Buckets, Floods and Masks

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Tanzania is now increasing more rapidly. Most are in Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar but there are also more confirmed cases in Mwanza. We say "confirmed cases" as testing is very limited and therefore real numbers of cases will be significantly more than confirmed case numbers. International flights are now stopped, schools remain closed, there are talks of a lockdown in Dar es Salaam, but apart from some individual districts with significant restrictions, there is nothing nationally. As for the rest of the world, it is a worrying time for Tanzanians.

We are still busy as a team doing all we can to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Hand washing stations are being widely distributed through our partner churches and we are working to safely but effectively spread awareness about the virus and how to prevent it. We personally are no longer attending church services, but there is still much we can do to effectively help communities during this time. We are also thinking, praying and preparing for what we can do in what could soon be the next phase.

Louisa helping us with getting taps and labels on buckets

Can you spot Louisa?

With Peter at Chabakima Church a couple of weeks ago, as he teaches on prevention

People in Chabakima read the information poster just put up at the church

There has been much debate about fabric face masks here … as everywhere! Certainly at first, I was very wary about encouraging the use of them. However, since talking to our friend in Dar es Salaam and a lot of research, a few of the women in the Upendo wa Mama group who can sew are now making cotton masks. There is minimal profit for them, but it is something the women can do, especially to help non-profit organizations that are also serving the community during this time! We heard that the national hospital, Muhimbili, has a huge shortage of masks and they have asked for 10,000 masks to be made! Also, now that the regional commissioner has called for all people in Dar es Salaam to wear masks in public, there is a huge demand … and a huge shortage of masks. And so begins a new project of mask-making, which I have to confess I am really not enjoying! It has been terribly stressful with high demand while the women try to learn how to make them quickly and work to make many on their own at home. I seem to have spent hours unpicking all the ones that went wrong, have at least three burns on my arms from the iron and feel as pricked as a pincushion! I have almost called quits several times, but we are persevering … and the work is now getting better and faster and we are now even starting to teach others to also make!

Jeni cuts out masks and ties

Laurensia sewing masks

Finished product

Our good friend, Dorothea, helping the efforts

 to get more masks ready to sew!

The shortage of masks really just highlights the shortage of all things here when it comes to dealing with the spread of COVID-19. Hospital beds, quarantine areas, ventilators … As prices rise and stocks of different things start to run out, the thought of a lockdown is pretty awful for everyone.

Meanwhile, it keeps on raining! The rains just don't stop and the water table is getting so high, the roads so bad and Lake Victoria is full to overflowing! We have now been flooded downstairs in our home since Christmas and are getting quite used to wading to the bathroom for a shower. All we can do is keep sloshing the water out of the study and storeroom a few times a day! This is all good for the rice farmers, but not much else. It is another reason, along with the fear of a lockdown, to be concerned about food security.

This is a restaurant by Lake Victoria … except that now it is IN Lake Victoria...

Update on Amisadai's knee … She is doing really well! We went to our good friends the other week and they took her stitches out, at the dining room table! Mwanza life … very thankful! And finally after about 70 days on crutches, she is hobbling about without them now and movement is increasing all the time!

Audience engrossed as Dr Rob takes the stitches out with the light from Liz's phone!

And to finish, here are some photos of our Easter … We enjoyed a quiet day last Sunday in the midst of the chaos and a number of struggles on the side! It was rather like Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter rolled into one as we made a pumpkin pie and ate Christmas pudding and then some delicious crème eggs (which were no longer egg-shaped!). But is seemed appropriate with much to be thankful for... and there really is no better reason to celebrate hope than at Easter!

A treat of lovely leeks from Mama Mary's garden for Easter roast lunch!

Louisa's Hot Cross Buns

Pumpkin Pie

Chickpea Burgers and Rolls

Easter Roast Lunch

All Things Moringa ...and Mamas in COVID19

With people asking about moringa after my three days of moringa madness, it's time to explain a bit (and give you the recipes!) And I can let you know some of the effects that the coronavirus is having on the mamas and how moringa relates to helping to support people during this time of coronavirus.

Monica and Monica with the new stocks of moringa ready to sell!

Moringa Oleifera ("mlonge" in Swahili) is a fast growing, drought-resistant tree, native to India but grown widely throughout Asia and Africa. It has been used for centuries for its medicinal properties and health benefits … you can google all of that … it's fairly incredible! It has certainly earned its name as the Miracle Tree! We have promoted the tree through our tree planting and seedling nursery projects and in teaching health and nutrition… the leaves are particularly nutritious and easily harvested. They can also be dried and the dried leaves pounded into powder. A spoonful can be added to porridge or sauces, making a brilliant nutritious boost to a poor diets, particularly for pregnant and feeding mothers and young children in villages. It is a super immunity booster, so also extremely good for those suffering from immune-deficiency diseases. 

