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Sierra Leone
War against Polio
HEALTH
Polio is so widespread in Sierra Leone, that NGOs,
the Government and the Catholic Church
have seen the need to tackle the issue
At the end of February 2000, Bishop George Biguizzi, the Catholic Bishop of Makeni Diocese in the north, had a meeting with the Minister of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Ibrahim Tejan-Jalloh. The threat of Polio in a nation such as Sierra Leone which is only just emerging from the catastrophe of a prolonged civil way, was at the core of their discussion. Bishop Biguizzi said that his diocese will establish a polio clinic at Masiaka Town, 47 miles from Freetown. He said that an Italian NGO called «Emergency» has promised to give assistance. «We have found a building that will be renovated and used as a clinic», said the bishop.
Masiaka town, like many other towns in the north, has been under rebel control for the past year. The incidence of Polio has been attributed to malnutrition during the time of pregnancy, and also due to the lack of available vaccinations.
In the crusade against Polio, several Workshops have been held, at which Traditional Birth Attendants (TBA)s were trained in «safe motherhood techniques». In one of these Workshops held in Lungi town, the UNICEF Health Project officer, Dr Abu Pratt, said: «164 out of 1,000 infants die from anaemia and other nutritional deficiencies». An NGO representative, May Williams, told the TBAs that the skills and knowledge they acquired on these occasions can be utilised to enlighten other women as regards safe motherhood. Women are advised to take their children to nearby health clinics for appropriate vaccinations, five time before they reach the age of five.
Recently, UNICEF has distributed posters in many parts of the country, in a bid to sensitize women on Polio immunization. There are no accurate records of the number of polio victims in the country, but the magnitude of the problem can be assessed by seeing the numerous polio victims in wheel chairs and on crutches, begging on the streets of Freetown.
«Kick Polio Out Of Sierra Leone»
The Ministry of Health and Sanitation’s present preoccupation is, however, centred on unborn babies, and babies within the one to five years-old age range. The immunization campaign has been intensified. Social workers now go from house to house, persuading mothers of very young children to take them to nearby clinics to be vaccinated. This campaign is known as: «Kick Polio Out Of Sierra Leone».
The Media has played an important role in enlightening parents to the dangers of Polio, and ways of combatting it. Programmes dealing with polio issues are now broadcast in local languages over the radio. Local newspapers carry stories about immunization activities, and feature articles are sometimes written by social welfare officers and doctors.
Polio victims in Freetown are embittered because they think society has forsaken them. They have come to realise that by belonging to an association, they can discuss issues concerning their welfare, and find ways of sustaining their livelihood. One such association, the House of Jesus for the Disabled, strives to promote the welfare of the handicapped. Raymond Buck is the organisation’s secretary-general. At his headquarters on Wallace Johnson Street in Freetown, he receives numerous visitors, many of whom come to discuss their problems with him or other staff members.
Raymond Buck says both the government and society in general remain impassive to the plight of the handicapped. Raymond believes that even if people are handicapped, they have the potentiality of placing their skills and knowledge at the service of the country. «Disability is not inability», he says. Many of his colleagues, handicapped themselves, dropped out of school during the war years because of lack of funding. Raymond continues: «Some want to resume their education, and others need vocational or technical training, but we have no one to help us».
The fact is, after nine years of civil war, Sierra Leone’s economic situation has worsened. It has greatly affected the possibility of handicapped people earning their living — all they can do is to beg for survival. Raymond says bitterly: «We do not know why society has neglected us».
Alpha Jalloh, Sierra Leone, March 2000 — © Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgment
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