16 September 2010
Yesterday’s entry was a bit long, so I waited until today to share this information. I met with USAID’s Feed the Future director for Rwanda to learn more about the Obama Administration’s new long-term approach to sustainable agricultural development in Africa. I learned a lot about the vision and generosity of the United States and about the proactive forward thinking approach of the Rwandan government with regard to agriculture. Given MANA’s vision of participating in the development of a safe, affordable, nutritious, consistent supply of locally-produced foods, this meeting was very helpful. After about an hour, two representatives from Catholic Relief Services joined us, and we had a great discussion about serving vulnerable groups and helping to meet their specific nutritional requirements. There are a number of opportunities to support Rwanda in their short- and long-term vision, and I’m hopeful that MANA (including our partners) will be able to contribute in meaningful way to lasting progress that will improve the lives of many people.
Today I submitted all of my paperwork for the work permit. The paperwork was accepted, and I was told to call at 3pm to check the status of the work permit. I texted promptly at 3pm and was told the work permit would be ready at 9am tomorrow. Deep breath. It’s now just 11 hours until I’ll return to RDB to pick up the work permit. May it be so!
I also talked for about an hour with Jenny at the Draper Richards Foundation. MANA CEO Mark Moore is in the running to be a Draper Richards fellow. He would be a great one!