West Africa

North Africa is not the only area exploding right now. 

And word is that in Cote d'Ivoire tensions have reached the point of civil war. Although not officially, terms such as ethnic violence are being applied to describe the "tensions" in the Ivory Coast. 

It's not a surprise. Months ago this was the world's fear. Months ago my Burkinabe friend told me this was a possibility. And we must have known it was possible. But we hoped against hope that it wouldn't and that the tension would subside.  

if you aren't familiar with the conflict in Cote d'Ivoire jump here for a brief summary

The Word: According to the Agence Ivoirienne de Presse and Abidjan News  conflict has arisen between Ivorians (in particular the Abey peoples) and non-Ivoirians. These non-Ivorians are from all over West Africa but there have been attacks intended to specifically target the Burkinabe. 

Here's the thing I know about the Burkinabe in Cote d'Ivoire. There are 3 million Burkinabe living in Cote. Many of them have lived there for years and years.  For some considered Burkinabe it is a matter of where their parents are from, and they may have never lived anywhere but Cote d'Ivoire. Many times the men of the family live in Cote d'Ivoire and send remittances to the women in Burkina Faso. Sometimes the men move to Cote d'Ivoire with this intention, and set up home (and a new family) in Cote d'Ivoire and never return. 

So it's more than the country turning on foreigners. It's a little like they're turning on their own. It's not just ethnic tensions. It's civil war. 

What? Last month a Burkinabe woman was found beheaded. This month the chief of the Burkinabe community in Agboville has been burned alive. The shops and homes of Burkinabes have been destroyed, and pillaged. Burkinabe and citizens of other West African nations are fleeing.

Why? It's been suggested these attacks are in response to the death of a 'child of the village' (a boy from Agboville). He was killed during conflict lead by opposition to Gbagbo's army. A reporter in Abidjan suggested Burkinabe mercenaries were fighting against the Gbagbo army although circumstances surrounding the boy's death are not yet officially clarified. 

It's hard to understand what is happening on the other side of the world. News just gives a glimpse. The only thing we can know is that it is complicated, and terrifying. And we know we all need to pray for North Africa. And we all need to pray for West Africa. 

21 Years Ago Today

Every year when February 11th rolls around my Mom says to me: "Do you know what happened x number  of years ago today?". 

This year x = 21. Do you know what happened 21 years ago today? 

I was born 21 years ago on February 12th. On February 11th my parents were on the way to the hospital to welcome me to the world, while the news reports about Mandela's release dominated the airwaves. 

It might have taken me until well into my teen years to 'remember' what happened February 11th, 1990 (or to simply even remember that my Mom reminded me of it every year) but, I eventually got on board.

The year I was in Burkina in February I sent a text home saying "Guess what happened 19 years ago today?!". All the way across the world I was still dead set on remembering the mother-daughter tradition. 

And every year I remember to thank my parents for not naming me Winnie in honour of the event (although they joked about it!). 

Say what?

This is where mango trees are at in the season right now: just blossoming. 

And I'll be back in Africa again this year when they're bearing fruit. 

I'll post more details when I have them.
Right now all I know is I'm headed to Ghana with the University. And just maybe over to that other country I love so much. 

I can't believe my eyes! Or a traditional map....

(click on picture to enlarge) 

 I couldn't believe it when I looked at the 'True Size of Africa' map (shown above) and discovered Africa as a continent, is bigger in landmass than all of Europe, the USA, China, Japan and India - put together! In case you aren't convinced consider that it's 5.88 million sq km bigger than all of North America (And we have the 2nd, 3rd and 14th biggest countries of the world). 

Perhaps, not surprisingly, incorrect terms are often applied to Africa. It's not a country it's a continent - and a big one at that! 

Many times the assumption is made that because something happens in one part of the continent it must happen on another side of the continent.  I liken this assumption to believing that because Canadians believe one thing, or eat a particular dish, so too must Mexicans. It's easy for us to recognize the diversity accross our continent (and even our country!) but harder to see the same diversity present across one so far away. In reality food, language & culture vary drastically across Africa (even though there are still similarities).