A Story From Uganda
First of all a Big Thank You to everyone who has so far supported my on-line campaign. I have now raised over £3000 on-line – 6% of my target. In order to reach my target of £50,000 by 7th Janurary to ensure the continuation of AbleChildAfrica’s valuable work I need to reach a lot more people. Please help me with this by forwarding this email to anyone who you think might be interested in hearing more
Last Friday I noticed a message on facebook from Eva Baguma who works with our Ugandan partner organisation in Kampala which simply read: ‘I hope I never see again what I have seen today. I have seen first hand the extent of human cruelty’.
I wanted to find out what she had seen and why it had disturbed her so much? It turned out that Eva had been on a community outreach in Kampala and met Akram -a severely malnourished 10 year old boy. Akram has Cerebal Palsy which makes it difficult for him to move around and in his case, left him completely dependent on a care taker to feed and nurse him. She told me that Akram was abandoned by is teenage mother and had been left in the custody of a very poor grandmother who can barely afford to take care of him, let alone herself.
Because he was not breast fed as a child, Akram has a very weak immune system. He contracted Malaria which was not properly treated and developed complications as a result beacuse his grandmother could not afford the treament which he needed. He has deteriorated extensively and all that is left is skin and bones. He cannot, walk, talk or take care of himself. His limbs are completely paralysed and he is covered in bed sores from lying down all the time. He is in constant pain and under constant attack from infections. He lives on a purely liquid diet. Eva told me that she fears he does not have very long to live.
I passionately believe that in this world of plenty no child should suffer this much. We are now working to get Akram the healthcare and support he needs.
We know from our work that this is not an isolated incident. Disabled Children suffer from continued rejection, neglect, abuse and marginalisation and often their parents or caretakers are unable or unwilling to help them.
Help save the life of Akram and other children like him by supporting my campaign with just £25 and if you think that its an outrage that in the 21st century children are still suffering like this then please spread the word and help us continue to make a difference.
Stay Informed
-
I am amazed at some of the stories I have read of parents and people overcoming real difficulties. Bringing up a child with special nedds is challenging. In Africa it’s even harder where facilities, care and information is limited. As a mother of a child with Autism, I have been insipred by stories. Keep up the good work of informing and creating an impact.
Thse stories tell me I too can be involved to make a change.
Jackqueline u.k
The Story of Jamal Hassan
Jamal has multiple disabilities; he has cerebral palsy and mental retardation. His mother has died and his father does not care for him and his three siblings properly.
How Jamal came to the school
As Madame Noellah was starting the organization she and the Project Manager, Mr Kunzugala, were visiting communities asking the locals whether there were children with disabilities living locally; the locals showed them Jamal’s family. On reaching the house they did not receive a warm welcome because the family thought that the organization wanted to take pictures and use them to make money like other organizations which had already visited previously. She assured them that Child Support Tanzania wasn’t like the other organizations. The family accepted but after some time they thought that the organization had boarding facilities to accommodate Jamal since it was hard to take care of him in the family; they were told that Jamal would have to stay at home but would be taken care of during the day in the school.
His Start to School
On admission to school in 2009, among one of the first children to be admitted, Jamal was put on toilet training and a physiotherapy program. At first Jamal would cry a lot but as time went on he got used the school and made a lot of friends and he found that the teachers were friendly in their approach.
His life now
Both Jamal’s movement and toilet training has improved a lot thanks to the organization. The father is happy that his son is now progressing well in life. As well as receiving these life skills he also now gets two meals a day to keep him healthy and strong.
The first day we found Jamal and his siblings at Sokomatola area, it was very painful to see an innocent child with his young brother and sisters suffering.
Henry Tooley from England, who was travelling by bicycle from South Africa to Egypt on a mission of fundraising for children with disabilities, visited Jamal and spend some time with them and they were very happy.