Nakavika Building Project - July 2009

This year saw MAD's first ever Fiji Building & Community Project take place up in the Namosi highlands, in our rural project site, Nakavika Village.

Throughout 2009 we continued to send venturers from our urban project base in Lautoka, to spend a week in the village, but this year we felt it was time to give the village something more, and offer venturers something a little bit different.

So in May this year Project Manager Kimbo arrived in the village with a bundle of grog, and asked permission from the village to host our first ever building project.

It was agreed, and Mario (turaga ni koro - land owner), Moji (Madventurer Village representative) and key village elders decided the project should focus around the renovation of the Community Hall, maintenance of the Village Church, and to continue extending the concrete path around the village so its easier to navigate in rainy season…and mixed up with all this is the usual farming of the land, teaching in the schools, playing sports, rock jumping, hiking, and good old fashioned Fiji time and a whole lot of grog drinking!

Jamal Kurdi, with experience of volunteering and crewing for MAD Africa came to join the Fiji crew to manage the Building project.

Over the following 4 weeks he was joined by 16 venturers, who each played there part in what was a very successful project month.

Battling with the varying weather, cold nights, and manual work all the venturers worked alongside the experienced elders and Nakavika Youth Group in completing the projects.

During the month, Jamal and the venturers completed the renovation of the village hall (fitted inner walls, painted interior/exterior/roof), with venturer Sahil making a table tennis table for the guys. Perhaps the biggest project was the plastering/rendering of the Village Church, and then painting it too! A big job, that was long, repetitive, and made harder in the wet conditions but big thanks to all who helped.

The village path also got extended by 200+ metres, making it a lot easier and more comfortable for the villagers to get around the village in the wet weather!Again, a tough job mixing the cement the Fijian way, but the venturers stuck to the task in hand!

And whilst all this was going on, venturers got the chance to break away and teach in the classrooms of the village primary school, play a bit of touch rugby, explore the surrounding ridges, farm the land, and get used to a bit of relaxed Fiji time!

The half way point and end of the project were celebrated with traditional Fijian Lovo feasts, a lot of grog, and bit of dancing, and a tiny bit of rum!

The villagers are very proud of what has been achieved and are very grateful to all those who participated. They now have a community hall they can be proud of, and it has returned to what it should be - the focal point of the village, & home of the meetings for the Women's Group…and another bar on the grog crawl route!

And that's it for 2009, MAD Fiji is taking a well earned break until it resumes in 2010 for its 6th year in Fiji!

Vinaka. Wananavu. Ni sa Moce.

MAD Fiji