Who would have thought that just 8 months after Kurt and Marianne's visit in November 2023, this would already be bearing fruit and Winrose would be holding a training course on health insurance cards for the parents and one on tooth brushing for the children in Qurus? “Nothing is impossible, it just takes will and trust.”

On Wednesday, August 21, Winrose and Masia set off on the bus trip to Qurus at 9 pm. A good 13 hours later, they arrived in Qurus healthy and very happy. The weather was a little cooler here, which was a change for both of them, as it is a little hotter in Dar es Salaam and the climate is completely different. This was a new experience for both of them. In their luggage they had a large bag with 500 toothbrushes and toothpaste and the training documents. These bags donated by FC St. Gallen are being put to good use.

They finally got to personally meet and get to know the teachers and students on this Thursday afternoon, as in recent months the head teacher Rabia and the Maisha Bora team have only exchanged information, discussed, agreed and made decisions over the phone or by email.

The fact that, despite this distance, hundred children's health insurance licenses have been collected, registered and now officially approved by the health system in such a short time, was a very positive surprise for us here in Switzerland. This was only possible thanks to the cooperation of local volunteers who worked hard to ensure a good future for the children. We were able to establish strong, reliable and benevolent new local relationships.

"The secret of happiness lies not in possession, but in giving. Those who make others happy become happy.” - André Gide, writer (1869-1951)

On Friday morning, the 500 students at Qurus were treated to a slightly different program than normal lessons. Curious, everyone sat quietly on the sandy red floor and listened attentively to the words of our nurse Winrose. She gave a lesson about teeth, how they grow and how important it is to take care of your teeth, how to brush your teeth and what is not good for your teeth. The children had lots of questions and wanted to show what they had learned.

For the afternoon, Rabia invited the parents of the 100 most disadvantaged children to the school so that Winrose could inform the parents about the health insurance card. This document is very important - they have to take care of it so that they can use the card. Winrose explained to everyone how to use the card at the hospital when their children need medical help.

Leading representatives of the government were also present at this training: the district school board, the district education authority, the district administrator, the chairman of the local government and the director of the school (Qurus Secondary).   It is a good sign when the government is interested in what is being trained and what we, NUKIA and Maisha Bora, are committed to.

The financing of these health insurance cards and hygiene articles are meaningful investments that we are able to sustainably implement and realize thanks to our generous health donation.

We were also able to supply two water tanks with 5000 liters of water each for the elementary school. The school can now ensure that the children have enough clean water to drink or that there is enough water for cooking and/or hygiene.

We owe these water tanks to our donor for water projects. The children and teachers are very happy about this support and say THANK YOU from the bottom of their hearts.

On Saturday, Rabia and Godwin took the time to take Winrose and Masia to a nearby children's home (50 children from this home go to Qurus School). They also had enough time to visit some families and see where and how these children live. Some of the children walk two hours there and two hours back every day to attend school. There was also a visit to Erich and Essau.

Masia and Winrose returned home safely from their trip. The visit was very valuable and showed how much is possible together. We would like to say Asante Sana to all our trusting donors and are extremely happy that we are able to provide this support in the right places.