Impacts on Early Emotional Development

I chose West and Central Africa for my focus this week because it is a part of the world I am not very familiar with.  However, I had a professor when I was in my undergrad program who was from Ghana.   He was one of my favorite professors and taught me a great deal about his culture and what his people have suffered through over the centuries and what their communities continue to lack.  I thought I could take this opportunity to learn more about the children in this area and what challenges they may face and who is trying to help. 

It seems to me, after reviewing the UNICEF site and the West and Central Africa region, that the greatest challenge for the children there would be a lack of nourishment.  Many children are not receiving an adequate amount of nourishing food.  In addition, there are diseases in the water and many are being affected; children and adults alike.  A lack of food and clean water can affect children’s emotional wellbeing and development in many ways.  They will be in a constant state of anxiety if they are not receiving proper nutrition.  It is not healthy for them to lack what is necessary in their diet for positive physical development, and therefore, that will affect their emotional wellbeing.  Also, families that are struggling to feed their children will be stressed and this emotion will be easily read by young children.  This will spread the stress throughout the household and may cause children to have difficulty in developing healthy relationships and emotional stability. 

Every child has a right to basic necessities; food, shelter and water; and many children are deprived of all three in these areas.  On the UNICEF website, I recovered the following information; “In Moussoro, the capital of Bar-El-Ghazel province, acute malnutrition among children has been above emergency thresholds (15%) for a decade. But this year will be far worse. People have already sued their food stocks and, when cattle are dying and crops are poor, more children suffer from malnutrition.”  Being deprived of such basic needs will undoubtedly affect every aspect of a child’s development; particularly physical and emotional. 

Personally and professionally, the facts I have learned through the UNICEF website frightens me.  I feel for these children and their families and how hard they must have to struggle to provide their babies with food and clean water.  The fact that these families are suffering, and I work in such an affluent community, makes me want to reach out and see how I could possibly help through our preschools in the community.  What could our children do to assist these families and raise money?  In addition, if these issues are happening in other areas of the globe, they are surely happening right under our noses.  How can we locate local families that need assistance?  How can we recognize signs of malnutrition?  How do we address the topic with families and community members?  I want to reach out and help those who are in need.  It is not fair that some children receive everything and others have to wait for a clean glass of water. 

As a person, I honestly feel humbled and grateful for the blessings I have in my life.  I have never wanted or needed for anything.  I have never known the feeling of true hunger, and I have never gone without water.  I look at the young children in my care and all of the things that they have available to them, and I almost feel embarrassed.  Here are children with the world at their fingertips, while others are just trying to make it through another day.  I would like to think that sharing this information with others would make them feel the same.  However, I feel that there is a strong sense of ethnocentrism and that many people want to help “their country” rather than reach out to all people in need.  In my opinion, we are all people, we all share this world.  If there are children without clean water; and we have plenty; then we should share it.  Eventually, our water will be dirty also. 

Reference:

UNICEF (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/index.html