One in three people, or 2.4 billion of the world’s population, don’t have access to sanitation facilities. This number equates to about 946 million people who still defecate in the open. Health problems intermix with poverty to create havoc in some of the poorest regions of the world, and such circumstances become prevalent with sanitation in Eritrea, Africa.
Eritrea
The World Health Organization reports that Eritrea remains one of the poorest countries in Africa. The country has experienced independence from Ethiopia for only 16 years, and with this separation comes some developmental setbacks.
In 2018, 66 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and there remains an extreme lack of resources and poverty alleviation programs.
State of Sanitation
In 2008, Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) was adopted by the government of Eritrea. The goal of the program was to end open defecation — a practice that leads to a variety of health concerns such as diarrhea, intestinal worms, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis and polio trachoma. To be open-defecation-free, each household in a community or village must have their own latrine.
In 2010, only 3.5 percent of the rural population of the country had access to a latrine. This meant that over 96 percent of the population continued to practice dangerous hygiene, including open defecation. UNICEF, along with the Ministry of Health, devised a plan to help aid the country’s poorest gain proper sanitation in Eritrea.
Program Design for Proper Sanitation in Eritrea
Education and communication were the program’s two objectives in the effort to disperse proper sanitation in Eritrea. To do this, they first had to alter the taboo tied to talking about the bathroom and toilets.
Additionally, the design took into consideration the Millennium Development Goal of 2015 to have 54 percent of people able to access proper sanitation.
The program evaluated the country by six regions, or zobas, in which reside nine ethnic groups of indigenous people. To best address the concerns of each region, a case study was performed within each ethnic group to discover the specific morals and barriers in accessing sanitation.
In 2012, 52.8 percent of the population within these regions used unimproved water sources, which includes unprotected public wells or rivers and streams. Additionally, sanitation access was scarce, with only 47.3 percent having access to a latrine; in fact, over 75 percent of the rural population defecated in the open.
Tigrinya
The Tigrinya is the largest ethnic group in the country and makes up 55 percent of the population. In 2012, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) surveyed the area on hygiene and sanitation and identified a variety of barriers in the group’s understanding of hygiene.
Firstly, the scarcity of water was a huge problem in the area. Not only did humans share water sources with animals, but also problems of distance and protection of wells raised health concerns regarding sanitation in Eritrea.
Culturally, Tigrinyan people felt that water was holy. As a result, most people felt there was no need to boil water before consumption; however, water can carry bacteria that can lead to such illnesses as schistosomiasis, giardiasis, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and vomiting.
Effective Social Support
To combat cultural and physical barriers within this group, UNICEF designed a plan specific to Tigrinyan. For instance, people were concerned that wood latrines would collapse if they used them, and thus preferred stone latrines.
However, stone materials are difficult to transport, so UNICEF educated the Village Health Committee on how to properly construct the latrines so there would be no chance of collapse. This social support provides the proper knowledge and motivation to follow through with the construction of latrines and sanitation facilities.
Successes
In 2015, almost 600 villages in Eritrea achieved open-defecation-free-status. This statistic represents 30 percent of the rural population of Eritrea — 586,000 people — who now have access to proper sanitation.
Additionally, since the adoption of CLTS the child mortality rate for children under five has dropped. In 2008, the inaugural year of the program, the child mortality rate was 89 percent. The World Bank reports in 2016 that the rate has dropped to 45 percent.
Although the progress is below the MDG of 54 percent with access to improved access by 2015, there have been significant strides in ending preventable diseases from improper sanitation in Eritrea.
– Taylor Jennings
Photo: Flickr
History of Ebola in Senegal
The outbreak of Ebola in Senegal became official at the end of August in 2014. A young man who had traveled from Guinea—a country already inflicted with Ebola—to Dakar (the capital city of Senegal) was confirmed to have the virus. The WHO immediately jumped into action and sent three of the world’s best Ebola epidemiologists to contain the disease and prevent spreading.
Symptoms of Ebola
The first symptoms of Ebola are like the typical signs of flu such as a headache, fever and chills. It spreads through contact of bodily fluids resulting in internal bleeding and organ failure. A person with a late stage of the virus often shows symptoms such as coughing up blood.
The disease has a fatality rate of up to 90 percent. Ebola can be contracted from the bodies of those who died from it, particularly when relatives bury them without protective gear.
