Tackling the Third Wave
Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic was a manageable challenge in our Oldeani community thanks to our rural location. In many ways, life in rural Tanzania continued on as usual. Crops were planted and harvested, weddings took place, schools reopened and students were able to continue with their studies.
When the Delta variant arrived in Tanzania, that all changed.
The Tanzanian government acted quickly to encourage mask wearing and social distancing, while also requesting vaccines to protect their population. However, one of the challenges of any remote, rural area is the distribution of information and resources. After a year of relative calm, it was difficult for many to understand the sudden shift in readopting mask usage, social distancing and other precautions.
TCF is dedicated to keeping our community strong and healthy. In alignment with the government’s COVID-19 prevention plans, we began our own behavioral change campaign in July aimed at encouraging the Rift Valley Children’s Village (RVCV) and the Oldeani Community to double-down on precautions. We’ve seen amazing results in only a few short weeks!
The over 130 staff and 102 children at RVCV have reembraced many prevention methods, understanding why they are important and how small actions can greatly reduce the spread of COVID-19. A dozen sensibilizations have taken place to address the community’s concern over both mask usage and the vaccine, including three trainings that had over 200 attendees.
When vaccines became available less than a month ago, over 30 of RVCV’s staff members got vaccinated within the first week! Thanks to a swift government roll out and our behavioral change campaign, we expect this number to grow rapidly in the coming weeks. In fact, a vaccination site was moved from Karatu to Oldeani, making the vaccine even more accessible!
The last few months have reminded us once again that when we work together any challenge can be tackled! As future challenges arise, TCF will remain dedicated to finding new solutions to provide our community of 10,000 with the tools and opportunities they need and deserve.