When Noreen, a student at Duke University, arrived in Tanga, Tanzania for a summer project, she saw the effects of poverty first-hand. Roads made of dirt connected houses built of mud and sticks. When it came mealtime, families as large as 13 people gathered around a single pot of food. Malnutrition was rampant, especially among children.
Most of the families in the community relied on free-range chickens for income. And while these chickens were easy to maintain, roaming freely to find their own food and shelter, it is hard for the owner to profit from them because the eggs are scattered and hard to collect.
Collaborating with local government officials, Noreen and other students led an initiative to introduce European chickens (which lay larger eggs more often) and coops. These chickens would produce eggs at a higher rate and allow the owner to collect them in a coop. In addition to a coop, five families received a European chicken and some free-range chickens to allow the breeding of hybrid chickens.
During the project, challenges arose. European chickens required vaccines, which the original budget hadn’t planned for. After rearranging the budget, Noreen’s group freed up funding for the vaccination of the chickens. Adjusting to Tanzania’s culture also presented a challenge. While the community led a slow-paced life, Noreen’s group was trying to work rapidly to get as much done as possible.
Although there were differences in cultural norms, the time spent together provided a lasting bond, between the Tanzanians, who were able to introduce a more efficient way of producing chicken eggs and the Duke students who received the opportunity to participate in a beneficial cultural exchange. It is best expressed in Noreen’s words, “The culture, the people, and the actual site itself never fails to amaze me. I also love interacting with people in another culture – it is nice to be able to break out of my shell of American culture and see what else is out there.”