About the History of Ebola in Senegal
Senegal was in a relatively advantageous position when Ebola struck their country because they had time to prepare as they watched it spread in neighboring countries. A National Crisis Committee was established quickly, to which funds were allocated in order to suppress the virus. To be safe, the government of Senegal expanded the eradication plan nationwide in response to the single case found in Dakar.
The fight against Ebola started with locating every person that came in contact with the first infected man in the country. After 74 people were identified, they were monitored intently to watch for signs of symptoms. The few that showed any symptoms similar to that of Ebola were tested, and all tests came back negative.
The infected man was treated in a hospital and recovered fully. He was allowed to re-enter the society once it was decided he was not carrying any contagion.
Around the time that Ebola broke out in Senegal, the country closed its borders to travelers from Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. This safety measure was taken in response to the massive epidemic of Ebola in those countries. The president of Senegal stated publicly that it should not just be an African emergency, but a global priority.
Senegal was lucky in comparison to its neighbors. The case of Ebola in Senegal is a perfect example of the positive effects proactive measures can have. Because Senegal took precautions before Ebola was found in their country, they were prepared for the disease when it was discovered.
Ebola-Free Senegal
A major factor in the success of Senegal’s fight against Ebola is the awareness they had about Ebola’s advances in their surrounding countries. Some of the measures Senegal took could be seen as excessive, but their “better safe than sorry” attitude contributed significantly to their Ebola-free status.
After the standard 42-day waiting period for Ebola cases, Senegal was declared Ebola-free by WHO on October 17, 2014. The country has not had another case since.
When the government of a country prioritizes the safety and health of its people, innumerable lives are saved. The diligence of Senegal ensured there was no more than one case found and no deaths from Ebola.
Even a disease as fatal and severe as Ebola can be prevented when fought effectively. Other nations can use Senegal’s response to Ebola as a role model for how to fight the disease.
– Amelia Merchant
Photo: Flickr
Top 10 Facts About Hunger in Kenya
Kenya is a country in North East Africa (also known as the Horn of Africa) located on the Indian Ocean coastline. The countries in the Horn of Africa have been frequently hit by droughts that lasted for decades. As a result of this, Kenya suffered and still suffers from extreme food shortages that lead to illnesses and in many cases to death. To understand Kenya’s struggles and progress, below are the top 10 facts about hunger in Kenya.
Top 10 Facts about Hunger in Kenya
Food is a necessity to live but in Kenya food almost seems like a privilege since so many obstacles need to be faced in order to feed a family. Besides food shortages, Kenyans have to deal with a horrendous climate and an unstable government which creates a cycle of unfortunate events.
These top 10 facts about hunger in Kenya give an idea of the struggles these people have to face. Fortunately, Kenya continues to lift itself up out of poverty with the help from surrounding countries.
– Kristen Uedoi
Photo: Flickr
A Look at the History of Ebola in Nigeria
The Ebola virus is a very rare, but very deadly, disease that occurs in humans and other primates. It originates from sub-Saharan Africa where the viruses causing the disease are found. People contract it after contact with an infected person or animal, whether alive or dead. So far, there is no approved vaccine or treatment for the virus as yet, and it is currently treated by dealing with the symptoms.
The History of Ebola in Nigeria
The history of Ebola in Nigeria is, fortunately, a short one. The deadly virus found its way onto Nigerian soil on July 20, 2014, by airplane after a Liberian man infected by the virus had flown into Lagos from Monrovia. He collapsed shortly after landing and was rushed to a hospital where he was tested for malaria as well as HIV before the doctors checked for Ebola, which yielded a positive result. The man died on July 25, 2014.
Upon discovery, The Nigerian Port Health Services began performing tests and trying to trace those possibly infected. An announcement was made notifying the public of the virus’ presence and its dangers. Precautions were taken to ensure that patients of the virus be isolated and treatment facilities, also standing as quarantines, were set up in Lagos and, eventually, in Port Harcourt.
The infected man exposed 72 people to the virus at the airport and in the hospital. After his death, it was confirmed that 19 people were infected, but only seven of those people died, making the total fatality of the situation close to 40 percent.
Response to the Threat
There was a grave threat posed to the country’s well being and its population by the arrival of the virus in Lagos, the largest city in Africa and a central hub of activity, particularly because of its crowded nature. The over-population alone, without the lack of equipment and facilities, posed a major threat that the Ebola virus could spread like wildfire, wiping out millions of people in a short period of time.
