OUR TESTIMONIALS

Maria, 67 years old, lives in Inhambane, Mozambique. She is missing both a leg below the knee and a forearm.

As a young mother of five children, her husband began to physically abuse her, following an argument. When she tried to escape, he grabbed a knife and started stabbing her. He severed her arm completely, then he continued to attack her entire body. Believing he had killed her, he went to the police to turn himself in. But Maria was alive! However, due to the severity of her injuries, the doctors had to amputate part of her leg as well, turning her life into a permanent prison.

But Maria did not give up. With the support of her neighbours and family, she forged ahead in life. During the SwissABILITY training in Inhambane in August 2024, Maria received a Monolimb prosthesis that brought a smile back to her face.

Joseph is 42 years old and is a refugee from South Sudan.

In 2021, during the civil war, rebels raided his home and shot his father and all his uncles who were around at the time. Despite the bullet lodged in his leg, Joseph managed to escape. After spending four days hiding in the forest, he found people willing to help him get to a hospital in the nearby Democratic Republic of the Congo, where doctors amputated his leg.

To be close to his family, he was able to move from the DRC to the Bidibidi refugee settlement in Uganda, where his wife and six children were waiting for him. Joseph received a Monolimb prosthesis during the SwissABILITY mission in Uganda in June 2024.

Ibrahim lives in Sierra Leone and is just 4 years old, a lively child full of energy who brings joy to everyone around him.

Due to a congenital condition, he was born missing some fingers on his hands, a part of one leg, and with clubfoot on the other.

The SwissABILITY technicians prepared a special orthosis for his clubfoot and a new custom leg during the mission in Freetown in February 2024. Without hesitation, Ibrahim agreed to try the new prosthetics. His determination surprised everyone: in no time, he was already able to walk, run, and play with his friends. Thanks to this new leg, Ibrahim has gained a new sense of freedom. Now he can explore the world with renewed energy, take on new challenges, and continue to bring smiles to everyone he meets.

We met Almeida in Quelimane, Mozambique, during the SwissABILITY training for orthopedic technicians in December 2023.

When Almeida was just 13 years old, he was forced to join the army, where he served for ten years. Shortly before being discharged at the end of the war, he stepped on a landmine, losing his leg instantly.

Upon returning home, he discovered that his entire family had died in the 10 years he had been gone. His parents and some of his siblings lost their lives in the conflict, while others succumbed to illness. Almeida rebuild his life and is now happily married and has twin daughters, aged 13. Thanks to the SwissABILITY training, he received a new Monolimb prosthesis.

Nayigga is 21 years old and is from Kazo, a city in the western region of Uganda. She lives with her mother, Nannozi, who separated from her father when she was still a child, leaving Nannozi to raise Nayigga and her 5 siblings on her own.

When she was just three years old, Nayigga was attacked by a psychiatrically disturbed man who broke into their house and hacked off her leg. The man escaped before her parents could return, by which time Nayigga had lost a lot of blood. The only solution was to permanently amputate her leg in the hospital.

Nayigga is a smiling and happy young lady. Her positive spirit got her through life which improved even more when she started playing amputee football. She plays defense for the Federation of Uganda Amputee Football Association (FUAFA) team, whose president encouraged her to attend SwissABILITY’s training in Luweero in August 2023 to receive a new prosthesis.

Ruhanatu is a 15-year-old girl living in Ghana. Ruhanatu’s life has not been easy. At the age of 13, she was diagnosed with osteomyelitis, a severe bone infection, which led to the amputation of her right leg below the knee. This traumatic event deeply affected Ruhanatu, making her feel insecure and limited in her abilities.

The turning point in Ruhanatu’s life came thanks to SwissABILITY, which provided her with a prosthesis during a training mission in Nsawam in July 2023. Ruhanatu has truly regained a sense of peace.

Now she can live her life without limitations, pursuing her dreams with a renewed sense of freedom and confidence. Ruhanatu’s story is a powerful example of how the right support can transform lives, providing hope and new opportunities to those in greatest need.

Comfort lives in Sierra Leone and lost her leg in 2019 in a tragic accident while she was the passenger in a bicycle taxi that was in collision with a car. The taxi driver died instantly. Comfort survived, but her leg was completely shattered and could not be saved.

From that moment on, her life changed dramatically: she thought she would never again be able to walk, work, and take care of her three children. She was depressed and was sure she could never be happy again. Fortunately, her family stood by her every step of the way. Her sister looked after her throughout her time in the hospital and her husband took care of the children and encouraged her through every stage of her recovery. “I have a wonderful husband!” she tells us, with shining eyes and a bright smile.

Comfort received a prosthesis during the SwissABILITY training in Freetown in May 2023.

Bashiru is 8 years old and lives in Bo, Sierra Leone, with his family. He is amputated above the knee due to a congenital condition.

