USAID/Guinea: Raising awareness while raising children

April 15, 2008

Raising awareness

while

Raising children

mother with baby

It is common in Guinea for many mothers to provide their children with only water for long periods of time after their birth.

“I thought that breast feeding my newborn baby was a mistake,” said one mother recently. “I thought that the first milk was not healthy for my baby.”

Like many mothers living in remote areas of Guinea, this woman had little idea of the value of nutrition or proper feeding for her children. As a result her two-year-old son Christian weighed only seven pounds at his naissance. “I gave my milk to Christian after one week of his birth, and I integrated it with maize soups without knowing that this diet could really affect my baby health,” Mrs. Keita, the boy’s mother.

Following the arrival of USAID-sponsored Opportunities Industrialization Centers (OIC) Christian’s mother found hope for herself and her child.

Identified as a child at risk, Christian was taken to Pita medical center where he spent 10 days hospitalized and was diagnosed as an undernourished baby, not a child infected with HIV/AIDS as some suspected.

The medical staff took excellent care of their young patient; only 7 days after his arrival to the hospital, he doubled his weight. The program aimed to reinforce the baby by giving him therapeutic milk, along with nutritious meals. In addition, OIC provided six months milk supply for Christian once he got back home.

“Thank to the USAID project my son is alive.” The mother comments.

OIC focuses on several activities:
To improve child and mother nutrition
To provide water and protect the environmental hygiene
To train the community on the HIV/AIDS effects and prevention

Mrs Keita explained us that “When Christian recovered due to the care of the medical center I was able to attend the OIC program workshop and learn the impact that breast feeding and child nutrition could have on my baby.”

The program also strengthens the awareness of many mothers about the importance of healthy water, vitamin A and iron supplements for them and their babies.
In 2007 the program distributed folic acid for 924 women and vitamin A for 262 women.
When Mrs Keita participated in the workshop organized by OIC, she learned about HIV/AIDS prevention, health education, personal hygiene, related also to the use of public toilettes, and food hygiene.
She learned to watch over babies’ nutrition, and also about the appropriate diet that pregnant women should follow. She now has 5 kids and all of them are strong and healthy.
The project also organized home visits to better follow up with pregnant women and culinary classes for mothers to better comprehend food nutritious properties. On January 2008 the project planned nutritional activities in every prefecture and provided assistance to 32 children undernourished and organized classes for mothers in healthy food preparation.
Mrs Keita is now actively part of the USAID program and aims to teach all pregnant women the nutritional aspects of the growth processes of babies and children and be a witness for how to save a baby’s life.

Story and photo by Francesca Munzi