A New Smile For Njabar
On 23 July 2020, Njabar’s life changed forever.
Njabar is 1 of 5 Samburu children that underwent cleft lip surgery through The Sarara Foundation's Nomadic Healthcare Program.
This is his story.
Born with a cleft lip, Njabar has spent life as a young boy as an outcast.
With a visibly different appearance to his siblings and other children in his manyatta, he was made fun of and ostracised. This led to Njabar not having friends to play with and living an isolated, solitary life.
Njabar’s father, Lekupanai, is one of the community’s most respected elders. He is also one of the first keepers to join Reteti Elephant Sanctuary when it started.
Lekupanai was well aware of the impact that Njabar’s appearance was having on his life. Feeling embarrassed, Njabar refused to go back to school and became angry and agitated. This is not a healthy state for anyone to be in, let alone a small child. What would his future look like?
Babies being born with cleft lips can be attributed to the lack of access to folic acid, an essential vitamin for pregnant women, especially in their first trimester. Cases like this occur frequently in nomadic, remote communities.
Our Healthcare Team was alerted to Njabar’s case and he was assessed by a doctor, who began the process of arranging his life changing surgery.
Lekupanai and Njabar would need to travel to Meru Teaching & Referral Hospital for the surgery, a destination over 300km away. In a landscape like this, 300km is a full day of travel.
Our team collected Njabar and Lekupanai from their manyatta and began the journey. The atmosphere in the car was one filled with both tension and hope from all parties. Njabar sat quietly next to his dad, observing the changing landscape as they travelled to Meru.
Life continued as usual at Njabar’s home. His siblings played, whilst his mother attended to the manyatta and livestock. Meanwhile, 300km away in the hospital’s consulting room, Njabar nervously held on to his father while the necessary paperwork was completed in preparation for his is surgery.
The surgery was a success!
Njabar and Lekupanai spent the night in Meru hospital for observation. The next morning, they started their travels back home.
The physical transformation was immediate.
Although his features were swollen, Njabar now looked like his siblings and the other kids at school.
He was welcomed back home by his whole family. Our Healthcare Team monitored Njabar's progress over the course of the next few months to ensure a full, healthy recovery.
Njabar’s story is one of hope and real life change.
Today, Njabar is a happy, playful boy!
He looks after livestock, plays with his friends and siblings, attends school and is now approaching the major life phase, the transition from young boy to Samburu Warrior, with utmost confidence.
Njabar’s surgery was made possibly by @smiletrain, the Neglected Surgical Disease Initiative and the Meru County Government.
Our nomadic and domestic healthcare support is designed to support women and children. We believe that it is critical to empower and support women in order to protect and manage the landscape and the wildlife that we live alongside.
We’re deeply grateful for every donation, however big or small, to provide healthcare and assistance to families in Namunyak Conservancy.
