First Day at the World Food Programme

So today I began at the World Food Programme. I was so lucky that the UN offices were just across the street from the hotel I was staying in. Getting into the UN can be a bit of a hassel. Yesterday I had to give them my passport (something I truly hate doing, as all my insticts say "Don't let anybody have that!!), sign in, wait for them to go visit my supervisor and then find someone with enough time to come get me out of the holding area. Luckily, today, they just looked at my passport and sent me right in. My supervisor was not happy of the lack of security~I guess I just don't look threatening enough.

The WFP is located on a long hall painted yellow with lots of white doors and white tile. The left of the hall is occupied by the Population Fund and we are on the right. About 10 people make up the office, along with several drivers. Everyone is very polite, but incredibly busy. The country director, programing director, and I believe, the adminitrative secratery are all leaving (retiring or being relocated to other countries, as the WFP moves people about every 4 years), so everyone is crazy getting ready for the impending chaos of new bosses etc. In all this confusion, they seemed to forget that I was coming! They have been very kind in welcoming me, but so far have just given me one document to read in the last 3 hours. They are supposed to set an office up for me, but the man who does that is out, so I am at his desk. Just trying to fill up the time. So far, I've read everything on the WFP website that has anything to do with Gambia, replied to lots of e-mails and looked at Facebook.

I believe my job will mainly consist of working with the School Feeding Programme, a national program that provides school lunches as an incentive to get kids to go to school and improve child nutrition. Gambia is one of the poorest countries in the world (I believe 122 out of 177), so improving education is vital. Education is one of the primary ways to pull a country out of poverty and reduce hunger rates. If you have money, you are more likely to eat.

Hopefully soon, they will throw me into the deep end and pile me with work and make me miss this time of idleness. Until then, I will keep dreaming of being across the street at the beach.