PHM-Exch> Letter from the grassroots

[Claudio Schuftan]

      Subject: How I became a health promoter

From: Abdulai Bangura <gbondoab2003 at yahoo.com>

I am very delighted to receive a confirmation note from the PHM Secretariat
that my request for membership has been accepted and that my email is now
among the mailing list of the organization. Meanwhile, my present occupation
is teaching. Naturally, I grew up with the love and spirit of engaging in
activities that brings benefit to the majority of people. For that reason I
am yet serving as a volunteer teacher in my community. This community
sponsored me to college to read for the Higher Teachers Certificate (HTC),
so it is a kind of pay back venture.
However, I started growing interest in health issues since I was in high
school. I was staying in a community that did not pay much attention to
their Hygiene. Their source of drinking water was not properly cared for,
their dishes were not properly protected from flies and other dangerous
insects etc. As a result of those poor practices there was frequent out
break of common sicknesses such as stomach ache, diarrhea and several other
complications.I then took up the challenge to bring it to the notice of the
community elders and other influentials that we needed to do something about
these misfortunes. I was therefore mandated by these people to come up with
strategies that will help improve the situation. Therefore I drew a plan
showing a regular cleaning time table involving able bodied men and women at
the site of their source of water and also, I innovated a safe means of
keeping their dishes away from the dangerous insects. We used local
materials (sticks and rope) to construct an elevated structure that is quite
conducive to hold up dishes after they have been washes.
This of my innovation is still in practice in this community and in fact has
been replicated in other places. Because of this I am earning a high respect
each time I visit these communities that are practicing my innovation.
This is what I have done that I think is remarkable in terms of improving on
the health status of people in the third world countries especially.
Yours sincerely,
Abdulai Gbondo Bangura.
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