🔅 Breast Milk to the Rescue: How Uganda's ATTA Community is Saving Tiny Lives
Liberian President Takes a Pay Cut: A Master Class in 'Solidarity'
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Breast Milk to the Rescue: How Uganda's ATTA Community is Saving Tiny Lives
Caroline Ikendi found herself in a desperate situation after undergoing an emergency C-section to remove a stillborn baby and save two preterm ones.Â
With doctors giving one of the babies a mere 2% chance of survival, Ikendi knew that without breast milk, she could lose them both. Thus began a frantic search for breast milk donors, which led her to the ATTA Breastmilk Community, a Ugandan group that collects and donates breast milk to mothers in need.
Launched in 2021 by Tracy Ahumuza, who herself had struggled to find breast milk support, ATTA is the only group outside a hospital setting in Uganda that conserves breast milk in substantial amounts. The registered nonprofit receives calls for support from hospitals and homes with babies born too soon or too sick to latch onto their mothers' breasts.Â
Since July 2021, more than 200 mothers have donated breast milk to support over 450 babies, with over 600 litres of milk delivered. Talk about superheroes!
Challenges and Obstacles: From Social Stigma to Storage Bags
Running a breast milk donation community is no easy feat:
Questions from recipients range from fears that babies who drink donated breast milk might inherit the bad habits of their benefactors to the negativity surrounding mothers who don't breastfeed.
ATTA also faces practical challenges, such as procuring storage bags in large quantities and covering the costs of testing. Donors are required to own freezers, which can be a financial obstacle for some. Despite these hurdles, ATTA's administrators and donors remain committed to their cause, knowing that their work is quite literally saving lives.
ATTA's ultimate goal is to set up a full-fledged breast milk bank with the ability to pasteurise. Dr. Doreen Mazakpwe, a lactation specialist who collaborates with ATTA, emphasises the importance of this service in a country where an unknown number of women suffer for lack of lactation support.Â
By providing donated breast milk and advising mothers on how to establish their own supply, ATTA is not only saving babies but also empowering mothers to overcome lactation issues.
Indeed, in a world where breast milk can mean the difference between life and death, ATTA's tireless efforts are a shining example of compassion and community in action.
Liberian President Takes a Pay Cut: A Master Class in 'Solidarity'
In a move that's sure to win him the "Most Relatable Politician" award, Liberian President Joseph Boakai has announced he's slashing his salary by 40%. That's right, he's voluntarily reducing his annual paycheck from a lavish $13,400 to a modest $8,000.
Boakai's office claims this is all about "responsible governance" and showing "solidarity" with the average Liberian.
But in a twist that would make any reality TV producer proud, lawmakers recently protested their lack of official cars by showing up to parliament in tuk-tuks: Nothing says "man of the people" quite like trading in your government-issued vehicle for a three-wheeled chariot of the masses.
Boakai's predecessor, George Weah, also took a 25% pay cut during his tenure. It seems pay cuts are becoming as trendy in Liberian politics as avocado toast is among millennials.
While some Liberians are applauding Boakai's move, others are adopting a "we'll believe it when we see it" attitude. After all, in a country where the presidential office budget is $3 million, a $5,400 salary cut feels a bit like finding loose change in the couch cushions.
Food for Thought
“The child of a rat is a rat."
— Malagasy Proverb