A month ago I arrived in Niamey, Niger to start my new job as Program Manager of Heath & Nutrition. My hiring for this position could not have occurred at a better time and was a huge answer to prayer. The position opened unexpectantly, and I was unofficially hired the very last day of my internship. Further, delays in retrieving my visa and work permit allowed me to take care of some personal tasks, such as editing a scientific manuscript and visiting family members. Time and again, God demonstrates that He is sovereign over all things. All too often, we waste time worrying about the future instead of trusting in His provision and timing.
I am working for Samaritan’s Purse, the same organization I completed an internship with in the Democratic Republic of Congo. As the Program Manager of Health & Nutrition, I am currently in charge of two projects:
- World Food Program (WFP) Supplementary Feeding Program. In collaboration with WFP, Samaritan’s Purse targets children under the age of age of five and pregnant and nursing mothers for malnutrition. Potential beneficiaries are identified through measuring the child’s weight-for-height score and the circumference of the child’s or mother’s arm with a tool called a MUAC (http://www.pih.org/blog/need-to-know-muac-and-malnutrition). Individuals diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition are referred to the appropriate health center, while those diagnosed with moderate malnutrition are educated on health and nutrition topics and provided food supplements. Beneficiaries are only discharged from the program once their weight-for-height and/or MUAC scores improve to normal levels. In 2015 year, a remarkable 82% of our beneficiaries recovered from malnutrition before the end of the year, and none of our enrolled beneficiaries died.
- Bridging Gaps in Community Health (BGCH) is a multi-faceted health program which aims to strengthen the local public health capacity and educate the public on maternal and child health (MCH) issues. The program uses the care group model, a method which trains a group of community members to teach their neighbors on the various health topics. The male care groups will focus on family planning (Niger has the highest fertility rate in the world), while women will be educated on a wide spectrum of MCH topics. The hope is that by educating couples, men will allow their wives to apply the information learned in the training sessions. To help strengthen the local health capacity, community health workers will be trained on how to screen for pediatric diseases. We will also be working with the local Ministry of Health to train local health care practitioners on MCH topics.
Below are some facts about Niger:
In 2014, Niger was ranked by the United Nations as the least developed country in the world. Food insecurity, the lack of industry, high population growth, a weak educational sector, and few prospects for work outside of subsistence farming and herding were among the reasons for this ranking (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ng.html).
Niger is a predominantly Muslim country, with some estimating that the country is 99% Muslim (http://www.pewforum.org/2009/10/07/mapping-the-global-muslim-population-sub-saharan-africa-overview/). Historically, Niger has been a peaceful country. This has all changed in the last few years with the advent of religious extremism in the region. One example of this is the public’s response to the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France. Within a few days of the attacks, much of the world gathered to together in solidarity to promote free speech and proclaim “Je suis Charlie.” The Charlie Hebdo issue following the attacks, which depicted the Prophet Muhammad holding a “Je suis Charlie” sign while crying, sold close to 8 million copies worldwide. The issue was even sold in predominantly Muslim francophone countries, such as Chad and Niger. Residents in these countries were obviously offended and took their anger out against local Christians, whom they associated with the West. Within 48 hours, over 70 churches in Niger were burned. By God’s grace, none of the Christians in these communities retaliated and the violence resided. Samaritan’s Purse is currently assisting the reconstruction of many of the destroyed churches.
The run-off presidential election has been boycotted by the opposition party (http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/03/opposition-coalition-boycott-niger-runoff-poll-160309050119175.html). The run-off election, which will be held on March 20th, pits incumbent President Mahamadou Issoufou against former Prime Minister Hama Amadou, who is currently in prison for his alleged involvement in trafficking babies from Nigeria (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-35280576). Thankfully, the first round of the election, which took place during my first week in the country, did not result in massive rioting or violence. Read here for a great resource on the political and security situation in Niger (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/01/28/heightened-concern-about-security-in-run-up-to-nigers-february-elections/).
Maternal and child health (MCH) is a major problem in Niger, and most of the health programs that I will be involved with will have some type of MCH component. The maternal mortality rates in Niger are the highest in the world at 513 deaths per 100,000 live births (INS Niger 2014). Further, Niger is ranked with having the tenth highest under five mortality rates with 104 deaths per 100,000 births in 2015 (http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/niger_statistics.html). Family planning is another important, yet sensitive issue in Niger. The fertility rate in the country is extremely high (and growing) at 7.6 in 2012 (http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/niger_statistics.html). Projects like BGCH will attempt to teach men the importance family spacing and family planning strategies in a culturally sensitive manner.
I realize that many of the facts I just listed are discouraging, and the reality is that the country has much more to offer than the aforementioned maternal and child health problems and religious persecution. I greatly encourage you to take a quick look at the following Business Insider story about Niger. It likely provides a more well-rounded presentation of the country than what I have just written. Plus, it has many pictures. http://www.businessinsider.com/niger-food-animals-history-slideshow-2015-10
