The Health Centre
Today, we went to the Nyamata Health Education Centre. Women bring their malnourished children there to learn about nutrition. As we walked into the room, the women began to sing a song of welcome, inviting us to sit down.
Volunteers and community leaders are taught to identify malnourished children within the communities. The mothers are then told that they must enrol in a three-month, once-per-week nutrition education program which was designed by UNICEF and is supported by World Vision. Some women refuse, and the children are then taken by force.
The women must bring porridge to feed their children (who come with them) in the morning. They then spend time learning about health, nutrition, clean water, and hygiene. Then comes a cooking class, and which ends by eating the lesson for lunch. After long periods of malnutrition, the children cease to be hungry, so as they eat they are made to sit in a circle facing one another. Apparently watching another child eat increases their appetite.
After the end of the three-month program, the woman are expected to educate other women in their community about the signs of malnutrition and how to feed their children properly.
After the presentation, I asked if Rwanda still has children die of malnutrition. The answer is no. Although malnutrition is widespread, it never reaches that level of severity. If a child does die of malnutrition, the community leaders can be imprisoned, as the death of that child is considered to be on their shoulders.
The kids at the centre were so beautiful. They are in different stages of recovery, so some were still weak, but most were excited to have an audience. One little guy (I’d guess he’s about three) spent the entire time waving and smiling at us. When the woman sang us a farewell song, he and his friend danced along with a baby who looked like he was taking his first steps. So cute!
The Cooperative
We also visited Mama Sifa’s Cooperative Association. It is a cooperative of women (not all widows) who get together to weave baskets and care for cows. Mama Sifa’s house is next door to the Ntamara church (where 5000 people were killed). Her husband was killed in the genocide. He was an important man in the community, and you can tell that before the war, their house was impressive compared to the rest in the village. Mama Sifa is very proud that one cow has started producing milk. She offered us a yogurt drink from the cow… it had been boiled, and then left to cure for 24 hours. I’m proud to report that I was one of the few in our group who were brave/ polite enough to accept, but I have to say that I was praying the whole time that I wouldn’t throw up or gag in front of them. Let’s just say that it wasn’t quite to North American tastes or food safety practises.
I was delighted to see Agnus (Jean Pierre and Assumpta’s mother) at the cooperative. I kept hoping that one of the children would show up, but they didn’t. It’s not like she could have just called them from a cell phone.
The cooperative faces three main challenges:
They need sewing machines.
Their inventory doesn’t turn over quickly in the local markets.
The women are unable to show up regularly.
I’m happy to say that two people in our group looked after the first problem today. I also plan on investigating some solutions to the second problem once I return.
The Mentorship Program
Lastly, we met with the Orphans’ Mentorship Program. For some strange reason, we met with them in a primary school yard just as classes were ended… what a zoo!
Last year, World Vision began to identify orphans living on their own in the community and began to work with them to solve their most pressing problems. The worst thing for the orphans was that they felt like they were living in isolation. So, World Vision sent them out to observe their community and select a few people who they thought would make good mentors. The potential mentors were informed of this request and asked if they would accept. They now watch out for the orphans, assist them in finding work during holidays, give them advise, help them with home repairs, and other things that a parent might do.
We were surprised to see that Emanuel Blue is a mentor. Some people in our group were amazed that the forgiveness extends to such a point that he is now trusted with children. Others were upset and believed it was wrong for him to be in such a position. I struggle with it. Really, because I’ve never been in their situation, how can I judge whether the set-up is right or wrong?
