GOOD NUTRITION SAVES COMPANIES MONEY!

Many companies in Zimbabwe are now benefiting from e'Pap with their staff enjoying the product every day. All companies are registering improved productivity, decreased absenteeism and less work related mistakes. In this video Mr Masvina, head of safety and health at Kango division of Treger Products put the staff on e'Pap some time ago and has collected data for all that time to prove that providing effective nutrition saves companies money.  

JustGiving Appeal to Support Hungry Children in Zimbabwe

Thanks to the wonderful work from the people at Zane - Zimbabwe a National Emergency we are now able to roll out a programme to help support the children of Matabeleland, victims of the current drought and hunger plaguing the country. 

Please help us to help the children through The Nutrition Bus , HocicZimbabwe and Zane.

Please help us to help these children, your donation no matter how small will go a long way. It is just an easy click away. Please share with all you know. 

The campaign is now live and launched, just click on this link to find the Nutrition Bus fund raiser on JustGiving 

Thanks to you all.

WHY e’Pap MAKES ME SMILE

Usually I don’t tend to walk in customers, but today I had to as I was on my own in the shop.  A gentle, unassuming man in security guard uniform stood outside the gate peering in, but seemed too shy to enter.  I welcomed him into the shop.  He was there to find out how much e’Pap costs.  He was 50c short for a packet so I started to dig, in my normal fashion. 

His 5 year old daughter needs surgery, but because she is underweight cannot have it.  He was told at his local clinic that e’Pap would help her to gain healthy weight. 

As always my curiosity got the best of me and I had to know exactly what kind of surgery she needs.  She has a cleft palate.  A cruel, but eminently fixable condition.

The world works in strange ways… through my work at KingGeorge VI Centre for children living with disabilities, I was recently sent information about an incredible team from the United States, “Operation of Hope” who provide “life-changingsurgical care, healthcare & medical training programs in under-served areasof the world through international collaboration among medical &non-medical volunteers”.  They are coming in May to screen and schedule cleft palate surgeries, right here in Bulawayo.

This unassuming father was amazed at the news and a little embarrassed at his emotional response.  We immediately emailed the organisation and within a couple of hours had an answer, she is going to be screened at Mpilo hospital to assess her condition and hopefully be eligible to get the amazing help offered by these phenomenal doctors from very far away.

Now we have to get her weight up to help her cope with the trauma of surgery. 

Watch this space as her story unfolds.

I have been pretty grumpy with my staff away, but thank goodness for my daughter who has stepped in to help.  But if they weren’t away, I would never have heard this story and been able to give this poor man some good news for once.

And please don’t worry, she will be getting all the e’Pap she needs to get her strong and healthy!

THE NUTRITION BUS

iT'S UP AND lIVE

The Nutrition Bus, a project set up to feed school children in the Matabeleland area of Zimbabwe has officially been launched.

Zimbabwe is currently in the grips of a catastrophic drought, poor rainfalls are predicted for the next two years and already children are going hungry.  Some cannot concentrate at school, some have to walk up to 18km to school, they become too weak to do this.

The Nutrition Bus aims to address this issue by providing food for school children.   For $6, one child can be fed for a month – including all logistics and administrative support. This also includes collecting academic and health indicators to monitor the progress of each child once they are benefiting from good nutrition.  Less than the cost of a pizza.

Partnering with a local NGO in Bulawayo (Zimbabwe), Hope for a Child in Christ (HOCIC) and e’Pap Zimbabwe, the food chosen to feed to the children, The Nutrition Bus will initially support two schools in the Matabeleland North area, Zimdabule and Maqaqeni primary schools.

The Nutrition Bus are seeking funding from individuals and also on a corporate level to support the project.  They also offer twinning for Schools and Communities.

