Project Description
Place: Koyage
Year: 2014
The kampong Alobaga is located in the district of Koyage, in the central mountainous region of Papua. Koyage consists of 20 villages, located in an inhospitable and difficult to access region. Roads and bridges are in poor condition and barely accessible. There is only one clinic in this area staffed by a mantri, Epius Wenda. There is no doctor for miles around. The journey to the simple clinic, carried by the hand or in the arms of family members, is often long and grueling for the sick. And then it is often a futile mission. There is hardly any specialized staff and medicines are scarce. Mantri Wenda, who himself is from this region, is an experienced and trained nurse and has the unconditional confidence of the locals, but often stands empty-handed.
Hapin has made a plan together with Epius to structurally help the clinic in Alobaga. Not everything can be done at the same time. For starters, medications are needed to tackle common skin and infectious diseases. Agreements must be made with hospitals in Jayapura and/or Wamena for regular collection and transport. Hapin guarantees the financing of these costs, approximately 1.700 euros. At a later stage, attention should be paid to training local people to become nurses or health workers. Epius Wenda’s professionalism and great commitment to the well-being of his people in these remote villages give hope that the sick Papuans will soon make the long and arduous journey to the puskesmas.
