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Summary: Day of the African Child: Africa’s Orphans are
our collective responsibility. Hear the story of
an orphan child as told by another child.
Meet my friend
By Sintayehu Hailu, 13 years old
He is called Israel Messeret. He was born in February 1993. He is my age.
When he was 3 years old, in 1996, he became very sick and could not
breathe. He was admitted at the Black Lion Hospital. There, he had to
undergo a tracheotomy - an operation to place a metal tube inside his
windpipe to help him breathe. Israel who was admitted at the age of 3
never left the hospital and is still living there.
Shortly after his father died, his mother also became very seriously ill. And
she, too, died. He has no visitors, no relatives. He has only an older sister.
Her name is Kidist Messeret. She is 14 and is in grade 7.
Israel likes to draw and write stories. What is interesting about Israel is
that he has never been to school. But he has taught himself to read and
write.
Israel gets care from the hospital staff especially Sister Birke Deressa, who
helps him out as much as she can.
However, Israel is still unable to go to school.This is because he has a
special problem. Sister Birke tried to send him to a public school called
Abiyot Ermija. However, dust started getting into his breathing instrument
on his neck and caused him more health complications.
Schools that have clean compounds are too expensive for him because he
has no means of paying.
Israel also has trouble finding the kind of food he needs for his health. The
hospital food is not that good. Sister Birke sometimes brings him
something to eat from her house.
Israel is a nice boy. But he has nobody to help him except the hospital
staff. During holidays some charitable organizations buy clothes to orphans
who live in 7B, 7C and 7D wards. What Israel needs is to go to a clean
school, and to live in a good house. He and his sister Kidist need a lot of
help.
(Translated from the Amharic article submitted to Children's Voice,
ANPPCAN- Ethiopia's children's magazine, Day of African Child
Special Issue.June 16, 2005)
The stakes are too high
Israel and his sister Kidist are orphans. They are only two faces, two
stories, two names.There are millions of orphans in Ethiopia alone.
The increasing number of orphans and the rising burden on grandparents
and society to care for them has become a concern.The hospital nurse in
Israel’s story is a case in point. A very positive side to this very grim story.
Unable to turn their backs to helpless children, individuals, NGO's as well
as families have had the onerous task of caring for orphans as much as
they could. But it is not enough. Everybody needs to share the burden.
This is the theme of this year’s Day of African Child.
Because, as the present and projected rates of growth of parental deaths
show, the African Child stands to face an increasing risk of being
characterised as an orphan child.
Being an orphan in a setting that is poor and backward is not easy.The
growing number of orphans in Africa will become a serious burden on
society economically and socially.
But has society really faced the fact that the rate of growth of the number
of orphans in Africa is still increasing? Is society prepared for the myriads of
psycho-social and economic needs that orphans will have in the next few
years? That is not all, some of these orphans would also need medical
attention and care.
The stakes are too high, the issue too delicate to turn our backs to.
Moreover, the duty bearers in this case cannot be singled out. That is why
we say, ”AFRICA’S ORPHANS ARE OUR COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY.”
SOME FACTS AND FIGURES:
- Total number of orphans in Ethiopia is 4.6 million (MoH 2004).
- The number of children (
568,000 (MoH 2004).
- In Eastern and Central Africa region there are over 14.3 million orphans
(
orphaned by HIV/AIDS as of the end of 2003 (UNAIDS 2004).
Rate of increase:
- The number of children (
of 2001 was 11.5 and by end of 2003 it reached 15 million.
Projections:
- In 2010, over 18 million African children (
(UNICEF 2005).