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Bangladesh Workcamp Story
by Lisa Breeze

Volunteering for a work camp in Bangladesh gave Lisa Breeze and her friend Jasmine Kuo a window of insight into this little visited country. As well as making friends with the locals and finding out about their culture, the two women also learnt about working "Bangladeshi-style", as Lisa explains.

Attending a work camp in Rajoir, Bangladesh gave us the opportunity to go to a country that few foreigners visit. We chose this particular camp because it offered a variety of work, and its proximity to Dhaka (the capital of Bangladesh).

Most of the volunteers were Bangladeshi and came from various parts of the country, including three women. There was only one other international volunteer, Ronan, from Ireland. We helped renovate the local NGO compound and campgrounds. This site hosts community events such as blood donation camps and eye testing camps for the local people.

The volunteers carried out various manual labour tasks around the compound including fixing a road, watering a field (transporting buckets from a pond) and moving soil (transporting baskets of soil from one location to another). We also painted trees! It seems to be a tradition to whitewash the bottom parts of trees, the reasons I could only assume were to highlight the pathways at night.

We also levelled and ploughed a field to prepare for planting. The campgrounds were communal to the village. So the idea was to work on the field and to encourage the locals to work together to produce stock that could benefit all the villagers.

Only a few members of the group were used to manual labour (not including ourselves). It seemed keeping spirits up and encouraging everyone was important, so we worked hard and constantly on each task. We tried to make sure the work was done in the most efficient manner possible, as quite often more time was spent talking about the activity then actually doing it.
Sometimes the bureaucracy involved in camp meetings was frustrating. Small details had to be discussed and questioned, which seemed democratic, however, moving soil in baskets from one location to another doesn't require a huge amount of organisation. Luckily the Australian and Irish contingent had the "just get in there and do it" attitude.

Our accommodation was in quaint dormitories - they were simple but nice. We were supplied with blankets and mozzie nets. Our diet consisted of (hot) local food - mainly curries with fresh vegies and meat, and rice with every meal. We all took turns on the "cook team", and learnt some new skills. As the camp vegetarian, Jasmine also ate a lot of eggs.

Poverty and over-population are big issues in Bangladesh. It is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Despite having extremely fertile land there is relatively little of it available for crops. During monsoon season it floods often, which keeps the land fertile, but further reduces its availability.

Despite these difficulties the people were amazing. They seemed really happy and community spirited. Making friends with the locals and the Bangladeshi volunteers was the best part of the camp. There were, of course, some cultural differences to overcome, but it was really interesting getting to know people from different cultures.

The majority of people we met were Muslim and it was interesting to find out about their culture and traditions. I hadn't been in a Muslim country before and it was a good chance to understand their beliefs and lifestyle.

The village also had some real characters, especially the permanent caretaker at the camp, who always had a story to tell. The local children were also really friendly and outgoing. They only demanded our time and attention and were really fun. They were also keen to help out when they were out of school to show us how things were done.

Spare time was certainly plentiful. A standard Bangladeshi working day doesn't last much longer than four hours, so we had plenty of spare time. We relaxed, caught up on some reading and writing, played games and chatted. We also played with the local village children. Jasmine and I were kidnapped by a couple of children on their father's rickshaw and taken on a tour of the village - to be shown off I think!

Visiting the local town to make phone calls or small purchases was sometimes more trouble than it was worth. We were quite the novelty and at times would have up to 30 people following us just to check out what we were doing! It was fairly harmless, but sometimes a little irritating.
The best part of the experience for me was knowing I had made a small contribution to the community, making friends and getting to know a new culture. I have fond memories of the people I met and the time I had.

Something you find pleasure in, as there are times when you will need to withdraw from the masses and have some "me" time. For example, take books, and be prepared to leave them, as they crave western books.

It was an amazing experience, and I can't wait o return to Uttar Dharmapur to find out what has happened in the last year, to continue BWCA's work, and to resume the cricket and volleyball. I have kept in email contact with the other international volunteers, and am in letter contact with many of the Bangladeshi volunteers, which has proven to be another learning experience.

BWCA are a well organised and highly respected organisation with a long history in volunteer activities. Currently they are looking for longer term volunteers (2 - 12 months). Some of the volunteering opportunities include: Physical therapy for children and adults with disabilities; Teaching English; Research and admin work; Micro-credit financing.

Further information about BWCA can be found on their website: www.mybwca.org.
Applications for these workcamps must be made through IVP. SCI Bangladesh also have work camps planned for the coming Australian summer. See the SCI work camp search engine on the IVP website: www.ivp.org.au