When play turns into pain: Abdul’s story

Abdul is a lively 12-year-old from Mto-Barafu, Zanzibar. Like many children in his community, he loves playing outdoors with friends. But one day, what seemed like harmless fun—splashing in roadside water—led to illness.

“I got infected when I played in dirty water along the road,” Abdul recalls. Soon after, he began noticing alarming symptoms: pain when urinating, blood in his urine, and loss of appetite. “Sometimes I couldn’t eat and would just sleep,” he says.

Schistosomiasis, a parasitic disease spread through contaminated water, is a silent threat in Zanzibar. It can cause severe health problems and disrupt children’s education. For Abdul, it meant missing school, struggling to concentrate, and even being unable to sit comfortably in class.

When his symptoms worsened, Abdul told his parents, who took him to the hospital. There, he received treatment—deworming tablets and medication to kill the parasites. “After taking the treatment, I felt better,” he says with a smile.

Behind stories like Abdul’s is a coordinated effort led by the Ministry of Health in Zanzibar, supported by Unlimit Health. Together, they deliver mass drug administration campaigns, provide life-saving medicines, and train health workers to reach even the most remote communities. Their work ensures that children like Abdul not only recover but also learn how to prevent reinfection.

“If I had the chance to talk to my friends,” Abdul says, “I would tell them that I played in dirty water, and that’s how I got infected.”

Thanks to the treatment, Abdul is back in school, dreaming big. “My favourite subject is Swahili because we read all kinds of stories,” he says. His story is a reminder that with the right support, children can overcome neglected tropical diseases and thrive.