I heard a story about a medical volunteer who wanted to work in particular department of the hospital she was in. The director of that department was happy to have her there, but began asking questions about why she was there, with which organisation, how much she paid etc. Eventually he began asking where the funds she paid went and why he wasn’t seeing any of them when it was costing him to have her there.
Whether or not the story is true, I take a few points from it. Firstly, that the money we bring is (perceived to be) of more use than our time or skills and may be more use in the short term. Since most volunteers only come for a few months, most of us lack the training required to be productive and we are actually a drain on our supervisors. In my case, I have many years of IT experience and understand computers better than the paid teacher, but my inability to explain concepts in Sinhala hinders my ability to help the students.
Most of the medical volunteers are students who don’t have the experience or qualifications to assist directly in their work and basically attend to accrue hours for their course. I would prefer to provide aid through my time and skills than my money, but I have to recognise my limitations and choose ways beyond the existing courses. The students at my IT Centre are exclusively taught Windows and MS Office so I can contribute by creating a lesson or two on Ubuntu for the more technically inclined students.
The second point I take from the story is that funding needs to be communicated clearly. My induction package contained a clear illustration of where my fees are being used – partially to pay salaries of Projects Abroad staff, but largely to support the IT Centre. This service can’t continue without maintenance and replacement of the computers, rent on the property or paying the teacher’s salary.
Thirdly, it’s clear that since our money is the main contribution, our presence here is mainly for our own benefit. I get to live a Sri Lankan lifestyle for the duration of my time here. I have a family to support me, a job to go to and people to share all the activities of Sri Lankan daily life with. I’ve already done so much and I will find more ways to contribute, if only to a few.