Maternity Care

Above: view of the ocean from the House of Pearls.

The oyster shell in the picture below was collected by a young diver from the village of Kigombe on the north east coast of Tanzania. The pearl 'baby' instead of being rejected as the oyster would have done with the pearl, is cradled in the smoothly lined shell and protected from above and below.

From Symbol to Reality - How has FCDT translated the Pearl symbol into the reality of a refuge for the vulnerable mothers and babies?

Kigombe village is situated between Tanga and Pangani, part of it is called Jitengeni. Visible in the aerial views below are the former medical facility to the left, which includes maternity and delivery unit, and to the right the L-shaped House of Pearls Hostel.

The righthand view shows the whole length of the plot, with the medical facilities which are about 50 metres from the Tanga-Pangani road, and the hostel about 120 metres from the beach. Each of these has a separate fenced compound, and between them there is also a fenced garden area.

The service provided at this facility between 2010 and 2015 was similar to a NHS Health Centre, but to the local community, it was often more like an Accident and Emergency Unit, though without access to all the equipment and resources of the NHS. Many patients need urgent treatment, often for life-threatening conditions, as most people do not seek medical help until their condition has become serious. Due to lack of health education as well as superstitions, combined with extreme poverty and compounded by food shortages leading to inflated prices, many people, especially children, suffer from malnutrition and are highly susceptible to diseases like pneumonia and dysentery as well as malaria. The American charity which ran this facility for five years did not extend their contract, and it has been closed since 2015.

In January 2021 FCDT opened the House of Pearls as a hostel for young pregnant girls, often turned out from their homes or expelled from school, who are able to stay for about half a year: three months before and three after the baby’s birth. During this time they receive medical care (including specialized HIV care if required) and counselling from experienced medical staff. Those at the greatest risk can be identified through medical facilities in conjunction with the social services, and both are kept informed about their progress and involved in their return to the wider community. The Maternity wing can be used for routine checks on mothers and babies, but the girls are registered for their delivery at the Pangani District Hospital.

The Trust provides staff for supervision, education and non-medical care; they will be on site regardless of how many girls are resident at any time. However the individual needs of each girl have to be considered separately, and are estimated at about £500 for one mother and child for six months residence and a 'package' to help them start their new life.

The girls are expected to do their own cleaning, washing, cooking etc. They receive training in the preparation of nutritious food for themselves before their babies arrive, as well as child nutrition. Fruit trees and vegetables are being grown and the girls participate in caring for these and sharing the produce. There is ongoing agricultural development of the site which covers about 9Ha. We are researching and experimenting with trees and crops which will provide some income as well as helping to reduce the area of rough grass. There are also chickens, and a small flock of milk-goats; their milk is much more suitable than cows' milk for small babies, and may be needed if the mothers have difficulty feeding them.

We as Trustees of FCDT are seeking sponsorship for general running expenses, and would particularly welcome designated sponsorship for one or more of the young mothers for their time at the Centre, estimated at six months but dependent on the well-being of the mother and child. In exceptional circumstances, the maximum period would be nine months. As well as seeking financial support we welcome advice and expertise in all areas of this project, especially suitable use of the land for agriculture. We also hope at a later stage to apply for a one-off grant for a purpose-built hostel alongside the medical facility, to enable more girls to be cared for. The maximum number we can house at this site is six; we made space available for one mother at the Marijani Home (see under Special Care) but the focus of the care offered there is on education so we do not intend more mothers and babies to be housed there. There is one building at the House of Pearls which could be used for those whose babies have arrived to stay about three months after delivery, while the ante-natal ones would be staying in the main house. But even doing this, the total cannot be more than twelve mothers at any one time, and we would like to be able to offer care to at least three times that number.

We are very grateful for individual sponsorship for the first mother (at the Marijani Home). We hope that other individual sponsors will help us to ensure that every new mother can have a practical training to enable her to work and support herself and her child.

More details of how to help can be obtained from the Administrator, Steven Nicolas, see under Contacts.

Below: Medical buildings intended for Outpatients and A&E to the left, the House of Pearls main Hostel building to the right