NGO bird catches worms in city kids<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It has taken over 17 years to get worms out of the city's long
\nlist of health problems, seeing a decrease in parasitical
\ninfections among children living in slums to 8 percent this year.<\/p>\n
Non-governmental organization Kusuma Buana Foundation, which
\nis concerned with public health, revealed on Tuesday that they
\nhad been working since 1987 to eradicate intestinal parasite
\ninfections, mostly roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides), whipworm
\n(Trichuris trichuira), and hookworm, among elementary school
\nstudents.<\/p>\n
Focusing on schoolchildren of slums across the city, which are
\nfrequently flooded or where sanitation is poor, the organization
\nfound that 13.8 percent of the children had parasitical
\ninfections in 2002.<\/p>\n
\"Thousands of students from around 1,500 elementary schools
\nout of 2,500 schools in Jakarta are vulnerable to getting
\ninfected by parasites,\" the organization executive Adi Sasongko
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He was speaking in a one-day seminar titled: School-based
\nParasite Control Program to Improve the Health of the Elementary
\nSchoolchildren in Indonesia from 2002 to 2005.<\/p>\n
Children are most vulnerable to parasitical infections that
\ncan adversely affect their health through a reduction of
\nnutrients, which can lead to malnutrition and decrease the
\nchild's quality of life and ability to learn.<\/p>\n
Kusuma Buana, which has succeeded in reaching 721 elementary
\nschools in Jakarta from 1987 to 2005 with its parasite awareness
\ncampaigns and health promotions for students, parents, and
\nteachers, provides laboratory checkups and medication for
\nstudents twice a year at each school.<\/p>\n
Once a specific school has succeeded in managing parasitical
\ninfections satisfactorily, the focus of the foundation's
\nactivities is shifted to improving the children's nutrition.<\/p>\n
To support the program, the Jakarta administration has
\nsubsidized the cost of the laboratory tests and medicine at Rp
\n15,000 per month for each student.<\/p>\n
Supported by the city administration, Kusuma Buana also asked
\nparents to participate in the program by contributing Rp 1,000
\neach year for each of their school-age children.<\/p>\n
Ida Ayu Puspasari, an assistant resident representative for
\ncollaboration, community empowerment and the environment, of the
\nIndonesian office of the Japan International Cooperation Agency
\n(JICA), said that her organization had allocated Rp 1.4 billion
\nfor the three-year project.<\/p>\n
\"We have seen that Kusuma Buana has established good and well-
\nmanaged cooperation and affiliations with several NGOs and
\nprivate companies, like Ajinomoto, in Japan. The foundation also
\nhas systematically transferred its knowledge to other local
\nNGOs,\" she said.<\/p>\n
\"Our support for the program will be over by the end of this
\nmonth. For the evaluation of the progress of the program, we will
\ncontinue monitoring the results of the prevention program among
\nthe students,\" Ida added.(001)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ngo-bird-catches-worms-in-city-kids-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}