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Personal Perspectives Part 3: Inside look at Burundi’s National NTD Program

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Part three of our four part series featuring award-winning producer Jessica Stuart’s stories from the field:

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011 – Karuzi

Excited children at Canzikiro

We travel 4 hours of bumpy, dusty roads- passing through tea plantations, getting into traffic jams with cattle, to reach the Karuzi Province.  This is a place that doesn’t often have outside visitors, so the cars themselves were a spectacle of mass proportion; not to mention the blonde sunburned woman and the tall South African man with sound gear strapped to him.

We visited a school called Canzikiro and were greeted by thousands of smiling faces. And yet, I am great crowd control because children think I am a ghost or an angel, they either run away or run to me!

We spoke with a teacher and she enthusiastically told us that she sees more children coming to school because they are healthy and because their families are healthy. She has seen a difference of children paying attention in class and able to focus.  The teacher, herself was pregnant. She miscarried the first time, possibly due to anemia from worms herself, but is looking forward to the birth of her first baby next month. There is possibility.

Children at Canzikiro school in Karuzi Province wait in line for school MDA

Children at Canzikiro school in Karuzi Province wait in line for school MDA

Man in Bugenyazi diagnosed with Trachoma

In the afternoon we traveled down more bumpy roads to Bugenyuzi,, a community with approximately 11 percent of the population suffering from Trachoma.  This is a new program and the inhabitants of this community press us for more. They want to know when we are coming back, when the next round of medicine is coming, and how we can help stop the suffering. The area we are in is difficult to get to. The word “remote” doesn’t do justice to its location. These are the bottom billion. These are the poor that are rarely reached, stuck in a cycle of poverty, yet with a desire to do for themselves. They just need a lift, a boost; and we can do that for less than 50 cents. The drugs are there. The knowledge is there. We can eliminate NTDs even from the places and in the corners no one is looking.

That evening, we sit down to a goat brochette, a gin and tonic and a cold shower from a bucket and a cup. There are no mosquito nets, so I sleep with my hooded sweatshirt on, a half bottle of DEET burning my skin, and hope for the best.Malaria is the least of my worries at this point.

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Personal Perspectives Part 2: Inside look at Burundi’s national NTD program

Burundi MDA 2011, de-worming, MDA, Trachoma, Water and Sanitation, , , ,

Part two of our four part series featuring award-winning producer Jessica Stuart’s stories from the field:

Monday, June 20- Mwaro Province

Keith Walker films community members in Mwaro Province

On our first full day of travel in Burundi, we drive 2 hours into the mountains to the Mwaro Province.  Today is a very exciting day for the Global Network and partners; the culmination of over 4 years of work.  The Health Minister,Madame Minister Sabine is in Mwaro Province to Launch National Mother and Child Week. This initiative is an integrated approach at a National Level for an MDA- a mass drug administration. Partners include the Burundian Government, The Global Network, Geneva Global, CBM, WHO, and Schistomiasis Control Initiative (SCI). Here, every pregnant woman and child between 1-5 years old can receive free Albendezole to treat whipworm and roundworm, along with Tetanus vaccinations and Vitamin A distribution provided by UNICEF and partners.

Health Minister Sabine distributes Albendizole to a mother and baby at the Futa Clinic in Mwaro Province

This program is one of the few they are running at a National level after the Genocide and the Civil War.

Because it has devastated the country, infrastructure is practically non-existent. There is evidence of rebuilding, but it will take quite some time. Being among the top poorest countries in the world, Burundi can’t do it alone.

The Minister delivered medicines herself. In a speech, she told the community gathered that no one should suffer from any form of NTDs when the medicine and vaccines are free to the people.   She said there are 9 provinces where worms are ravaging the population. Mwaro is one of them.

If anything is happening in a rural village, the ENTIRE village shows up. It is an inevitable factor.

Health Minister Sabine distributes a tetanus shot at Futa Clinic

Hundreds, maybe even thousands come. Events of any kind are taken very seriously.  And today, Madame Minister’s visit to the “Stadium” (a large field used to play soccer), the village came to listen. Dances were performed and speeches were given. Our interpreter, Gerard, explained to me that each song and dance represented an illness or health initiative. They sang about using malaria nets, how to wash your hands for hygiene, how women should breast feed for the first 6 months. Now, I highly doubt NeYo or Akon or JayZ would create a song about public health, but the moment reminded me of those cartoons we used to watch as children that taught us about Bills on Capitol Hill or how not to over salt your meat. Or at the end of GI Joe when the lesson would come and GI Joe would say “now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

Same concept, different execution.  We aren’t so different.

Minister Sabine at a protocol meeting over an Amstel

We ended our day with Madame Minister and formal government protocol. Protocol was to sit and enjoy a beer and talk about the news, families, etc. One thing I must say about Burundi- the beers are NOT 12 ounces. They are liters.  So, about 50 of us sat around, each sipping our liter of beer.  I don’t even like beer that much, but protocol is protocol!

Our hotel in Mwaro had hot water and electricity. No Internet.  Our dinner took 2 hours to cook and we could only eat what they had left from the day–rice, 2 chicken legs, a chicken wing and some fish for 7 of us. This is the first night, however, we learned about brochette. Brochette in Burundi is a meat kabob. There are brochette shacks all over Burundi.  Brochette and beer is happy hour. Brochette and beer is happy hour with no choice of anything else but brochette and beer, or goat or cow brochette.

At the hotel, Kenny’s room had disco lights in the bathroom. I’m not sure why only his room had flashing green, blue, and red lights –we figured he had the honeymoon suite.

Tuesday, June 21st- Rutuna Province

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New NTD treatment program launches with some help from Miss Brazil

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By: Jessica Stuart

Last week, I filmed the launch of an NTD treatment program in Recife, Brazil with the Global Network. Recife is Brazil’s fourth largest city with 1.5 million people, but one million of those people live in poverty.  Brazil has made incredible progress fighting neglected tropical diseases in many areas, but the poorest of the poor are still at risk for NTDs like Lymphatic Filariasis (LF), leprosy and intestinal worms.  As the country grows into a world superpower, cities like Recife are working with partners like the Global Network, PAHO, and Miss Universe to help eliminate the unnecessary pain and suffering caused by NTDs.

Current Miss Brazil Debora Lyra and former Miss Brazil and BAND TV presenter Renata Fan joined the fight last week with a very special visit to the Jose Cordeiro School in Cohab, Recife.

The children were curious about our visit, and when we told them that Miss Brazil was coming, they were excited. They had so many questions. Why is this happening at their school? Why are they special? Why now?

The school is part of an important outreach effort taking place. Teachers are working to educate the children about NTDs. Most of all, they are there to let the children know that these diseases are PREVENTABLE.   And elimination is possible, especially when you start with a child.  If you can teach a child, a child can bring the knowledge home to a family.

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