Against the Odds: Making a Difference in Global Health in the Rural Niger Delta

Dr. Pegg’s work in the rural Niger Delta started in 2000 supporting one school in the rural village of Bodo. His programs now support four schools in three locations in Rivers State, Nigeria. Initial work focused on providing these schools with proper classroom buildings. Hundreds of kids were attending schools without access to toilets or drinking water. After addressing those infrastructure needs, focus shifted toward improving the health of students. A pilot health program began in 2012 that has now evolved into providing basic immunizations and bi-annual deworming treatment to more than 1,200 students at four schools.  In 2017, a pilot nutrition program began for 50 students at one of the schools which will evolve into the next major phase of  the work. This presentation will highlight some of the evolution and development of this work over time and highlight some of the challenges encountered when working in a politically unstable part of one of the world’s most corrupt countries.