Annual Report 2024
- Carolyn Whittaker
- Dec 11, 2024
- 7 min read
Vision: The people of Taiama and Korie Chiefdom are educated and healthy and empowered to live self-sufficient lives.
Mission: To improve the health, education and social well- being of the people of Korie Chiefdom, particularly women and children.
Accomplishments
| Continuing and future projects:
|
Letter from the Chair
November 10, 2024
Warm greetings to friends, family and supporters of the Victoria Taiama Partnership,
This year has been another eventful year in the VT Partnership. The biggest single event and catalyst to much that is now happening was the visit to Taiama in May-June by Maureen Mark and her sister Lauri. (The Canadian midwives had to postpone their trip due to family illness.) It was an incredible opportunity for those of us in Canada, through the presence and participation of Maureen and Lauri, to meet the people working in the project in Taima, on the Board and the Selection Committee, in the birthing centre, the learning centre and the boarding home. It provided us in Canada with an opportunity to understand more deeply the conditions, the barriers, and the hopes of the people of Taiama.
It was nearly four weeks of gatherings, celebrations, and meetings. Maureen and Lauri toured, explored, listened, and recorded (and danced a little). They were able to reach previous graduates of the Zoie Gardner Program, including some girls who left without graduation, and to talk to current students. Lauri, who is a member of the Health Committee, and is a doula here in Canada, worked with the midwife and traditional birth attendant, toured other birthing facilities in the area, and observed a benemix day, where new mums come with their babies to receive a high protein food supplement (made from rice, fish, sesame seeds and beans). As a result of their work with the people of the project, Maureen and Lauri came back to Canada with more information, new ideas, and renewed passion for the project.
Some of our new goals emerging from this year’s visit:
Increasing tutoring for all grade levels
Building access to a digital library for Zoie Gardner students
Developing opportunities for girls who don’t pass all of their graduation (state) exams to return and with tutoring, retake exams
Increasing support for post-secondary students
Increasing education on nutrition and child development for new mums
As ever, we are so grateful to you, our supporters and cheerleaders. Please know we are committed to using your donations in the best ways possible to build health, resilience, and opportunities for the women and girls of Taiama, in partnership with them.
Thank you on behalf of all our amazing volunteers!
Janet Sheppard
Chair, Victoria Board
Victoria Taiama Partnership Project
NOTE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
It was an amazing experience to return to Sierra Leone after 50 years, especially with my sister Lauri in tow! I anticipated many changes of course, but found the people just as welcoming and hospitable as on my first (and only) stay in 1974! The contrast between the new (smart phones) and old (cooking over a fire and carrying water) was startling at times, but we soon adapted! Mr. Swaray, along with Eric had spent months preparing for our arrival and had gone out of their way to make our stay memorable, starting with pick up in a private vehicle at the airport and a special welcome on our arrival in Taiama with dancers, parade, speeches from many different members of the community and new names to be used while in Taiama! We stayed with Eric’s wife Kadie who cooked extraordinary meals and explained many things to us about Taiama.
The partnership that was started in 1974 between a 12 year old boy, Eric, and myself, age 21 has endured over the decades, first as a pen pal project, then as a school building project, and then as health centre project and girls and women’s education project! Through your generous donations, Eric’s vision and hard work overseeing the building, staffing, operations and spending accountability (thanks Eric!), my co-ordination of fundraising, budgeting and finances, and our Canadian board and committee members we have accomplished so much together! While other NGOs have come and gone in Taiama, we because we have been there for 21 years both the Judy Smith Health Centre and the Zoie Gardner Education Centre are well known and respected in the community. It was genuinely rewarding to hear the gratitudes expressed by so many people, and to see how our teamwork with the hardworking and dedicated staff in Taiama has impacted the people of Taiama through our health and education programs!
Maureen Mark
Executive Director
Victoria Taiama Partnership
Mr. Ibrahim Swaray, Taiama project manager | Mr. Eric Sama, Canadian project manager |
2024 ACTIVITIES
HEALTH PROGRAMS:
We found the Judy Smith Health Centre operating well under the guidance of Mr. Swaray, our Taiama Project manager and the staff (Joyce, midwife, Augusta , traditional birth attendant, and Memunatu, community health nurse)
The Maternal Health Program is the focus of the health centre, with 78 new babies in the last year, bringing the number of safe births since our opening of Maternal Health Program in 2016 to 388.