Another threat posed to the country was the lack of supplies and equipment because it put the healthcare professionals at risk of contracting and even transmitting the disease while treating infected patients. However, the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) reacted quite quickly to the situation, and the rapid response played a big part in the speed and precision with which the disease was contained.
The World Health Organisation (WHO), along with The United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Doctors Without Borders, UNICEF and other organizations came together to assist Nigeria in their time of crisis and provided experts who led efforts in tracing the disease as well as in assessing the risks and providing adequate medical care.
The country was officially declared Ebola-free in October of 2014 after twice the maximum incubation period of the disease had passed. Ebola takes 21 days to rear its head in victims, so WHO waited 42 days before finally declaring the country free of the disease. However, the government and health experts in WHO offices in Nigeria still remain alert since the risk of the country being hit by another outbreak through imported cases will always remain high.
Minor Improvement Needed in Nigeria’s Response to Ebola
The Nigerian government was commended for coordinating an effective response to the outbreak as the government immediately began repurposing funds and resources to the many organizations involved at the onset of the outbreak, which paved the way for the quarantine and treatment of Ebola patients.
While the government’s response was quite adept, a few issues were noted at the time that deterred the speed of elimination of the deadly virus. First, there was a delay in the arrival of resources at The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and the delay in arrival meant a delay in treatment. The political leaders did not grasp the extent to which even a small outbreak of Ebola would threaten the entire country if it were exposed to the people, especially in public spaces like hospitals and airports.
Additionally, the general public, while made aware of the outbreak, did not know the specifics of the disease and as a result, the broadcasting of the existence in Ebola in the areas caused a panic even in people who were too far away from the location to be affected by it. In their ignorance, people resorted to useless and somewhat harmful methods in order to prevent the virus, such as drinking large amounts of salt water.
There was also a delay in the establishment of a working isolation ward due to the Nigerian health workers refusing to help with the Ebola patients for fear of contracting the virus. This showed a lack of information about how Ebola is transmitted and a lack of training against the virus, a problem which the country would have to fix.
Despite all the issues pointed out, the Nigerian government responded quickly and well enough to ensure that the outbreak was contained and the country was free of the disease. Their decision to use EOCs to respond to the virus ensured that the history of Ebola in Nigeria was a success story, and Nigeria stands as an example of how to deal with emergency outbreaks in the future.
– Aquillina Panashe Ngowera
Photo: Flickr
Boldness and Books: Prioritizing Education for Refugees in Uganda
Refugees from almost all of the countries that border Uganda — such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Kenya and South Sudan — chose to seek safety in Uganda over the last 20 years due to conflict.
Nakivale is a refugee settlement in Uganda that offers access to education and gives refugee children the opportunity to grow into leaders — a skillset that helps protect them from child labor and child marriage. Education in an impoverished area like Uganda can result in many positive benefits.
Educational Resources in Nakivale
Uganda encourages refugees to prosper, especially when it comes to education. Nakivale hosts more than 100,000 refugees, and provides them with numerous resources.
These resources include land, materials needed to build a home or a building where education can be present, and the opportunity to create one’s own work including through the avenue of education.
Working to Improve Educational Opportunities for Refugees
The chance to grow and build a community is embraced for refugees in Uganda. While there are indeed resources for educational opportunities, access to an established education system for children is limited in Nakivale.
However, there are initiatives for helping improve the lack of education. Since the government and the people of Nakivale are supportive of allowing refugees coming into their country, they are also willing to provide tools to promote education.
One way that education is being improved in Nakivale is through the creation of a university. A group of young men in Nakivale created a university in the camp because they wanted to ensure that children had access to safe and adequate education.
Bridging the Gap
In 2016, 3.5 million refugee children did not have access to education. Knowledge is crucial to the impoverished because it can help them become leaders, build up their communities and keep them away from child labor and child marriage.
Refugees in Uganda have the tools and support they need to have an education. Education in an impoverished area not only benefits the people but also helps get rid of global poverty. Being educated, especially when dealing with global poverty, can help create a positive result for all impoverished populations.
– Kelly Kipfer
Photo: Flickr
YAS! Portal-Platform Paves the Way for Youth Entrepreneurs in Africa
The world is full of innovative thinkers and passionate experimenters. To ensure that these minds are able to make a lasting impact on the world, there needs to be certain types of support to exponentially increase the success rate of the idea. One such support avenue is to encourage youth entrepreneurs in Africa to utilize their skill sets and ideas to benefit not only their communities but also the globe.
