Saturday July 27

We aren't quite done with the celebrations ! This morning we left around 9am to drive the former Nigerian President Obasanjo's chicken farm for a dedication. Fortunately, it was a lot closer than expected, so it was only a 45 minute drive, and all on paved roads ! The value of fresh eggs as a protein source for the Liberian people is huge; this farm is expected to produce 75,000 eggs a day when operating at capacity. After the dedication we had a tour of the farm; it is on 155 acres where they grow crops for feeding the chickens as well. They don't waste anything; the chicken ummm excrement is composted to use as fertilizer for the crops. The farm is expected to produce significant employment opportunities also.

One of the topics that I haven't talked about much here is the work by the government on decentralizing government functions outside of Monrovia. This effort has several goals: one is to bring the government closer to the people in outlying areas, and another is to provide jobs and a better life outside of Monrovia which might help induce some out-migration. Nearly a million people live in Monrovia, and it is terribly overcrowded; the government cannot provide needed services to everyone in this crowded city. A lot of people moved from the country into Monrovia in the immediate post-war period because it was safer and there were more opportunities to scratch out an existence. Now it is time to reverse that trend; many of the buildings dedicated this week are part of that process.

After the chicken farm, we were on our way to a children's party celebrating the 26th when the President decided to make an unscheduled stop at Redemption Hospital, mostly to talk to the nurses. During this week, around the country, nurses have been taking part in a job action; some have refused to show up for work, and others have just been in a go-slow, no overtime mode. I think the main complaint is wages, but there are some complaints about working conditions also. In any case, at Redemption she talked briefly with some of the nurses present, and then Aunt Jenny ( a retired nurse) privately gave them what appeared to be a strong tongue-lashing ! And of course afterwards the purser came along and dispensed some cash. I had the chance to chat with Tobias, the Administrator at Redemption whom I have met before; Ly Heng and I did some operating at Redemption, but I don't expect to do that again. Hopefully when I am back here in a month to work we can collaborate with Redemption to get surgical patients transferred to JFK for surgery. That process has been tangled in politics and economics in the past, but we will keep trying.

Then we went on to the children's party at the football stadium downtown. It was quite a joyous occasion with music and dancing, and clearly the kids were very excited that the President was paying them a visit. It was a wonderful way to end the public celebration of 26 !

Last night I first went to Aunt Jenny's for dinner with the President, the American Ambassador, and Steve Cashin. It was an interesting and fun conversation around the dinner table ! I had some fufu once again, and it was delicious ! After dinner we went to Antoinette's for a party with Ambassador Straz and many others; he had brought strip steaks and lamb chops with him on his plane. I had a good chat with him and his pilots; they fly a Global Express, but I have no idea what that means lol. Aunt Jenny and Uncle Jeff and the President also came to the party, and it was good to see her in a nice relaxed setting.