So since I haven’t written a blog in a while this is seriously long…Mom, I know you’re the only one who will make it to the bottom, haha, but thanks to all who are still checking in here! I love sharing all of this with you and I hope that one day you’ll get through it.
We are in the midst of the sequence of annual Assemblés Générales. There are 5 scheduled in the next 3 weeks (what luck!) Les Assemblés Générales are the crux of a Microfinance Co-op like FECECAV. They represent the basic and moral principles on which the organization itself is built upon, and are the most significant event in each bureau’s annual calendar. In literature and theory about Microfinance, AG’s and the like are alluded to as almost mythic presentations of the ideology of Microfinance and showcases of the doctrines of the Cooperatif. FECECAV’s organizational structure and credibility as a Social Business relies on the fact that the borrowers themselves are the patrons of the organization. FECECAV belongs to its clients. FECECAV exists because they make it work. The Assemblé Générale is an annual gathering for all of the clients of each FECECAV caisse.
I will now take a moment to comment on FECECAV’s eleven branches – if only on their names, because I think they are so symbolic. Literally. Each caisse is called CECAV (Caisses d’Epargne et de Crédit des Associations Villageoises, Loan and Credit Banks of Village Associations – it makes much more sense in French, but you get the idea) and the “FE” at the beginning of the organization’s formal name, “Faitiére des Entités,” (literally, the maker of entities) is employed to group all of the CECAVs together. Finally, I understand this acronym. But the English version just doesn’t capture it…
Each CECAV is accompanied by a word, in French or Ewe or a mélange of both, that intensely exemplifies the essence of FECECAV’s impact and its mission. Once again, the English translations won’t fully portray it, but here it goes:
• CECAV Avenir (The Future) – Kpalimé
• CECAV Espoir (Hope) – Aventonou
• CECAV Duanenyo (La village/localité ou tout va bien; The town/place where all is good) – Danyi
• CECAV Nevame (Ca soit accompli; It will be accomplished) – Womé
• CECAV Fraternité (Brotherhood) – Lomé
• CECAV Fidelité (Fidelity) – Adéta
• CECAV Solidarité (Solidarity) – Amoussokopé
• CECAV Enyo (C’est bon ; All is good) – Atakpamé
• CECAV Yayra (Bénédiction ; Benediction/Blessing/Approval) – Lomé
• CECAV La Grace (Grace) – Assahoun
• CECAV Abwe (Enyo; C’est bon; All is Good) – Badou
Interestingly, there is a complicated and hidden dynamic underlying the relations between these offices due to the laws surrounding mutuels in Togo. The government set up a system of regulations to govern these institutions, which have multiple branches and offer both loans services and savings accounts. In theory, these regulations work in the interest of protecting clients’ savings. In reality it does not necessarily endorse or enforce these kinds of good practices and instead acts as serious obstacle to efficient intra-organizational collaboration and functionality. Each branch of FECECAV is, by law, an autonomous institution that could at any time choose to separate from the larger structure and become its own institution. Not only does this create a nightmare for centralization of data and other practical concerns, it generates a vacuum of power, complex battles for influence and ambiguous as well as superfluous roles within FECECAV. The very idea of authority becomes convoluted. Each Chef d’Agence (General Manager/Branch President) wields significant clout, as do his clients. Once again a great idea, in theory.
Daniel is the “CEO” (“DG” as they call him, Directeur Général) and should have the ultimate command of all the other branches, if only for efficiency’s sake! In theory, he does, but the national laws restrict his ability to organize and implement. Imagine the CEO of Chase Bank being at the mercy of every General Manager and his flock of account holders and having to compromise with them on every policy and process change…this is one of the big reasons why things take so long here sometimes…and why things get watered down, simplified or simply not done...this is also why each branch works towards its own objectives and targets without much regard for the general, far-reaching strategy of FECECAV as an entity. This is not sustainable…
It also makes Kiva work hard, as it is difficult for Daniel to implement new processes for centralizing data and use of IT systems throughout the FECECAV branches, and importantly, to choose which branches will submit loans to the site. All of the Chefs d’Agence are in a covert battle with each other to receive the next donated camera and the opportunity to post loans on the Kiva site, as the free money obviously improves their numbers. This kind of intra-organizational competition in a Microcredit Bank seems very dangerous to me…
But back to the Assemblé Générales…Daniel explained their essence to me in detail a few weeks ago when he invited me to attend, and asked if I would be willing to speak for 2-3 minutes (I elatedly accepted of course.) The first was last week, in the mountain village of Danyi.
