Making fun of a serious issue
In Darfur’s camps, where disease is a constant threat, good hygiene is vital. But how do you get thousands of kids to wash their hands after going to the loo? Oxfam staff hit upon an ingenious solution – make lessons in basic hygiene serious fun...
Watched closely by his friends, Osman rubs soap carefully between his fingers. He sheepishly admits he doesn’t quite know how old he is. “I think I am three… or maybe four,” he says.
But – he adds proudly – he does know exactly how to wash his hands after using the latrine.
And he learnt it from a song.
Osman is one of thousands of children learning life-saving lessons in hygiene from Oxfam health teams in Kalma camp, Darfur – temporary home to around 170,000 displaced people forced from their homes.
The crowded camp has grown rapidly – as have deadly health risks that seriously threaten the children.
“Children everywhere need to be taught to wash their hands and keep clean,” says Khaled Suleiman, an Oxfam public health officer in the camp. “But here, this is especially so, as the consequences of not doing it can be fatal.”
Khaled and his team get the message home by ingenious means. They make lessons about germs, and other hazards, great fun.
Songs are enthusiastically sung about preventing diarrhoea and malaria with the excitedly gathered children – “Our food should be washed, our water should be covered!” (The words soon accompanied by countless stomping feet and clapping hands).
Other songs teach about clearing up rubbish, how to set up mosquito nets, and safely use latrines – Oxfam has installed over 10,000 at Kalma.
“We’re exposing the children to our messages at every opportunity, says Khaled. “The songs are just part of what we do and it’s clear the children’s health has improved since the programme began.”
Football matches and volleyball games are organised all over the camp, where Oxfam’s health teams can further spread the word.
And cartoon drawings showing good hygiene now decorate all the places where the children gather.
It is clear Oxfam’s approach has some serious fans – and one in particular knows the part he likes best.
“My favourite thing is singing and dancing,” says Osman, his arms waving frantically about his head as he mimes the actions to a song about swatting away flies. “And I like to learn new things.”
Osman has spent most of his short life in the camp, after arriving with his mother.
No one knows what happened to his father and brothers.
Donate now
Oxfam is helping over 500,000 displaced people in Darfur, providing vital clean water, sanitation and health services in the temporary camps there.
Make a donation
Donate to Oxfam's Darfur and Chad emergency appeal.