Mavuno Village is a wonderful children's home community (with a great agricultural program), not too far from us here in Mwanza. They have all kinds of projects on the go… and one thing they do is grow a lot of moringa and process the leaves. The Upendo wa Mama group has recently started buying in bulk from Mavuno to sell in town (and we can give some to the "at risk" women in the group too). There is no better time than now for people in Mwanza to buy local and consume moringa to boost immunity while the coronavirus lurks ever closer with our first case here today.

This is an incredibly difficult time for many groups and organizations here in Tanzania, as markets and funding dry up. Mavuno Village will lose much needed funding through the economic troubles overseas. And Upendo wa Mama has suddenly lost almost all their customers and markets across the country. We have stopped meeting as a group to make new products, but are still putting together any orders we can! We met last week for the women to again withdraw money to take home and buy supplies. All are worried about what would happen if the government were to lock things down here, cutting access to basic markets. We were also able to send some money via mpesa phone to the women in Dar es Salaam to share amongst the albinism group there. We have long been encouraging all the women in the groups to work on building their own little enterprises at home with the profits they take from the group. This is putting that to the test. For one mama already struggling with mental health issues and vulnerable with asthma, this is just really tough. She was in tears asking for help, and I was almost in tears to know what to say or do. Another mama is also particularly vulnerable with her diabetes, and sees the risk of not being able to get the medication she needs.  With the closure of all schools, the children (with albinism) have returned home and while the mamas are delighted to see them, this can be a big worry. All the mamas are aware of reports of people with albinism being labelled "corona" and blamed for a virus that "doesn't affect black people". And we have heard about witch doctors promoting potions to "protect" coronavirus and we pray that this would not involve people with albinism in any way, with their body parts being perceived as a "solution." 

But a good number of the mamas are doing well and I pray they continue to do so. A couple of women are now making liquid hand soap and I am trying to help encourage these sales. We are also working to sell more of the moringa powder. We hope that some can soon start making face masks to sell. And 'Make it Matter', which has just launched an online shop and delivery in Dar es Salaam is continuing to buy beeswraps which really helps! But the reality is that this month (we had planned for the Mwanza Craft Fair), and next month (supposed to be the big Artisan Fair in Dar) is going to be a time of huge loss. And we don't know when things will pick up again with tourism and we again see visitors coming to Tanzania. It is particularly bad timing for the Mamas group as we are in the process of getting our own shop and this was also supposed to be a time of handover and training. Please pray for these women! And support them and Mavuno Village (and other organizations for vulnerable people) if you can!

This was taken just before we closed as a group 

… a happier time when we finally received our Business License!

So as I do my bit to help by buying some moringa powder, I am also trying to boost sales by encouraging others here also to buy and make use of moringa in new and interesting ways!

So what can you do with moringa powder?  Here is what I have been doing with it this past week, with links to the recipes!

Moringa Banana Bread - with this one I threw in some shredded coconut, poppy seeds, nuts and seeds! It was yummy!

https://blog.kulikulifoods.com/…/cooking-kuli-episode-14-o…/

Moringa Wholemeal Bread - with this one I made one large loaf instead of two small. I didn't exactly follow the instructions but treated it more like normal yeast bread with rising times and kneading (and a little less carrot).

https://www.ahealthyleaf.com/recipe/moringa-bread/

Louisa made awesome Moringa Smoothies! Pineapple, mangos, fresh orange juice, frozen banana, yogurt and a couple of spoons of moringa powder! 

And today it was Moringa Cookies! (There was a bit of debate whether we should use rationed Canadian chocolate chips on this experiment! Also i used plain flour and sugar... But they are good ... just a little greenish! But you could just use your favourite choc chip recipe and just add the spoonful of moringa)

https://shestartedit.co/moringa-cookies/ 

Tomorrow we plan to try these Moringa Banana Muffins. This is a fantastic site with loads more recipes! And lots of information!

https://www.ahealthyleaf.com/recipe/moringa-banana-muffins/

… and now here they are!

Enjoy! Please share your recipes and ideas here in the comments too! 

And if you are in Mwanza, pick up some Moringa Powder!

Note: A lot of our moringa recipes are featuring bananas for the simple reason that we have an abundance of bananas from our tree!

Delighted to beat the monkeys on these! 

Louisa made these fabulous Banana Cream Pies!

COVID19 in Tanzania

As Embassy memos and High Commissioner announcements fly about, foreigners flee and borders close and flights cease … as coronavirus numbers escalate and restrictions increase worldwide, we in Mwanza are actually currently in a comparably peaceful situation. Of course we understand this could simply be the calm before the storm, but we can always hope and pray that Tanzania will escape the disaster inevitable if Coronavirus spreads here.

