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Hope & HealthAkot South Sudan

Dedicated to bringing life-saving medical care to those in desperate need

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What We Do

Years ago, and at the urging of a missionary, a group of concerned U.S. citizens raised funds and built a medical facility in the remote village of Akot, South Sudan. In a few short years, the facility was abandoned by the US nonprofit to whom it was entrusted. In these years of neglect, the facility has fallen into disrepair and disuse. This resulted in many preventable deaths, mostly in children from malaria. Conditions have worsened in the area for a multitude of reasons, including the influx of migrants from the north. Around 800 are now living adjacent to the facility in the temporary shelters you can see in the attached video.

The US nonprofit, Hope and Health Akot South Sudan, was formed to support renovations and operations of this vital resource, all in cooperation with the South Sudan Lake State Ministry of Health.

UNICEF has now hired thirty-one local staff with drastically improved credentials requirements and will fund salaries. The Health Ministry will provide at least some medicines, though this allotment will almost certainly require supplementing. Also, a US physician and a young South Sudanese medical doctor have agreed to live and work there! With the addition of the doctors, it is now feasible to plan, as soon as funding allows, to build and staff and operating room to provide much needed C-sections, appendectomies, and other common surgical procedures that were not possible before.

There is an opportunity to jumpstart this facility into a sustainable hospital with qualified staff

Jeffery Deal and Team
Kid and Mother with Doctor Akot South Sudan

Who We Are

We are a US-based registered nonprofit organization. Staff are as below. The Board of Directors and Executive Director are unpaid volunteers.

Board of Directors

Jeffery Deal (Chairman)

Daven Acker (Vice Chairman)

Hart Deal (Secretary Treasurer

Executive Director

Jeffery Deal (US)

Construction Foreman

Peter Njenga (Kenya)

General Counsel

Gordon Mayom

Construction Crew 8

Local Workers in Akot, Lake States

Where We Work

Akot is a small village located in the Lake State of South Sudan. It is strategically located adjacent to an airstrip and a main road.

The population is unknown, however, prior to its abandonment saw around 38,000 visits per year. Due to an influx of refugees, the population has grown significantly.

Most of the population are Dinka Agaar, with a mix of other ethnic groups including Nuer, Atuot, and Bor. The Christian churches appear to be thriving there, led mostly by Episcopalian, Catholic, and Baptist local clergy.

Akot South Sudan

Our History

In 2003, a Baptist missionary in South Sudan asked for help with the many medical problems he was encountering in the small village of Akot, South Sudan. Dr. Deal and his family as well as dozens of other volunteers had already been working in the rudimentary facility nearby.

Thanks to the generosity of many donors, especially Guy and Betty Beatty, funds were raised to build a larger and better equipped facility.

First, undeveloped land was set aside for the facility by  Chief Dut, of Akot. Glenn Keyes and his team of architects from Charleston, SC donated their time to design the buildings.

The team then purchased a brickmaking machine, a relatively new technology at the time which manufactures bricks using soil from the site with a small amount of cement. Under the direction of Daven Acker (US) and Peter Njenga (Kenya), dozens of local laborers constructed the facility over an eleven-month period.

The facility, named the Akot Medical Mission, opened in 2006 with a celebration by local tribal and church leaders.

South Sudan Hope and Health Akot Facility
Kids in Akot South Sudan receiving medical care

Our Plan

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Phase One:

Peter Njenga to Return

Hope and Health Akot Sudan commissioned Peter Njenga to return to Akot in January 2025. His report is the basis for the first phase of the renovations. This will include repairs of the fence, water, power, roofs, screens, and doors.

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Phase Two:

March Expansion of Site

Dr. Deal and Daven Acker are returning to the site in March to plan an expansion of the site to include staff housing, development of lab site and services, and an operating theatre. We also plan to install a high-speed internet system to allow future telemedicine consultations.

Several exciting developments are making this a feasible and sustainable project including staff salary support from UNICEF and medical supply commitments from the South Sudanese Ministry of Health.

Of even greater importance is the fact the Dr. China Kuot, a native of Akot, has now completed his medical training and is willing to return and join Dr. Clark McIntosh to manage and treat patients.

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Phase Three:

Supplement Medical Packets & Birthing Kits

After the capital improvements are complete, assuming again that funding allows, we plan to supplement medical packets and birthing kits supplied by the Ministry of Health as well as the salaries of key personnel.

South Sudan at a glance

In their twelfth year of independence, the people of South Sudan are confronted by formidable challenges marked by conflict in 2013 and 2016, intensifying humanitarian, economic, social and political crises.

The humanitarian situation in South Sudan remains concerning with increasing needs and a growing number of people requiring assistance. There is also a continued influx of refugees and returnees due to the Sudan crisis, with 658,021 arrivals since April 2023. Currently, 5.78 million people (46% of the total population) are estimated to face crisis-level food insecurity or worse, with the situation expected to worsen to affect 7.1 million people (56% of the total population) during the lean season (April to July 2024). High levels of food insecurity, elevated prevalence of diseases, and poor hygiene and health, are the main drivers of acute malnutrition.

These challenges are compounded by the 2023-24 El Niño phenomenon, one of the strongest on record. El Niño has escalated regional climate patterns, causing dry conditions and erratic rainfall, subsequently affecting crop production, and worsening disease outbreaks. Large areas of the country have been submerged year-round and there have been sudden floods in new areas unaccustomed to them.

The severe floods- together with recurrent outbreaks of violence, persistent underlying poverty and a lack of basic infrastructure and services – have created a complex humanitarian crisis and prevent the young nations progression. As a result of these factors, South Sudan grapples with a severe health crisis, affecting 8.9 million people primarily in flood- and conflict affected regions with population movements (displacement and returns) and disease outbreaks. The nation's health system, heavily reliant on international aid, faces staffing and resource shortages. Vulnerable groups, including women, children, the elderly and persons with disabilities, have limited access to health care and face heightened risks of illness and mortality.

Additional health data on South Sudan can be found at:

https://data.who.int/countries/728

South Sudan at a Glance Health Statistics
Top Causes of Death South Sudan
Image of South Sudan Statistic

Hope and Health Akot, South Sudan, is dedicated to bringing life-saving surgical care to those in desperate need.

Hope and Health Akot, South Sudan, is dedicated to bringing life-saving surgical care to those in desperate need. With your support, we can build and equip an operating room to provide essential procedures like C-sections, appendectomies, and other critical surgeries that were previously impossible in our community. This facility will save lives, reduce suffering, and give hope to countless families. Your donation will help fund construction, medical equipment, and the staffing needed to make this vision a reality. Please join us in transforming healthcare in Akot—every contribution brings us one step closer to saving lives.

Please Donate!