It works like this – FECECAV convokes all of the clients of Danyi’s Bureau, Duanenyo, through word of mouth, personal invitations, radio and press. Daniel explained to me that clients’ attendance at the AG’s is their right, and FECECAV makes every effort to ensure that they are informed. It is not obligatory of course. The purpose of the Assemblé is, in a nutshell, to present the rapports (financial and otherwise) of 2007, to present the workplan for 2008, to have elections for new leaders and to generally celebrate the notion of clients as proprietors and the successes of their thriving microfinance organization. The meeting itself is followed by a lunch, complete with music and dancing, Fufu, Flags and Castels and much revelry.
The elections take place to vote in new presidents. Each caisse has 5 presidents that serve for 3 years. The presidents, clients themselves of course, serve as liaisons between the CECAV staff and the rest of the clients. They are leaders and advocates for the clients and work in tandem between the functions of the bureau and clients’ daily lives in order to implement developments, resolve issues and, by their mere existence, ensure accountability. It is an interesting and fundamentally democratic role – both a patron and a client, elected by both patrons and the clients, to serve both patrons and clients (which all essentially embody the same function, work towards the same goals and are held to the same obligations and regulations – underlined by mutual respect, cooperation and commitment.) The presidents are selected for their performance with their own businesses, conscientiousness and responsibility, and of course their personality. Each president serves for 3 years and elections and terms are staggered so that only 2 presidents can ever leave at the same time, ensuring that knowledge and experience will be left behind, but that there is a constant flow of new blood and invigoration.
Unfortunately, the irony of it all is that these presidents, and their respective boards, are not the most qualified, nor engaged, to be deemed “advisors” or “board members” in any true sense of the word(s)...after spending enough time with the president of the board of CECAV Avenir, I am not convinced that she understands anything beyond the prestige she has gained in her community by having a stamp made with her name on it. It is a shame that it is more symbolic than anything else…because its very existence is essential and the theory behind it is better than almost any organizational structure in the developed world – even more beautiful because it embodies the nature of community that defines this place.
On the morning of the AG, at 6:45am, proudly wearing my pagne, I sleepily walked over to the FECECAV gate, shocking Koffitse with my early arrival (and my outfit) and walking into the front yard expecting to see Daniel, the car and others ready to go. The AG in Danyi was meant to start at 8am, and it is over 50 kilometers away. I therefore assumed we would leave by 7 at the latest…wrong…Louise was the only one ready to go, haha (and this is because she is Daniel’s assistant and has to at least appear punctual) but she knew we wouldn’t leave for at least an hour or so. Others were busily working, as most of the office is here and running by 7am (if there is electricity.)
Daniel sauntered in around 9, a short sleeved olive green suit whose pant legs were a bit too long, and bunched up around his black sandals. We left at 9:30, heading towards Adéta, a drive that has actually become very familiar – through the outskirts of Kpalimé, past men and women and children carrying on their heads everything from books, massive buckets of water and bananas, to palm branches and entire trunks…past the piles of multicolored sheet-rock for sale outside of Lavié, through the village of Lavié itself, the tiny FECECAV caisse winking at us as we pass, Yao blaring the horn to scare goats and half-naked children…past the women under parched palm-leaved roofs with sleeping babies strapped to their backs, distractedly rearranging enamel trays of avocados, soap and batteries…past the open fields of termite castles, burning or newly planted yam fields, perfectly symmetric rows of their characteristic mounds mocking the lack of rain, the mountains rising at their backs…past the arbitrary, peeling signs for decaying primary schools of past decades, tiny fruit stands and mud huts…past the gendarmie and the naughty village boys who set up makeshift road blocks with cord and strips of old, dirty t-shirts, yelling for argent or a ride somewhere (not that I think they know where they want to go, just anywhere but there)…into the dusty and dirty town of Adéta. We continued through Adéta and towards the fields of palm trees that layer the ground at the foot of the mountains. It is quite a striking panorama, looking down the road past CECAV Fidelité at the horizon, dotted with splayed palm and banana leaves, that seems to run smack into the mountains and the road that carves up their side. You can almost feel their fraicheur and lushness from that far away. I hadn’t been up these mountains before, and although they are similar to Kouma, I was exhilarated by a new place, foliage of a deeper green (which might be simply a result of more rain) and soil of a different color.