 “After months of work setting up the Nutrition Bus, we are delighted to the Provincial Education Director for Matabeleland North has selected two of the most needy schools in the district for us to work with.  By partnering with e’Pap and HOCIC, we have a transparent business modal with an excellent food product to feed the children.  The launch of the project could not have come at a more desperate time’   Lenore Dudman, The Nutrition Bus.

 “The severity of the situation in Zimbabwe cannot be underestimated, every day we see the effects of the drought and will continue to see this for years to come.  The work of the Nutrition Bus helps alleviate this for some of the worst affected of our schools.  We are delighted to support the Nutrition Bus”.  Shelly Lasker, e’Pap Zimbabwe

 Further information:  Lenore Dudman.  info@thenutritionbus.com.  +263 774 974 481

About The Nutrition Bus

Launched in January 2016, the Nutrition Bus is a project set up to feed School Children in the Matabeleland district of Zimbabwe.  $6 a month will feed one child, including all administrative and logistical costs. 

www.thenutritionbus.com 

info@thenutritionbus.com

+263 774 974 481

 About HOCIC.

Hope for a Child in Christ (HOCIC) is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) founded in 1995 and registered as a Private Voluntary Organisation (PVO) in 1999.

A child-centered organization operating in Matabeleland, Zimbabwe, working with children living in difficult circumstances, HOCIC offers Psychosocial Support directly and indirectly through volunteers and caregivers.

www.hocic-zim.org. 

+263-9-88 5 871

 About e’Pap

e'Pap is a pre cooked fortified food that uses state of the art nutritional chemistry and delivers in a food portion 29 nutrients in a bio-available form. A porridge that is prepared by mixing directly with drinking water, no cooking is required, thus negating the need for firewood.  If cooked, the nutrients are damaged and the porridge less effective. It is certainly not a medicine. 

e'Pap is used across the African continent where up to 2 million food portions a month are consumed. It is used in many programs from HIV support to crèche and school feeding and company wellness programs.

www.epapzimbabwe.blogspot.com

Out with the old, in with the new...

THANK YOU ICASA, THANK YOU ZIMBABWE, 

THANK YOU GLOBAL VILLAGE, 

THANK YOU SOUTHERN AFRICA TRUST AND ALBION!

Icasa Zimbabwe 2015 is over and it has been a week of intense debate, networking, meeting brave activists, organisations and academics.  A week of making new friends and plotting a way forward for the people who this conference is all about... the HIV Aids and STI affected people of the world.

The Hivos Daily News at Icasa

From the Reach Bulleting our very own e'Pap hero Nassio

ICASA 2015 ZIMBABWE - WORLD AIDS DAY - WORLD DISABILITY DAY

World Aids Day 2015 - Getting to zero; end Aids by 2030 was marked with demonstrations, workshops and great music at Icasa in Harare.  

The Condomise Stage at the Global Village

UNAIDS Director at the e'Pap Stand

Pepfar Ambassador Burke engages with
the HIV affected to hear their stories

A flashmob of HIV+ women celebrating their womanhood

 UNAIDS Executive Director opened the Community Village at ICASA and urged countries to leave no one behind in the response to HIV

From the UNAIDS Press Statement

On the eve of World AIDS Day 2015, the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, stressed the need to reach people most affected by HIV as he spoke at the opening of the Community Village at the 18th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA). 

Condom Fashion!

Mr Sidibé joined hundreds of civil society members, people living with and affected by HIV and other participants at the official opening of the Community Village, where he also underlined the importance of engaging key populations in global, national and local responses to HIV. 

“Key populations are helping us to break the conspiracy of silence,” said Mr Sidibe. “I commend your courage and leadership for building an inclusive and effective response to HIV.”

The Community Village provides a space for grassroots and community-based organizations to present innovative, local responses to the AIDS epidemic and to share information on programmes that are working best among their communities.

Health workers from Senegal to South Africa engage and share.

“Being here is an opportunity to stand in solidarity with African key populations—sex workers, men who have sex with men, women who have sex with women, trans-diverse persons, people who use drugs, people with disabilities and people living with HIV—in order to end AIDS,” said Regional Coordinator and Executive Director of the African Sex Workers Alliance, Daughtie Ogutu.

