First Guest Blogger- Amanda Teckman

During the summer of 2008, I spent two months in Ntinda, Uganda, on an internship with the United Nations Association of Uganda. While there, I visited their Mukono rural branch, where I learned about some of their important projects which help save lives every day. One of the projects was aimed at training teenagers in basic health practices and sending them out to the community to disseminate this information. One major concern in Uganda is malaria, and one simple way to prevent it is through the use of insecticide treated bed nets. The teenaged health workers educated Ugandans house by house on the importance of bed nets. According to a recent study published in Acta Tropica (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001706X11000611), "Malaria is reported by the Ministry of Health (MOH) as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Uganda, accounting for approximately 8–13 million episodes per year, 30–50% of outpatient visits at health facilities, 35% of hospital admissions, 9–14% of hospital deaths (nearly half of those in children less than 5 years of age) and a great many deaths occurring outside of health care settings."

Ugandans are increasingly relying upon government health centers and NGOs for obtaining treated bed nets, and relying less upon the option to purchase these nets.

NothingButNets is an NGO that works to provide insecticide treated bed nets to Ugandans and other people most susceptible to contracting the disease. Watch a NothingButNets video, showing bed net distribution in Uganda: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9S_vZBCNJM&feature=player_embedded#!.

But just as important as providing the treated bed nets is educating people about malaria and different ways to prevent and treat the disease. The government and other organizations such as the Humble School are key to providing this education.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001706X11000611

http://www.sciencedirect.com/

 

You can find Ms. Teckman on linked

or contact her via email at ateckman@gmail.com

Guest Bloggers!

I am certain that those of you following me are getting a little sick of hearing me go on and on about my babies at the Humble School. Not only that but the 315 children at Humble represent only a small number of children around the country (and continent) who are in need of food, shelter, clothing, education, and love. For this reason I have asked some of my friends and colleagues to write guest blog posts that I will showcase on my blog every Friday! I am excited to hear about each of their experiences and I hope you will be inspired. If you have stumbled onto this blog by accident and you have a story to share please feel free to e-mail me at judilinz2012mission@gmail.com

Look forward to the first guest post Tomorrow :-)

A topic near and dear to my heart that still plagues the Continent today...Refugees

While reading an article about the influx of Congolese refugees pouring into Uganda I was jolted back to my studies at Seton Hall. Particularly my thesis regarding how refugees find themselves in a position where fleeing is their only choice and the impact such movements have on the international community as a whole. So here are some of my thoughts on African refugees followed by the article which sparked my reminiscing

The study of refugee flows by scholars can be categorized into two unique groups. The first group looks at the effects of mass flight on the host nation and/or the international community. The second group of literature looks at potential factors, which contribute to formation of refugee movements. Affects of refugee movements on the international community is vitally important to the flow of refugees as it is the reason why refugees are a source of global concern.

Resource scarcity and national security are the two most notable effects refugees have on host countries and the international community, more generally. The availability of land, water and capital are a huge concern to host nations[1]. Particularly in Africa , host governments are to stable enough to deal effectively with the massive influx of refugees. Governments are left with more questions than answers, and typically struggle to supply both refugees and its constituents the resources needed to survive. Unfortunately, the resource dilemma is the primary cause of the security issues related to the movements of populations across borders. The prospect of terrorist refugees, and/or an outbreak of war due to refugee presence in the host nation have put the study of refugees at the forefront of the international agenda. Political leaders seek to understand what factors contribute to the flow of refugees so that they may mitigate the negative effects of refugees.

Literature focusing on trying to explain the cause of refugee population formation generally accepts the linkage between violence and flight. With this linkage, understood scholars then try to explain the source of the violence or how refugee producing violence is unique from non-refugee producing violence.

Iqbal provides an exceptional foundation to the study of refugee populations; he explains the formation of refugee movements as a function of violent conflicts within the borders of a nation-state. War is a chief cause of refugee flows worldwide, with millions fleeing violent conflicts for fear of losing one’s life, well-being, or freedom due to political oppression.[2] Bariagaber, a leading scholar in this field, spends a substantial amount of time analyzing the linkage between political violence and refugees. This correlation is clearly visible in the fact that between 1972 and 1992 the number of African refugees increased by a shocking 321%.[3] From this point—having accepted the violence link—scholars move forward to evaluate the specifics of refugee producing violence.

Abdullah for example, looks to economics to explain the conditions, which create a violent enough environment to facilitate mass flight of individuals across national borders. Utilizing the conflict in Sierra Leone, he draws a connection between economic strife among young underemployed men and the outbreak of devastatingly violent civil war.[4]  Apart from domestic factors in the account of refugee movements, some scholarship looks to international factors to explain the crisis. Authors such as Anthony, and Newbury, look at arbitrary borders erected as byproduct of colonization and the subsequent irredentism and nationalism, to explain the resulting—refugee producing—border disputes.[5]^,[6]

Zolberg et.al offers a new perspective on international factors, which contribute to refugee movements. The conceptualization of a global community depicts the specific role that international actors play in domestic conflicts. Particularly, how third party intervention can intensify the effects of civil war.  The authors argue that “Direct military intervention by external actors … [cause people to leave], but with greater intensity because they provide the antagonists with additional firepower.”[7]

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[1] Rogge, J. (1981). "Africa 's Resettlement Strategies." International Migration Review 15: 195-212.

[2] Iqbal, Z. (2007). "The Geo-Politics of Forced Migration in Africa , 1992-2001." Conflict Management and Peace Science 24: 105-119.

[3] Bariagaber, A. (1995). Linking political violence and refugee situations in the Horn  of Africa : an empirical approach. International Organization For Migration Quarterly , 33(2), 201-234.

[4] Abdullah, I. (1998). "Bush Path to Destruction: The Origin and Character of the Revolutionary United Front/ Sierra Leone " Journal of Modern African Studies 36: 203-235.

[5] Anthony, C. (1991). "Refugee Crisis: State Building in Historical Perspective." International Migration Review 25: 574-591.

[6] Newbury, D. (1997). "Irredentist Rwanda: Ethnic and Territorial Frontiers in Central Africa  " Africa  Today 44: 211-222.

[7] Zolberg, A., A. Suhrke, et al. (1986). "International Factors in the Formation of Refugee Movements." International Migration Review 20: 151-169.

Uganda seeks help with influx of 16,000 refugees

Computers....FINGERS CROSSED

I am currently working with the National Maritime Center to secure 11 desktop computers for the children at Humble! We are not 100% sure we will be approved but keep your fingers crossed and the children of Humble in your prayers!

Life at the Humble School

HUGE THANKS TO ZACH NEDBALSKI for making these AWESOME videos!

Remembering the Children of Humble

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