[Online PR for slum charity Child of Hope]
Moses is the head boy at our school and is in the last year of the school (P7) – but before he started at the school he seriously doubted if he would survive a serious infestation of jiggers.
Otherwise known as the chigoe flea, jiggers bore into feet to produce an inflammatory skin disease called tungiasis. This can lead to tetanus, gangrene and death if not dealt with.
But Moses was in the first ever class when Child of Hope started its school in the borrowed hall of a local church – and treatment for jiggers is part of the healthcare we offer our pupils. Staff removed them all (not a great job!), gave him shoes to wear… and Moses has been free of them since.
He said: “If I hadn’t come to Child of Hope I think I could not even be living this time. I think I could have died because the condition which I was going through was not really good.”
At the time he lived with his grandmother, his parents and seven other children in a tiny home. However his father died when he was still in P2 class and things didn’t work out for him, so he lived with our Ugandan directors Moses and Bex for around three to four years. He regularly suffered with stomach pain so they de-wormed him and treated him whenever he fell sick.
Once our first children’s home was established Moses moved in, as it was much nearer the school and he could easily get there for after-school revision.
Moses is bright and pretty set on eventually becoming a doctor. He could do it, too… he’s nearing the time when he finishes his primary education at Child of Hope school this December and hopes to move on to nearby secondary education where we will continue to support him.
Future job prospects of children in Child of Hope's school are much higher due to being given an education, and general overall health, welfare and entrepreneurial support for their families. The costs are all covered by donors and child sponsors in the UK and Ireland – if you’d like to sponsor one of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable children at just £15 per month, please click here.
