Desta’s Story
In November 2025, one of our patients from earlier in the year returned for surgery on his cleft lip. Desta arrived at Gamby hospital in July 2025, when he was just eight months old, after his parents had heard about Project Harar. His parents both work as farmers in Amhara and Desta is their first child. Upon examination of Desta it was clear that he was too undernourished to receive surgery on that day, so his parents were provided with nutritional supplement for him so that he could grow stronger and return at a later date.
During this first visit, his mother explained to us ‘When Desta was first born, I was really confused. My community and the people around me spoke badly of my son and I, and excluded us from social events and community life. Project Harar has supported my son by providing us with nutritional support and we will return to Gamby hospital later this year.’
“Now that Desta has received treatment for his cleft lip, we can both participate in social life again. We will go out without any fear. I can return to church with my child and I can thank Project Harar for that. I am so grateful that my son is now freed from his cleft and I want to thank the organisation for all the work that they do.”