Introduction to NOPE

After everyone introduced themselves in the Conference Room – I was officially welcomed into the NOPE family, in a purely African manner. One of my colleagues began to sing/chant in Swahili, words I am not sure of, but what the overall message seemed to be of greeting and welcoming me. As he sang all of the staff went round the room, and randomly hugged and shook hands with everyone in the room. This was definitely a memorable experience, some of which I captured via video, and hope to upload soon.

After the greetings, another colleague gave a detailed summation of the work of NOPE, some of which I will borrow and post here:

“The National Organization of Peer Educators (NOPE) is a Kenyan, Non- governmental organization established in the year 2000 within the IMPACT Project of Family Health International. The organization aims at spearheading and harmonizing peer education activities using a standardized curriculum and Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) Strategy. NOPE’s institutional development has been largely supported by USAID through Family Health International (FHI). The organization has branches in Western, Coast and Rift Valley Regions” (NOPE, 2006).

Additionally, the organization has established the NOPE Institute; a Consultancy division that targets corporate clients, NGO and others. The Institute provides Peer Education and other wellness programs. There is much more activities that NOPE is involved in, but since my organizational knowledge is a bit limited currently, I will leave it at that for now.
After the introductions, we all had the opportunity to interact over tea and snacks. Also attending the introductory ceremony was the HIV/AIDS Program Manager from VSO Jitolee. During this time I found out that our housing situation was not yet secure, and we would be in the hotel for a few more days. I was a little disappointed, but I was informed in what area of the city that we would be living, which helped ease my disappointment a bit.

Later that evening however, after I had made it back to the hotel, the VSO Jitolee Program Manager appeared, and offered to take me on a short drive and show me the street that we would be living on – even though he did not know the exact address, I was excited about the opportunity to have an idea of the area that we would be living. Soon thereafter, we jumped in the car, and headed to the Westlands area of Nairobi. I was a bit taken aback; because I had heard from several people that this was a very nice area of the city, and I must say that I was happy by what I saw (even though it was dark outside)! The street that we would be living on was on a very wide street with very nice apartment complexes and stately homes that were set far back from the street. After the quick drive, my apprehension about our living arrangements had subsided tremendously. I was also very appreciative that the Program Manager took time from his personal evening, to try and alleviate one of my biggest concerns – our housing situation.

The following day, I attended the NOPE Business Summit that offered even more insight on the future goals of the NOPE Institute. One thing I can confidently say is that I am extremely proud to be affiliated with such an esteemed NGO and Institute. I also found out that I would have the next two days off (Thursday and Friday) because we would be moving into our apartment on Thursday!!!!