Q. Why did you join the myAgro Fellowship Program? How will the skills you’ve learned through the fellowship help you develop your career in international development?
I joined the myAgro Fellowship Program for numerous reasons. A large factor was that I was very much drawn to the myAgro model. I was impressed by how simple the model seemed and yet its potential to make a huge impact on the population here. It is also rare to see such a sustainable model for development that aims to be independent of external financing. Apart from the model, I was eager to join the myAgro Fellowship Program due to the incredible experience it provides. It is a unique opportunity to get true field work experience, which I believe is critical to anyone hoping to work in international development and yet very difficult to find early on in one’s career. It also allows for the development of capacities in a wide variety of domains that will be very useful for my future career in international development.
My experience with myAgro has allowed me to develop a wide variety of skills vital to international development work including staff mentoring and management, monitoring and evaluation, marketing, and communications. Working in a start-up environment has also allowed me to improve my program planning and coordination skills. I believe these skills will be transferable to myriad jobs I may hold in the future in the field of international development. Finally, the myAgro fellowship has provided me with the opportunity to develop a deepened understanding of a foreign culture as well as an understanding of many common obstacles to development in regions with limited resources. This knowledge will help shape my understanding of both root causes and the best solutions for development related issues with which I engage in the future.
2. What’s the best part about being a myAgro Fellow and working with our Senegalese team?
In my opinion, the best part about being a myAgro Fellow is the field
experience. I believe it is a rare opportunity to have the chance to engage intimately with the local population in often hard-to-reach villages. It is an eye-opening experience to hear their stories first-hand, discuss their needs, and get their direct input on our work. The Senegalese community, both in our villages and in our office, is incredibly friendly and always eager to welcome us into their culture.
3. What have you learned through your project work (be specific) that you wouldn’t have learned without hands-on, on-the-ground experience?
Working on my projects here in Senegal has allowed me to learn how to adapt to the realities of working in a limited-resource setting. For example, I have learned how to keep momentum on projects despite power outages, water cuts, and heat. I have also learned how to navigate complicated bureaucratic structures and cultural customs different than my own. For example, I have learned the importance of incorporating extensive greetings and the particularities of offering signs of respect to those in positions of authority. Furthermore, working on the ground has helped me develop my capacity for cross-cultural communication. I have learned to reformulate information to reach diverse audiences. Conducting interviews of farmers and working with local staff has shown me how the thought process can be different in different cultures. In my interviews, I have needed to learn how to re-adapt questions so that they can elicit the quality of response I am seeking. In working with local staff, I have learned how to re-adapt and re-explain tools and processes to be better understood. All of these experiences will allow me to better face obstacles in future work, particularly when working cross-culturally.
