CI Zambia and Covid-19 Cancel Title is required

Could CI tell us a little more about how the epidemic has affected children, families and activities in Lusaka, Zambia? I haven't heard of any sponsor receiving letters, photos, FR updates, EG reports, etc. since January-February this year. This contrasts with what is happening in other countries where CI operates. At the same time, CI's Covid-19 updates indicate that the health situation in Zambia has not been quite as dire as in CI's other countries. Are children attending school there?

Churches and non-contact sporting activities are allowed in Lusaka, but most are choosing not to meet. Restaurants and gyms are open with public health measures put in place, and airports have re-opened for international flights.

Exam classes for some grades (grades where the student must pass an exam to move on to the next, like from primary to secondary school) are open in Zambia with students wearing masks, practicing good hygiene and following physical distancing guidelines. The government has announced that remaining classes in schools and colleges will reopen, likely around mid-August.

Staff has returned to the office on a rotational basis as a way of adhering to physical distancing guidelines.

Due to rising cases, the area that offers services to sponsored children and families remains closed, but staff are working to reach more people with information on prevention.

Health staff have check-in calls with caregivers and their children who are in our nutrition program. Agency doctors are also calling families and volunteers to provide information on COVID-19, referrals to government health facilities and follow-up calls for any child or youth who visited the local health clinic. Some conditions that have been treated include: malaria, dermatitis and a UTI. Children International continues to cover the costs of medicine for the children.

Families who are part of the nutrition program have received a home visit from nurse and health volunteers. All families had adequate food in their homes. They continue to get water from public access locations. Programming for sponsored children continues with high success rates.

The Covid information on our website was updated yesterday for those interested. 

Hi Debbie, 

I initiated a sponsorship with a 6 year old child in Zambia this weekend (2/26/21). Should I expect to exchange letters, etc, at this time or might it be awhile before communications are able to take place between Zambian children and their sponsors due to Covid-19 restrictions? 

What a golden heart you have to sponsor five year-old Timothy in Zambia!  The pandemic has slowed everything, but do not be prematurely dismayed.  I sponsor ten in Zambia and as difficult as it is in these dreadful times, communications do get through because CI is stubbornly dedicated and cleverly resourceful. You will be rewarded for your generous kindness.  Stay strong Rebecca.

Thank you for your kind message and so lovely to meet you here! I was moved to also sponsor 4-year old Faiza and feel blessed to be able to do so. Our plan is to eventually have 10 children to sponsor, most from Zambia. We hope to visit the children we sponsor one day as well!

Hey @Rebecca1010 thanks for deciding to become a sponsor!  As rgfischoff mentioned, the correspondence in Zambia has been difficult during the pandemic due to the lack of digital means to gather letters from the youth, as well as the community centers still being closed in the area.  The majority of families have a sim card, but do not have a phone, so a lot of phone sharing goes on between family members and neighbors. Hardly any have data, so they can't text letters or photos.  However, when sponsors write to their youth, the staff calls them and reads the letter and then asks the family to dictate a reply...so they are making it work the best they can. I hope this info help!

Yes, Debbie, this helps me to understand how communications are being handled. I am sure the staff is working hard to keep communications with the families and the sponsored children going, despite unimaginable difficulties. I look forward to a day when the children can resume their life and studies at the community centers and getting to know my sponsored children better. Glad I can help in the ways I can for now!

We too look forward to the day we can open our centersdoors again, but until then, your generous support is going to provide criticalresources to your Zambian children & their families in these difficult times.

Debbie, one last question: Is staff able to get 'extra gift' money to the Zambian children and their families at this time? I'd like to send EG monies for my two sponsored children's birthdays (April and May) if possible. Thank you once again for your time.

Great question!  And I'm happy to say they are!  They are doing it via cash transfer (kinda of a Zambian PayPal), or by purchasing vouchers for stores the families can get to while still maintaining government Covid restrictions. 

Fantastic! I just sent an EG to Timothy and will get one out to Faiza in a couple of weeks; their birthdays are in April and May.

debbies said: ...  However, when sponsors write to their youth, the staff calls them and reads the letter and then asks the family to dictate a reply...so they are making it work the best they can. I hope this info help!

 

Please Debbies, I wonder if our sponsored kids get those letters we send them printed at the end? I really try to write to my sponsored child and I like to write to him about cartoon characters, comics, my cats, my city, I put educational pictures in colors, I am happy about it and I would be glad if all these letters my child gets ... because read just over the phone something creative, the parents get everything written in a different context and probably the child does not experience it in a way that he would experience that the letter is printed in his hands .. will these letters be delivered to the child live after this crisis? I would love to know that, thanks for the reply.

That is a really great question!  Since the letters are sent electronically to each agency, the letter will be in the cloud indefinitely. However, we are still in a holding pattern with regard on if they will eventually be printed and given to the youth. I know our staff wants to deliver them, if they are at all able. 

Dear Debbies, thanks ... I wanted to ask something else ..
Is it better to send letters directly to Zambia or via CI? I sent the gift about a year ago directly to Zambia, it traveled a long time, but after tracking the mail - it arrived. I don’t know if it was delivered to my sponsored child, but it arrived. Now I have some children's drawings that I would like to send him, along with creative photos, all on paper, so I think I'll send it directly to Zambia ... If I send a letter via CI, it travels from Europe to America and then to Zambia ... which seems to me too much :) ...

ReaLuu, I see your point in sending directly from Europe to Zambia, and with the type of items you are sending it would probably be best to treat them as a "Direct Package." Please remember that all Direct Packages (DP's) are sent directly to the central office in Zambia, which is currently closed. All the staff are working from home, per government mandates. So even though the "package" makes it to the office, it's hard to say who accepted it and where it was stored, until the staff is back in the office and able to travel to the communities to deliver the package. I would definitely wait to send any more direct packages until the Zambia office is open again. I know this is disappointing, but it is the best way to ensure that the package is in the hands of our staff. 

Yes, I'll wait .. Thanks Debbies. :)

Debbie can you clarify this. When I write a letter, does my child receive the actual physical letter? Or just a printed off scan copy? I include stickers in every letter. Does that mean they don't get those? Or is all of this for COVID times? 

Currently, the only letters we are sending are the ones submitted online. If you mail in a letter, it is being held until mail resumes, though we do not yet know when that may be.