Infamous and deadly diseases such as malaria and cholera are endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa.  Many humanitarian efforts focus their efforts and resources toward the reducing the impact of these diseases.  Unfortunately, Sickle Cell Anemia, also highly prevalent and dangerous, has largely been ignored.

The Ssemakula Family, from left to right: Quinn, Josephine, Genesis, Lawrence, and Genevieve.

Sickle Cell Anemia differs from malaria in that it is genetic rather than infectious.  This means that it is not transmitted through insects or human contact but is passed down from parent to child.  When both parents carry the recessive gene, known as Sickle Cell Trait, the child has a 25% chance of inheriting Sickle Cell Anemia.  Children born with the disease have differently shaped hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen in red blood cells.  Sickle hemoglobin becomes rigid after losing the oxygen molecules.  This causes the red blood cells, which are normally supple and round in shape, to take on a hard sickle shape.  While normal red blood cells slide easily through small vessels, the abnormal cells form clots thereby restricting blood flow.  These cells also die more quickly, causing a constant lack of red blood cells (anemia).  Symptoms of this disorder can be devastating and complications include extreme pain, stroke, infections, and acute chest syndrome.

This graph demonstrates the spreading potential of Sickle Cell Disease.

For our friends Lawrence and Josephine Ssemakula, Sickle Cell Anemia is part of their daily reality.  Their eldest daughter, Quinn, was diagnosed with Sickle Cell Anemia as a baby.  At 10 years of age, she has already beaten the odds which show that in Africa, of the estimated 200,000-300,000 infants born with Sickle Cell Anemia every year, 60-70% will die before the age of 5.  Quinn’s good health is largely due to the care of her loving and educated parents who have worked diligently even with their limited income at building her immune system through diet.  Our organization has been working with the Ssemakula family since 2004, providing education in the Bible and healthcare.  In our time in Uganda with them, we experimented with different crops and dietary supplements for Quinn, working together to find how best to keep her small body strong.

Though the prognosis for “sicklers” as they are called in East Africa is bleak, on-going care can greatly improve the life expectancy for Quinn and the many others who struggle with this disease.  We have committed to seeing that Quinn has this opportunity, and have been working with her family to find ways to improve her health.  Some of these include growing alfalfa in their family garden to increase her intake of iron and vitamin C and acquiring a hemoglobin scale that works simply by color and requires nothing electronic yet is accurate.  We pray that with continued efforts, Quinn’s life and health will be a sign of hope to her community and of God’s love for others whom the world ignores.

Written by Celesta Bargatze

In the summer of 2011, Nyago John took his first trip back to Uganda since moving to the US in 2008. Here, he re-visits the elementary school where he attended, signing the guestbook and greeting the headmaster and children.

Ugandan John Nyago Reflects on the Impact of G.O.D. Int’l in his Hometown

John Nyago grew up in Bombo, Uganda. His father, Muyomba Tom, was a pastor there whom a team from G.O.D. Int’l met in July of 2004. John has been a dear friend since that time. He began participating with the movement in 2008 after gaining his permanent residency in the U.S., and has since been taking Bible and missiology courses at the Institute. Below he tells his testimony of the work of Global Outreach Developments, Int’l in his home town and country.

My first encounter with the ministry of G.O.D. Int’l was in Uganda, East Africa in July of 2004.  A team came to my hometown of Bombo, a village of about 20,000 people located approximately 20 miles north of Uganda’s capital city of Kampala.

Before G.O.D. came to Bombo, my family and the church in Bombo were earnestly praying that God would bring people to our community who would help to teach God’s word, empower our people, and attend to the needs in the community.  My father Tom Muyomba is a pastor and he has always had a desire for all people to know and experience God.  But during this time he felt inadequate due the diverse needs in Bombo and his limited education both in the Bible and in secular studies. This drove all of us to pray and trust God to bring more laborers to teach and work in Bombo.  Miraculously God led G.O.D. to Bombo, a place that they had never been to, nor had any contacts before.

My first encounter with G.O.D. in Uganda was also my first time seeing missionaries preparing and cooking food with the local people, washing dishes and doing laundry, eating similar food to that of the local people, and sleeping in ordinary houses of the local people.  Generally, missionaries from the West bring in their own food, finding boarding in the city, and miss out on experiencing life as the locals do.  G.O.D.’s incarnation and solidarity with the impoverished people in society to this day reminds me of what God did through Christ when he became like one of us, and lived among us!