We had already met Bashiru in 2022, but we could not provide him with a new prosthesis due to a tumor on his residual limb, which needed to be removed first. After the operation, we were finally able to craft him a new prosthesis during an orthopedic training in Freetown in 2023. He had never had one before and had never been able to walk on his legs, having been born with a congenital condition.

Now, with his new leg, Bashiru is able to take his very first steps. He is the youngest soccer player on Bo’s SLASA team and he dreams of becoming a doctor to help people in need.

Antunes had his left leg amputated below the knee due to the explosion of a landmine in 1991, during the height of the civil war.

Antunes was indeed a soldier in the Mozambican army, and during a combat near Maputo, he accidentally stepped on a landmine hidden in the ground. Although he was immediately taken to a military hospital, it was impossible to treat him in any way, and the doctors proceeded with the amputation below the knee.

Since 1992, Antunes has meticulously maintained the only prosthesis he ever had – until now! His new Monolimb prosthesis received by SwissABILITY in Pemba is of great benefit to his mobility and peace of mind.

While working on a construction site in 2013, the tractor Paulo was driving overturned, trapping him beneath it, breaking his right leg.

Although he wanted to be taken to the hospital, Paulo was persuaded to go to a traditional healer, as is the local custom. The lack of appropriate treatment caused a gangrene to set in below the knee. Haven already lost all sensitivity to the bottom part of his leg, Paulo amputated it himself with a razor blade – then set out to the hospital to receive adequate treatment.

In November 2022, during the orthopedic training in Pemba, Mozambique, Paulo received a Monolimb, which is lighter and more comfortable and agile than the prosthesis he had previously.

Antonio is 59 years old and lives in Mozambique. During the civil war, 20-year-old Antonio was shot in the right knee. In the hospital he was treated at, he was told that the bullet had been successfully removed.

Ten years later (1994) Antonio’s wound began hurting again. A lot! Returning to the hospital, he discovered that the bullet had never been extracted. In the meantime, an untreatable infection had set in, and the doctors were left with no option but to amputate his leg above the knee.

With the new prosthesis received in Nampula in June 2023, Antonio hopes to resume a full life, continue his work at the Municipality, and take care of his many grandchildren—all activities that were more challenging with the old prosthesis.

Julieta is 53 years old and lost her leg in 1994 during the civil war in Mozambique.

Along with others, she had taken cover in a school building. A convoy of rebels passed by and threw numerous hand grenades at the building. Nobody died in the attack, but many were injured, including Julieta.

Her leg had been torn apart and after several hours, she was taken to the hospital, where what remained of her leg was sewn into a stump.

Julieta is a proud and determined lady who does not easily let the adversities of life get her down. She hopes that her new prosthesis will allow her to do everything that her old, heavy, and worn-out one didn’t.

Ana is 21 years old and lives in Mozambique. She cannot recall the event where she lost her legs, but was told that a baby, one night she woke up in her parents’ bed screaming in pain. They rushed her to the hospital, where both her legs and much of both hands were amputated.

She has two older and two younger brothers. Her mother passed away and she lives with her father, who has since remarried. Currently a high school student, Ana would like to contribute financially to
support her father and family. Despite the challenges she faces due to her amputations, she dreams of studying physiotherapy.

Ana is a very bright and intelligent girl. Thanks to the SwissABILITY training in Quelimane, she received two Monolimb prostheses, with which she will be able to be independent and continue to help her whole family with household chores and support those around her in times of difficulty.

Ines is a joyful 9 year old who lives with her parents, two sisters and a brother in Quelimane, Mozambique. She is the youngest in the family.

At 21 months old, Ines was strapped to the back of her mother, who was on a bicycle when they were involved in a hit and run accident. Ines’ leg was amputated that same day.

Despite her disability enjoys her childhood, going to school and playing with other children. In December 2023, SwissABILITY has gifted her with her first prosthesis in Quelimane, and she couldn’t be happier.

Marta lives in Mozambique, is 60 years old and has charm that wins you over and a smile that warms your heart. She lost her leg due to an accident during the civil war.

While trying to escape the horrors of the war in search of a safe place, Marta climbed onto the back of a van leaving the city of Inhambane. Unfortunately, due to the speed and the rough road, she was thrown off the van and broke a leg. No one stopped to help her, and Marta was left helpless and injured, abandoned on the road. After hours, some police officers came to her aid and transported her to the hospital, but it was too late: the doctors were forced to amputate her leg.

Thanks to the SwissABILITY training held in Inhambane in August 2024, Marta received a brand new Monolimb.

In 1993, when the civil war in Sierra Leone had been raging for two years, Vandi (then seventeen) witnessed rebels killing his parents.

Despite the trauma, he managed to escape, but rebels shot him during his flight, striking his leg. A few hours later Vandi was found by soldiers and taken to Kenema Hospital, where they decided to amputate his leg.

Rising again after so much pain was not easy, but today he can rely on the support of his wife and three children. He works as a decorator and painter, and today he can finally work with more agility and ease thanks to his first prosthesis received during the SwissABILITY training in Freetown in February 2024.