Dispensary: New Video

The medical dispensary (small health clinic) has now been open in Sukenya for almost three months, and the number of patients visiting is much higher than expected, which is wonderful! We are thrilled that the community is using the clinic so much. This is one of the biggest projects in our history; it gives the Maasai who live in this area a health facility they can get to without having to walk 13-plus miles. Imagine walking that far if you were sick or in labor!

We thought you might enjoy this short video about the new dispensary. Please let us know what you think.

The Dispensary is Open!

Five years after the Sukenya women asked us for help to build a dispensary, it is open, staffed, and seeing patients! We couldn’t be prouder of this achievement. The new facility is providing care to residents of five villages; these people used to have to walk 13 miles to reach the nearest health facility. Now they are able to access care much more easily.

The dispensary currently has a staff of two, and in the first three weeks of it being open, the staff has seen 623 patients and delivered three healthy babies! In addition, all patients are getting health education when they arrive for treatment. As a comparison, other dispensaries generally see 200 patients each month; 623 in three weeks is incredible!

This is our biggest project to date, and we are thrilled to hear that so many members of the community have already benefited from it.

Garden Party and Benefit

On Tuesday night, about a hundred friends of FoTZC came together to celebrate community development projects and to kick off COCOBA (community conservation banking) in the Loliondo area. We had a silent auction including paintings and paper art by three Tanzania artists we know, as well as a stunning selection of African masks from the Private Collection of the late Dr. Farish Jenkins. We also had Thomson Safarisstaff members selling jewelry and other beaded handicrafts made by Tanzanian women.

The main attraction was our panel of speakers, which included Dr. Ken Dial, a Conservation Biologist at the University of Montana, Daniel Yamat, a Maasai elder from Tanzania, and video interviews with Atwitye Makwetta, the Dean of Business at Mount Meru University. WBUR’s Tom Ashbrook led a lively discussion on empowering women in Tanzania, and how conservation and tourism both play a role in this type of development.

We’ve included one of the video clips of Atwitye speaking about women in Tanzania so you can get a feel for the issues that the panel addressed.

Orkiu Classroom Dedication

On a brilliantly clear day in early May, we went to the dedication ceremony for the two new classrooms at Orkiu Primary School. We were welcomed by women singing and dancing in their finest shukas and jewelry along with the elders and village leaders. After greeting everyone, the guests of honor, including two of our representatives and two Thomson Safaris guides were seated on the veranda of the new classrooms for the ceremony. The District Commissioner of Ngorongoro District, Hashim Mgandilwa, was the guest of honor. He thanked FoTZC for our dedication to completing projects in Loliondo, and noted that Orkiu now has enough classrooms for the entire student body. Prior to the construction of these classrooms, half of the students had to wait outside while the other half was in class. At an elevation of almost 8,000 feet, Orkiu gets cold! The students are happy to have more time in the classroom. Eliza, the FoTZC Director of Operations spoke about how much we value our partnership with Orkiu, as well as our incredible partnership with Jane Moore. Jane raised the majority of the money to fund these classrooms through her effort called Pencils and Dreams. We are grateful to have Jane helping us with our projects, but the students are especially grateful!

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FOTZC is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) organization registered in Watertown, MA. FOTZC also accepts donation of securities. Please contact info@fotzc.org for guidance on making this type of donation.