The Youth for Africa and SDGs (YAS!) Portal Platform
Recently, the United Nations Development Program launched a Pan-African Entrepreneurship Portal-Platform with the help of Accenture in East, West, and Southern Africa to create an online support community for youth entrepreneurs in Africa.
The Youth for Africa and SDGs (YAS!) Portal Platform was designed and implemented with the intention to cultivate an online network that would promote mentorship between youth entrepreneurs in Africa and established professionals, funding for members and projects, sharing of information that would lead to future developments, and networking between individuals with similar interests and goals.
“YAS! will better serve the private sector with innovation, supplier diversification and talent on the African continent and in parallel accelerate the growth of the entrepreneurship eco-system,” said Sandiso Sibisi, Accenture Africa’s Open Innovation Lead.
Youth for Africa and SDGs’ Four Pillars of Support
The Youth for Africa and SDGs focus on its four pillars of support: Learn, Ecosystem Map, Challenges, and Opportunities.
“YAS! is a much needed Pan African digital mechanism for youth entrepreneurs to access opportunities and contribute to the positive transformation of the continent through the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said Tomas Sales, the United Nations Development Programme Advisor for Private Sector.
YAS! and the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals are important in any plan for the future because those 17 goals are designed to apply universally to all peoples.
As the Millennium Development Goals are the predecessors to the SDGs, it can be stated without a doubt that these goals are working towards a better world for all. In the case of YAS!, the most important goals are to end poverty, protect the environment and allow people to have the freedom of choice in their futures.
A New and Improved World
A YAS! Informational Leaflet asserts that it focuses on Sustainable Development Goals because they “present a universal call to action by the United Nations for all stakeholders to join efforts to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity.”
This digital platform serves to be a place for young entrepreneur minds to flourish and grow while serving as an advocate for achieving the U.N.’s SDGs.
It will allow people to connect with each other as well as work together in achieving something more than just an idea or a project. With YAS!, the entire future can change as these young minds are given the opportunity to work for bettering the world and their lives.
– Jenny S. Park
Photo: Flickr
USAID in Ethiopia: Creating a Secure and Sustainable Future
Ethiopia once had some of the highest poverty rates in the world. Since 2000, the poverty level in Ethiopia has been steadily decreasing due to agricultural and economic growth and education.
Although progress is being made towards creating a secure and sustainable future for a majority of Ethiopians, 34 percent of Ethiopians are still living in poverty and facing challenges such as having adequate food to feed their families. Thankfully, organizations such as USAID in Ethiopia and various programs are positively providing solutions to the poverty cycle.
Productive Safety Net Program
Based on the successes of the Graduation with Resilience to Achieve Sustainable Development program (GRAD) that ran from 2011 to 2016, the government of Ethiopia continues to address food insecurity through the fourth phase of the rural Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP 4).
Through USAID’s Feed the Future Ethiopia program, Livelihoods for Resilience is a program that supports PSNP 4 by addressing farming, agricultural and other non-work-related problems keeping Ethiopians without a secure food source.
Livelihoods for Resilience
Livelihoods for Resilience is another five-year program that’s been in existence from 2016 to 2021. The goal is to continue the successes of GRAD by educating communities on finance, business, agriculture, climate change and gender equality.
With a $48 million budget, Livelihoods for Resilience is led by CARE, a U.S.-based charity organization that partners with local organizations to implement the most effective strategies for positive change in communities. These efforts can then lead to a secure and sustainable future for those working their way out of poverty.
The VESA Model
The foundation for GRAD and Livelihoods for Resilience is a community-based education model — Village Economic and Social Associations (VESAs). Through VESAs, communities are educated in finance, business and agricultural trainings.
The VESA model allows a large number of people to be helped and educated at a low cost. With the goal of increasing sustainable skills and income, VESAs proved successful as 80 percent of GRAD participants graduated from government-sponsored safety net programs.
Financial security and savings are a new and foreign concept to many families living in poverty. Livelihoods for Resilience makes sure financial and business education are at the core of VESAs to ensure families possess a secure and sustainable future.
Nature and Crop Loss
The unpredictable nature of Ethiopian weather can wipe out entire crops and ruin farmer’s income in an instant. By providing half of all participants with new agricultural training and better seeds and working with agro-dealers to provide families with the inputs necessary to make lucrative changes, GRAD reduced weather-related crop loss by 40 percent.
