Jeka Holidays Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jeka.vzw a non profit making association based in Belgium, therefore our motives are not strictly commercially orientated. As well as providing good value holidays for young people we are also involved in providing much needed aid to deprived people in the third world- notably in the Philippines and Brazil.
Like many cities in Brazil the streets of Salvador de Bahia are home to many young children abandoned by their families for one reason or other. Several years ago Mr Jan Van Mol a former youth worker living in Brazil, set up a canteen where these unfortunate children could drop in and receive at least one hot meal a day. Jeka have undertaken to pay the costs to feed up to 80 children each day at this centre.
We started working as volunteer physicians in the slums of Manila 16 years ago. This area has about 25,000 +/- families who are squatters on government land. Even with their lack of education and skills they are able to earn a living as ambulant hawkers in the streets, as tricycle drivers, laundry women and domestic helpers in the surrounding middle class housing suburbs. A good number scrounge the garbage dumps for items they can sell in the junk shops. With families having 7 or more children, their meager income is barely enough to keep body and soul together. Malnutrition, poor access to drinking water, over crowded dwellings, air pollution, ignorance, superstitious beliefs make the residents easy prey for gastrointestinal, skin and respiratory tract infections.
Tuberculosis is a major problem in the slums. In recent years, it is frightening that young adults are in moderate to advanced stage by the time they come to us. Treatment is long and expensive (6 months to a year, even longer). Due to the large number of tubercular patients, we designate Thursday each week just for the children with TB and Friday for the adults. Right now we have 173 children and 136 adults. Each week they come for their check up and for their supply of medicines.
Direct observed treatment system (DOTS) is the ideal way to manage tuberculosis where every patient must come to the clinic and swallow their medicines under our supervision. However, these patients are spread far and wide and do not have the money to pay for their transportation everyday.
We do not get any help from the government. Luckily, a German friend buys our medicine supply from Action Medeor, Germany. However, these anti TB medicines from Action Medeor are in tablet form, good for adults and older children. The liquid preparations for the children who are 2 years old and below have to be bought here. This is made possible with the financial gifts of our Belgian friends they send via JEKA. We are also able to buy milk powder to improve the nutrition for the children on this program.
It is gratifying that by the second month of treatment the patients show improvement. A few however drop out because of allergy to the medicines or they move to other slum areas. Some are multi-drug resistant. The majority persevere and get well.
From the 16 years in the slums we are happy of numerous success stories. Since we keep permanent record of our patients since 1989, we are ecstatic to see tiny under weight babies grow up, graduate high school and find employment in factories, a big economic improvement for the family. Disabled children were helped and can now do daily activities. Some even go to school in their wheel chairs. When a 60 year old woman comes in beaming and tells she has her job back doing laundry after graduating successfully from the TB program then it is indeed another victory for that family.
Thanks to JEKA we are able to continue this medical outreach program.