Kent Anjo - Tanzania
About Kent
Who are you?
My name is Kent Anjo and I was born and raised in Toronto. I hold an honours degree in Political Science and International Relations from Carleton University in Ottawa.
Where were you posted?
Stone Town, Zanzibar
Why did you decide to take part in AKFC’s Fellowship in Microfinance and Microenterprise?
At the young age of sixteen, I first saw scenes of extreme poverty in South East Asia: open sewage systems, families sleeping in bus shelters, three-year-old toddlers begging, a leper shuffling down a street with open, bleeding sores, sprawling slums with no electricity and running water, the list goes on. After returning to the comforts of urban living in Toronto, I felt obliged to pursue an answer to two main questions: why do these inequalities exist worldwide, and what can I do to help? Participating in AKFC’s Fellowship in International Development Management (IDM) allows me to interact with like-minded people grappling with these questions in settings where they are most prevalent. The result is not just an experience that looks great on a résumé, but more importantly it is the satisfaction that comes in knowing your work has helped, either directly or indirectly, make a positive difference in the lives of those in need.
Have you had any previous experience living overseas?
I have worked as an E-communications Officer for the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and as a procedure analyst for the Canadian International Development Agency, with whom I also volunteered in Tanzania while studying at the University of Dar es Salaam in 2004. I have volunteered as an executive member for World University Service of Canada –Carleton Chapter, where I helped facilitate Carleton’s student refugee sponsorship programme. In 2001, I was a Canadian Student Ambassador to the Round Square International Service in Jammu and Kashmir, India.
What is your favourite or least favourite thing about your new home?
Most favourite: Watching scenes like this one while enjoying a beer at a beach front bar after work in Stone Town.
Least favourite: Having cold showers every morning.
What is your favourite local food?
I start my day with a few meat samosas and a couple mandazi (fried sugar bread) that is all washed down with a cup of chai (spiced tea), a multivitamin and an anti-malarial tablet.
For lunch I fancy chicken pilau. Pilau is rice that has been cooked in a spicy broth which, if done in the Swahili style, contains cloves, black peppercorns, cinnamon, cardamom pods, garlic cloves and some ginger that is mixed with chicken. I usually complement it with a ginger soda. When this is not available, I’ll settle for fried chicken, rice, beans and spinach.
Where do you go shopping?
I do most of my shopping from street-side stands that are ubiquitous in Stone Town. They sell everything from toilet paper to plastic toys. Sometimes I’ll walk to Darajani market on the outskirts of the old city centre, where hawkers and merchants vie for your attention by insisting you visit their stalls “just to look”.
They sell everything your heart could desire - sandals, clothes, pots, pans, buckets, toys, plastic flowers – for “good prices” that are much higher than what the locals pay. This means bargaining is a must when going out shopping, and to be successful requires an excellent command of theatrics. When the price is too high, throw your arms in the air and wave them about frantically while crunching your face up in a look of disgust, but laugh occasionally to show you mean no harm. When the price is to your liking, try reducing it some more by calmly delivering a convincing monologue with your hands by your side.
