En utbildning som förändrar liv

I must mention that my experience this time was way beyond expectation. It is one thing for me and ‘Banana’ (Annabel) to plan a session in Swaziland, and totally another to hear and see how the Clowns Without Borders method has impacted the whole organization and its clients.

The BROs were more familiar with our methods this time. They remembered many songs, stories and games from the last training. They also were more playful in general.

The angle from which I saw this training was that it was very important to cater for the young mothers as a whole, instead of just doing financial training with them. This can primarily be achieved by creating a safe, positive environment for the passage of information. When the trust has been built things will move quicker i.e. the knowledge will be received, problems will be shared and attended to in an efficient and satisfactory manner.

We made the training creative, playful and involving – even the more mundane aspects. The crowning moment took place on Day Three of each training, where we asked the BROs to create a mock session, following the template used by Clowns Without Borders, and incorporating as much creativity and playfulness as possible. This was where I discovered the extent of our impact. They came out with the most brilliant ideas on how they would create a creative and playful session. From using images, to developing songs, to formulating riddles, to matching stories with the core lesson of the day. I was completely awed by the BROs understanding, and embracement of our methods.

Meeting the director of Hand in Hand East Africa, Pauline Ngari, humbled me, as she told us how the training had spread throughout the organization. The training has boosted the team spirit amongst the BROs and also vastly improved their interaction with the young mothers. A film made by Clowns Without Borders Sweden for the funders of the project, the Swedish Post Code Lottery, also showed me how the training has trickled down and changed the lives of the young mothers. In the short film, they dance, they play and they show a lot of optimism about themselves, their futures, and Hand in Hand East Africa.

I therefore salute the spirit of the clown, the open mindedness of Hand in Hand East Africa, the vision of Clowns Without Borders Sweden, and the generosity of the Swedish Post Code Lottery.

A luta continua! The struggle continues!