We wound up and around the mountains, overlooking green facades bursting with palm and banana trees (these have not gotten old yet, I still love their exoticness,) patches on every face smoldering as farmers prepared the land for planting. Thick ribbons of smoke, the deep and murky kind produced by the burning of green leaves and undergrowth, rose from each valley and summit like distress signals. The villages at the top of the mountain were cool and clean, freshly swept yards and streets of damp, red dirt – much different even from Kpalimé and the villages at the base of the mountains with their dusty power and discarded plastic littering every quartier.
After a quick stop at the FECECAV office we went to meet the préfet (the mayor) of Danyi, who would be speaking at the AG and to whom customary greeting and kow-towing must be made. We arrived at his compound at the top of a hill overlooking Danyi and waited while a few proud gendarmie prepared him to receive us (which was really a presentation of his ability to hold us at bay while another went to see if he was interested in gracing us with his presence.) We filed into his office amidst a flurry of Monsieur-Directeurs, Grand Mercis and finger snapping. I was introduced, the prefet was thanked for “hosting” the AG and within 3 minutes we were ushered back out to Yao, waiting in the vehicule.
The Assemblé itself was held at a beautiful mansion that looked like an old missionary compound, covered in bright red and fuchsia bougainvillea climbing trellises, framed by enormous, ancient palm trees. It must have been built by European colonists because it was very old and built almost entirely of stone, not the typical, indigenous materials. Around 50 motos were parked outside, lined up like rows of schoolchildren. A shaded cobblestone path, semi-covered in moss and weeds (a testament to the wetter environment up here on the mountain) led back to a crumbling statue of the virgin mary and an dilapidated gazebo. The Agents de Credit and others from the Danyi office were thrilled to see me, as I am now becoming familiar and friendly with more and more of FECECAV’s extended staff. This absolutely warms my heart :)
There were far more men than women in the crowd of about 200 people that filled the meeting hall (this didn’t really shock me, considering that most of the women were most likely running their small businesses, taking care of their children and couldn’t afford to take the afternoon off.) Ivorian music crackled out of some busted speakers placed next to the door and we shook hands with several CECAV-Duanenyo staff members lined up in a sort of receiving-line as we entered the hall. The front row of the audience was occupied by the traditional village chiefs, dressed in the customary pagnes and boubous, slouching in plastic chairs and leather sandals while fiddling with their cellphones – that paradox almost made me laugh out loud. These chiefs, although quintessentially archaic in their symbolic role, still maintain a high level of prestige and authority in Togolese towns and villages. They are heavily involved in issues of justice and claim to, alongside the préfet, uphold the moral statutes of law and order.
The entire first part of the AG was “Welcoming Remarks,” fairly typical of these African directeurs and ceremonies (I have come to expect this now, as well as the 3 hour late start.) After the president of the Danyi caisse and Daniel, who discussed grandly the importance of each CECAV as a part of FECECAV, FECECAV’s part in the Togolese national strategy for Microfinance as well as its stark contrast from state programs (“FECECAV n’est pas comme la poste! Les profts sont pour vous!) and encouraged Danyi’s clients to keep up their good work. Each speech was recorded on an antique cassette player, held one inch from their mouths by a tired-looking woman standing next to them. (NB: As an ex-Event Coordinator, I was continually distracted by my comparisons of the A/V capacities of this, the largest annual meeting for CECAV-Duanenyo, and IPA’s exorbitantly expensive “Expert Consultations” and “Roundtable Discussions” at the Greentree Estate every other month. At first I couldn’t decide whether to be utterly disgusted or to laugh – I quickly settled on the former.)
