa, the Chinese are building highways everywhere. One difference in Zambia, Mike tells me, is that the government is requiring the Chinese companies to use local workers. Normally, they bring all their own engineers, equipment, AND workers!

From chaos to angels
After eight long hours we finally rolled into the madhouse that is Lusaka bus station. The minute the door opened guys started shouting “taxi” into the bus, holding out a key in their hand, as proof, I suppose that a car was in their ownership. The luggage was unloaded in a narrow area with hardly enough space for the owners to get it out, but we managed to get our bags and slip out to a spot with more oxygen. Then Geoffrey called a taxi using an app, muting all the efforts of the ultra-passionate “key guys.”
On the way out of the station our driver stopped to buy water just next to a fight taking place. Next stop, Geoffrey’s church!
The church was where Geoffrey had left his car, which we needed for the hour and a half drive to Chongwe. How sweet it was to see a group of girls in a circle practicing their singing, like a heavenly ascension from the depths of raw humanity at the bus station. Geoffrey grew up in this part of Lusaka and his daughter is staying here now, so we stopped to greet her. Her name is Judy, like her grandmother.
After a snack of barbecued goat meat, we headed to Chongwe, our final destination for the day. At last, we could meet John Nyondo (1983 ARI graduate) and Judy Nyondo Daka (2001 ARI graduate) at the Ecumenical Development Foundation (EDF). John was the first Zambian to go to ARI and Judy is his wife. Together they started the EDF to address the needs of the villagers in this area. Geoffery, their son, went to ARI last year and is continuing his parent’s work. Belvin (2016 ARI graduate) was there to welcome us, too.

The Nyondo homestead
That evening we ate village chicken with tomato sauce for dinner, expertly prepared by Judy’s granddaughter, Luyanda, or Lulu, with plenty of nshima and vegetables. Lulu, by the way, is 16 years old and in her second year of university.
There was much to talk about, but after the long trip my mind was too fuzzy. One of the most pressing topics, though, was the drought. This area was especially affected and there is hunger. The government does not provide much relief, only to mothers with babies. And they are predicting that even underground water will be depleted by September. They are praying for rain in October!
After getting the mosquito nets set up (thank you Geoffrey) we could finally put an end to this long travel day.


Written by Steven Cutting (Graduate Outreach Coordinator)
Travelling with Kai Shinoda (Admissions and Recruitment Coordinator)


Click here to read the series of articles

Vol.0 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Prologue】

Vol.1 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 1-2】 

Vol.2 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 3】

Vol.3 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 4】<== Now, you’re here

Vol.4 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 5】To Be Continued …

What are Japanese Graduates like? Part4

As autumn approaches, ARI is now in full swing to begin recruiting Japanese Participants for the next academic year.

On Saturday, November 30, we will hold a trial enrollment event for prospective participants (More information at the end of this article).

So, here’s a report on the “now” of our Japanese graduate!

【Hiroka Komatsubara, 2020 graduate】

Q1, Why did you become a participant at ARI?

I wanted to acquire practical knowledge and skills in agriculture and was interested in international development.

I stayed at ARI several times before enrolling, and the atmosphere at ARI suited me well, which also encouraged me.

Q2, What was your biggest learning experience at ARI?

The friends who had gathered from all over the world had lived completely different lives from me.

There were too many differences to count, but no matter how different we were, we were all “the same human”.

It may be obvious, but it was the most important lesson I learned while living together with them.

Q3, About your current livelihood and life.

After graduating from ARI, I joined the Community-Reactivating Cooperator Squad in Shioya-town, Tochigi,
and work as an interview writer reporting on the people of the town.

Please follow my Instagram account! → @hiroka_408

Q4, What is your message to those who are considering becoming a participant at ARI?

We never can predict what will happen in the future in which we will live.

A major earthquake might hit tomorrow, we might win the lottery next month, or we might get sick in a year.

In this way, I personally feel that ARI is a place where we nurture in each other a kind of nucleus of ourselves that will remain unchanged even if some major life-changing event happens to us. At least, I was able to spend many rich days learning with people who have a flexible nucleus.

Anyway, if you are interested in, please visit ARI once! I support you!

☆ Are you interested in learning through hands-on experience in International Cultural Exchange × Agriculture × Community Development?

We are hosting an Open Campus event on Saturday, November 30th, where you can learn what it’s like to study at ARI and what the daily life of Japanese participants looks like!

Date: Saturday, November 30, 10:30 AM – 2:00 PM

Participation Fee: 2,000 yen (Cash payment on the day)

How to Apply:

Apply through the link in our bio→ https://ari.ac.jp/entry-form-open-campus2024?ari=news or contact us at [[email protected]]

Don’t miss this chance!

Rural Leaders ― a Travel Log Vol. 2

This past August, ARI staff traveled to Zambia and Malawi, Africa, to visit a total of 23 ARI graduates.
We would like to share with you a series of travel logs written by Steven.

The third day was a full-on day of tourism in Zambia…no, they didn’t go there for vacation…!
Anyway, let’s get started on our trip to Africa!

【An African journey to visit ARI graduates, Day3】

A bit of tourism in Livingstone
This morning jet lag wanted me up at 3:00 AM, but I managed to sleep in until 5:00. Then it was only a 2 hour wait for a beautiful breakfast. Jet lag also messes with your stomach clock, so Kai and I were starving! Today was a full-on day of tourism, and I know what you are thinking. We are just out here having fun and not taking our mission to meet ARI graduates, stated so nobly in the introduction, seriously. BUT… the route just worked out best for us to have a rest day at the beginning.