By distributing seed vouchers with women’s names on them after El Nino hit, women were able to easily replant crops after droughts wiped out their previous ones.
Saving through VESAs is a safe, low-risk way for poor families to invest. Gradually, families pay off loans as they make more money from small businesses or farming while they continue to invest financially in a secure and sustainable future.
Benefits of the GRAD Program
GRAD participants’ savings increased by 12 percent and their assets doubled by increasing family savings and building the family’s assets. Income for family’s using the GRAD program went up on average of $353 a year. In fact, some family’s incomes rose by nearly $1,000.
In addition to business and farming tips, families also learn how to safely feed infants, and about gender equality and food insecurity. Also, 77 percent of GRAD participants were able to save their money in VESAs and get access to loans. Livelihoods for Resilience supports 5,000 VESAs and 350 youth VESAs.
Promoting and Possessing Gender Equality
Gender equality is a key factor in Livelihoods for Resilience. By promoting gender equality, GRAD empowers women to make the same wages as men. GRAD believes that poverty reduction processes cannot be truly made until women are providing just as much income and decision-making as the men in the house. Not only does gender equality raise the income for the family, but it also creates a community built upon respect and understanding.
In addition to women leadership training, men are taught how to be respectful and change behaviors damaging to the family and themselves. Not only were women able to make more decisions in the house by seven times what they previously had, but the number of women who were able to make a living increased by ten times its prior.
USAID in Ethiopia
Programs like GRAD and Livelihoods for Resilience give poor communities the reigns for creating a secure and sustainable future. By educating communities on gender equality, smart agriculture and livestock practices and business, families now have the tools they need to become independent from government assistance — no matter what the future holds.
Although families and communities continue to graduate from government assistance programs like PSNP 4, the importance of USAID in Ethiopia will remain until all families have the tools necessary to sustain their lives out of poverty.
– Hope Kelly
Photo: Flickr
Sanitation in Eritrea: Efforts to End Open Defecation
One in three people, or 2.4 billion of the world’s population, don’t have access to sanitation facilities. This number equates to about 946 million people who still defecate in the open. Health problems intermix with poverty to create havoc in some of the poorest regions of the world, and such circumstances become prevalent with sanitation in Eritrea, Africa.
Eritrea
The World Health Organization reports that Eritrea remains one of the poorest countries in Africa. The country has experienced independence from Ethiopia for only 16 years, and with this separation comes some developmental setbacks.
In 2018, 66 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and there remains an extreme lack of resources and poverty alleviation programs.
State of Sanitation
In 2008, Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) was adopted by the government of Eritrea. The goal of the program was to end open defecation — a practice that leads to a variety of health concerns such as diarrhea, intestinal worms, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis and polio trachoma. To be open-defecation-free, each household in a community or village must have their own latrine.
In 2010, only 3.5 percent of the rural population of the country had access to a latrine. This meant that over 96 percent of the population continued to practice dangerous hygiene, including open defecation. UNICEF, along with the Ministry of Health, devised a plan to help aid the country’s poorest gain proper sanitation in Eritrea.
Program Design for Proper Sanitation in Eritrea
Education and communication were the program’s two objectives in the effort to disperse proper sanitation in Eritrea. To do this, they first had to alter the taboo tied to talking about the bathroom and toilets.
Additionally, the design took into consideration the Millennium Development Goal of 2015 to have 54 percent of people able to access proper sanitation.
The program evaluated the country by six regions, or zobas, in which reside nine ethnic groups of indigenous people. To best address the concerns of each region, a case study was performed within each ethnic group to discover the specific morals and barriers in accessing sanitation.
In 2012, 52.8 percent of the population within these regions used unimproved water sources, which includes unprotected public wells or rivers and streams. Additionally, sanitation access was scarce, with only 47.3 percent having access to a latrine; in fact, over 75 percent of the rural population defecated in the open.
Tigrinya
The Tigrinya is the largest ethnic group in the country and makes up 55 percent of the population. In 2012, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) surveyed the area on hygiene and sanitation and identified a variety of barriers in the group’s understanding of hygiene.
Firstly, the scarcity of water was a huge problem in the area. Not only did humans share water sources with animals, but also problems of distance and protection of wells raised health concerns regarding sanitation in Eritrea.
Culturally, Tigrinyan people felt that water was holy. As a result, most people felt there was no need to boil water before consumption; however, water can carry bacteria that can lead to such illnesses as schistosomiasis, giardiasis, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and vomiting.