I made my “speech” next. I had prepared it and practiced the night before for Athanase. Its main purpose was to provide motivation as a representative of a partner organization, to explain Kiva in a (very) simplified manner and to end on a note of hope and enthusiasm. I obviously did not have a hard time with the enthusiasm bit and, since I am not shy haha, had no problem getting up there and engaging with my audience. I was introduced by the Chef d’Agence of Danyi who, as usual, took the opportunity to poke fun at the Kiva-Kira coincidence – everyone gets such a kick out of it. With the tape recorder just beyond my lips I smiled and began.
“Je suis une représentante d’une ONG Américaine, Kiva, qui mobilise les fonds sur un site internet pour les organisations de microfinance comme FECECAV. J’étais déjà ici depuis un mois et demi pour supporter le travail sur le site et de voir l’impact de FECECAV, et la microfinance, sur le terrain J’ai eu l’opportunité de travailler à Kpalimé avec CECAV-Avenir, et j’ai visité aussi beaucoup d’autres bureaux. Je suis très contente d’être ici à Danyi aujourd’hui.
Depuis le commencement de l’association avec Kiva en Décembre, plus de 150 clients de FECECAV ont reçu un totale d’environ 50,000,000CFA de l’ONG Kiva. Tous l’argent était envoyer au taux zéro. Ce numéro va augmenter, et chaque caisse va avoir la chance de bénéficier des fonds. Ces fonds viennent des préteurs Américaines (et Canadiennes) qui veulent vous aider à changer votre vie. Ils vous donnent les moyens à le faire vous-mêmes. Voilà l’impact de la microfinance – c’est à vous! Avec Kiva, FECECAV a commencé à développer les rapports partout le monde. L’importance des partenaires globales ne peut pas être sous-estimée, et je vois le rapport avec Kiva comme un commencement de quelque chose beaucoup plus grand.
Chaque fois que je fais une visite à une nouvelle branche de FECECAV je suis toujours impressionnée par l’importance de votre travail, vos accomplissements, et la diligence des employés et clients. C’est vous, les clients engagés de FECECAV, qui créent le destin de cette organisation incroyable, et il faut être fier! Je vous souhaite du courage, de continuer votre bon travail, et de continuer à achever les vrais buts de la microfinance. Vous m’avez tellement inspiré, et j’espère que vous allez continuer avec l’optimisme que je vois en tout le monde ici. Merci pour l’opportunité de travailler avec vous, et pour voir comment vous décidez votre futur et réalisez votre rêves."
Daniel was beaming and told me I should be a politician, laughing at the hilarity of his sarcasm. My speech was followed by a translation in Ewe, where I understood only two words, Kiva and Kira (once again, the joke, and the audience laughing,) the clients seemed to get the true essence of my words and nodded, smiled and clucked in satisfaction.
After a lunch of Ablo and spicy tomato/mystery meat sauce with the Chiefs and other “officiels” and a personal gift of a bag of pineapples from the Chef d’Agence of the Danyi caisse (why don’t I like pineapples, I don’t understand…but it’s ok, Mensah used them for the FECECAV party on the weekend,) we made the winding trek back down the mountains, past the termite mansions and through a massive rain storm back home to Kpalimé. That night was characterized by something that can be called nothing other than an invasion, of termite-like bugs with double the number of wings…
* * *
For the rest of my time with FECECAV (which will now be until the end of May, when my visa expires and I run out of malaria meds) I am going to finish the Kiva Manual and follow up on the IT processes that were elaborated on and organized during Carol’s visit (see the upcoming blog for more on that one) but mostly work on the preparations for the solar project and anything else they need around the office. This is actually quite liberating and kind of what I felt I wanted to be doing here all along…but as far as the solar thing goes, it is almost maniacally inspiring…can this really be so huge as to change the direction of my life? Will the next 5 years of my life work towards developing an NGO of my own – sprung from my Dad’s knowledge, guidance and expertise, catering to my apparent lack of ability or interest in committing myself to others’ organizations enough to actually work for them? Allowing me to criticize as much as I want, continually improve and do something that satisfies my desire to do something that WORKS? Can it be? Once again (Koffitse has told me that this is “my phrase”) on verra.
