Awareness-building drama tackles measles
Shingirai Madondo | Saturday November 9, 2013 15:41
Scene one: The careless mother spends most of her time at a drinking spot while her maid struggles with a young boy child infected with a highly infectious disease. It is measles.
Scene two: The child meets his death because he was not taken to a health facility for a measles vaccination, Vitamin A supplement and a de-worming exercise. Instead, the child was taken to a traditional healer. This development resulted in the breaking of the family fibre after the husband decided to leave his irresponsible wife.
Played before capacity crowds at a number of public areas in Francistown and some remote areas in the northern part of the country, the performance is more than just a skit.
It is an ambitious and deliberate attempt by Ghetto Artistes Theatre Group to help raise awareness about the ongoing Measles, Vitamin A and De-worming campaign.
The campaign started on Monday and is expected to end today. Through sponsorship from Lions Club International (LCI), the drama group is creating demand for performance service and makes the community aware of the dangers measles pose to children.
According to available statistics, measles is responsible for four percent of (preventable) deaths among young children in Botswana while the pandemic HIV/AIDS kills only two percent of minors under the age of five years.
The play is to raise awareness about the neglected problem: How to deal with the measles scourge, Vitamin A deficiency and the problem of parasitic worms in children.
Consequences of not dealing with these problems are devastating. Globally, 450 children die on a daily basis because of measles. And 30 percent of measles victims are left with hearing as well as vision loss. Some cultural and religious beliefs have led to the country failing to completely eradicate measles.
“Batswana are indebted to cultural and religious beliefs. And the development has hindered the progress of eradicating measles in the country,” said programme manager at Ghetto Artistes, Katlego Monnonyane.
In the play, Ghetto Artistes showcased the cultural belief. The drunkard woman decided to take the child to a traditional healer after being infected by measles instead of seeking medical attention at a health facility.
Eventually, the child died. This is despite the fact that messages about measles vaccination were being spread through all sorts of mediums but the calls were not heeded.
“There are areas in Francistown and the remotest villages we will reach with the drama group in order to spread the message,” said the LCI Nyangabgwe District President Dilip Nunes. One member of the crowd said: “I thought this might be sort of dumb and preachy. But the show was incredible. They do a great job of talking to the parents and asking questions.”
The scenes and attitudes towards children’s health portrayed are culled from dozens of real-life testimonies. Many details are purposely left vague to elicit questions and clarification. When the 15-minute skit is over, the actors and actresses remain in character for the question-and-answer session.