When the rains come so do hordes of mosquitoes. Last year they brought not just malaria, but yellow fever. Yellow fever is incurable. It was the worst outbreak in Africa for decades. One in four people die yet
not one person in our 62 Kids for Kids' villages caught it! Kids for Kids is the only organisation that has been providing mosquito nets and blankets to the poorest families in remote villages. They are vital for children's health. We provide two mosquito nets to each family, but up to four children can sleep under each. Most
children sleep directly on the sand in the small round huts. The walls of the huts are made from straw so no barrier to insects. Sandflies carry diarrhoea and sickness so our nets have a specially small mesh to keep
out sandflies too.
When children are malnourished they succumb to chest infections very easily, and there is no health care in villages. We need help to provide two blankets for each family. This is urgent as during the winter
months nights in the desert can be bitterly cold. Please help us to provide more nets and blankets for these children before it is too late.
We need 524 mosquito nets and the same number of blankets right now for children in Byna, Hilat Hamid and Korno. These are the villages we have adopted this year.
This summer 3.5 million people are at risk from starvation, yet in our villages there is no malnutrition. We have incontestable proof that this project, alongside our complete package of help (such as water pumps, goat loans,
donkeys, first aid and midwifes) in our villages has all but eradicated malnutrition. In Azargarfa, a village adopted by the charity in 2004, infant mortality has reduced dramatically from 500 deaths to 2 last year. This is a stunning statistic and shows that our simple help at grassroots’ level is changing lives in the villages but also indicates that there is still so much to do.
We must help more villages. If you can help us to tell people about the work of Kids for Kids in Darfur, you will be making a real lasting difference to the health of children no one else is helping. With your help we have transformed many lives but there are still thousands in desperate need.
The women who graduated as village midwives three months ago are now settling into their new role in their villages. They have now purchased their cross bred donkeys giving them the necessary mobility to be able to reach any women with problems during child birth very quickly. This is of immense importance in contributing to saving lives. The women in the six new villages having the services of a trained village midwife for the first time are particularly happy knowing that they now have expert advice on hand in the village if they encounter problems during pregnancy and childbirth. For the first time they also have the benefit of regular ante-natal checks which enable potential difficulties to be detected early. These services are so vital and appreciated by the women as maternal mortality in the villages in Darfur is very high and our village midwives save many lives. Your support makes all this possible and the peace of mind which you give to the women in Darfur is a precious and priceless gift.
Overall, the value of the trained midwives has become apparent in recent months. Malnutrition is currently rife in the villages in Darfur as soaring inflation has meant that families cannot affort to feed their children. However, there is no malnutrition in Kids for Kids villages and the midwives have played a major part in this providing sound advice to mothers on how to feed their children in the difficult circumstances. The loan of 6 goats by Kids for Kids to the porest families has also played has been another factor pro viding nutrient rich milk to the poorest families.
We are currently in discussion with the Ministry of Health about the next training course for village midwives which we hope to start during the next few months but the process is stalled at present as we area awaiting reports from the Ministry of Health on the activities and performance of the village midwives which form a part of our contract with the Ministry of Health. We are also awaiting a decision on our offer to at least part share the cost of the construction of a second MIdwifery Training School in the north of Darfur.
Good progress is being made on the construction of the first Kids for Kids Kindergarten in Abu Nahla village in Darfur. The walls are completed and the windows and doors have now been fitted - see the attached photographs. These were contributed by the Ministry of Education in a most welcome gesture of support. Kids for Kids always seeks to develop partnerships which enables the funds which we raise to go further and to help more people in the villages in Darfur. The community have requested a verandah to be added to the building to provide valuable outdoor space and an additional teaching area for the children and we are now in consultation with architects to find the most useful but cost effective design. The kindergarten will have two latrines and these will be the first latrines in the village and hopefully will act as an incentive for families to build their own. The educational toys, musical instruments, chairs and tables, blackboards, art materials and sports equipment are being ordered. We are also finalising the design of the uniform which is going to be a dark blue and yellow tabard with the Kids for Kids logo on it. There is a considerable buzz in the village as the community looks forward to the opening of the kindergarten.
