In Bossemptélé village (Ohuam Pendé Region, CAR), Salute e Sviluppo’s work continued in the health sector through the implementation of a further emergency initiative called “Strengthening of the health services of the John Paul II Hospital in Bossemptélé”,co-financed by AICS – Italian Agency for International Cooperation.

The project, started on December 8th 2019 and concluded on May 7th 2021, achieved its objective of “improving the access to health services for vulnerable people in Bossemptélé Subprefecture, by streghtening the John Paul II Hospital and ensuring adequate and quality response to the territory’s needs, also through a widespread work of assistance and care in the neighbouring villages of the Subprefecture.

Thanks to the project activities we were able to provide adequate supply of medicines and to pay part of the cost for the healthcare staff. Despite the pandemic situation, overall we were still able to provide the sefvices trough all Covid-19 period, however with small shortage of services between March 2020 and April 2020. in addition, the hospital has been equipped with various medical instruments and equipment, including HIV and Covid-19 tests, improving the effectiveness of healthcare services. To date, a total of 11.113 patients have been treated, of which 7.721 are women and 3.393 are men (with a monthly average of 654 hospital admissions).

Given the impossibility of carrying out the specialized training activities on site – due the Covid-19 pandemic emergency and the restrictions imposed on mobility at international level – trainings have been carried out between the end of January and April 2021, through the “distance learning methology”. In particular, training have covered the following subjects: orthopaedic surgery, anaesthesia, neonatology/pediatrics, diagnostic imaging (radiography and ultrasound). The training activity involved a total of 22 health workers, 9 women and 13 men. With regards to coordination meetings within dispensaries and health centres in the area, have been involved five managing director of the five “Poste de Santé” located in the neighbouring villages on the Bossemptélé-Bozum axis and on the Bossemptélé-Bouar axis. These meetings have been crucial to improve coordination between the hospital and the public dispensaries with regard to the care of the patients and to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with ‘traditional practitioners’, clarifying the role of traditional medicine, without interferring with modern medicine. Finally, thanks to the training on the job on drug management, all participants improved their skills and increased their knowledge on key issues, essential for their future autonomy at the local level. In order to extend the health services to the communities, a mobile clinic service has been organized in the villages with the use of an ambulance (purchased thanks to Aics funding) with the presence of a health team made up of two nurses and two hospital counselors. The activity has been carried out twice a week, reached 3.346 people, of which 2.314 women, 1.122 men (and 2.286 children). The health service, since its inception, has always been fully functional and in full compliance with Covid-19 presidential provision, carrying out home visits aimed at health care and psychological support. The Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities on “health and hygiene” issues represented a key component of the action, reaching the active participation of 4.043 people, of which 2.182 women and 1.861 men. Once a week, two social educators from the Hospital have been going into the villages and communities dealing with the following topics: prevention of the main endemic diseases and infections, malnutrition, prenatal consultations, child protection, birth declaration, the importance of schooling, etc. . Due to the high interest showed by the participants reganding this topics, we have decided to involve 30 women (instead of the expected 5) in the “au pair education” activity. Thanks to more people involved the project would get more well-know also for the other inhabitant of the village. Regarding the implementation of all activities and the achievement of all project’s goals, both the work from the local partners (The John Paul II Hospital and the Cammillians Community in CAR) and the support of all the local stakeholder (Ministry of Health and Population, ASSOMESCA Association, the Order of Carmelite Sisters) were fundamental. The project has laid the foundations for further development and growth actions in the territory, in synergy with other initiatives carried out by SeS in CAR. At social level, all activities represent important cognitive tools for safeguarding community health in the medium-long term, producing a tangible impact on the target groups, also promoting common sensitivity and responsibility.  

