Time OUT... (Pouce!)

Okay, haven’t blogged in a while. I just wanted to sound off now before I leave. I won’t be around for at least a month and I can’t say I’ll miss winter in DC (it’s been colder than ever).

Got a lot to do and not much time to do it all:

* I have a seminar this weekend on: the “Methodology of Peace”.

* I just chose my thesis “Business Engagment in Conflict settings: How Foreign Direct Investments help or hinder fostering peace in Africa”. Due by the end of the semester.

* I have to do some work/school study and my topic will be: “International Public Health System in Post Conflict Countries: How NGOs should better gear their policies to ensure sustainable peace”.

* AND on top of it all, I’ll be traveling for work over the next month to: Addis, Kigali, Bujumbura, Nairobi and Geneva (in that order). Hopefully, winter will be done (or almost) by the time I come back (March 18th).

So my plate Is definitely full (and I thought things would slow down in the beginning of the year, HA!). I will try to post as often as possible, but given the scope of what’s waiting, I wouldn’t hold my breath!

So, I’m signing off for a little while, packing my ballerines and short sleeves and leaving the boots and coats behind. But i’m sure i’ll be reading your blogs from my hotel room on weekends!

Any suggestions for good books ?(French or English)? You’d think I’d have enough reading to do with the thesis and studies I have due soon but I’d like to read stuff non work/school related as well. I have to admit I haven’t followed up in the literature department lately. I’ll need some for the time I’ll be spending in planes and airports.

Smooches,

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Amina Says:

February 18, 2009 at 3:46 pm

wow, tu iras au bdi et a nairobi!!
est-ce que ce sera ta premiere fois en Afrique de l’Est? tu restes combien de jours dans chaque endroit?
en tout cas tiens moi au courant de tes impressions
safari njema(bon voyage) et bonne recherche!!

Y.S. Says:

February 19, 2009 at 2:39 am

Salut M.

Your thesis is interesting. I’m not sure if you’re narrowing down to 1 region, i.e. Africa, forgive my bias, but it would be good to look into the impact of FDI on ending/sustaining apartheid in South Africa. If I recall from my conversation with a classmate, there seems to be some work done on Darfur as well.

As for your project, “International Public Health System in Post Conflict Countries: How NGOs should better gear their policies to ensure sustainable peace”, are you looking into how NGOs working in the health sector are implementing their projects in a sustainable manner? There are so many health projects operating in parralel units that it owuld be nice to see what have been their impact and how communities have ‘owned’ these projects.

The lattest novel I’ve read was “Chicago” from Ala al Aswany, quite interesting. I’m reading “Affluenza” from Oliver James but it’s quite heavy.

Enjoy the East African shores!

hadyba Says:

February 19, 2009 at 4:07 pm

Hi,

I’d love to read the thesis on Business Engagement…

By the way, do you know of the blog Aid Watch by an NYU prof?

Currently reading William Boyd‘s La vie aux aguets. I love everything by Boyd! A friend of mine has just released her first novel. She wrote it when she was an undergrad at Cheikh Anta Diop and I was impressed when I read the manuscript. Her name Oumou Cathy Bèye and here is the book. It deals with girls early/forced marriage in Dakar.

Si tu passes par Paris, fais moi signe, on pourrait diner/déjeuner/prendre un verre selon tes disponibilités.

Amayel Says:

February 20, 2009 at 1:10 pm

Hello my dearestssss,

Amina: It’ll be my first time in east Africa, thuogh I’m looking forward to it, I’m depressed just thinking about the time i’ll be spending in airports and planes. that’s the downside of these business trips when you work for a US NGO, you have to fly American… and their services to Africa are not the best! Je passe le bulk de mon temps a Kigali, couple of days in Nairobi and Addis, 4 in Bujumbura. I’ll keep you posted;)

Y.S: You know i’m narrowing it down to Africa, I’m as guilty as you on my biases. The 3 cases studies I chose were Rwanda, DRC and Sudan. Now that you mentionned South Africa, I realize that would’ve been a great case as well. And to answer your question about the Health topic, the goal yes is to come up with policy guidelines and recommendations to avoid all these NGOs dropping by, having a couple of projects with deliverables and leave after a couple of years with no follow up and transition into localization of the skills. That’s actually mostly what i’ll be doing in Rwanda for my job on this trip, which in turn inspired my choice for the study.

Hady: I’ll check that NYU blog. I had never heard of it before! Je passe par Amsterdam (just for a couple of hours), but I’ll be in Geneva for 4 days, and might spend the weekend a Paris…If I doParis, you’ll be the first one I ring… send me your email at amayelsnotes@gmail.com

Thank you guys for the book titles, I’ll go pick some up when I leave work today, though Hady, celui de ton amie, i’ll probably wait until I get to a franch speaking country, I doubt I’ll find it in bookstores here.

Sur ce, je vous souhaite tous unexcellent weekend, keeping feeding us those insightful posts!
M.