Terry's report to MIG

MIG (Mid Island Group of Rotary Clubs International Committees) is a group of 19 International Committee reps from 19 Vancouver Island Rotary Clubs. They take pooled money from the clubs and oversee several projects per year all over the world. They have contributed $4500 total to the below projects.

They have a meeting in Nanaimo Jan 14th. Below is Terry's update for that meeting:

1. Fish Farm DCG $5000.00

I have met with fish farmers, KASFOOC and local govt representative in charge of Ministry of Fisheries Fish Farm Productivity. They have agreed to provide 3 days of onsite technical training for all 21 of our fish farmers within 2 weeks. The cost will be for transportation and lunch only. As I visit individual farmers I am assessing and consulting on need for supplies. I am also trying to determine if this group can indeed become self-sustaining. If they cannot I may have to withhold funds. There is no point to just dumping a bunch of charity and leaving. I see many hurdles, but I will learn more about their willingness to work together in the coming weeks as I sit in on the training and work with them on farms. After 20 years in aquaculture I think I have a pretty good eye for fish farmer potential; even in another culture, we'll see.

2. 50 Protected Springs Global Grant Project $51,129

We have toured the first 18 springs,GPS'd them all, notified community to have rocks,sand and lunches ready (their contribution) for contractors next Monday. These communities have been falsely promised much in the past by churches and politicians. Seeing and talking to us made them believers and several started collecting more sand and rocks right away. The RC Kakamega has a committee for this project and have met several times, with and without 3 contractors, to discuss logistics and payment system per stage of construction per spring. They have brought in an extra contractor and have hopes we can get all 50 springs completed before I return, under budget. We have not yet started organizing Hygiene Training Program component for the communities. That will be done with Alinda and Dept of Health later on- Alinda is extremely busy with her 90+ KEEF students right now. We are having a groundbreaking ceremony Monday Jan 16th at the first spring.

In closing it is all going very well. KASFOOC's volunteer board members, namely Jackson, Joyce, Matano, Zachary and Moses (so far) are a key part of this process acting as a liasion between Rotary, the contractors and the communities. I wish I could help them more but their knowledge of the language, the territory and the communities is not something I can add to.

I will have more substantial a report to make once things get rolling here in the next 2 weeks. See you after March 2012,