Pre and post-natal visits are attended by most of the women who deliver at the centre, but do not yet meet WHO redommendations. Our staff are encouraging pregnant women to attend pre- natal visits earlier so problems can be identified sooner. Pre-natal vitamins (complements of a program called Vitamin Angels (Jamieson Vitamins) are given out to mothers who are often undernourished and suffer from anemia. Most only go to 2 pre-natal visits (4 is recommended) and 2 post-natal (8 are recommended by WHO). Any identified difficulties in pregnancy are referred to larger health facilities in nearby communities. Our health centre reflects an ongoing decline in maternal death rates in Sierra Leone, but they are still among the highest in the world, with a lifetime risk in 2019 of 1/32 women dying in or soon after delivering, and in 2023 of 1/52).
Benemix food supplements are distributed to 35 mothers monthly by our nurse and mid-wives. This is a locally made protein supplement (from rice, fish, sesame seeds and pigeon peas) is for babies ages 6-24 months. Mothers are encouraged to nurse as long as possible but this supplement provides a supplement when weaning, or as a nutritional supplement for the nursing mother. These sessions also allow our staff to regularly monitor infants for malnutrition and illness. Food insecurity is an increasing problem in this community and Sierra Leone with rising prices at 40% this year.
Under Fives visits continue to be an average of 25 (15) visits per month, mostly for malaria and pneumonia and visits for babies age 0- 6 months increased to 40 (15) per month
Our midwife, Joyce and community nurse, Memunatu, travel to 4 different villages, one per week to deliver vaccines and pre and post natal checkups for women who cannot travel into Taiama. This service is appreciated not only by the villagers, but by the other 2 health centres in Taiama by reducing their workloads. They have registered about 50 patients per month, for a total of 600 patients seen this year! Lauri accompanied them on one visit and was able to observe them conducting pre natal checkups, vaccinations, and basic primary care.
The Eye Health Project continues to treat river blindness and other tropical eye diseases, plus issue corrective lenses for children and adults. This past year, our ophthalmological nurse Steven Jambawai treated about 60 patients a month, servicing 7 smaller villages and other district health centres. Steven was happy to receive two suitcases of corrective lense,one from Global Vision, with a refraction kit (donated by Dr. Cory Ramstead and a portable refraction tool, and one from the Lions Club. He also was thrilled to receive a “tonopen” a device donated by Dr. Ramstead used to diagnose glaucoma.
EDUCATION PROGRAMS:
We found the education programs well run in Taiama, with over 150 families having benefitted from the secondary and post-secondary programs. The girls and their families expressed many gratitudes for helping them complete their education and for having a chance to improve their lives. Abie, our education and empowerment program coordinator, along with Mr. Swaray, arranged several meetings with the parents and students. It was wonderful to meet the girls!
The secondary school scholarship program, funded by the Zoie Gardner Foundation, continues to support 40 girls in Secondary School with fees, uniforms and supplies and after school programs in tutoring, sports and empowerment workshops and discussions.
Girls studying under the trees | The whole group of secondary girls | Abie the education coordinator |
Tutoring the boarding home continues to provide six students with safe housing with a housemother who cooks and oversees their discipline and safety.
Post -Secondary scholarships provided by the Zoie Gardner and Giftfund Foundations supported 18 students in 2023-24 school year with 13 enrolled in Education, Science and Home Economics programs, and five in Nursing programs. We have had 18 graduates since 2016.
We once again received funding for vocational programs from the retired teachers’ RRSmith Foundation. This funding continues to support our sewing skills program, now in its 5th year, with two first year sewing students and two second year students, plus 2 graduates who are receiving a small loan to start up their new businesses.
Microloans that were offered to 16 women to improve their agricultural production and 6 women to establish their group business in soap making in 2022 and 2023 were repaid from sales of their goods. This is their last year of loans and the pool of money will then be lent out to other women who are in need of micr-loans to start up their businesses.
We would like to thank our donors who have continued to support our programs!
Zoie Gardner Foundation
Jim and Deborah Hansen
Vyeka Foundation
Benefaction Foundation
RRSmith Foundation
St. John’s Anglican Church
Mark/Gates Family
Whittaker/Gibson Family
Michael Dinsmore
Laurie and Dave Denley
Members of The Victoria-Taiama Giving Circle
Members and friends of the Victoria-Taiama Partnership
Board of Directors 2023-24
Janet Sheppard (Chair)
Maureen Mark (executive director)
Frances Hancock (chair education committee)
Carolyn Whittaker (co-chair health committee)
Nancy Gibson (co-chair health committee)
Faye Mogensen (member at large)
Christian Engelstoft (member at large)
Kommentare