Sudan: We Would Have Danced With Joy Too!

When she arrived for the first time at the Paediatric Centre in Port Sudan, Nora Idris was severely malnourished, and the lack of vitamin A in her body made her eyes very sensitive to light. She was so worn out that she couldn’t eat or walk. She had sores and rashes, and her body showed signs of gastroenteritis and dehydration.

She was only three; accompanied by her grandmother, she made a journey of over four hours to reach us. Her grandmother stayed by her side the whole time and, without her, she might have not made it.

Her family belongs to the Beja community, a nomadic minority group of shepherds living in North Africa and Sudan.

Nora Idris was hospitalised at our centre for a whole month and, during that time, she started eating again. At her first follow-up visit after being discharged, we noticed that she had gained weight and was already much better.

And not just that: Nora Idris started dancing. While watching her, we felt like dancing with joy too.

EMERGENCY’s Paediatric Centre in Port Sudan, is co-funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation.