The pre-teen superstars stopping disease in Iraqi refugee camps

Junior health workers are raising awareness about handwashing and drinking clean water to prevent diseases like polio, typhoid, measles and cholera

In the 45-degree heat and billowing dust of Kapartu camp in northern Iraq, staying neat and tidy presents a challenge, but there is one group of people who are always immaculately turned out and easily identifiable as humanitarians: a collection of children aged 11 to 13 who take great pride in their roles as junior health workers (JHWs). Smartly dressed in clean black T-shirts, black caps, and with lanyards round their necks, these children help fight the spread of infection, promote healthy habits and humanitarian ideals.

“I like wearing it, and my friends also like me wearing it,” says Hyatt, who is unsure of her age but thinks she is 12. “They wish they could dress like me and be a junior health worker.”

The thing I like most is talking to people

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from Children | The Guardian http://ift.tt/2wKRuNM