So what is the situation in Tanzania? At the time of writing there have only been 20 confirmed cases of coronavirus. We have no way of knowing how many people have actually been infected and there is much uncertainty and rumours abound! Testing can only be done in Dar es Salaam and there is a limited supply of kits. However, it does seem that here in Mwanza, things are relatively calm with no extra overloads in local clinics or hospitals. All schools and colleges have been closed and public gatherings banned, with the exception of churches and mosques which have been allowed to remain open (stirring much debate). Restaurants and hotels have closed. Handwashing stations are now all over town. Social distancing is encouraged but in reality pretty impossible. There is little chance really, with people living almost on top of one another and commuting on crowded local buses. And avoiding crowded markets is impossible for sellers who cannot afford not to work and buyers who live hand to mouth … and don't own a refrigerator so could not stock up anyway. (I am actually right now trying to picture someone attempting to stick lines of tape 2m apart in the mud of the market!)

Mama Benita has a handwashing bucket here at the market, 

...but she couldn't donate any soap with it.

But seriously, we are acutely aware that the risk to people's lives here is as much in possible economic lockdown as it is in the virus itself. The economic effects of a lockdown could cause far more deaths and distress through loss of food supply and medical care than the deaths of the virus. With only 20 official cases of the virus, many people around town mock the virus (as a "white disease") and laugh or get offended by the precautions, but at the same time, the economic effect has already hit and the fear is real. Most have no healthcare, no savings, no paid sick leave, no social security. People here depend on one another. Relationships are vital and the interdependency in community is life. People here do not have the luxury of being able to "work from home" or have a zoom meeting or an online chat. We can clearly see that the situation here (as in much of Africa) is very different to the west. And a one-size-fits-all solution won't work.

But solutions are needed. And prayer for wisdom for African leaders at this time is important. Economic issues aside, with hospitals here so very limited in number and facilities, there would be little chance to stem the tide if the virus spread.

So with prevention being the number one focus right now, we are doing our best as an EI team to do all we can to share the facts about COVID19 and teach about prevention (there is much false information and superstition to confuse the truth). Victoria, with her background in public health and current studies on COVID19, ably prepped our team and now, while we still can, we are working with certain people in our projects who can take the teaching forward into the villages and communities we are connected with. Bhatendi was in Nyamililio last Sunday, Elisha has been on Ukerewe Island this week, Emmanuel and Vicky have been around Kome Island, we are going with Peter to Chabakima tomorrow... With the generous help of Ivy Church in the UK, we are equipping all our partner churches with handwashing buckets complete with posters and stickers to use and share in their community. And as we can get more buckets and posters, we want to assist more widely through the TAG church. On the positive side, this is a brilliant opportunity to emphasize much of what we are already trying to do as EI across Tanzania. The importance of clean water supply, the importance of hygiene and sanitation is nothing new and meeting the challenge will yield lasting benefit.

One of the buckets in use on Kome Island!

At the end of our COVID19 training, we were challenged by our Tanzanian colleagues to explore the role of faith and corona as they respond to the many questions being asked from city churches and people in the villages they work in. So Tim led us last week to explore this. We started by looking at the relationship of faith and fear, the crux of which is found in the centre of Psalm 23, "I will fear no evil for you are with me." Fear can be a good and appropriate emotion, but we do not need to be gripped by it, with our faith in God as Father and Jesus as our Shepherd. Indeed last week in the hospital (as you may have read in our last post) was a lesson and reminder to us personally of what our faith in God means, with our refuge solely in Him.

A new handwashing bucket ready to distribute! 

With prevention information on one side and Psalm 23:4 on the other. 

We looked as a team at the working relationship of faith and wisdom (it's not either/or, it's both together). Washing your hands or social distancing doesn't mean you are afraid and without faith; it shows wisdom. We see in the Bible how the Old Testament law taught on isolating and cleanliness. This is age-old, wise advice. We finished by looking forward in this time of corona, looking at what can grow in us and through us as faith-filled people. Our faith can be strengthened, our goals re-set, not according to selfish desires, but God's agenda. As a church we can become stronger, more united and compelled by love to care for the vulnerable, the sick and the dying.

And so, as we distribute buckets and offer coronavirus prevention teaching, (we are taking advice from medical professionals here and doing it as safely as we can with handwashing and social distancing), we want to encourage the people we work with, in order that their faith would be strengthened, and that they would reach out in faith to their communities in appropriate ways.

People on Kome Island reading the posters put up at the church building.

Particularly on the island, there is very little information and 

Emmanuel has been doing a great job teaching and distributing posters and buckets!