Zahra is gaining her health back

When one-year old Zahra was brought to Tafairy health and nutrition centre two years ago, she was weighing only five kilograms. Her mother Hiba was very worried about her daughter’s health. She had tried everything, but Zahra could neither breastfeed nor eat normal food: “Zahra was very weak and thin. She was not eating well. Then she stopped eating at all. I would have to force her to eat, but it would all come out as diarrhoea”. says Hiba. “When I took Zahra to the centre, they also tried to give her food, but she could not keep anything inside for a long time.”

The medical team decided that they could not support the girl sufficiently in the centre and referred her to the larger Kadugli Teaching Hospital. The costs of transport and staying in the health facility would be covered by Save the Children with funds from USAID. Zahra stayed for 2 months in the hospital and received the appropriate diagnosis and medicines leading to her recovery. However, shortly after her initial release from the hospital, her health status worsened again, and she was readmitted. Zahra received another 25 days of treatment in Kadugli hospital, including blood transfusions.

Today, she is much better, but she still doesn’t have the same strength as children her age. To support her further, her mum continues to bring her to Tafairy nutrition centre, where she received regular nutritious meal. Now, at the age of three, Zahra weighs nearly 10 kilograms and her mother has big dreams and hopes for her: “I really want Zahra to grow up and be a doctor so she can help other little girls like her. She can tell them that I was just like you and now I’m a doctor”.

The health and nutrition centre is situated in Tafairy camp for internally displaced people (IDPs) on the outskirts of Kadugli in South Kordofan. It is supported by Save the Children with funding from USAID. The centre serves both IDP and host communities from the surrounding areas and offers health and nutrition services, including screenings, consultations, supplementary feeding, ante and postnatal care services and vaccinations.