Description of a Swazi Orphan

Updated February 28, 2006

Accepted statistics suggest that by 2010 Swaziland could be home to 120,000 orphans.
  The main cause for this orphan crisis is HIV/AIDS. The current published statistic is 42.6%.
  A recent ministry center in the northern part of the country just confided in us that after testing several of the orphans in their community the rate is much closer to 90%. 
 

Swaziland stresses cultural tradition continually.
  Tradition is that children are cared for by the community.
  If a parent dies then the extended family takes them in.
  Culture allows for multiple marital partners and several children, but one is not supposed to have more children than one can care for. This rule is not enforced and now that the concept of marital faithfulness and sexual control is lost on most Swazi people there are thousands of children whom have no one to care for them.

The traditional care giver in a community or family for orphans is called a “go-go” or a grandmother.
  In a sense she is the
orphan director, and the number of orphans in her care is growing monthly.
  Swaziland as a country could care for many orphans through its community tradition, but with AIDS wiping out much of the adult population the country can no longer sustain the orphan need.
  It is not uncommon for a go-go to be responsible for over 30 children with no access to funds or food.

70% of the land in Swaziland is owned by the King.
  Land is parceled out to over 300 chiefs to care for and divide among the people.
  Chiefs are the traditional rulers in a these divided communities.
  Swaziland is broken down into 4 large regions and each of these regions is then divided into the communities.
 

The rural areas are still very traditional.
  Many Swazi people still live on homesteads and these are passed down through the family.
  Even Swazi people who live in the towns or cities often still have ties to a homestead which they may visit on the holidays or weekends.
  Swaziland is called a Christian country in its own constitution, but the real religion that dominates is ancestral worship.
  The spirit of the dead is held above the Spirit of Christ.
  If parents die, the community wants the children to remain on the land to honor the dead parents.
  This is a very complicated issue.
 

Therefore, if parents die the children are not necessarily forced to leave the homestead.
  This does not mean that the children will be protected or provided for.
  In a sense you have an invisible orphan population.
  They have a roof over their head, but no source of provision.
  This forces many children into prostitution as a way to earn school fees (there are no free schools in Swaziland and the average school costs nearly $500 USD a year), food, and pocket money.

The situation worsens on a daily basis.
  The average Swazi income is $21 a month. Drought, pour water supply, lack of electricity, high unemployment, a shrinking adult population, and so many more factors (not to mention exploding AIDS rates which lead to several other sicknesses like TB also increasing) give cause for immediate action by the church. 
 

We will give you our strategy as we go…