“The project has created an emotional and psychological impact on beneficiary families, financial as well regarding the nutritional aspect .The families have been feeling safe while receiving the animals. ” These are the words of Father Mushtaq, local coordinator of the Microproject for the promotion of the social and economic inclusion of families in Okara District, Pakistan. The Microproject, funded by Italian Caritas, aimed to improve the social and economic conditions of three families in Okara district, in Pakistan, thanks to actions for food subsistence and income generation. The beneficiary families, identified by the local partner, were in extreme poverty condition, because of the discrimination suffered for their different religious beliefs.They were marginalized and abandoned by local public administrations and and they did not have access to sufficient food or economic income. To allow them creating their own livelihood, we have purchased some animals (cows, goats and buffalo) and through the production of milk they have been able to meet their nutritional and economic needs. At the same time, as a first step, stocks of animal feed have been purchased and delivered to them. A local veterinarian have been teaching them how to take care of animals, how to feed them,how to protect them from the most common infections and some essential notions for breeding regarding nutrition, hygiene rules, diseases. The beneficiary families were able to use the milk for their own needs and thanks to the help of operators belonging to the Lay Camillian Family they were able to sell part of the milk obtained in the local market, ensuring a healthy and accessible product to the members of the communities of the three villages. Furthermore we have been also organizing training classes on dairy products in order to wide the knowledge and the skill of beneficiary families. In those training were involved the beneficiariy families took part in the in the training sessions but also other inhabitants of the three villages involved in the project. This sortof training was highly appreciated because allowed them to diversify their diet and at the same time offer products that are not always available on the local market, increasing the chances of sales, raising their spirits and encouraging them to dream of a better life. At last, we also have organized nutritional education activities to stimulate a positive change in their eating habits and to reduce malnutrition of which they suffer, which makes them eligible for a large scale of vulnerabilities. During the meetings, explicative posters and banners have been designed to give support for correct information, clearly showing some good food practices. “In general, now everyone is hoping for better days and has expressed their intention to help others as well. This gift has renewed their determination to move forward”concludes Father Mushtaq.

The appeals of Central African President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s rivals were rejected by the Constitutional Court. He was officially elected with 53.16% of the votes. On Monday, January 18th 2020, Danièle Darlan, the president of the Supreme Court declared that Faustin Archange Touadéra “is re-elected President of the Republic in the first round of the elections on December 27, 2020”. The Court, however, lowered the participation rate to 35.25%, far from the 76.31% of registrants provisionally announced on 4 January. His opponents denounced ‘massive fraud’ and the impossibility for two out of three voters to vote.

Pakistan, despite progress and economic growth, faces significant challenges related to poverty and inequality in the social and economic inclusion of the most vulnerable people, particularly in rural districts. An example, is Okara district in the north of the country, where agriculture and livestock breeding are the main activities, but without generating income for small landowners and livestock breeders who, due to low productivity, can barely meet their family’s food needs through the crops. Thanks to the funding from Caritas Italiana, incollaboration with the Camillian Lay Family (FLC), last November we launched a Micro-project to promote the social and economic inclusion of families in this District. Three families in extreme need have been identified: large families, with a lack of income and without support from the local administration, who do not have access to enough food for their basic needs. The Micro-project works directly to improve their livelihoods and their social and economic inclusion in the community. Firstly, three buffaloes for milk production were provided to the families to support them. Through training courses, they acquired technical and practical skills, needed for animal husbandry and for the processes of extracting and maintaining milk. Part of the milk produced is used to feed the families, while a part is sold in the local market, thus ensuring a source of income. Secondly, a local expert trainer provides training, involving families and the community, on the importance of dairy products as a source of animal protein and a preferred food in the daily diet. Awareness-raising sessions on food and nutrition safety have been also organised, in which information materials distributed showing some good food practices in a simple and straightforward way.

In Burkina Faso, in Tenkodogo area, education is a right for few people. The lack of facilities and classrooms does not allow the large number of children living in the area to attend school and continue their studies. In 2018, in order to provide of this lack thanks to funding from the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) with 8X1000 funds, the project “Post-primary and secondary school for the minors of Tenkodogo” was launched. The initiative, ended on August 31th 2020, made possible the construction and the equippment of a post-primary and secondary school and the start of the courses. The school has two floors: on the ground floor there are the classrooms dedicated to post-primary courses and on the upper floor the classrooms dedicated to secondary courses. The post-primary course lasts 3 or 4 years and trains pupils for secondary education or professional life, concluding with a diploma at the end of basic education. The secondary course, on the other hand, lasts 3 years and ends with the award of the BAC diploma (premier diplôme universitaire) with which boys and girls can access university courses. In this way, 480 students, who have completed their primary education at neighbouring schools, have the opportunity to continue their studiesat post-primary and secondary level. Alongside school activities, an awareness and information campaign was also launched in the surrounding schools to encourage pupils to enrol in post-primary school, with the involvement of their parents. Parents showed their awareness of the importance for their children to continue their studies. pictures were taken before the Covid-19 emergency

