Ebola outbreak reaches Freetown

I am sad to read this evening that Dr, Khan, the chief doctor leading the fight against the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, died this afternoon (Tuesday 29 July) less than a week after it was announced that he had contracted the virus. I had hoped he would have had a chance of survival as he was diagnosed very early.

"His death at the age of 39 was a big and irreparable loss to Sierra Leone as he was the only specialist the country had in viral haemorrhagic fevers," said the chief medical officer, Brima Kargbo.

Ebola is believed to have killed 672 people in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone since the outbreak began in February, according to the World Health Organisation.

Because of the outbreak which has now spread to Nigeria, two West African airlines, one based in Togo and the other Arik Air, Nigeria’s largest carrier, have suspended flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

However the World Health Organization does not recommend any travel restrictions to Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone at this time.

Public Health England advises that the risk to tourists, visitors or expatriate residents in affected areas is considered very low if elementary precautions are followed

However the situation is far from clear because, although numbers of cases in Guinea appear to be falling, suggesting the outbreak is under control, it may be that infected people are hiding rather than coming forward to be treated.

In Sierra Leone the Chief Medical Officer has stated that relatives of patients are refusing to allow medical staff to attend to them, making it difficult to reduce the number of new infections.  Because of hostility and fear, families are attacking doctors and people are refusing to take infected relatives to health facilities.

Officials report that some people don’t believe the disease is real or fear that white researchers have introduced it to experiment on Africans.

I now read that a case has been confirmed in Freetown, A woman from Wellington has been confirmed to have the disease, but her relatives stormed the Freetown hospital where she was held in isolation and took her away. Officials are searching for her.

I am very concerned as this is an area were we have been working. We need to pray for our friends, especially Dr. Samuel Kargbo, who heads the work of Faith Baptist Church in Wellington.  We are hoping to welcome out Programme Director from Freetown, Alpha Kargbo, to the UK in three months time.

Alpha Kargbo

Alpha lives in the neighbouring area of Kissy and is Samuel's brother. Both need our prayers. Will this visit go ahead?  We hope and pray that the situation will be under control.

Chief Ebola Doctor in Sierra Leone contracts the virus.

Sheik Umnar Khan

The President's office announced today that the Chief Doctor leading the fight against the Ebola Outbreak in Sierra Leone has contracted the disease. Sheik Umnar Khan, a 39-year-old virologist who is personally credited with treating more than 100 Ebola victims, has now been taken to an Ebola ward run by the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres, which has in recent weeks described the disease’s West African outbreak as “out of control”. The outbreak began in Guinea and has spread to both Liberia and Sierra Leone.

There is no specific cure for Ebola and the disease is normally fatal in 90% of cases. However in the current outbreak 40% of those infected have survived.  

Dr. Khan said recently, “Health workers are prone to the disease because we are the first port of call for somebody who is sickened by disease. Even with the full protective clothing you put on, you are at risk.”

The current advise for travellers from the British Foreign Office in view of the Ebola outbreak is 

"The World Health Organization does not recommend any travel restrictions to Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone at this time [2,9].  There has never been a case of EVD imported into the United Kingdom [10].

Public Health England (PHE) advises that the risk to tourists, visitors or expatriate residents in affected areas is considered very low if elementary precautions are followed [11]"

Vision 2025

It is our hope and prayer that this will happen.
"How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity"
Psalm 133. 1.

Miniature Graduates

Another rung up the ladder of success has been achieved by these happy young graduates from the New Era Primary School, Looking Town, Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Pupils were prepared for their exams by a number of teachers, including Mr. Joseph Alpha (left) who has a disability. He met the team from Derby in 2010 and was supported through Teacher Training College by one of them. When he graduated he was taken on by New Era Primary School. He works with year 6 students as they get ready for the National Primary School Examination which allows them to progress to a Junior Secondary School.

Let the Bands Play.

I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity. It's something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we're from, everyone loves music.  Billy Joel.

Our New Era Schools want their own Band.   This would encourage youngsters to make music, learn an instrument, work together...but also it would make money for the schools. School bands lead a March through their area on Thanksgiving Day - Our school hired three bands this year from other schools, great if they had their own!  They also play at Weddings and Funerals.

The Band of the Freetown Secondary School for Girls marches through Freetown. It was founded in 1926 with 20 pupils by Mrs. Hannah Benka-Coker and now has a student population of 2,200.

The Band of the Albert Academy, lead by the Headmaster, in a funeral procession. I remember visiting the Albert Academy and speaking at the Christian Union. I thought the name must have come from Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's husband, but I was wrong. The school was founded in 1904 and named after an American missionary, Rev. Ira A. Albert who drowned in a boating accident.   

The school started with 4 pupils and now has over 2000 boys between the ages of 11 to 18.  Past pupils include two men who made a great contribution to the nation. Sir Milton Margai lead the country to independence in 1961 and was Prime Minister from 1961-1964.  The other was Siaka Stevens, who was Prime Minister from 1967-71 and then the first Executive President of Sierra Leone from 1971-85.

