# Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- For more pictures from Lake Victoria Disability Centre, [check out the gallery](https://hub.e-nable.org/u/kreeser1/gallery/custom-gallery/view?openGalleryId=78#.jpeg). ---  ###### LVDC Land Cruiser used for outreach missions to nearby villages --- When I set off for Africa, [Tanzania](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzania) wasn’t even on my radar. There were no plans for me to board a plane in [Kigali](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kigali) bound for [Dar Es Salaam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dar_es_Salaam) via [Nairobi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nairobi), or another that took me to [Mwanza](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mwanza). I certainly didn’t know I’d be circumnavigating [Lake Victoria](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Victoria) for 4 hours on a cramped bus on my way to [Musoma](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musoma). It was only through an unforeseeable set of circumstances that I was able to get to know, and do good in, this beautiful country. [Lake Victoria Disability Centre](http://lakevictoriadisabilitycentre.org/) (LVDC) is located in Musoma, Tanzania, famous for the bountiful fish in Lake Victoria, and the huge granite boulders that litter the countryside. Founded in 2002 by Dennis Maina, LVDC provides vocational and life skills training to children and adults with and without special needs, along with physiotherapy and a department for prosthetics and orthotics. LVDC started in a single room in the Musoma town center. Over the years, Dennis and his team were able to collect enough funds through grants and donations to buy land and begin to build and expand the centre. As more people in Tanzania learn about it, the reach and scope of LVDC increases every year. Dennis still visits LVDC several times per year, but he now operates primarily from Scotland, where he has a registered charity – LVDC Scotland. According to his website, the main objectives of LVDC Scotland are: * “To raise and/or collect donations that will aid the development and running costs of Lake Victoria Disability Centre, Musoma, Tanzania” * “To offer advice and give practical assistance to LVDC” * “To encourage and provide information to volunteers going to LVDC” * “To collect and send donated resources to LVDC” Among the people who work for Dennis at LVDC are individuals with physical disabilities, people with partial or complete deafness, and people with [albinism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albinism_in_humans). *A little aside*: Tanzania has historically been a [hostile place](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_people_with_albinism) for people with albinism. Albinos were and are persecuted and brutally killed, their body parts sold and used by witch doctors for rituals and in potions. Superstitions propagated by these witch doctors and the uneducated claim that the bodies of albinos can harness magic, and that this magic can be used to bring good fortune to the person on the receiving end of those concoctions. Needless to say, LVDC provides opportunities for individuals in the region who might find it otherwise difficult to find a job and contribute at their full potential to society. ### Prosthetics and Orthotics Department  ###### Bob, one of 3 P&O technicians. P&O Department \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- There is a great need for a prosthetic device service in Northern Tanzania. As of a few years ago, the closest facility at which someone living in or around Musoma could be fit for a professional prosthetic device was in Nairobi, Kenya, 500 km to the east. One room in a building on the LVDC campus is now dedicated to engineering and fitting prosthetic and orthotic devices. The department relies mainly on donated equipment and supplies, with shelves full of prosthetic limbs, plaster casts, and all manner of orthotic devices. In one corner of the workshop sits an Ultimaker 2+ 3D printer. In this small workshop, in a region of extreme need, Rajab Hamis and his team of 3 are utilizing 3D printing to help provide low-cost prosthetics and orthotics.  ###### A view of the workshop. P&O Department \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- The P&O department at LVDC is busy. Rajab has personally treated more than 150 clubfoot cases, as well as creating and fitting lower and upper limb prosthetic devices on a daily basis. I was humbled by the great distances some people travel to be treated at LVDC. Rajab also travels on outreach missions to neighboring villages, spreading the word about the facility and treating patients on the spot, if possible. While not officially involved with e-NABLE, Rajab has experimented with printing several e-NABLE devices. He has also had success with 3D printing simple end effectors for attachment to sockets made from thermoformed plastic bottles. I detail the process for creating this type of prosthetic device [in another story](wiki:/u/kreeser1/wiki/Low-Resource+Prosthetic+Devices+for+a+Bilateral+Amputee "Low-Resource Prosthetic Devices for a Bilateral Amputee").  ###### Various traditional and 3D printed prosthetic and orthotic devices. P&O Department \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- ### Other Departments  ###### Metal Shop \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- LVDC operates a metal shop that produces wheelchairs, wheelbarrows, desks, chairs, and ornate window grilles. Some of these items are made for LVDC, a strikingly self-sufficient operation. Other products are sold to schools and businesses near and far to bring in extra income for LVDC.  ###### In-house fabrication of wheelchairs. Metal Shop \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre ---  ###### In-house fabrication of window grilles. Metal Shop \| Lake Victoria Disability Centre --- Though departments generally operate independently, sometimes they collaborate. The metal shop once worked with Rajab to create a custom wheelchair for a child with bilateral upper limb amputations. Rajab fit the child with a 3D printed device that the residual limb slipped into, and allowed the child to propel himself with the wheelchair through a pushing motion on a lever.  ###### A custom wheelchair combined with a custom 3D printed prosthetic device --- ### Mama Mzuka’s Lunch Shack  ###### Mama Mzuka’s Lunch Shack --- Every day I would eat lunch at Mama Mzuka’s Lunch Shack (pronounced ‘Zoo-ka’), along with the majority of my colleagues at LVDC. The place wasn’t called that exactly—there was no sign outside or even a menu. But there was a shack, and inside that shack was a woman everyone called Mama Mzuka.  ###### Mama Mzuka preparing food over an open fire behind her lunch shack --- *A little aside*: In Tanzania there is a lottery game called tatu mzuka, you have to guess 3 numbers correctly to win (tatu means 3 in Swahili). When Mama Mzuka came to LVDC she sold chapati, 1 for 200 [shillings ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzanian_shilling)or 3 for 500 shillings. Apparently a student nicknamed her ‘3 Mzuka’ and the name stuck. As time went on, the ‘3’ was dropped from the nickname and replaced with ‘Mama’, and has been known in the community as Mama Mzuka ever since.  ###### A typical meal prepared by Mama Mzuka --- Mama Mzuka did not speak English, so I’d greet her in Swahili before smiling and taking a seat on one of the benches inside. A few minutes later she’d set a plate of food down in front of me. There was always rice and beans, sometimes a few fried fish, and sometimes some greens. Every once in a while there was a small stone in the beans; I learned to chew slowly and thoroughly after finding a few of those stones the hard way.  ###### There were always a few chickens pecking around inside Mama Mzuka’s Lunch Shack --- The food was prepared outside of the shack over an open fire, and the fish were dried in the heat of the day before being fried.  ###### Mama Mzuka’s kitchen --- [](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_cyprinid) ###### [Dagaa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_cyprinid), Lake Victoria sardines, drying in the sun --- Though the food didn’t change from day-to-day, I found myself looking forward to lunch at Mama Mzuka’s. It was a time to catch up with my new colleagues, and maybe learn a few new signs in [Tanzanian Sign Language](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzanian_sign_languages). After the meal, we would all thank Mama Mzuka for our meal and pay her 1,000 [Tsh](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzanian_shilling), about $0.44 USD. *Asante sana, Mama Mzuka*. ### Facilities and Utilities [As I’ll detail further in another post](wiki:/u/kreeser1/wiki/Notes+on+Life+in+East+Africa+and+Tips+for+Future+Missions "Notes on Life in East Africa and Tips for Future Missions"), the utilities in this region were hit-or-miss. We experienced power outages regularly. When the power was on, it was never stable—the lights flickered, and most circuits were not grounded. There was a lack of running water for 9 days during my visit as well. Somehow though, you get used to it. You work with what you’ve got. Additionally, there was no wifi at LVDC—it was spotty at the hotel and non-existent elsewhere. But it turns out that the cell signal is strong and very reliable. If you purchase a SIM card and load it with data (inexpensive) you can share a hotspot with your laptop and it’s business as usual. There were a combination of western toilets and [squat toilets](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squat_toilet) at LVDC, and both required dumping a bucket of water into them to flush. Again, you get used to it. ### Volunteering at LVDC I was inspired by the great work Dennis and his team at LVDC do to provide care and opportunities for people with disabilities within Musoma and the surrounding communities. During my visit [I was able to contribute](wiki:/u/kreeser1/wiki/Low-Resource+Prosthetic+Devices+for+a+Bilateral+Amputee "Low-Resource Prosthetic Devices for a Bilateral Amputee") in small ways to this great work, and for that opportunity I am forever grateful. LVDC is always interested in communicating with prospective volunteers. Whether you’ll be in the area for a few days or a few months, they can help with logistics and in finding accommodations to suit your needs. Unfortunately, LVDC is not able to offer any financial support to prospective volunteers. According to their website, the areas of immediate need are: * Intervention services * Vocational training * Community development * Sign language and braille training * Sports and social activities * Fundraising and campaigning * Strengthening groups of people with disabilities If you are interested in learning more about volunteering at LVDC, [visit their website](http://lakevictoriadisabilitycentre.org/get-involved-2/volunteer/). ### Getting There and Getting Around It was not easy to get to LVDC from Kigali. I had to fly to Dar Es Salaam with a layover in Nairobi, Kenya. From Dar Es Salaam, a small plane flew to Mwanza on the coast of Lake Victoria. From Mwanza it was a 4 hour bus ride to Musoma, followed by a bajaj ride to my accommodation. You can get most places in Musoma by [bajaj](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_rickshaw) for around 3,000 Tsh (about $1.30), but you have to know where you’re going—there are no street addresses there in the traditional sense.  ###### The bajaj is a common means of public transportation in Musoma --- ### e-NABLE Call to Action Please contact me if you have any additional questions. For more information about Lake Victoria Disability Centre, or to donate, please [visit their website](http://lakevictoriadisabilitycentre.org).