Djibo Research Paper
Why are Kids Getting Sick? Project Plan for Rapid Assessment
Djibo is a small village in northern Burkina Faso located in West Africa. The United nations have named the country of Burkina Faso to be the fourth poorest in the World.(“Bukina Faso”) Djibo lacks and adequate amount of necessities need to maintain a healthy life style, and the resources they do have are now being shared with thousands of Malian refugees. The village has become a new home for Malian refugees seeking sanctuary and a UNHAR camp has been built to assist. A new disease has been identified in the region by a WHO official and needs to be rapidly addressed. The disease is found particularly in children and results in symptoms of fever, seizures, chills, cough, muscle …show more content…
This catastrophe occurred in 2011 and has brought to light the danger mining has on the health of the Djibo people. The two 20 ton containers were filled with Cyanide and being transported to Inata Gold Mine, forty miles from Djibo. A deadly amount of Cyanide was leaked into the air and water used by citizens. Cyanide takes up to three years to clear out of the air, and the amount of time it takes for the toxic chemical to be cleared from water is unknown. Fish were found poisoned and local radio stations urged everyone to not use the water in the lake or wells. Although no human deaths were reported it brings alive a very serious health risk to the people of Djibo. This needs to be addressed when researching the current outbreak. The possibility of children being exposed to chemicals either by water, air, or lack of safe transportation is deadly. This could enhance the symptoms of the disease, be the cause, or a gate way to other diseases. By the accident that occurred in 2011 it is made clear that the transportation of toxic chemicals by the nearby gold mining companies is unsafe and dangerous to the people. Mining activity also contaminates water with naturally occurring arsenic. Water contamination is a major factor to be considered of the new outbreak and mining companies need to be thoroughly investigated. (Stephan
Djibo is a small village in northern Burkina Faso located in West Africa. The United nations have named the country of Burkina Faso to be the fourth poorest in the World.(“Bukina Faso”) Djibo lacks and adequate amount of necessities need to maintain a healthy life style, and the resources they do have are now being shared with thousands of Malian refugees. The village has become a new home for Malian refugees seeking sanctuary and a UNHAR camp has been built to assist. A new disease has been identified in the region by a WHO official and needs to be rapidly addressed. The disease is found particularly in children and results in symptoms of fever, seizures, chills, cough, muscle …show more content…
This catastrophe occurred in 2011 and has brought to light the danger mining has on the health of the Djibo people. The two 20 ton containers were filled with Cyanide and being transported to Inata Gold Mine, forty miles from Djibo. A deadly amount of Cyanide was leaked into the air and water used by citizens. Cyanide takes up to three years to clear out of the air, and the amount of time it takes for the toxic chemical to be cleared from water is unknown. Fish were found poisoned and local radio stations urged everyone to not use the water in the lake or wells. Although no human deaths were reported it brings alive a very serious health risk to the people of Djibo. This needs to be addressed when researching the current outbreak. The possibility of children being exposed to chemicals either by water, air, or lack of safe transportation is deadly. This could enhance the symptoms of the disease, be the cause, or a gate way to other diseases. By the accident that occurred in 2011 it is made clear that the transportation of toxic chemicals by the nearby gold mining companies is unsafe and dangerous to the people. Mining activity also contaminates water with naturally occurring arsenic. Water contamination is a major factor to be considered of the new outbreak and mining companies need to be thoroughly investigated. (Stephan