Dear Andrea Tapper of Fumba Times, 

I hope that this message finds you well and will give you and your periodical some insight as to the local efforts around COVID-19 and the lack of representation in your article. I am writing to you regarding the article on page 3 (Edition 04) of your June – August 2020 issue titled “Great Ways to Support Your Island”. The article is misleading and fails to represent what is actually happening on the island surrounding COVID-19 initiatives. As the founder and CEO of WAJAMAMA Wellness Center and a member of the Zanzibari Diaspora, I am deeply upset and disappointed by the erasure of our efforts as well as the tremendous efforts of other locals around COVID-19 transmission prevention in our community.


In your article you highlighted two women, Nicole Kanz and Natalie Denmeade (the latter of whom has been in Australia during the pandemic), as the driving force behind all of the tireless efforts surrounding COVID-19. Amidst the current global health crisis, and in the context of the Black Lives Matter movement, it is important to note that Nicole and Natalie are both Caucasian. It is safe to say that in both expat and local communities on the island, most people are aware that WAJAMAMA, a Zanzibari owned establishment, has been the driving force behind private sector initiatives aimed at limiting COVID-19 transmissions in Zanzibar.

Our COVID-19 prevention initiatives started in January 2020, when we started producing public health videos regarding ways to limit COVID-19 transmission in both English and Swahili. Shortly thereafter, we started our Infection Control and Hand Hygiene workshops for community groups and businesses. This was only the beginning of our efforts to empower our community with the knowledge to protect themselves and their loved ones through our workshops. We also equipped them with hand washing stations, masks, and educational materials. I, alongside many others, have volunteered our time and expertise, including shutting down WAJAMAMA’s services for two months to focus mainly on COVID-19 initiatives. For the past four months, the team has severely limited the time we get to spend with our families because, as a center dedicated to disease prevention and health promotion, we were compelled and obligated to be at the forefront of fighting for our Zanzibar’s wellbeing. 

In March, we used a $1,000 donation from a supporter in the U.S.A. to start setting up handwashing stations, and were delighted to then see the “Zanzibar Community Sinks” initiative begin. At the start of this project, WAJAMAMA was able to support this great initiative by making a donation of buckets and soap and continued to support them by providing educational materials.  The commencement of this initiative meant we could focus on the next steps.  Our priorities then shifted to fundraising for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and working with various groups interested in cloth mask making, as there were cases now being reported in East Africa.  Eventually this led to WAJAMAMA raising a further $3,000 in donations from the Rotary Club of Zanzibar and supporters in the U.S.A, to supply PPE for healthcare providers on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19 in Zanzibar. 

Together with our partners, we started our Masks4ALLinZanzibar initiative, in which we organized those interested in making masks, to ensure that high-quality masks were going out to the community. In order to do this, WAJAMAMA brought samples to the Ministry of Health to make sure that they met the Ministry of Health’s requirements. We also put together Ministry of Health-approved information and infographics to go out with each mask in order to ensure that masks are used correctly.  We made sure to support local efforts by using $10,000 of funding from donors to purchase locally-made cloth masks, which continue to be distributed to the communities in need. Our Masks4ALLinZanzibar partners include: Zanzibar Apparels, Ozti, K&K Masks, Jenga, Doreen Mashika, and Zivansh. 

At the end of March, Nicole Kanz reached out to us regarding ways she could help support WAJAMAMA’s efforts. Nicole and I discussed the importance of tackling COVID-19 from all angles (tourism, health care, economics, food security, etc.).  From these conversations, and because I was incredibly busy working out in the field, Nicole put together a “WAJAMAMA Task Force” document (later renamed Zanzibar 2020 in April — three months after we started our COVID-19 initiatives). The document was aimed at facilitating COVID-19 initiatives in the various sectors. Nicole and Natalie have done a tremendous job trying to coordinate COVID-19 efforts on the island. 

With the Black Lives Matter movement in mind, I am writing to let you know that we, Zanzibaris, demand better. Leaving out the overwhelming efforts of locals in Zanzibar to combat this pandemic, promotes a white savior complex, whether or not that was the intention of your article. You knew about WAJAMAMA’s efforts. I know this because you spent two hours in my office after we met at an Infection Control and Hand Hygiene workshop we did for the staff of Permaculture & Design Company, VolksHouse and Fortitude Total Security, which took place in Fumba on March 16th, 2020. You interviewed me for two hours about WAJAMAMA and our efforts. This meeting happened long before “Zanzibar 2020”. I am therefore baffled that your article failed to represent WAJAMAMA’s efforts as well as the efforts of other locals such as Zanzibar Apparels, who have played a key role in producing masks for the community, and the Zanzibar Tourism and Local Development, who were the pioneers of the wooden hand-made no-touch hand washing system.  

As of June 2020, we have set up more than 300 hand washing stations in both Unguja and Pemba, and distributed almost 10,000 cloth masks, 650 liters of soap, and 30 no-touch hand washing units. We also facilitated the delivery of ~$25,000 worth of PPE to health care workers on the frontlines, and provided 15 educational workshops as well as countless educational material to the community. Additionally, we have also produced 8 educational videos in English and Swahili that have been viewed more than 200,000 times. Disregarding and misrepresenting our efforts not only undermines our work, but also our donors’ generosity. 

As a journalist, it is your responsibility to make sure that stories that are published in your newspaper are appropriate, accurate, and culturally competent. As someone with a platform to amplify this island’s efforts against this deadly disease, it is essential to consider who you are centering in this work, and why. Highlighting two White women, who have done an amazing job with Zanzibar 2020, while failing to represent WAJAMAMA and other locally driven COVID-19 initiatives is a part of the chronic white savior complex.

As Zanzibaris, we must do better at recognizing change and efforts within our own community before being quick to allow others to take credit for our successes. The number of volunteers, local businesses and donors that we have been able to rally during this time is unbelievable and is promoting real change in safety and awareness of COVID-19. Our efforts are important and are a direct representation of a community-led grass-roots organization. 
You simply must do better.

Kind regards, 

Nafisa Jiddawi, MS, FNP-C, WHNP-BC, CNM