Due to technical difficulties in Tanzania (i.e. the total absence of a workable internet connection), it was impossible to bring you updates over the 5 weeks we spent in and around Dar es Salaam this summer.

Without further ado, an update!

We returned to Dar es Salaam at the end of July 2009 with the goal of following up on last year’s project. We wanted to see how the guys were getting on, as well as pay their school fees and rent for another year. To a large extent, these goals were realized. It was wonderful to reconnect with the guys, all of whom are healthy. All of the Wakali Wadowntown artists are still engaged in making music. In particular, Omary (a.k.a. Ziggy Ras), Kisu and Ninja are all actively pursuing relationships with local producers and have been recording new music.

Importantly, we were able to provide support to Chimo and Kindo for another year of schooling, and to renew the rent on Ninja’s room. We also set up an additional room for Baraka. Danya’s Swahili has improved in the past year, which made discussing aspects of the project and subsequent developments with these youth that much more engaging. Of course we were doing lots of filming and photography along the way, as well as one-on-one and group ‘interviews’ about the project so far as well as future directions.

We also had great success with bringing several of the youth on as project assistants, a role that demanded more responsibility in coordinating many aspects of the project, from budgeting lunch for 20+ people in the mama lishe (low-cost eatery) to setting up meetings with school principals and landlords in the uswahilini (areas of low income housing). This role also brought with it a small additional salary, and represents one more way in which we are using your donations in order to enable these youth in pursuing their own plans and projects, which range from starting a small business selling shoes (in the case of Ninja), to purchasing additional art supplies (in the case of Kindo).

Of course – as with any project that attempts to confer as much decisional power as possible onto the youth with whom the project is created – there were also setbacks. We arrived in Dar to learn that a number of the guys were eager to move into new accommodations. With regards to the larger house we set up (which was intended to house approximately 12 youth), it has become clear that such an arrangement may not be ideal as compared to smaller rooms. For one thing, that particular house is not close to a water source, which means that water must be purchased for a small fee. This has proved to be an obstacle for the youth who are living there, as they are still operating on extremely low incomes accrued from washing cars in the city center (an income generation strategy that is frequently undermined by city police).

But perhaps more importantly, living together in a house with 12 people carries with it a huge amount of responsibility in terms of working together to pool resources as well as to build respectful relationships with landlords and neighbors. It has become clear that working together in groups of 2 to 3 to achieve these objectives may be a more reasonable level of responsibility given the present circumstances of most of our young participants, who, although securely housed, are still largely struggling to make a living in the context of ‘life on the streets.’

Thus, when last year’s housing contracts expire this coming November, we will not be setting up a new house. Instead, we will be transitioning to an arrangement that houses youth in groups of 2 to 3 – a setup that has already evidenced success in the context of this project and which most of the guys feel is a better option for them given the lessons we all learned this year.

We do not see these sorts of setbacks as failures, but rather as important learning experiences for everyone involved. Furthermore, we believe in being honest with our donors and the public about the challenges we have faced and the solutions we have come to. We have received amazing feedback over the past year, and we continue to welcome and encourage your feedback and alternative perspectives. Thank you to everyone for continuing to support the Dar es Salaam project – your donations have allowed us to facilitate tremendous opportunities in the lives of these youth.

P.S. For a more ‘play by play’ account to the trip please visit our Facebook page and flip through our Urban Project 2009 photo album.