Mariella, would you like to tell us how you approached the world of international cooperation and the third sector? At the end of my high school studies in Sardinia, I moved to Forlì to continue my training. I have always been interested in what was happening on the international scene and so I chose to attend the degree course in International and Diplomatic Sciences. During the last years of my university career I specialized in the subject of human rights, discussing a thesis on the different reaction of the international community with respect to the cases of Kosovo and Chechnya. Subsequently, I moved to Rome to attend a master’s degree in International protection of human rights, carrying out an internship at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During this experience I approached the world of Non-Governmental Organizations and seeing their work, my interest in the world of the third sector became stronger. Later, I earned another master’s degree in Project Manager of international cooperation and during the internship experience I came into contact with Salute e Sviluppo, where – after a professional interlude in Spain – I started working permanently. What do you do at Salute e Sviluppo? I was immediately involved in the design and management of projects, since 2013 I have also been in charge of the general administration of SeS. What did you like about Salute e Sviluppo as an organization? I immediately liked Salute e Sviluppo both for the stimulating and sociable working environment in the office in Rome, and for the type of projects. They are continuous over time. Often, once a project has been completed, there is no subsequent control over the territory. The sustainability of Salute and Sviluppo projects over time is instead guaranteed by the fact that it avails itself of the support and assistance of the Camillians in the various countries of intervention, who – regardless of the duration of the project – will always be present in the area for their mission, that is health support for the most vulnerable sections of the population With SeS we can improve their hospital services or build new ones. Also, I strongly appreciate the multicultural and inter-religious exchange. I observed during the missions how people who often profess a different religion work alongside the missionaries. There is a lot of mutual respect and esteem, as well as full cooperation. What prompted you to choose to leave for the various missions? As said before, my passion for the third sector was born during my university career, where I approached subjects that dealt with human rights. Then the transition was natural: after having dealt with the defense of human rights, with ministerial bureaucracy, I realized that I needed something more. I felt the need to concretely see the work in the field, get to know the beneficiaries, see the activation of services. I can summarize that my eyes needed to see what I was projecting on paper. What excites you about your work? I am thrilled to see the birth and the end of something: to be able to leave on site and see a space where there is nothing … go back and be able to observe its transformation. For example, in one of my first missions, in Benin, I was thrilled to see – after more than a year from the start of the project – how an arid and isolated land had turned into a properly functioning hospital and had also become a center of aggregation. It is wonderful to see how the project of Salute e Sviluppo, whether large or small, have a concrete impact on the life of the beneficiaries, transforming and improving it. Leave for countries where the conditions you find are not the easiest. Is it tiring for you? Surely you need to have a great spirit of adaptation. It serves both for the conditions of daily life and for situations of loneliness that sometimes have to be faced. Let me explain better .. when you go on a mission you don’t spend most of your time in a big city, where you have the opportunity to meet co-workers or people who work in different sectors from countries all over the world. The stay in the capital usually lasts only a few days. It is a moment of transition before immerging myself fully in the real local context. Our projects are found above all in the most fragile and isolated areas of a country. Consequently, we find ourselves in villages where there are hardly any other “expatriates” and / or there is no security to be able to go out alone. What aspect do you like about the missions? Without a doubt the meeting with the local population. In large cities they are used to the arrival and presence of foreign personnel, there is more movement. In small villages, which have no relations with the outside world, people are welcoming, joyful. children are curious, hospitable, they want to touch you, chat and play with you.. , everyone says hello, but above all there is a strong community spirit in which everyone knows each other. It is truly amazing to feel this human warmth. In which country did you find more difficulties? I believe the Central African Republic. It is one of the poorest countries in the world, where the main difficulty is the lack of means to work, but it is also the country that has remained in my heart the most. While in Burkina Faso today there is a big security problem. Compared to my first missions, from 2010 to today I have seen a notable change in the country: from really quiet to rather dangerous due to the terrorist attacks that have sometimes hit the capital and especially the north and east of the country since 2016. What about the other continents? I have served missions in Peru and Vietnam. In both cases, I was impressed by the close coexistence between high living standards and poverty even more evident than in some African countries. For example, in Lima, Peru, this diversity stands out in an overwhelming way: from one corner of the same neighborhood to the other, the scenario you encounter changes completely. The experience in Vietnam was also strong: we move from developed and tourist metropolises such as Hoc Chi Minh to villages in the south of the country where poverty is extremely high.