I remember how the team from G.O.D. always loved to learn and call every person by their name as well as desiring to listen to each person’s story.  Knowing a person by name acknowledges that he/she is a valuable human being with a special identity.  Most people also don’t want to listen to other people’s stories, especially those from the poor and marginalized.  I think they don’t want to be responsible for what they might hear. But the G.O.D team members were not afraid of listening to my people’s heart-breaking stories.  I saw team members praying, crying, encouraging, and holding hands with the local people, helping the people to process their experience and find healing from God and the fellowship of other brethren.  In the middle of all this, I felt God; through the genuine expression of concern by the G.O.D team I felt God comforting, caring and working in his people, not afraid of the chaos surrounding their experience.

To this day, I am hopeful of more wonderful ways that God is going to continue working, empowering and revitalizing the people in Bombo so that they can be a light to the rest of Uganda and the world at large.

Our organization has been working in East Africa for nearly 12 years now. During our time spent in the region, we have become aware of a multitude of illnesses and even deaths surrounding the construction and utilization of toilets. In the regions where we work, the typical toilet is a pit latrine. These pits are dug about 30 feet into the ground, a very dangerous process for anyone involved. Once these pits are filled (a process of about 20 years), families will simply have to start the process again, digging and filling another pit–which is difficult to do if your land plot is small. The safety of these structures is very minimal, with some children dying from falling in the hole. There is little protection from insects, odors, and disease.

Eco-toilets (or composting toilets) are much easier (and safer) to build. They are also more feasible economically, do not take up as much space, and are safer from disease. Eco-toilets require no water, a great option in a place with limited water supply and no waste treatment facilities. Instead, eco-toilets capture nutrients in human excreta as humanure. Human excrement is covered with sawdust and ash to support aerobic processing, absorb liquids, and reduce odor. Rapid aerobic composting consists of thermophilic decomposition in which bacteria that thrive at high temperatures break down the waste into its components, some of which are consumed in the process, reducing volume, and eliminating potential pathogens. As opposed to the pit latrines, eco-toilets protect groundwater from nutrient or pathogen contamination and provide optimal nutrient recycling.

This last summer, two of our development workers (Josh Kurtz and Cameron Kagay), began thinking about constructing an eco-toilet on Lawrence Ssemakula’s land. His family had been sharing a toilet with a neighbor, and because their land plot was very small, did not have the space to dig a pit latrine. After educating Ssemakula about eco-toilets, he began asking us when we were going to help him build one! After helping in the construction and studying the process, Ssemakula now is the proud owner of the first eco-toilet in Bombo Town. Below he shares an update on the toilet, 6 months out from its construction.

A view of the eco-toilet from the front and side. The structure was constructed with local materials.

Making a toilet can be such a tough task–not only manually, but also financially. Here in Uganda digging a pit latrine is quite expensive. Each foot can range between 3000-4000 Uganda Shillings. [This equals approximately $1.50 per foot. Keep in mind that 37% of Ugandans live below the international poverty line of less than $1.25 per day.] As if that is not enough, the construction materials are expensive too. The deep pit is also such a huge threat to human life among other things.

Today my family is enjoying the benefits of an eco-toilet. The structure has held up so perfectly, withstanding all weather conditions. The toilet has no bad odors. Recently we noticed three days of bad odor but discovered that we realized we hadn’t been balancing the wood chips and the ash well enough. There are completely no bugs. Our eco-toilet is accessible to a disabled person, as it is a sit-down toilet. [African toilets are typically squatting toilets that can be very difficult for handicapped people. Ssemakula has a specific burden for disabled members of his society, so this was important to him.]

My family adjusted pretty fast to this toilet. One can only be bothered during cold days and mornings when the seat is cold. This toilet has been a blessing to us and now we wait for the time we shall shovel out the manure for the garden. Quite a number of people have been asking us many questions about the toilet and we have been educating others, including the town council and health inspectors. They liked it for its hygienic conditions, cost effectiveness, that it was environmentally friendly and consumed limited space. This is a good option for people of Bombo Town, Uganda, and other areas like it.

Lawrence Ssemakula is one of Global Outreach Developments East Africa cooperatives. He and his wife, Josephine, work as primary school teachers in Bombo Town. Lawrence spends his extra time studying the Word of God, eco-toilets, and how he can be a benefit to the handicapped sector of his society. He loves to play music, has written a few of his own songs, and takes great pride in teaching his 3 daughters, Quinn, Genesis, and Genevieve.