Hope for a Blood Diamond

 

The story was made famous by Leonardo in Hollywood, but it was lived and suffered by the people in Sierra Leone.   And while the specific industry is better regulated now and the civil war ended nearly a decade ago, the juxtaposition of the term “blood diamond” still accurately symbolizes a country that is so abundant in resources and potential but continues to hurt as a nation.

 

Sierra Leone is absolutely breathtaking.  I'm not big into picture-taking, but it's probably a good thing here, because I might not get any work done just trying to capture a sliver of the sheer beauty of this country.  Unfortunately, everywhere we go, we’re faced with the stark contrast of the spectacular Sierra Leonean landscape next to the clear evidences of the equally ubiquitous Sierra Leonean poverty.

There’s the picturesque backdrop of the gentle rolling hills lined with lush green flora, rising into the low hanging clouds standing out behind the run down tin shacks that form the Freetown slums, threatening to spill into the polluted waters of the world’s third largest natural harbour.  Or the serenity of the large sandy beaches with perfectly lined palm trees stretching as far as you can see, disrupted by pungent smell of human feces emanating from the not yet dry lumps that dot the beach, not even close enough to the shoreline to be washed away by the tide.  This is the life in Sierra Leone, where the majority of the population still lives in poverty and even the most basic of hygiene and sanitation practices are not yet observed.

Those are some of the reflections that I struggle with as we continue to work with the people here.  There are a couple villages where it is honestly a struggle to see any gains in areas like these that LWI works so diligently to support.  I guess it’s all magnified in the face of this Cholera outbreak, which I think is now up past 17,000 cases, and if it’s like the previous outbreaks, 4% of which will be fatal.

 Some basic statistics about Sierra Leone, because sometimes numbers can explain better than words.

• Sierra Leone is a relatively small country with a population of 6 million people that is now back on the rise after decreasing during the 5 years of civil war.
• The HDI (Human Development Index) is a measure that the UN uses to measure the wellbeing, aka Quality of Life, of a country.  Out of the 187 countries that are included in the ranking, Sierra Leone ranks 180th.  The bottom 15 are all in Africa, most of which are.  Even the disaster-stricken Haiti sits 15 places higher.
• The average wage here is about $2-3 a day. A typical starting salary for teachers, police, and military is about 200,000 Leones/month which translates into less than $50 US.  As a comparison, a bag of rice which is one of the staple foods here, costs 150,000Leones and would feed a small family for a month.  How people survive, I’m not sure.
• The expected life span is now 47 years, already an increase from a few years ago.
• The average Sierra Leonean is young enough to be secondary school, although unfortunately most of them aren't. 
• As a result, the literacy rate remains low.  Too many children (pickins as they call them here) don't go to school, presumably because there is a greater need to earn enough to eat.  Out of all the construction crew that work for Living Water, only the foreman is literate, and that’s because he came from a relatively well-educated missionary family.

 Listening on Capital FM, the somewhat Western-ish radio station here, I’m told there are increasingly more news stories about the upcoming elections in November.  Based on recent history across the globe and especially on this continent, elections have been marred with violence and corruption (or at least accusations of the latter). And there is a sense of the high possibility that the same storyline could play out here in Sierra Leone less than two months from now.

Closer to what I’m here to work on, I pulled this from a report I was reading by UNICEF earlier today.

Sierra Leone is among several countries in the world where more than 50% of the population lacks access to safe water, attributable to poor infrastructure, exacerbated by a lack of investment in the water resources sector.

Population with access to drinking water sources - Source:  Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey MICS III (Statistics Sierra Leone/UNICEF, 2007)

And yet, there remains hope and optimism.  People like Robert and Ruth were called to serve here, to start a country office for Living Water International in Sierra Leone, an organization that has now completed over 400 well along with hygiene and sanitation sessions, as well as a growing number of toilet projects across this country.