After this, the schedule is packed. So, this “soft landing” gives us a chance to recover from the long journey and get acclimated to African life, especially the time change. At the same time, tourism is a huge part of the Zambian economy, and its citizens are proud of their world-famous Victoria Falls, extensive safari parks, and stunning nature throughout the country. These places are a must see, according to our Zambian friends, and I am not sure if they would forgive us if we skipped them over! Plus, we got to spend the day with Geoffrey, and he filled us in on all kinds of need-to-know things and interesting tidbits about Livingstone and Zambia.

This morning’s agenda was to see the “Big 5” wildlife. That is rhinos, hippos, elephants, lions, buffalo, hyenas, and cheetahs, and maybe tigers. That is the list we got when we asked which animals exactly were members of “the 5.” There seems to be a bit of confusion!! Any of those would be cool to see, however, when we got to the safari/zoo type of place, whoa, it was expensive. The big attraction is that, for that “exaggerated” price you can actually walk with the lions and tigers. Kai and I weren’t into this, so we decided to go zip-lining instead. Yes, much more to my taste.

We drove out to a dry gorge (not the Zambezi River, as I was hoping) where they were set up for multiple activities, including a “gorge swing” where you jump off the side of the cliff and then swing out over the canyon. That…was a bit much for me. I was already nervous about the zip line. To my surprise, Geoffrey jumped right in and did the first zip as a tandem with one of the worker boys. Then Kai strapped up and took leap, followed by…me! That first step off the edge was stomach-sinking, but then it was sheer adrenal fun. They let us go for free a second time, in “flying squirrel” position, where you are hooked in from the back and you can fly like superman. Even Mebin, the driver, got in on the fun. Although he is a Livingstone native, this was his first zip experience, and he was beaming!

Random Zambia things
On the way back into town we saw elephants roaming in the distance. You could say this is one of the differences between here and most people’s homes. Elephants wander around town, zebras graze at the side of the road (we have the photo proof), and baboons as tall as Kai, walk right up to Kai with arms outstretched, trying to steal his Minute Maid Mango juice out of his hand. Watching Geoffrey watch us get so excited and a bit freaked out at the wildlife, I asked him what his most shocking or surprising experience was in Japan. His reply was the subway, just seeing how everything interconnected and flowed in a complex perfect rhythm and all the trains are on time to the minute!
And now, a few random facts learned along the roadside. The regional Chief Mukuni is the richest chief in all of Zambia. He owns several fancy hotels and tourist attractions in Livingstone as well as massive amounts of land and probably lots of other stuff. Just mentioning this, because there was a huge signboard of him on the corner advising folks to get their COVID vaxes! We passed several boys on bicycles with huge boxes mounted on the back, apparently on their way home from Zimbabwe. They carry veggies across the border to sell for dollars in Zim and get a good price. Then they buy dry goods, like pasta, which are cheap and bring it back. FYI the Zim economy is a wreck after they got struck with hyperinflation, and that is why they use US dollars.

Lastly, we stopped at a gas station, I don’t know how many times, with Mebin putting in 100 Kwacha ($4) at a time. Nobody knows why he did that. Maybe it is because most of the station attendants are young girls!

Guinea fowl and chitenge cloth
Lunch was guinea fowl for Kai – tender and juicy, and T-bone steak for me, dry and hard. Lesson learned – always get what Kai gets!
Then it was time to hit some shops. First off was a big Spar supermarket. Geoffrey used to work for a company that supplied this place. He recommended the Guava juice, and it was yummo! Next up was a clothing shop to get something warmer to wear. We forgot that Zambia is in the southern hemisphere and thus the seasons are opposite. Japan’s summer is Zambia’s winter. Being in Africa, it doesn’t get too terribly cold, but the early mornings are very chilly. It’s a nice reprieve from the boiling summer of Japan, but it would have been good to study our geography first. And while we are on the subject of weather, everyone is eagerly awaiting the rainy season in October or November. The drought of last spring has been devastating and caused hunger in several places. The thing is, they are not sure if the rains will come or not. It’s nerve-racking and a matter of survival.
The last stop was at the souvenir market to pick up a sundress for Kai’s mom and some chitenge cloth for Kathy(An ARI Staff). Kai is on a mad hunt for pretty local chitenge (traditional wraps for women). The sellers were assertive, but not aggressive. Still, it’s hard to enjoy it. If your eye touches any one object for a moment, someone is instantly on the push. “What is that painting of tall people with baskets on their heads?” “You like it? What is your name? Where are you from? Take a closer look. What price would you like to pay?” etc., etc. I guess it’s just the game you have to learn to play. It’s quite normal for the locals. The best item of the day was the painting of one of the venders herself, as a green skinned woman, inspired by Gamora (of the Marvel Comic world).

The last, last stop was the bus station for tomorrow’s tickets and then back to the hotel for some rest and note typing. On recommendation we went to the Zest restaurant with Geoffrey for supper and saw the most amazing menu. We totally went for the game meat, trying out the Impala and Alligator. Geoffrey got Vinkubala, a very Zambian dish of Mopane caterpillars; quite crunchy and tasty. Unfortunately, the Kudu(a species of antelope with large horns) was not available. I wasn’t really sure how I felt eating animals I normally see in a zoo, but I have to admit, they were delicious!


Written by Steven Cutting (Graduate Outreach Coordinator)
Travelling with Kai Shinoda (Admissions and Recruitment Coordinator)


Click here to read the series of articles

Vol.0 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Prologue】

Vol.1 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 1-2】 

Vol.2 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 3】<== Now, you’re here

Vol.3 【The African journey to visit ARI graduates Day 4】To Be Continued …