Construction for life

OM International

Swaziland, a landlocked country bordering South Africa and Mozambique,
has been hard-hit by the AIDS pandemic. Presently Swaziland tops the
list for the highest percentage of AIDS victims. However, in the
community of Mbekelweni, there are people who want to bring hope to
those living around them.

In July, an AIDS HOPE team went from a church in Durban, South Africa to
Swaziland. During the week the team got to know the community of
Mbekelweni, do training programs (including providing AIDS information,
making bricks and welding) and visit schools. There were also 2 trailers
full of donations, including food parcels, blankets, beds and clothes
for orphans. Further assistance will be given to start chicken farms. An
incubator for this has already been donated.

The highlight of the week was a visit to the council and a meeting with
the councillors and Induna (the headman). They were familiar with the
plans the team already had made in Durban: a draft for a clinic. At this
meeting a piece of ground of four hectares was set aside for the clinic,
a hospital and a centre for activities to help the community. Only final
approval from the Swazi King Mswati III is required before the
construction work can begin.

Please pray for the community of Mbekelweni. Pray also for the
protection of those helping to construct the clinic and hospital, and
the short-term teams that will go to Mbekelweni.

Credit: OM International
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Missions Gallery
Swaziland

Swazi woman outside rural dwelling<br>Elderly woman in Swaziland stands outside her rural home. Elderly Swazi Woman<br>Elderly woman in Swaziland sits on doorstep of her home. Funerals are big business in Swaziland<br>Many streets in Swaziland are dotted with advertisments for funeral parlors - a business which has boomed due to the HIV+ rate of nearly 40%

Recent Stories from Swaziland

A letter home: coming face to face with AIDS
30 Sep, 2008
Rachel, from Ireland, is participating in OM South Africa's training programme and recently spent time in Swaziland ministering to people suffering from AIDS.

Coming Face to Face with AIDS – a letter home
25 Sep, 2008
Rachel Cousins from Ireland recounts her impressions of Swaziland while on OM South Africa’s six-month missions training programme.

Construction for life
23 Sep, 2008
A group from the AIDS HOPE team in South Africa begins construction for a clinic, hospital and centre in the community of Mbekelweni, Swaziland.