Category: Nigeria

Erin’s back in the drill

Erin Rigsby is back in Nigeria and getting hard to work.
She’s posted her latest news online:

A day

It was a good day, but very full:

– Went to SIM office to download emails, get money, greet people

– Off to Gidan Bege to meet Mrs. Gona, who has been caring for the Nigerian Missionary Kid’s since I have been gone (praise God). What a joy-filled woman. We talked about the need for better food for the kids (working on it), medicine, how her own kids cannot go to school because no money to pay for the school fees, and then we prayed together. Look forward to getting to know her more.

– Our weekly management meeting of folks in charge of various parts of the entire ministry (medical, outreach, sports, etc). It is a colorful array of Americans, a Canadian, a Danish, and Nigerians. We are all trying to understand one another’s cultures and today was a trying one. It had to do with the issue of money. Hmm. I hate money sometimes. It ended Ok, but will take some time and lots of prayer to really get to the heart of the matter. Do we as Westerner’s cripple the ministry because we have access to funds and have to make decisions on how to spend them? Do the Nigerians depend on us too much? Not questions to be answered quickly. Sigh.

– Greeting the kids at Gidan Bege (these guys are waiting to be transferred to their permanent home in our Care Center in Gyero). Greeting folks here is super important and if you neglect this – wow – you have really offended them. So, gotta be sure to do it.

– Rushed back home for lunch (yummy Nigerian rice – food discussion is for another blog). Met the electrician bc my lights keep flickering and find out I need another stabilizer because the current keeps fluctuating, which can either blow my lights and electronics or not get enough power into my fridge. Also may need a new car battery to run my little lights when our electricity goes off. Man, am glad for Mark the Electrician.

– Try to keep my dogs from attacking said Mark the Electrician’s friends who came to greet him (they do not like men).

– Off to Transition House to see some sick kiddos. Thanks to some handy kits I got donated, I was able to test three of them for Malaria – all of them have it. Treat them and explain meds to the uncle (staff in the house). Care for some wounds, decide a kids tooth needs to be extracted and will call dentist, arrange for an uncle to take three different kids to different appointments tomorrow (yeah for delegation!), meet with the head cook about the list of food to get this week for the kids…..

– Back home for dinner, a chat with Harvey, a missionary who has been here for 41 years (!) and here I am.

Well, not sure all this will interest many of you. But, hey, it is my blog 🙂

Bringing light to Africa

Well, I’ve decided Nigeria is not the place for me this year.
I don’t know why (or why not) but I just haven’t had a peace about going back this year with the “Crazy Texas Team” and the CWF.
Maybe God has something else lined up for me – school, another ministry, I don’t know.
But while I was in Nigeria last year, I kept asking myself, “Why is there not more solar power being used.”
Africa is prime for renewable energy sources. We were constantly fighting with the power going out throughout the day or evening and so many others don’t even have the option for electricity.
But now a guy in Houston has put together a new light for Africa, BoGo.
It’s a solar powered flashlight. Seriously. Watch the video:

The flashlights run for 5 hours on a 10 hour charge. What a way to change a continent.
For $25 you can get your own flashlight and Mark Bent will send one of the flashlights to the African charity of your choice or a member of the US Military serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
I’d like to challenge everyone to buy the flashlight and give it to the “Crazy Texas Team” to take with them at the end of September. I’ve sent an email to a couple people on the team, so hopefully they can sign up and be a partner as well, so everyone that is purchased can get another one sent to the group but until then you can pick another African charity to give your second light to as well.
If you’d like more information, let me know.

Erin heading back to Nigeria

From Erin Rigsby:

Yes! Tomorrow (Monday) I fly to Nigeria! What a journey this has been. Thank you for being a part of my life.
Prayer points for the journey:

1) I have 10 boxes that need to make it on the plane with me – full of goodies for the kids and my stuff, too. Although British Airways says it should not be a problem, I know things can change when I get to the desk. Please pray that the person who helps me is in a good mood and that all goes smoothly.
2) I fly from Austin – Chicago – London – Abuja, Nigeria. The total travel is about 40 hours and I arrive in Nigeria at 10:40pm Tuesday night, Texas time. Please pray that I will be able to sleep on the flights.
3) When I arrive in Abuja, a SIM driver will pick me up, along with another SIM missionary couple and we will drive 3 1/2 hours to my home in Jos! The roads are dangerous (traffic and other things 🙂 so please do pray for safety.
4) On Thursday at 10:00am TX time – I get to see my boys!!! They are holding a praise and worship party for me and I am so happy to see them!!!!

Thank you for your love and prayers. I will send an email out in about a week or so – from Nigeria.
Praise God, from Whom all blessing flow. He reigns!