Remember that village with the perfect beaches, save for the feces strung out along the beach? Well, we spent over an hour walking the village with the doctor yesterday.  He has one nurse and one volunteer who work with him in a two room building with two beds that they call a hospital. He’s basically it when it comes to any medical needs for the 6500+ residents of this coastal village, one that has seen over 200 cases of Cholera thus far.  I asked Robert what happens on weekends, “there isn’t really one for the doctor” he softly answered.  I won’t even ask about vacations or time off.  The doctor isn’t even from this part of the country originally, but he’s been here 13 years already and he wants to stay because he has hope.  He has started a church with his family in the local school, which he says is growing.  Institutions like these are the prime candidates to start with hygiene and sanitation training because it has a like-minded group of people that can be motivated to work together towards a goal. 

There are more stories like these, more people like this doctor, and it will take more of them to continue moving this country in the right direction.  It’s been a quick two weeks here, and I’ve only seen a glimpse, but I have hope for a better Sierra Leonean future.

 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. – Jeremiah 29:11

   

(I didn’t bring my camera cord with me… almost as bad as not bringing my rain jacket with me during Sierra Leone’s wettest month, so these images are just pulled from google that seem to fit and help break up some of the heavy words that are this entry. Hopefully upload more actual photos once I get home.)

Pictorials from the Field.

Wow, what a day!  I was pretty sure I had hit the wall by 4pm, but caught my second wind around 8pm to finish off the paperwork for the day. Probably was a bit of heat stroke as it was really hot yesterday down and we were in the sun for much of the day. 

Sorry, I’ve been meaning to write each night, but by the time I write up the daily report and then emails between eMi and LWI head offices, there’s just nothing in the tank left for more writing.

It's been a busy (as usual) few days.  I really don't get how Ruth and Robert can do this on a day in day out basis, incredible.

Anyway, a picture's worth a thousand words so consider this my 10,000 word update (or as much as the internet connection will let me upload...).  

NOTE: Just want to mention after writing this that some of the descriptions are bit discomforting as it does reflect some of the sad realities of dealing with a disease like Cholera.

In one picture, this is the purpose for why Living Water International exists.  Yes, those would be used plastic containers floating in the somewhat blueish colour water. Yes, this would be a well that we visited.  Yes, the community does use this water.

Some other items pulled out one of the wells...

The crew lowering one of the guys into the well if there is a specific source of contamination that needs to be removed.  (ie. The floating bottles in the above picture.)

Definitely wouldn't fly back home, but here, the crew essentially ties a crowbar to the end of the rope to form something like a T-Bar (skiers and snowboarders can relate) and then they sit on it and get lowered down wells that are often 20m deep.  If I ever come back, I'll definitely bring a harness with me.  Whether the guys will choose to use it is another story....

LWI has rehabilitated the well, constructed pit latrines and a separate isolated Cholera disposal area at Newton Hospital.  The building in the picture houses the hospital's Cholera Treatment Unit (CTU) on the left, and the maternity ward on the right.  Yes, that would be the contagious and potentially deadly Cholera disease placed alongside the room for the newborns.

Even worse, there is an empty building 30 yards away within the hospital compound that now sits empty and just requires some basic renovations for a CTU clinic. The World Health Organization (WHO) had asked LWI to complete the well and other work, and they were to restore and set up the CTU in the new building.  However, it's now three months into the Cholera outbreak and no work has been done yet.

During yesterday's visit, we went to follow up with at the hospital and its Chief Health Officer, also the only doctor for the hospital, is sick himself and in bed with an IV in his arm.  Needless to say, they are understaffed and under resourced to be able to provide the basic treatment that the people need and deserve.

This is the isolated area where anything contaminated with Cholera is taken and disinfected.  In the first picture, there are containers labeled 'A' and 'B'.  'A' is a 0.05% chlorine solution for washing hands and is located outside all entrances around the hospital.  'B' is a 0.2% chlorine solution used to clean anything that may have Cholera (beds, floors, etc.) as well as to disinfect waste (generally human... excrement) placed in an oil drum before disposing in the specific waste pit.  At one hospital, the gate had not been locked overnight and someone had actually stolen the oil drum.  Of anything that you wouldn't want to steal... 

In the third picture, you can see to the left, the disposal pit for disinfected cholera waste.  And on the right, that area is actually for the cleaning of the deceased cholera patients prior to being returned to family for proper burial.  This is the morbid reality of treating a disease like Cholera.

