By Francesca Pellegatta | Project Manager
Dear friends,
Last May our Director, together with 5 Aleimar volunteers, went to Benin for our periodic monitoring trip. This opportunity gave us the chance to visit all our projects active in the country and especially to meet our local partner and all the children supported.
Arrived in Cotonou, in the extreme south of Benin, our volunteers went up to north and arrived in the center of the Country in “Les Collines” Department. During the first days of the trip our volunteers had the chance to visit “L’Abbraccio” Newborn Hospital of Sokponta, with whom Aleimar has been collaborating for years.
Aleimar and L'Abbraccio Hospital want to reach the most fragile children also going outside the hospital, on the field. That's why Aleimar supports a fundamental monitoring activity that the staff of the hospital carries out in the villages: the monthly screening of all the children that live in the most rural areas near Sokponta. Aleimar’s volunteers have been involved in the periodic visit in Kpossegan village and had the possibility to weigh a great number of children, collect their health parameters and the local staff redirected the most serious cases of malnutrition to L’Abbraccio Hospital. This has been a really emotionally engaging activity for all the staff and for all our volunteers! Thanks to these visits on the field, we can understand the real need of the local population and generate a culture based on prevention and mutual help!
During these screening visits the local staff of L’Abbraccio Hospital organizes cooking sessions and involve all the mothers of the village. These workshops are aimed at learning how to combine nutritious foods and follow the most basic hygiene practices.
After a week, our trip has restarted and our volunteers have gone up to the north of Benin, to Atakora and Alibori department, where Aleimar supports three child care centers. Here they delivered powder milk, which is fundamental for the babies hosted. In total Aleimar distributed 1.000.000 CFA / 1.650 USD of milk powder, this means 233 boxes. Each box of milk powder lasts 5 days for one child.
These are our two directions: prevention and assistance.
Thank you so much for your essential help!
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