Sometimes Swaziland can seem so normal in some aspects and the people you work and interact with so like everyone at home that you forget they come from such a different background. This has been brought home to me a number of times. For example, during a meeting I was talking to Dumile who is the National Laboratory Supervisor and Deputy to the Chief of Laboratory services, she is great to work with, very intelligent and capable which lulls you into the assumption that she’s had a similar background of school and then university to yourself. Which she has, but with a difference. We were talking about her home area, and she was explaining where it was and then commented one of the things she always appreciated when she visits now is that she can go by car. She has not so fond memories of when she was young of having to walk the 10km from the nearest food shops etc with 10kg of mealie (maize) on her head, and usually carrying 5 kg of fruit as well….
The other occasion recently talking Phumzile who has many jobs, one as a member Pele Pele (a local drumming and dancing group), then as a driver for a clothes manufacturing company and then a little sideline teaching a few expats drumming once a week… When they come around they love using one of our computers to access facebook and it so you just assume that they know and have some understanding on how to use things other than the internet. But when we were talking, and he was explaining he could access facebook on his phone, and then proudly told us he could also access it on a computer at work, as he had access to learn how to use the computer as to develop other skills as well as driving. Which just took some of the assumptions I hadn’t even realized I’d made right out from under me… I had just assumed that being able to use some aspects of technology implied being able to use it in the other areas. I really should really know better, as I find myself having to explain what I would consider really basis excel concepts (how to add things together, and put filters on) to people who for Swaziland are quite expert on the computer ….
