Community Needs Assessment: Belel

Introduction:

The purpose of the Community Needs Assessment (CNA) is to help inform the Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) working in their particular village, along with other individuals, organizations, committees, and etc. of general information about the village, resources available, perceived needs of the village, and possible projects that could benefit the village.  The CNA will help the PCV to better understand their village and be a more effective volunteer. 

The information presented in this CNA was collected by interviews with various Villagers and village elders. Two main methods were utilized to collect information about the community, house to house interviews and formal and informal meetings.  Meetings were held with the village leaders – the headmaster of the primary school and High School and the director of the Health Center.

The CNA will be shared with Sous Prefect, the mayor, the traditional authority, the divisional delegate of youth, the school’s principal and vice principal.

Community Profile

General Information: the village of Belel is located within the Vina District in the Eastern Adamawa.  The story that most villagers tell about the founding and naming of Belel is this; 78 years ago, a Shepherd named Yaya AbuBakar was walking around with his cattle when he came across a lake.  He named this lake Mbellah.  After this day, he came back often with his cattle and soon began to build the Grande Mosque.

Transportation/Communication/Basic Services: Available methods of transportation in and around Belel are Bush taxis, Motorcycles and two Bus agencies; the National Voyages and Narral Voyages that have busses leave Belel, traveling to Ngaoundere every morning.  There are also trucks available for the villagers to ride that pass daily but times are at random.As of now electricity is not present within Belel.  For the wealthier residents, Generators are used between 6:00PM and 10:00PM.  There are no landlines in Belel but MTN cell phone service is available throughout most of the village.  

Population: Total Population of Belel as of 2012: estimated at 3700

 Table 1: Population of Belel Based on Data from the Health Center

0-1 years old	0-5 years old	<15 years old	Adolescent Women
164	739	1790	944

Education

Currently there is a Primary School and a Kindergarten located within Belel and a High School 3KM from Belel.    Based on the meeting with the Vice Principal there are four main reasons students stop attending school early pregnancy, the little awareness of the importance of education, the responsibilities of the child at home, various illnesses and lack of money.  There are no other opportunities for early school leavers to learn technical skills. 

Economic and Agricultural Assessment

The main forms of income generating work in Belel are Agriculture and raising livestock.  There are no large employers within Belel.  There are multiple small boutiques opened daily.  There are no restaurants or bars, however, on market day there are a few Mamas that sell few food items.  Most farmers sell their produce on Wednesday, which is market day in Belel, The crops farmed in Belel are okra, maize, Pistachio, yeast, beans, sweet potatoes, and millet.  The animals raised are goats, cows, sheep and chickens.  Families farm more than one crop but generally sell one or two at the market, the rest the family uses for consumption. 

The family members involved in farming are the teenagers and adults (mainly men), the children also participate in farm work.

Environmental Assessment

                The environment within and surrounding Belel is mountainous and very lush.  Various farms occupy the slopes of the mountains, South of Belel.  With a forest to the North habiting various trees and plants.  As of now, there are no current projects in place relating to the environment.  The environment overall seems to have little problems.   

                Villagers use the same water source for bathing, drinking, cooking, and cleaning.  The two sources of water in Belel are Wells and Water Pumps.  All water sources are natural ground water and within Belel there are two Water Pumps and numerous Wells.  People know they should boil Well water before drinking but from observations they do not.  The main method of disposing of inorganic waste is digging and burning, organic waste is burned or thrown outside.

Health and Well-Being Assessment

                There is little to no knowledge, skills, or attitudes related to HIV/AIDS or training in HIV/AIDS awareness.  Interventions needed are to educate the community members about HIV/AIDS – general information, how it is transmitted, how to protect oneself, and how to live a healthy life if infected.  The most common diseases or sicknesses affecting the villagers are diarrhea, acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI), pneumonia, malaria, various skin infections, intestinal worms, and HIV/AIDS.  The most common diseases and sicknesses affecting children are diarrhea, pneumonia, malnutrition, kwashiorkor, and marasmus.

                There is a health center located in Belel, however; it does cost money to receive medical attention which stops people from coming.  Concern has been expressed by the doctor and nurses with the amount of women who opt to deliver babies in their home as opposed to the health center without medical attention. 

Community Resources/Assets

There are currently no active village level organizations.  There are multiple organizations that are inactive; The Primary school has clubs that meet every Monday 7:30AM.  The clubs are: Sports, Bilingualism, Reading, Health, Friends of Nature, IT/Communications (theory) and News.  There are no fees to join these clubs and are open to all Primary School students. 

                Also present within Belel is a football field, located infront of the Primary School and a Health Center.  There are no traditional healers or Non-government Organizations (NGOs) within Belel.  United Nations International Children’s Education Fund (UNICEF) was said to have donated supplies to the schools, but no other information was provided.  The ethnic groups present in Belel are Fulbe (70%) and Mboum (30%).  The PCV has met with the religious leader and he is very excited and supportive to be working with the PCV. 

Analysis and Recommendations

Analysis

Based on the house to house interviews and various informal meetings with villagers and leaders the community of Belel faces many challenges in the areas of health, environment, and educations.  Belel faces a problem with malnutrition based on interviews, house visits and observations.  Sanitation practices such as washing hands and correct water preparation are rarely practiced and this may be due to a lack of knowledge.  A common concern expressed among villagers is the lack of knowledge and understanding of HIV/AIDS.

                Environment challenges faced are deforestation due to non-energy efficient cooking practices.  Education is a challenge for children as well as adults.  Another challenge is the number of youth that do not attend school or that leave school at a very young age.  Parents have expressed their concern about this matter.  There is a lack of teachers and teaching practices at both the schools.  Both schools have expressed their need for more, qualified teachers .  Many adults of Belel have not attended school past Primary School and have expressed their concern about their lack of education.  Another challenge facing education is that of those who do not attend school or have left school early is because of early marriage and also because of the lack of general education, technical skills, and life skills.

Existing Community Projects

Currently there are no community projects identified or in place in the village of Belel.

Possible Projects and Activities

Health Projects:

1.       HIV/AIDS education, testing, and counseling need to be addressed.  as of now, villagers cannot be tested or counseled within Belel.  This will be addressed by sensitizing village elders and community leaders with the help of_______________. The PCV will provide classes to educate villagers about HIV/AIDS.  This will be conducted by the PCV with help from ___________

2.       Education on water sanitation and consumption is needed.  Based on observations and interviews, villagers know that water from the Forage is safer to drink than water from Wells, however it is not practiced.  Drinking water is also not common practice so the education on the many benefits of drinking water is needed.  The PCV is capable of addressing this issue without outside funding and assistance

Education Projects:

1.       Starting a club at the High School where the PCV will teach about Life Skills and HIV/AIDS.  This will be conducted by the PCV with help from the PCV’s Postmate and Counterpart.

2.       Starting a program to help educate out of school youth addressing Life Skills, HIV/AIDS, and technical skills.  This will be conducted by the PCV using outside help to teach technical skills and outside funding may be used.

Other Projects:

1.       Currently there is no orphan and vulnerable children group; this is a problem because they may not be getting the help they need.  The PCV will meet with the children and adults to start a group to help educate and support children.  This will be done by the PCV and outside help without funding.

2.       A People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) group needs to be started to help educate, support and bring awareness not only to PLWHA but also fellow community members.  This will be done by the PCV with Stephanie Kouna, the Director of the Health Center.