Saturday, August 30, 2008

Introduction

In December last year, the GFA-Consulting Group approached me. They were preparing a proposal for an EC-tender and wanted to know whether I was available for a two year contract in Angola as technicval expert. I was and then the GFA-led consortium won the tender so here I am, in Angola.

The project aims to improve the access to water and pasture for seminomadic livestock keepers, officially known as transhumance livestock keepers. Transhumance is a sensible and in principle sustainable way to take advantage of natural resources in arid places, where there is not enough rainfall for agriculture. Practicioners of transhumance lead their cattle along established routes to known grazing areas. During the rainy season they travel to the drier areas to take advantage of the grass that grows during the rainy season. During the dry season, they travel to areas with higher rainfall and river valleys, wher water is available, but grazing is of lower quality.

Although transhumance is a sensible and sustainable approach to dryland situations, the mobility of its practicioners and the common use of land fit badly with the more common government structures. Most governments like their citizens to live in a fixed abode so they can deliver services like education and water (and demand fees and taxes for those services) and like land to be properly registered in name of a natural person or a legal entity.

I was the first team member to arrive for a permanent stay. The team leader visited for a month, discoverd that he had to apply for his work visa from his country of residence and is now back in the UK to do just that. The administrator and the other technical expert arrived about ten days after I did and the three of us are trying to get as much done as we can while the team leader is applying for his visa.