Up country in Bo, second largest city after Freetown, Bo School also has a band.  New Era Schools want one. They need brass instruments of any kind, and have only a couple of drums at present. Any offers of help would be appreciated.

Beautiful music ..... is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us.

Martin Luther

Cheap calls to Sierra Leone from the UK

A friend recommended "Phone Cheap" by which I can call mobiles in Sierra Leone for 30p per minute. It has been a great benefit to me. More details at www.phonecheap.co.uk

What is People in Partnership?

We call our group "People in Partnership" because as we began to work with Alpha Kargbo and his team we wanted to be partners who share success but also stand together and in failure and learn from it. I first got to know Alpha as a pen friend when he was one of many people who wrote requesting friends as the result of the mailings we used to do as a church on behalf of "Soon". I met him on my first visit to Sierra Leone with Graham and Sandra Hinds in 1988. We walked around most of Freetown together. I got to know the place well and could walk from one side of town to the other, Wilberforce to Kissy by myself.

He requested money to start a business.  It was a small amount as what seems small to us can do amazing things in a less developed country. He was faithful in this adventure.

When the civil war was reaching its climax around 2000, he was instrumental in staring the school with a group of Christians, as they wanted to help the many orphaned and abandoned children who were roaming around Kissy, their area of Freetown. .From Derby we were able to buy land and build the school. We continue to support the teaching staff, and have also been involved in setting up a micro-enterprise scheme giving loans to help small businesses take off and grow.

We have twice done training in community health care as our last two teams have had three medical doctors on board.

I am hoping that Alpha will visit Derby in October to discuss future needs and developments. He is an amazing leader and friend.  Living through his era in Sierra Leone has been a traumatic time for him, as for many. In the Civil War his house in Freetown was burnt down. When visiting his home village they were attacked by rebels and his family fled into the bush. He did not find his wife and children for several days.

His Father was killed in a car crash when he was 14 and he had to leave school as the fees could not be paid.  His first wife died during a hospital operation when the electricity failed and the hospital had run out of drugs. I could tell you more. I am hoping that he will benefit from going to an International Leaders School of Ministry in Belfast during his time here.

His whole visit, airfares included, is projected to cost around £1200.

Jacob Hayward is hoping to raise at least part of this by a sponsored cycle ride, Derby to Skegness, at the end of August.

Any other offers of financial help would be appreciated.

What has been going on in the Looking Town Schools in 2013-14?

I have just had a report from our Programme Director, Alpha Kargbo, setting out the highlights of the academic year 2013-14.

The Primary School is now recognised by both the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Freetown City Council.  They have 567 pupils from nursery up to class 6. The school meets from 8.30 am until 1.00 pm.

The Junior Secondary School uses the same premises from 1.30 pm to 5.30 pm. They have 193 students, giving a total number for the two schools of 760 children receiving education that we support from Derby.

Primary children on the steps of the school

Teachers

The Primary have ten teachers, three of whom are approved and paid for by the government. Another six have applications for approval with the Ministry of Education. This is taking some time as there is a large backlog of applications and the government are going through the Secondary and Vocational Schools before they start on the Primary sector. The state pays a teacher around £81.50 a month.

The Secondary School is approved by the Freetown Council but not yet by the government so its teachers are not eligible for state support. There are 13 teachers, many part-time.

For the period August 2013 to June 2014 we sent £7197 from PIP to pay teachers salaries and also contribute to the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT). This was set up in 2001 to administer Sierra Leone’s National Pension scheme which provides retirement and other benefits to meet the contingency needs of workers and their dependents. The school is required to pay £4.14 per teacher per month, 

Membership is mandatory for all workers with an employer-employee relationship. It is mandatory for all employers to ensure that their workers are registered with the scheme.

Orphans

Across the two schools there are 40 orphan children. We do not have residential care for them and they stay with extended family. In a very poor area, such as Looking Town where the school is situated, an extra child can be regarded as an imposition and suffer hardship and rejection.

The school helps with free tuition, exercise and text books, pens and other educational materials so they feel like other children in the school. Alpha says, "The teachers are very instrumental in helping them and provide real Christian love and care for them."

Alimony was six when this photo was taken.  Zainab was thirteen. Both of them have lost both their parents.

Alpha would like us to provide a contribution of £42 a year for an orphan in the primary school and £141 in the secondary. We are not taking this on board at the present time. This is one of the things we will talk about when he visits us. Rachel Hoyle, who has worked at New Hope Uganda, has agreed to give some input on orphan care.

Sports Day

One of the great days in the school social calendar. Along with Thanksgiving Day, Day of the African Child (16 June every year: Commemorating children killed protesting in Soweto in 1976.) and Christmas.

Children ready for Sports day.

Sorts Day this year was on the 23rd March  The results for the houses were

1st     Yellow    Alpha House                223  Points
2nd     Blue       Brain House                 218 points
3rd     Red        Swindale House           216 points
4th     Green      Miezgal House             202 points

Exams

70 pupils sat the National Primary School Examination on 3rd May, which enables them to move to a Junior Secondary School in September 2014. Results not yet out.

24 candidates are due to take the Basic Entrance Certificate Examination, which allows them to move to a Senior Secondary or a vocational school.