 

Similar to Uganda, this is how medical centres here keep track of their patients and cases.  Sadly, there is a need for such a thing as a morbidity chart here.

In the end though, we’re making progress.  As they say here, “Small, small” (meaning: slowly).  Here’s a picture of an old set of latrines.

And what’s now in use at one of the hospitals.  In theory, and with a good amount of encouragement I’m sure, the hospital will dig new pits and move the whole structure (concrete only goes 1 foot down) over once the current ones fill up.  It's an effective and, I think, realistically sustainable solution for a critical problem.    

And finally, motorcycles are a ubiquitous machine in the developing world and Sierra Leone is no different.  They never fail to surprise and impress me with what they can do.  Exhibit A & B, captured right across the street from a well we were rehabilitating. 

Yes, that's definitely a couch.

As they say in Crio, the local language, “Goodbye!”  (It’s actually just the same.)

*Actually wrote this yesterday but kept getting an error when trying to save or post this entry.  Anyone know anything about getting through this?  Ended up getting it up on the upteenth time... not fun or fast on semi-decent-for-africa internet.

(Not so) Initial Thoughts about Sierra Leone

Well, it's been just over 72 hours in country now. I've meant to post something each night but we've been working up until at least midnight every night thus far and by that time, I'm in no condition to write coherently anymore.

The first night was not enjoyable as I couldn't really sleep, despite basically not sleeping for almost 36 hours since leaving Vancouver.  In hindsight, I should've just given up trying to sleep and blogged instead.  But other than that, the team's very thankfully adapted quite well.

Living Water International in Sierra Leone is still a relatively small operation, but the people are doing a great amount of amazing work.  And, they're in the process of more than doubling in size in the very near future so for any WASH engineers out there, LWI's hiring!

Robert and Ruth Search are the country directors and Mariatu is their 4 year old daughter, and we are staying with them during our time here.  I must say, each time I meet a missionary and/or their family, I'm just so humbled by them, and the Searches are definitely no different.  The commitment to the people they serve, the sacrifices they must make on a daily basis, the difficulties of living in mostly isolated conditions,  the list goes on but it's such a blessing to serve along side them.  Although I've only been here three days, I've seen them toil from early in the morning to late at night every day in order to serve Sierra Leone and its people, particularly during this time of Cholera outbreaks.

It's not just a job, and it's definitely not enough that we made an effort.  It really pains me to see Robert's obvious disappointment after some of the test results we take from the wells come up dirty.  Because when Robert and Ruth see red dots on the coliplate test indicating E.Coli in the water, what they're really seeing is people suffering.  Ruth had a phone call just tonight where she was informed of two deaths of people in country that she had known.  So please keep them in your prayers as they are so burdened by the pain and suffering around them. 

Kids, if you think hockey players and Olympians are heroes, try again.  People like Robert and Ruth are what give the world hope, one rehabilitated water source, one delivered box of IV's, one child learning proper hygiene at a time.  That's heroic.
 
Tangent but yes, in short, I've just been very much inspired by Robert and Ruth and the work that they do.  In saying that, there is all the more pressure to be able to help them help others.  It's obvious that they have high hopes that we will be able to help them improve these wells and other communal water sources both in the immediate and also in the long term.  It's a tall order with the limited time and resources on hand, so it's been a challenging few days and I anticipate that won't change during our stay.

The eMi head office has constructed a google earth file documenting the locations that we have been working at based on our GPS points from the daily reports.  I hope that this link will work if you want to view where we've been.  If you have Google Earth, you can go file>download>KML file and then basically zoom right into each individual village!

I'll stop here as I need to get to bed, below are a couple photos of what's we've done so far.  Will definitely post more when I get the chance.  Good night from Freetown (we're actually in Lungi, a smaller town just north of Freetown).

The cleanest and nicest Cholera Treatment Unit (CTU) that we've seen yet.   This is where anyone with Cholera will go to get treatment and rehydration such as IV's. 

One of LWI's well functioning pumps, with the typical crowd that always show up to watch us work.

Zanab, in the woman in yellow, conducting a hygiene training session for the community.  It may seem so obvious to us in the first world, but in a country like Sierra Leone, where people are generally not as healthy and hospital services not as available, many people will die as a result of a simple infection or disease because they didn't have good hygiene.

