The Root of It

While there are many common threads woven within the missions and goals of Peace Corps volunteers in African countries, it is the attempt to control malaria that proves itself the greatest common struggle.  It is an unfortunate reality of living in this part of the world that this disease touches the lives of nearly every one of its inhabitants.  The Gambia is no exception.  It's estimated that malaria claims the life of one child every sixty seconds in Sub-Saharan Africa alone.  This itself stands as a heartbreaking and staggering statistic, however, not only is it affecting the health of those directly infected--the consequences of malaria trickle down, as absence from school, inability to care for crops, and inefficiency in the workplace combine to create a vicious cycle of poor education, hunger, and economic instability.  For these reasons, Peace Corps constantly strives to utilize new strategies for improving malaria education and prevention techniques.

Recently, one health volunteer in The Gambia took on the project of designing a school-based program which would travel around the country and promote healthy life-choices and skills to aid in the fight against this killer disease.  For seven months, Jess He, with the help of a few fellow volunteers, labored over a curriculum that would do just that--and thus, the Kick Out Malaria Trek was born.  

The program consists of four primary stations, each offering a unique skill or "take away point" relating to malaria.  Children from grades five through nine rotate through each station and learn everything from how malaria is spread and diagnosed to how to properly hang, care for, and even decorate a mosquito net.  These topics are presented in fun and approachable ways, using colorful story books, dramas, games, and a Gambian counterpart who helps deepen their understanding with any necessary translations.  Once the final rotation is complete, all classes come together in the school field to get a first taste of what's known as SkillZ/ Grassgroots Soccer. This program, which integrates soccer balls into various interactive games, was developed in South Africa and brought to life here by health volunteer Elizabeth Livingston.  It's a great way to impart malaria prevention knowledge while indulging the soccer-crazed youths of Africa.  First learning about Grassroots during a training in Senegal known as Stomping Out Malaria (http://stompoutmalaria.org) Elizabeth felt passionately that this would work well in The Gambia.  After searching for a platform to present this new idea, she joined with Jess He, and was able to put the SkillZ program together with the Kick Out Malaria Trek, and whet the palates of hundreds of Gambian students who now look forward to expanding their knowledge about malaria while engaging in fun and inventive play.

Learning to patch holes 

SkillZ in action

Kids enjoying a bit of fun after classes

Spencer, a fellow PCV and his students

I was given the opportunity to host this event at my own school and am so glad I did.  The trek was a success, reaching over eighty fifth and sixth grade students from both my school and the neighboring Fulabantang.  It was beyond refreshing to see the kids motivated and energetic about such a serious topic, and I look forward to working with my school to make Grassroots soccer a part of our own weekly routine. While malaria may be a problem bigger than any one person, through the education and empowerment of today's youths, students can steadily unite to create a force large enough to make a real impact on the future.

All students signed a banner to promise to sleep under their nets every night.