Effective Social Support
To combat cultural and physical barriers within this group, UNICEF designed a plan specific to Tigrinyan. For instance, people were concerned that wood latrines would collapse if they used them, and thus preferred stone latrines.
However, stone materials are difficult to transport, so UNICEF educated the Village Health Committee on how to properly construct the latrines so there would be no chance of collapse. This social support provides the proper knowledge and motivation to follow through with the construction of latrines and sanitation facilities.
Successes
In 2015, almost 600 villages in Eritrea achieved open-defecation-free-status. This statistic represents 30 percent of the rural population of Eritrea — 586,000 people — who now have access to proper sanitation.
Additionally, since the adoption of CLTS the child mortality rate for children under five has dropped. In 2008, the inaugural year of the program, the child mortality rate was 89 percent. The World Bank reports in 2016 that the rate has dropped to 45 percent.
Although the progress is below the MDG of 54 percent with access to improved access by 2015, there have been significant strides in ending preventable diseases from improper sanitation in Eritrea.
– Taylor Jennings
Photo: Flickr
Facts about Poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The facts about poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) reveal that poverty in the country is a result of the combination of conflict spilling over from neighboring African nations and an embedded culture of governmental corruption.
The facts about poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo will address the underlying causes and how the DRC has been able to improve impoverished conditions in recent years.
Top 10 Facts about Poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The facts about poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo provide an understanding of not only the history and effects of poverty in the country but also working solutions to address the issue.
– Kimberly Keysa
Photo: Flickr
Khalsa Aid: Clean Water Access in Malawi
Founded in 1999, Khalsa Aid is a U.K.-based organization that has the aim to provide humanitarian aid in disaster areas and civil conflict zones around the world.
So far, its tireless efforts have included assisting victims of the Yemen Civil War and refugees landing on the shores of Greece from the Middle East, as well as extending support to the Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar. In a more recent relief project, this organization gave food to 8,000 people who were affected by the floods in Kerala and continues to provide aid to bring life back to normal.
In the recent years, this organization has also made a huge effort in providing clean water in Malawi.
Langar Aid
In 2015, through its long-term initiative Langar Aid, Khalsa Aid dedicated a team for its Malawi Project.
Though considered to be one of the smallest and least developed countries in the African continent, Malawi region is widely known to be the warm heart of Africa. In 2015, the region suffered a major setback from one of its worst floodings and according to the United Nations, close to a quarter of a million people remained displaced, facing disease and malnutrition. With total estimated damages of $50 million and 15 affected districts out of Malawi’s total 28, the Malawi government with the help of UNICEF launched series of relief programs. The aim was to rebuild infrastructure and provide clean water and life-saving food assistance to those affected.
In response to the flooding situation, Khalsa Aid’s humanitarian efforts in Malawi involved initial installation of water pumps in the rural region, and subsequently, the addition of many more water pumps.
In 2015, with the help of donations, the team of Langar Aid went on grounds of Malawi to access the situation and provide assistance to the local communities. After a detailed assessment and consultation, the team felt an urgent need to provide vital food supplies and clean drinking water in the region. A relief team from Khalsa Aid visited the region for an initial assessment and found that many people had no access to clean drinking water due to damaged infrastructure. The team noticed that many people of the country’s town Phalombe had to walk for miles or take a bicycle and carry the buckets of water themselves.
The Success of the Project
Through their interactions with local communities, government and contractors, the team of Khalsa Aid created a permanent water source in the region. The volunteers and team of specialists mobilized drilling resources and after hours of drilling, a suitable water well was found. A hand pump was included on a platform on top of the water well, making it convenient for locals to fetch the water from the well.
Additionally, the people of Malawi along with the village administrative authorities received orientation session and were given handouts explaining the usage and maintenance of installed water pumps. Khalsa Aid now plans on drilling more boreholes in the region of Phalombe to make clean water more accessible for local communities.
Through the project of Langar Aid, Khalsa Aid’s humanitarian efforts in Malawi included an extended support for an estimated 500 families over a month through the provision of “food drops”. These are packages of nutritious meals that contained an assortment of fresh food, vegetables and seasonings. The volunteer team of Langar Aid also installed eco-friendly clean water pumps.
Local government and organizations like WaterAid have also been working to ensure that communities in Malawi region have clean water, toilets and sanitation. Only one in three people in the Malawi region has access to clean water, that amounts to roughly 5.6 million.
