In Kiribati the Leprosy Clinic has been transformed into a fully equipped and staffed skin clinic – enabling the staff to diagnose and treat a range of skin diseases which present themselves – and at the same time, catching cases of leprosy which may otherwise have remained undiagnosed.

This venture has been so successful that the clinic has become desperately overcrowded – having started with three staff members, there are now a total of six and hundreds of patients visiting every month!

Just before Christmas, work began on an extension to the building and is now well under way.

The concrete blocks are made in Kiribati – and the sand for the cement is locally grown too! However, local sand isn’t without complications as it needs to be free of salt to be suitable for building so that the reinforcing rods don’t rust! Luckily, the frequent heavy rainstorms can help with that.

Much of the building work and all of the project management is being done by Wayne – our in-country representative – a hands-on way to protect our investment in this valuable resource.