Keeping busy

It’s been another busy few weeks here in Dakar, so apologies to any readers out there who’ve been wondering where I’ve been.

So what have I been up to? Well, recently I’ve been working on a grant application. All WFP activities are funded from grants from donor countries and organisations and this particular case we were applying for funds from the French Government. This has been an interesting exercise, very like writing a proposal or responding to an rfp in my ‘normal job’. We’ve put in a proposal to create a ‘collaboration platform’ to allow different parts of WFP in the region and also other UN agencies and NGOs to work together on projects, particularly emergency preparedness projects where there seems to be a need for more sharing of information. I’m also continuing to work on the Food Voucher programmes in Burkina Faso and Senegal and I'm hoping to become involved in some one-UN projects in the New Year – so lots to keep me occupied. Earlier this week I did a radio interview for Voice of America – they were following up on an article in our regional newsletter about the work I’m doing and the link between Vodafone and WFP. I think the interview was to be broadcast sometime this weekend.

And outside of work things have been very busy as well. I’ve been to see some more bands including Ismael Lo last week and Rokia Traore the week before, both excellent. Went to the Swiss Embassy for an evening of Raclette and have also found time for some more tennis and swimming. It’s definitely quite a bit cooler now so it’s quite ‘fresh’ (not to say cold) getting in the pool, but I love the fact that I can still go swimming in an outdoor pool in the middle of winter.

A couple of weeks ago Frank Harle from SPW came out to Dakar for few days. SPW manage the ‘World of Difference’ placements on behalf of the Vodafone Foundation and Frank was here to talk to me and some of the people I work with about how the programme is working. This year is the first time that this programme has been run and so it’s important to run a ‘lessons learned’ review to see whether there are things that can be improved, should the programme be run again. Personally, I really hope that Vodafone continue with this initiative – it’s been a great personal experience, and hopefully it’s also been valuable exercise for both WFP and Vodafone.

At the end of this week I fly home for Christmas – really looking forward to seeing everyone at home, although it may difficult to adjust to the British winter after the African sunshine!