Making the Most of Banana January 2009
What do you see in a banana?
VoxPop
Summary:
A fruit, a tasty dessert, a business opportunity, a career: what do you see in a banana? Six people describe the importance of bananas in their lives. Inspiring, thought-provoking viewpoints that will get you thinking about the amazing influence of this commonplace fruit.
Suggested introduction:
They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Would it be the case for bananas? Coming up are six people - sharing their views on what they see in a banana.
Tape in:
I see a very tasty dessert. I smell a...
Tape out:
...crop which made me to be here.
Closing Announcement:
Six answers to a simple question: What do you see in a banana? The question was put by Sanday Kabange. What's your answer?
You heard the voices of:
Peter Hartmann, Director of the IITA (the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture)
Esther Mumba, banana worker
Erongo Mwambi, banana labourer
Hezron Mujoki, banana broker
Finyange Pole, banana researcher
Stella Mwashumbe, horticultural assistant
Making the most of it:
Around your office or out in the street, record a vox pop of what people see in a banana.
Transcript
Hartmann
I see a very tasty dessert. I smell a fantastic aroma. I see cash in processing starch, juices. I see people walking around in their villages with new bicycles. I see mechanics who come to the village to fix their bicycles. I see transporters coming to collect the stuff and shipping it to town. I see people in the town market grading it and I see people pricing these grades differently, in other words they are recognising quality now. And then I see that feeding back to the village, where they are investing more in their plants because now the market is recognising their quality. This kind of multiplier is a beautiful thing to see. All in the banana.
Mumba
I work on a large banana farm, and my job is to wash bananas. To me in a banana I see getting a living and taking care of my children.
Mwambi
What I know about banana. It's my father, it's my mum because it provides for me. And by the end of the day I do get something to boast for and I'm so proud of being in this banana business, marketing and selling.
Pole
I'm a research officer at the regional research centre, Mtwapa. I love the science of bananas. And you see the results, they come out striking. It's like you want to increase production and here you have a bigger bunch. You get satisfaction from that science. You are trying to help one or two lives out there. So that is the drive that makes us keep on doing our research.
Mujoki
I'm Hezron Ganga Mujoki and I'm a broker. All I know about bananas is that when I see it, I see something that will make money for me. Yeah that's exactly.
Mwashumbe
My name is Stella Mwashumbe and I'm a technical assistant in the horticulture section and I work for the bananas. When I see banana like this I see a potential cash crop. Those who grow bananas have high potential of taking their children to school. For example, myself, I've gone to school using the funds from bananas. So I can say banana has made me be here, where I am now. So I feel very good when I am working for the crop which made me to be here. End of track.
