On the Side of an Orphan

A community health worker examines a child

It began with the loss of the father to a road accident and the mother to post- natal complications three months after her birth.  While, Bunmi (not her real name) gained a new mother and caregiver in her Aunt, Mrs. Oloye, there was still more to come for the toddler.   During a door-to-door HIV Testing and Counselling campaign, organized by the USAID-supported Local Partners for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (LOPIN), Bunmi was found to be HIV+.
  
Terrified and sad by the test report, Mrs. Oloye was, at the same time relieved that she had found an explanation for her niece’s worsening health condition.  Prior to the diagnosis Bunmi was sickly and sluggish and the aunt a local herb (Agbo) seller was at her wits end over the child’s steady health decline.

To preserve our home, practice the “three Rs”

Environmental issues have now become a regular topic of discussion.  It’s not unusual to hear people ascribe changes in weather patterns to global warming and so on.  It is generally agreed that more needs to be done to protect the environment and sustain it for the good of man and all other species.  

This year the theme for Earth Day is Environmental and Climate Literacy.  According to the Earth Day network, education is the basis for progress and there’s a need to build a community that understands the concept of climate change and the threat it poses to the earth.  As part of our contribution to the climate literacy campaign, here are some reasons why taking care of the earth and by extension our environment matters.

School Children Reflect on the Life of Martin Luther King

Ambassador Entwistle (center) pose with students
and teachers who participated in the Essay
competition -- photo by Idika Onyukwu

February is celebrated as Black History Month in the United States to highlight the struggles and contributions of African-Americans to the country.  Activities are usually held in the United States and in various parts of the world during the month that focuses on different aspects of African-American life and especially those who have made significant contributions to their advancement.

In Abuja, the U.S. Embassy brought together secondary school students in the city to reflect and share their views about foremost American civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  The event was organized in collaboration with the Foundation for Moral and Ethical Development and alumni of the International Visitor Leadership Program.

“Spark a reaction” Summer Reading program begins

The U.S. Embassy annual summer reading program for children kicked off with a large turnout of excited and enthusiastic children and parents.  The program is open to children age six to twelve.   The fifth in the series, participation has grown every year!

The theme for this year’s program is “Spark a reaction,” intended to not only stimulate a love for books and encourage a reading culture among children, but also to  inspire them to make a difference in their community. During the three week program, children have the opportunity to read books covering a wide range of topics - from history to science to geography.  They will also engage in other activities to motivate learning, such as storytelling, spelling bee, poetry, book discussion, arts and crafts and, for the first time, implement a community service project.

Time to Read

By correctly spelling the word “descendant” young Mma won the spelling bee competition for children ages eight to ten years.  This was at the closing ceremony of this year’s summer reading program for kids organized by the American Corner Abuja in conjunction with the U.S. Embassy.

For two weeks the children engaged in different reading activities.  They read books, engaged in reading and writing poems, attended story telling sessions and even some arts and crafts classes.  The sum of the activities reaffirmed and helped the children see that reading could be lots of fun.

Dig into Reading with Storytelling

Children participating at the fourth Summer Reading Program organized by the Abuja American Corner and the U.S. Embassy got a special treat.  This was when Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA)/Funtime Prize winner for Children’s Literature, Spencer Okoroafor, engaged them in a storytelling session. The summer reading program is an annual program aimed at encouraging reading culture amongst Nigerian children. Several different activities including: a spelling bee, poetry and arts and craft, have been infused into this year's reading program themed "Dig into Reading".

Zero Tolerance

I had a shocking experience several years ago noticing a neighbor’s young daughter would constantly cry in the morning while her mother was bathing her.  Upon inquiry, the young girl’s senior sister casually told me in Hausa that “An yi mata kachiya ne” (she had a circumcision).  To say I was shocked by what I heard is an understatement.  I could not believe my ears.  I had heard about such practices but thought they had long been stopped.  When I asked my mother about it, she told me it is alive and still practiced in certain communities.  Further inquiries showed the principal reason given in most cultures for this practice is “to prevent the girl from becoming promiscuous” while others regard it as an important rite of passage.

Catching the Reading Express

The American author Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a Dr. Seuss, a renowned writer of children books once said “the more that you read, the more things you will know…”  As cliché as that may sound, I’m sure we can all agree there is an element of truth to it. Reading opens up the mind and broadens our imagination. It therefore was not a surprise when over 200 children were signed up to participate in the American Corner Abuja Summer Reading Program for children aged 5-13.

The Library table was filled with books of all kinds, spanning a broad range of topics:  the Underground Railroad, the United States Constitution, history of the White House, American singers, American sports legends, animal and plant life, mostly written in a language that children can understand.

Maternal Survival

Many years ago an aunt of mine died during child birth. I was told after the baby came out, the placenta couldn’t and instead of taking her to a health facility the women gathered around, said she should confess her sins and that would ensure the placenta was delivered. She didn’t do this and of course bled to death. This tragedy is probably replayed in different ways throughout Nigeria where too many women die in child birth. Statistics claim that while Nigeria’s population is about 2 percent of the world it contributes ten percent to world maternal, infant and child mortality.

Prevention is Better than Cure

This posting's title is a popular adage in Nigeria mainly used in relation to health issues.  It serves to show the importance of taking measures to prevent illness rather than go through the trouble of treatment.  A very good example of this is getting vaccinated to prevent infection by certain diseases.  Today many diseases that hitherto resulted in death or disability have been brought under control as a result of immunization.  Diseases like smallpox, whooping cough, measles and polio.
First documented vaccines began when a British doctor Edward Jenner noticed milkmaids who had cowpox never contracted small pox.  He then carried out an experiment in 1796 in which puss from a cowpox blister was inserted into an eight year old boy and proved that having been inoculated with cowpox the boy was immune to smallpox.  From this beginning vaccines have been developed to protect against many fatal or serious diseases.  Better yet, smallpox has been eradicated thanks to the pioneering work of Edward Jenner.
Today immunization starts at birth and most are usually completed by the time the child is two years old.  Why start so early?  Why not wait until the child is grown?  This is what the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has to say.

It’s fun to read!

"If fun is what you're after or you're looking for laughter, Read a book! (Read, read! Read, read a book)" So goes a children's song by American musicians Marcy Marxer and Cathy Fink.
There is no doubt that reading can be lots of fun. Not only fun but it opens up new worlds, new experiences and offers exciting adventures. I still remember the first novel I read from the African writers series titled The African Child by Camara Laye. I can't remember how many times I read that book. The story was just so fascinating to me. Before then were the Lady Bird series of Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Jack and the Beanstalk, Beauty and the Beast, etc followed by Enid Blyton's famous Five, made popular of course by the TV series. All these inculcated a love for reading that has remained.

However for a lot of children today reading is an exercise primarily done as part of school work or to pass exams. In this age of video games, satellite TV and the internet, children are more familiar with Ben Ten than they are with say Eze Goes to School.
At the summer reading program for children ages 5 to 12 years organized by the American Corner Abuja some children said they'd never read any other books apart from their school books.