Erin

www.webmissions.net/erinrigsby
http://erinrigsby.blogspot.com/ (for weekly updates from Nigeria)

Nigerians continue to fly

From the BBC:

Nigerians fly despite the risks
Nigeria’s government plans to consolidate the airline industry
Years of neglect and lack of investment in basic infrastructure and weak regulatory control mean flying in Nigeria has long been risky.
Sunday’s crash of an ADC Boeing 737 into a cornfield just 2km (1.2 miles) from Abuja’s main airport was the third major airline disaster in a year.
The spiritual leader of Nigeria’s 70 million Muslims, the sultan of Sokoto, two senators and the son of a former president were among the 96 who died.
Nigerians are grieving but angry too.
Just over a year ago, a passenger jet operated by Bellview went down near Lagos, killing 117 people.
Seven weeks later, a plane operated by the Nigerian airline Sosoliso crashed on landing in the southern city of Port Harcourt, killing 106 people, half of whom were children.

China to rebuild Nigerian train system

While we were in Nigeria we came across a lot of abandoned railway. The Nigerians told us that the rails were built during British rule and they had been abandoned in the last 10 years or so. But now, according to the BBC, China will buid a new railway between Lagos and Kano. A second phase will connect Jos to the system.

China to build Nigerian railway
Nigeria’s railways have fallen into disrepair
China is to build a railway line between Nigeria’s two main commercial cities, Lagos and Kano.
An $8bn contract was signed by the deputy transport minister and the president of the Chinese firm (CCECC).
CCECC President Lin Rongxin said 50,000 Nigerians would work on the 1,315km line which he said was “a design, construct and maintain project”.
Nigeria’s leader said the five-year north-south line was the first phase in a 20-year modernisation programme.
President Olusegun Obasanjo, who watched the signing, said the second phase of the railway project would include a link between the southern oil city of Port Harcourt and the central city of Jos.
The existing railway along these routes has fallen into disrepair and new tracks are to be built under the deal with China.
China recently granted Nigeria a loan of $2.5bn and much of this is expected to be used in the railway project.
Earlier this year Nigeria repaid a multi-billion dollar debt it owed to the Paris Club, becoming the first African nation to settle with its official lenders.
Nigeria is one of the world’s biggest oil exporters, but it is also one of the world’s poorest countries, with the majority of the population living on less than $1 per day.

Nigerian airline licence suspended

After the airline accident of and ADC plane on Sunday in Abuja, the Nigerian goverment has suspended the airlines license.
From AND:

Nigeria suspends Airline’s Licence

By MARTIN KING

Nigeria (AND) Nigeria suspends the operational licence of the Aviation Development Company (ADC) airline whose plane crashed October 29.
Nigeria October 30 suspended the operational licence of the Aviation Development Company (ADC) airline whose plane crashed a day earlier killing almost all its passengers. In announcing the suspension in Abuja, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation, Prof. Babalola Borishade said: “We cannot continue to do everything we are doing in the provision of infrastructure and the various regulations and some little persons on their own discretion continue to embarrass the country and send misery to the lives of people’s family.
It is unfortunate.” He said legislative backing was needed to enforce information from the control tower at airports to prevent pilots from disregarding vital information regarding taking off or landing as was the case in the 29 October crash. The ill-fated aircraft was on its way to Sokoto when the crash occurred. Ninety-nine people lost their lives in the crash.
They include Muhammadu Maccido, the Sultan of Sokoto and the President General of Nigeria’s Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, his son, Badamasi Maccido (who is a Nigerian Senator), Sule Yari Gandi(another Nigerian Senator), the, Ahaji Garba Mohammed (Deputy Governor of Sokoto State,north-west Nigeria), among others. President Olusegun Obasanjo was expected to visit the crash site while the area has been cordoned off. Ten years ago, an ADC passenger plane also crashed into Majidun River near Ikorodu in Lagos, killing all the passengers on board.
A ban was similarly placed on the company after that mishap. Meanwhile, fresh facts indicate that the ADC Airline is the fourth registered user of the Boeing 737-200 jet that crashed October 29 in Abuja. The plane was first flown on 27 September, 1983. Manufactured with serial number 22891-LN: 988, the plane’s first owner was USAir. It flew it from 20 October, 1983. It was registered as N323 AU.
The plane wore the colours of the airline till 27 February, 1997, by which time its registration code had been changed to N279 AU. That year, ownership changed hands as US Airways acquired the plane. The latest owner used the plane till 1999 and sold it to Metrojet, another US Airline. ADC Airline bought the plane on 2 September, 2003 and registered the plane as BN-BFK. The plane ended its journey in the shrubs of Gwagwalada, a suburb of Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city on 29 October, 2006.