Today was another milestone in the building of the recording studio and Chejeji FM’s first home; it was time to pour the concrete floor. We are over a month behind our desired schedule due to the lack of cement in Ikelenge! We were wondering if it was an issue with the road as that is getting steadily worse due to the rains, but the cement sellers here in Ikelenge have informed us that there is actually a shortage of cement nation wide. Many builders throughout Zambia are desperately searching for cement to finish their projects, some going to other cities and clearing out deposits of cement in rural areas in order to get what they need.
A few weeks ago we tried to buy some cement in Mwinilunga, but they had none in stock at that time, so from our understanding there was no cement within about 200km of our location for almost 3 weeks (again!) and when it did come it was snatched up so quickly that we only managed to get a few bags at that time. However, thankfully we were able to get all that we needed when the next truck came a few days ago since we put in an order in advance and were in contact with the supplier.
So, with the preparation done yesterday, workers showed up early today and were soon busy with their various measuring tasks: some on cement, some on sand, some on stones and others water. Soon, after some hard hand mixing, wet concrete was being brought into the first room and dumped on the prepared vapor barrier and con-force… the builders took it from there!
It has been a long day full of surprises and adjustments, but that is always the case at the start of a new type of work. However, the day has gone well and we have managed to fine tuned things so that the rest of the work will flow more smoothly and efficiently. There is still lots to do before this stage is done, but we are thankful for a good start.
Lunda 
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