Making one orphan family visible
Khetho and Sanele lost their father in 2001. Their mother died a year later when the boys were 13 and 10 respectively. The boys’ mother was very sick before her death. Their community, Mvembili, gathered to bury her on the family homestead but no one remained after the burial, leaving the boys alone with no outside support. Community members, neighbours and even relatives stayed away, fearing that the boys’ parents had died of AIDS. This discrimination isolated the children, forcing them to rely only on one another. Khetho and Sanele lived in a one-room shack with cracks and falling down walls, sharing one bed left behind by their parents. The winter months were difficult, as the dilapidated building allowed the cold to creep in. Both boys were in school at the time of their mother’s death, but when money ran out, Khetho was forced to leave school. Sanele was lucky enough to get assistance for school fees from the Salvation Army. He remains in school and is in Grade 5 at Mvembili Primary School. Khetho struggled to find food for him and his brother. His father’s pension as a soldier offered only E50 (approximately U.S. $7) per month for both children. When it was possible, community members left maize and vegetables for the boys and assisted them in plowing their fields. UNICEF became aware of the boys’ situation in May 2006 after they began attending the Mgundatshane Neighbourhood Care Point (NCP). This NCP established by UNICEF, is one in a network of NCPs around the country that give orphans and vulnerable children a place to gather with their peers to receive at least one hot meal per day, basic care and psychosocial support. With help from UNICEF, the community was mobilized to complete construction of an unfinished house nearby. A family from the capital Mbabane that shared a surname with the boys visited the area and became a “foster” family for the boys, encouraging and supporting them. The community finished the house in December 2006 and Khetho and Sanele moved in on 13 December. A local church brought groceries and other community members came with curtains, bed linen and food. Their foster family bought a bed for each boy. Mvembili community assigned a community member to look after all the OVC in the area and a neighbour to Khetho and Sanele was charged with taking care of them. Khetho is now 18 and Sanele is 15. Khetho is back in school thanks to the support of a concerned family. Their new house is now a home, thanks to the support of friends and community members. Swaziland has many children like Khetho and Sanele and presently there is no means to assist them in a structured way. The NCP became an entry point for basic service delivery. These boys were lucky to be found by UNICEF and eventually assisted by their community, but many are not so lucky.
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