The knowledge shared in the Community Village is critical as the most marginalised in society continue to face the greatest challenges in accessing HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services. This is due in large part to persistent stigma and discrimination and other human rights violations, which are drastically increasing the vulnerability of key populations to HIV.

Icasa is the forum for rights for all

“Coming from a network of women living with HIV, this is a safe space to learn and share with fellow communities,” said Lilian Mworeko, Executive Director, International Community of Women Living with HIV East Africa. “It gives a voice to some of the issues and concerns we have and helps us find solutions.”

Ahead of the conference, UNAIDS joined representatives of key populations including people who inject drugs, gay men and other men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender people and people with disabilities who came together at a pre-conference meeting to discuss common challenges and approaches to advancing health and protection for their communities. The participants explored innovative programmes and solutions led by key populations to increase access to HIV services, monitor human rights violations, eliminate discrimination in health-care and other settings and create the leadership required for inclusive AIDS responses in Africa.

The 18th ICASA conference comes at a critical time in the response to HIV in Africa, as UNAIDS urges countries to Fast-Track their efforts over the next five years, focusing on the locations and populations most affected by HIV to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.

ICASA 2015 AND WORLD DISABILITY DAY

The conference has also coincided with this auspicious day and disabled people from across Africa unite to end discrimination, share their right to sexuality and safe practices.

Icasa 2015 Zimbabwe in Harare and a Rhino Walk in Bulawayo - all in one weekend

e'Pap Technologies is very proud to be part of the largest international Conference on HIV and Aids this week in Harare.  We will be exhibiting at the Global Village so pop in to see us where you can get your e'Pap at wholesale price, buy some of the e'Pap recycled bags made by women from Gwanda and find out how e'Pap can help your community.

e'Pap would like to thank The Southern Africa Trust and Albion Minerals for their fantastic support in bringing the knowledge e'Pap has to share with the conference delegates, the Zimbabwe community and activists from around the world.  Their sponsorship allowed us to be at this incredible event.

At least 5 000 delegates from all over the world are expected in Zimbabwe for the I.C.A.S.A. conference which has attracted attention from various parts of the globe.

The seven-day conference, which will be officially opened by President Mugabe, will run under the theme “AIDS in Post 2015 Era: Linking Leadership, Science and Human Rights”.
The scientific programm would see a number of presentations on bio-medical advances, elimination of mother to child transmission of HIV, achieving the United Nations targets of ensuring that at least 90 percent of populations know their status.

The programm also aims at making sure that 90 percent of those who know their status have access to treatment and that at least 90 percent of those on treatment have their viral load suppressed by the year 2020.

The conference will also deliberate on Sexually Transmitted Diseases, including Ebola, in high risk populations such as commercial sex workers and hepatitis, among other topics.
The World Health Organisation is also expected to announce the new recommendations on treatment and management of people living with HIV and Aids.

The only patient in the world, who was “cured” of HIV, Mr Timothy Brown popularly known as the Berlin patient, is also expected to make a presentation at the conference. Mr Brown was “cured” of the HIV, but doctors and scientists are not sure if the virus was completely eradicated from his body or is in recession.

I.C.A.S.A. will also explore HIV issues affecting communities such as those in prisons, gays and lesbians, sex workers and people living with disabilities.


In line with community participation, Zimbabwe has also created a community village where issues to do with activism will be held.

AND A RHINO WALK THIS WEEKEND!

Sam Nkomo and e'Pap have long been working together in defence of the Rhino, with Sam having walked over 1000km in the past year to create awareness about this endangered species.

Sam started his walk in defence of rhino on the 28th November. The e'Pap Zimbabwe team will be serving breakfast to the walkers 5am the next day at the Matobo boat club. We will join him on the walk and also have our team meet him at Gifford. We wish them all a successful walk.