A region where more than half the entire population awaits a decent toilet and where dirty water and poor toilets are a prime reason for deaths of 31,000 children in a year, noble initiatives like Khalsa Aid are getting much appreciation and extensive global support.
– Deena Zaidi
Photo: Flickr
History of Ebola in Guinea
A rapidly spreading virus with a high fatality rate and no cure, Ebola was first recorded in Guinea in 2013 with the death of a local two-year-old boy. This marked the first outbreak of Ebola in all of West Africa. Since then, the highly fatal virus has been spreading throughout neighboring countries such as Sierra Leone and Liberia, leaving a trail of death behind it.
History of Ebola in Guinea: A Look at the First Case
A two-year-old boy living in the remote village of Meliandou, Guinea, Emile Ouamouno is the first recorded case of Ebola in West Africa. According to the EMBO Molecular Medicine journal, researchers believe Ouamouno was playing with bats in a hollowed tree trunk when he contracted the virus. He died two days later after battling a fever, vomiting and black stool. His mother, sister and grandmother expired soon after. The deadly virus was spreading. In a span of four months, residents of Meliandou buried 14 people due to Ebola. By March, the virus had emerged in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. Panic began to set in around the globe.
Containment and Quarantine in Guinea
It wasn’t until months later that Ouamouno’s death was recognized as Ebola. On March 23, 2013, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the outbreak in Guinea and reported that 49 people were already infected.
The same month, Guinea’s President Alpha Conde declared a 45-day national health emergency. In a national statement, Conde banned those who had contact with Ebola victims from leaving their homes and anyone who disregarded this measure was “a threat to the public and will face the might of the law.”
Transportation and travel came to a halt. Ebola is transmitted through bodily fluids such as spit or blood and handling infected bodies can also lead to contraction of the virus. Border control in Guinea intensified and travel restrictions increased. However, none of this could stop animals that cross borders effortlessly, carrying the virus with them. The history of Ebola in Guinea continued to rage on.
The Illusion of Elimination
Heavily stigmatized by society, Ebola victims would often hide their illness and continue to interact with society. With an incubation period of up to three weeks, it is impossible to test positive for Ebola until symptoms show. By then, it might be too late. Villages quarantined themselves out of fear.
Others doubted the very existence of Ebola. A member of the Fula ethnic group had a different explanation. “This outbreak isn’t real. How could we be having Ebola here?” he said. “President Conde made it up because he’s trying to delay elections.”
Ebola continued to spread in 2014 with no end in sight, despite educational campaigns and international health workers. In fact, the health workers contributed to the conspiracy theories. Dressed in all yellow, moving stiffly and setting up quarantined tents where loved ones entered and never returned prompted fear in the locals. Some villagers began to spread rumors that the medical workers were harvesting organs and stealing limbs. The number of people willing to enter quarantine tapered off.
Reemergence of Ebola in Guinea
In late May, the last case of Ebola in Guinea was symptom-free for 21 days. President Conde announced, “for the moment, the situation is well in hand.” International medical workers began to depart the country and communities let out sighs of relief. At that moment, the nightmare was over.
In late July, a new patient was admitted. By the end of the month, dozens more from all over Guinea. The presence of Ebola in Guinea continued and was worse than ever.
The Deadliest Year
In 2014, more than 1,500 people died from Ebola in West Africa. Meliandou. This is where Ebola began in Guinea with the death of Emile Ouamouno, only to be isolated and ostracized from the national community. Surrounding villages refused to trade and vehicles were scared to enter the borders. In Meliandou, Ebola became less of a concern as people began to suffer hunger and poverty.
Free of Ebola
On December 29, 2014, Guinea was declared free of Ebola. However, Guinea was still in a state of heightened surveillance for the next three months. More than a year passed with Guinea recovering from the health emergency and mourning those who died.
In March 2016, two people in Guinea tested positive for Ebola. Fear began to creep up again in local communities. By March 22, 2016, more than 816 people in contact with the individuals had been quarantined and Liberia closed its borders with Guinea.
On April 1, 2016, an experimental vaccination was used on those with suspected contact with infected individuals. On April 5, 2016, it was reported that nine new cases of Ebola emerged in Guinea. Eight died. The WHO implemented a short incubation period and on June 1, 2016, declared Guinea free of Ebola. At last, the history of Ebola in Guinea came to a close.
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