Now that I'm here...

Dear Friends,

 I hope this email finds you doing well!  Some of you I’ve just seen and spoken with as recent as this weekend, others of you I haven’t had to chance to see in quite a while!

Anyway, I’m writing to share with you an opportunity that has arisen for me to serve with Engineering Ministries International (eMi) once again. I’ve been meaning to write this earlier this week but, alas, I am writing this as I’m flying en route, somewhere over the Atlantic.

I’ll try to first explain a little bit into how I’ve become involved in this aspect of eMi’s ministry.  Back in 2008, whilst I was working with ACTS in Uganda, there was a fairly large civil conflict in Eastern Congo, with many Congolese becoming displaced as they fled from the conflict areas.  This was one of the first disaster response (DR) situations for which eMi was involved by helping to send engineers to assist with the work that Samaritan’s Purse was carrying out within the Internally displaced (IDP) camps housing thousands.  Eastern Congo happens to border Western Uganda, which also happens to be where I was working at the time.  In the end, eMi was able to send the needed number of engineers and I continued with the work on gravity flow water systems in Uganda.

In the few years since, eMi has continued to grow its DR involvement and now has become a valuable source for technical experience to other NGO’s in need of engineering assistance in similar crises.  In 2010, I attended the annual eMi conference in North Carolina, where I participated in eMi’s inaugural Disaster Response training session.  Following that, I completed a more in depth Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) training course for Samaritan’s Purse responders last spring in Calgary.

Thankfully, the past year has been relatively quiet on the DR front, with no significantly large events since the drought in Ethiopia and Kenya last fall.  However, two weeks ago, I received an email put out to eMi’s DR team members, asking for volunteers to potentially assist with a growing Cholera outbreak in Sierra Leone.


Now some of you know that I have been working in a remote area of Northern BC for the past year and that project just happened to wrap up at the end of August.   It took one week to confirm the funding to send a team, but it was exactly during my drive down to Vancouver that we received confirmation that eMi would be sending three engineers  to assist Living Waters International (LWI) with their response to the current Cholera outbreak.  Timing wise, it has been a blessing in regards to being able to arrange time away from work.

It is currently the wet season in Sierra Leone and the heavy rains have resulted in the contamination of poorly constructed wells and other water sources which in turn is responsible for the growing outbreak of Cholera in the region.  Among our team’s goals will be to help test existing wells for water quality and chlorinate any that are shown to be contaminated, an important step to stopping the spread of this virus.

You can read more about the Cholera Crisis, as well as LWI’s response plan on their website, water.cc/cholera.  eMi also has a page describing the situation and the anticipated work at  emiworld.org/disasterresponse_SierraLeone.php.

I would very much appreciate your prayers for our work with LWI, as well as for the crisis as a whole.  The situation is expected to get worse in the next few weeks  but only time will tell to what extent.  Furthermore, as we have been focusing on the efforts in Sierra Leone, flooding is taking its toll in the nearby country of Niger.  Furthermore, an earthquake has struck in Costa Rica which may potentially require further eMi involvement.  So please keep these other areas in your mind as well as it is strong reminder of how quickly these situations can escalate and the ever present needs around the world.  If you are able, LWI and many other organizations are in great need of additional funds to enable them to increase and sustain their levels of support through these particular times of need.  So please consider assisting financially as this will directly translate into supporting the treatment of a Cholera victim, most of whom are usually society’s most vulnerable, the children and elderly.

Thank you very very much for taking the time to read this and share in this journey with myself and my teammates.  I count myself very fortunate to have a network of friends and family who help to support and allow me to serve in these capacities.   If you yourself are, or will be, serving in missions and would like to share, pleas e do!  I always take pride and encouragement from seeing those around me using their talents, time and resources to bless others.

Lastly, I’m not sure how much time I’ll have to update my personal blog during these coming two weeks, but at the least, we will be in daily correspondence with the eMi’s Colorado office and they will in turn be updating the website periodically with our progress and work so you can catch our work there!

Thanks again for partnering with me.


Sincerely,
Wes