Hawane Farm & Community

Clair Oates and Tracy Moyes are involved in the health team at Hawane within Challenge Ministries Swaziland, which oversees the health of the children and community at Hawane Farm. An important part of her role is in teaching and education with the children and also to the 'Life Skills Students and trainee pre-school teachers who are all based at Hawane Farm. Subjects covered are safety in the home, hygiene, nutrition, emotional health and exercise, first aid, HIV/AIDS and TB, and issues around abuse. The health team often find there is little understanding of the difference between a minor illness and a life threatening one, which can often result in people seeking help too late and consequently dying of illnesses that could otherwise have been treated. Cultural traditions of ancestry worship and witchcraft are also difficult practices to change.

Clair is also involved with local communities holding clinics and doing home visits when possible. The health team also reach into communities in rural, remote areas of Swaziland holding clinics and training Compassionate Care workers who volunteer to visit their communities, loving and tending them, teaching, helping, counselling and praying for them, being an accurate representation of Christ living amongst their own people.

HIV/AIDS is still an ongoing challenge here in Swaziland, which has the highest rate of sufferers in the world. More than a quarter of the population are living with the virus. Abuse is also a huge challenge, amongst children and women. But we are seeing a small breakthrough in men and women standing up against child sexual abuse, and more people are reporting such atrocities to the authorities.

They are looking for more Swazi's who will train as health carers/nurses so they can go reach into new communities.