UNIVERSAL CHILDREN'S DAY - IF ONLY...

"The one thing all children have in common is their rights. Every child has the right to survive and thrive, to be educated, to be free from violence and abuse, to participate and to be heard. "

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

If only we could be celebrating a world where we were guaranteed that all children were receiving education, that they did not know the horror of violence and abuse and could participate freely and be heard.

  e'Pap is not just about selling food and making a profit, the overriding ethic of this organisation is to ensure that all people, and especially children, are enabled to grow, develop, learn and thrive with the critical foundation of a nutrient replete diet.  

Today, and every day we at e'Pap celebrate children.  But today is also a day to recognise and galvanise, the drought is real and affecting most of southern Zimbabwe and beyond.  Binga has always been ravaged by poverty and this is highlighted by VOA's report from the 18th November...

"The Ministry of Education recently reported that the number of school dropouts in the country is alarming as parents struggle to raise fees due to poverty.But in remote Binga district, Matabeleland North, parents say it is not only about school fees but hunger that has forced the majority of school-going children to pull out of school.

Speaking to Studio 7 in Muchesu, which is about 80 kilometres from Binga town, parents said the current drought in the area has forced their children to stay at home."

"Idah Sibanda, who has two school-going children that had to travel about seven kilometers to get to school, said she was forced to stop them from attending classes at Muchesu Primary School as they had no energy to walk to school and participate in classes.

“Here in Binga we have a big problem, that of the drought. We do not have food to feed our children and now they can no longer go to school because of the hunger. Last year we had too little rainfall and we did not harvest anything and our children do not have food,” said Sibanda."

 The recent UNICEF report EL NIÑO’S IMPACT ON CHILDREN: A WAKE-UP CALL  estimates that as many as 11 million children are at risk from hunger, disease and lack of water in parts of Eastern and Southern Africa as El Niño strengthens, threatening to undo gains in nutrition, health and education. This comes after a series of climatic shocks in 2014 and 2015 ruined harvests, leaving many children and their families dependent on food aid to survive in several countries in the region.  In Zimbabwe, the number of food-insecure people is expected to reach 1.5 million by the time the January-March “lean season” sets in.

Filling bellies with sterile carbohydrate will keep children alive, but what about the "Hidden Hunger"?  Without their micronutrients children will never reach their potential.  For as little as $2 a month children under the age of 6 can be helped with a bowl a day of e'Pap at school.  

If only we could give every child the right nutrition every day.  

Mine Entra at Zimbabwe International Trade Fair 2015

e'Pap Zimbabwe is looking forward to boosting the nation's mining force with a presence at Mine Entra from the 22 - 24 July.  

According the 2014 Global Nutrition Report  

"For every $1 spent on Nutrition at least $16 will be returned in economic benefits"

The stand is ready, and so is the team.

 

The Formulation Strategy Behind e’Pap

The main goal of e’Pap is to help create a nutrient replete human being, by addressing what has now become known as ‘hidden hunger’ (vitamin and mineral deficiencies).  One in three people in the world suffers from hidden hunger today.

Victims of low health, poverty and disease can begin to cope better with their own poverty and health challenges once they are ‘nutrient replete’, i.e. physically and mentally able human beings. In the case of highly malnourished poor people, the reality is that ‘part solutions’ are ineffective: people will remain dysfunctional if their nutritional deficits are increasing daily.

Our challenge was to innovate a nutrient-dense food matrix with the following qualities:

• Must contain the essential nutrients missing from the target groups’ diet

• Must be affordable, easy to use, palatable and culturally acceptable to target groups

• Must be presented as a single-step portion of real food (i.e. not a tablet)

• Must contain the most efficacious, food-state nutritional supplements available

• Must be carefully balanced so that nutrients do not ‘block’ or conflict with each other

Fyi here is a table with some of the micronutrients in e'Pap and some of the benefits of those vitamins and minerals...