One of the things I am finding most difficult at work are the meetings. (I have got used to having not much to do, goodness knows how I'll cope when I get home?) Gambian meetings have to be seen to be believed but I'll do my best to summarise:
Firstly, a 09.00 start means that those who have not forgotten about the meeting entirely, start thinking about the meeting at 09.00. As most will be up to an hour away it will be 10.00 before
the majority of people are in the room together. You never wait for everyone to turn up or the meetings would never start. Generally speaking any room the meeting is held in won't have been booked and even when you have one they are very simple with few facilities. (I often see people putting marker pens, sugar cubes in pockets to take away at the end of the meeting!). Once the meeting actually starts the agenda is read aloud and the fun begins:
It is critical in Gambian meetings to be seen to have your say. Therefore everyone says something on almost every point, even if it is just repeating what has already been said. In many meetings there are 2 or more languages spoken and sometimes official interpreters are present. They don’t always do a great job though. Last week a person had a 20 minute rant in Wolof including fist waving and pacing up and down. He sat down and the interpreter simply said “this man does not agree with the last point raised”. I could have worked that out for myself without the need for assistance!
Almost all Gambians have mobile telephones (even those that are really poor). In the urban areas it is very common for people to have 2 or 3 phones. The chair at my last meeting had 3 strapped to a kind of holster around his waist. All of these went off at some point and I remeber one ring tone was the tune of 'Lord of the Dance'! Despite requests, people do not turn them off during meetings so often the entire meeting is disrupted whilst attendees take calls whether or not the calls are work related. On friday I was at a meeting where the person next to me took calls throughout the meeting. As a gesture towards politeness he did bend sideways in his chair so he was under the table when he was talking but it did mean that he took all his calls lying in my lap!
Side meetings happen throughout meetings as well, so you may have up to 3 or 4 meetings running at the same time. Add to this the call to prayer 3 times during a work day (and sometimes it is so loud you literally cannot hear the person opposite you when they talk) and the whole situation is farcical.
Anyone that has a laptop will generally turn it on and, if we are lucky enough to have internet access, they will log on and email people, check the news or try to go on facebook. If there is no internet access then often people play computer games and even clap out loud if they make a good move or groan when they lose.
Lunch is usually provided at these meetings, it’s sometimes the only reason that people attend. This means that during later sessions up to half the attendees have left. The meal can sometimes be quite a lengthy affair and often rich food so it is a common sight to see people asleep during the afternoon of a meeting as they try to digest the feast!
Prayer also features during meetings and as a way to try and get things back on track. Sometimes when issues arise the chair will ask people to pray for help. Last week my friend Marney was at a workshop to discuss ways to raise funds for a new blind school. The suggestion which was voted as most critical to start was setting up a prayer group to pray for funds to be forth coming. I have some admiration for the level of faith but I suspect it has more to do with the fact that many Gambians are so laid back (lazy?) that they would rather ask and wait for help than get on and do things themselves.
All in all, most meetings are a real test of patience. When I’m in good form they can be quite amusing but on a bad day they literally drive me completely insane. I have started taking a book with me everywhere I go so at least I have something to read when things get too bad!!
Oh, and finally…Gambian timekeeping not only applies to start times….I have some colleagues that have been in meetings up to 7 or 8 pm
One such meeting at a regional office
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