Show # 290b

Date: July 31, 2009

Length: 28:00

Host: Peggy Wehmeyer

On this week’s World Vision Report…an encore presentation

  • Nigeria fights corruption with volunteers
  • Pregnant mothers eat clay in Sierra Leone
  • A tough decision for an aid worker in Sierra Leone
  • Tibet’s children -- living as refugees in India
  • What’s Cooking? Ackee Salt Fish

Anti-Corruption Volunteers (5:31)

The watchdog organization Transparency International has rated Nigeria as one of the most corrupt countries in the world. It came in 32nd. But that was an improvement over past years when the West African country was consistently in the top ten of the most corrupt. Nigeria is rich with oil, yet its citizens are mired in poverty. Now a government effort is being made to fight corruption with the help of the Nigerian people. Richard Lough reports.

Eating Clay (3:49)

It’s an age-old tradition in Sierra Leone for pregnant women to eat clay. It’s believed they crave the minerals and nutrients in the clay. Some women claim it’s good for them and their babies. Doctors admit there’s no research on what the medical consequences are, but they speculate it’s probably not that good. Grant Fuller reports.

Sierra Leone (2:28)

In some countries, the biggest problem with health care is a lack of access to it. William Powers used to manage a public health program in Sierra Leone run by Catholic Relief Services. One day he met a young woman who was about to give birth but needed a cesarean operation. The closest hospital with a doctor was seven hours away. The situation presented him with a terrible choice. Powers tells us about it in this aid worker diary.

Tibetan Refugees (4:27)

Since the Chinese occupation of Tibet half a century ago, Tibetan refugees have been pouring into Northern India. Many of the refugees are children who cross the Himalayas in hopes of starting a new life. Reporter Will Everett visited Dharamshala, home of the Tibetan government in exile, where he met an orphan who made the perilous journey and found a place to call home.

What’s Cooking? Ackee and Salt Fish (4:19)

Jamaica is famous for its sun, music, beaches, and when it comes to food, spicy jerk chicken. But Jamaica’s National Dish actually is Ackee and salt fish. Ackee is a fruit resembling a tiny, pomegranete. Salt fish is dried cod. The dish is a fried mixture of chopped onions, tomatoes, flaked salt fish, and, of course, the ackee, which when cooked up, has the consistency of scrambled eggs. In the latest installment of our what’s cooking series, we’ll hear how the dish is prepared. Reporter Judith Ritter takes us to Montego Bay to a mom and pop cafe called the Roadside Grill. The little restaurant, on a small road outside of town, is built out of an old metal shipping container. It has a few tables outside and is presided over by Winnie Allen who’s been cooking for her regulars for decades.

:30 PROMO FOR THIS SHOW:

Nigeria is rich with oil, but its people are mired in poverty. Much of the country’s wealth has been lost to corruption. But the government is now cracking down on corruption and Nigerians are volunteers in that effort.

That’s one of the stories on this week’s edition of the World Vision Report.

We also take you to Sierra Leone where pregnant women have a rather strange dietary craving -- they love to eat clay.

That story and a lot more -- this week on the World Vision Report.

(ADD YOUR DAY OF BROADCAST, TIME, AND STATION I.D.)

Full Show

0:00 - 0:59 - Billboard

1:00 - Anti-Corruption Volunteers

7:31 - Eating Clay

11:31 - Top of the Pops

13:15 - Sierra Leone

16:13 - Tibetan Refugees

21:20 - What's Cooking? Ackee and Saltfish

26:59 - Production Credits

28:00 - End