I helped Olivier write a CV in English and am going to do the same for Athanase. I can just be here, as myself, helping my friends and colleagues as they want me to help them. No ulterior motives (wherever these come from anyway, certainly not my own mind…) no aggressive supervisors with mysterious intentions and corporate mentalities, no miscommunication and moral wish-wash. Just me, taking each day as it comes while working towards a grand vision of something stimulating and REAL – which is apparent to everyone here and to myself. I can live with that.
When it comes to the solar project, it is something tangible (like a zero-percent interest loan, in theory) and effective, without predetermined expectations or intrusions of ideas of development, work ethic or morality – not that we will develop a foreign policy like China or anything, there are certain limitations and finding out what this means will require a dangerous and moral balancing act on a thin, vague line of integrity and common sense. I foresee this as one of my biggest challenges, one whose concept is not even entirely worked out in my head quite yet…These PV systems will power existing enterprises (businesses with social missions of course, most likely Microfinance Institutions, because we will have to narrow it down for many reasons) without any significant compromises – yet.
I am sure we will come across compromises, as I have with Kiva, but these will have to be ironed out in a careful and thorough manner (which, in my opinion, is one of Kiva’s biggest weaknesses and they have instead accepted the costs with the benefits.) The give and take will be a challenge and I am sure that certain concessions will indeed be required in order to succeed. However, this to me does not mean necessarily “finding a middle ground.” We can do better than that! Acceptance of costs in exchange for benefits that can in any way, shape or form be seen to equalize each other (or even come close, which would be straying too far from the initial goal of pure, uncontaminated assistance) is just unacceptable. Not good enough. Why bother if this will be the case? This is why I am going to have to do it myself, and I am so ready.
Daniel has started to realize that I’m not joking about all of this, that I’m not some empty-promising yovo who is going to split without finishing what I start. He is so happy, so encouraged and gets a far off look in his eyes and cries that Ewe “ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo” every time he realizes what some solar panels on the roof of CECAV Avenir would actually mean…he told me that I am “un cadeau qui dieu a donné au FECECAV,” which from him is a magnanimous compliment. He is behind me 100%, different than his support for me being a Kiva fellow (which was equally jubilant, just different) because he senses something in me. That I want to do this on my own accord, and I have a love for everyone here and the essence of this place that is sincere, that I have something inside of me that is special and real and has been waiting to emerge, and that I may have found it.
So in terms of actually making it happen and then making it sustainable…
As I have been thinking and writing and thinking and talking to people and writing and thinking some more about this project, I have come to realize that there is really no way we can do it as a completely private venture without a real consultative and collaborative relationship with someone/some department fairly high up in the Togolese government. Although I do want to keep this a “local affair” and try not to get caught up in the bureaucratic nonsense of cabinet ministers and the tightly wound policies on privatization and natural resource management, I see a degree of cooperation as semi-unavoidable if we are going to do this right. I hope we are not going to open up a can of worms that will be far more than we bargained for…
I came up with the idea of channeling our project through the National Strategy for Microfinance. This is a highly developed program here in Togo and many of their goals and social missions for MFIs, are centered around an IT strategy. I am hoping that if we can convince them that the introduction of a Solar Energy program (our project being the start) will in turn help them to achieve their goals of the proposed informatisation of rural MFIs. I have done some research on this already and have run it by a few of my colleagues, who all think that this is the best way to get the project off the ground.
Now I anxiously anticipate my Dad’s arrival, to evaluate the technical aspects of the system in terms of size and usage, the installation itself and other such details. I cannot wait to see his reactions to this place, the project seen in real time and space and to get started.
Enough ramblings and rêves for today…they’re about to cut the current anyway because the wind is blowing fiercely and we’re about to see another serious storm…so you’re free :)
Myea dogo –
K
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