Nyandengoh! is a community-based organization founded in April 2019 in Mattru Jong, Bonthe district, Sierra Leone. The name “Nyandengoh!” (meaning “he/she/it is beautiful” in Mende) was chosen to counteract the many negative words spoken over children with disabilities, due to the belief that disability is the consequence of sin, witchcraft, curses, etc. Currently, 108 children and their families are served through six interrelated program areas:
Spiritual Nurture
Education
Physical Care & Equipment
Psychosocial Care
Advocacy & Training
Economic Empowerment
Our Vision—Children with disabilities are respected as image-bearers of God and together with their families accepted and included in their communities.
Nyandengoh! Staff
Back row from left to right: Mary Aruna, Lucy Yanguba, Esther Sopay, Nasu Koluvoma (intern), Ivril Siaka (intern), Sylvanus French, Paul Sei (intern).
In front: Abdulai Jr. Jengbe, Heleen Yoder
Spiritual Nurture
For two reasons, spiritual nurture is at the heart of our activities:
We are motivated by the love of Christ, whose Kingdom is characterized by acts of compassion towards those who live with disabilities (Luke 7:22,23; Luke 14:12-24).
In a context where people often explain disabilities in spiritual terms, parents of disabled children seek spiritual answers to their suffering. With our activities we counteract false beliefs and affirm the value of children with disabilities as created in the image of God.
Although we are a Christian organization, we believe we are called to help everyone, and the majority of the families we serve are of the Muslim faith.
Education
The majority of our children are enrolled in some form of education. At the beginning of the school year we assist them with basic school supplies. Throughout the year, we monitor their progress and stay in touch with their teachers. For children who do not thrive in mainstream education we opened in September 2021 the Nyandengoh! School for Special Education, which also includes a Day Care and Preschool.
Physical Care & Equipment
Nyandengoh! partners with local clinics and hospitals to provide basic healthcare services for all registered children. Three times a year, a team of physical and rehab therapists of World Hope International / Enable the Children in Freetown visits Mattru Jong to evaluate the children of Nyandengoh! and prescribe exercises. Through this partnership, we also have access to equipment such as wheelchairs, crutches, special chairs, and standing frames, etc. In collaboration with the Epilepsy Foundation of Sierra Leone, we provide children, even in the most remote villages, with seizure medication.
Psychosocial Care
A lot of stigma is attached to disability in Sierra Leone. This especially affects mothers, who are frequently blamed for their child’s disability. Through our psychosocial care program, parents and children receive counselling from Nyandengoh! Staff.
Advocacy & Training
Knowledge about disabilities is limited in Sierra Leone. Formally and informally the Nyandengoh! team teaches communities about disability. In 2021, we equipped about 40 Sunday School leaders to teach their churches about disabilities from a Biblical perspective. In 2023 we facilitated a “Theology of Disability” training for our staff and community members. In 2022 and 2023 our health liaison and nurse Abdulai taught health workers in over 20 rural clinics and hospitals about childhood disabilities. Most years we facilitate teacher trainings.
Economic Empowerment
In October 2023 we launched our Economic Empowerment program which currently provides eight caregivers with small business grants. The women are being mentored by our staff member Esther and gather monthly to learn from each other.