Our new project to help children with cleft lip and palate in Colombia begins with a very unusual case. Maui was born with a cleft lip and palate. His parents belong to the indigenous Kogi and do not know how to get him the help he needs. By a happy coincidence, Julia, a Swiss woman living in Colombia, is a neighbor of the family and offers to help. In search of treatment options, she comes across Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe.
Thanks to our supporters, Maui’s life-saving operation was financed.
Documentary filmmaker Elias Danner has captured this incredible story:
Since 2002, Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe e.V. has been working to ensure that children with cleft lip and palate – “cleft children” – have access to safe, qualified and comprehensive treatment. In pursuit of this goal, Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe funds the necessary surgeries and follow-up therapies in many developing countries. More info:
Every year, some 250,000 children worldwide are born with a cleft lip and palate. Without treatment, “cleft children” suffer from the consequences for the rest of their lives. Depending on the type and severity of the malformation, babies cannot swallow, eat or drink properly, and they remain susceptible to infections and abscesses in the oral cavity. It is not uncommon for cleft babies to die before their first birthday. They are often ostracized because of their appearance, and their families live on the margins of society.
Your donation gives affected children and their families the chance to live their lives in health and dignity.
What treatments we can offer in our project countries vary depending on the medical infrastructures available and how far our project has developed. There are locations where we can only offer basic surgeries. In other countries, we can offer a full comprehensive cleft treatment with many types of followup therapies. Other projects lie in between.
The operation to close the cleft is the central treatment measure for a cleft lip and palate. In our project countries, this procedure, which usually takes no longer than 45 minutes, costs an average of 300 euros.
A recurring donation is particularly valuable for us: it gives us a predictable and reliable level of funding. With just 25 euros per month, you make a child’s surgery possible every year. A relatively small monthly that makes a big difference: giving a child a better life.
We have been awarded the seal of approval of the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI) for our responsible use of our donors’ money. The seal is renewed yearly after an audit of our finances by the Berlin-based DZI.
