Guinea worm and conjunctivitis are two common health problems in rural Niger that can be prevented with simple measures. Guinea worm is contracted by drinking water containing infected water fleas, and conjunctivitis spreads through contact with infected eyes or flies. This unit covers prevention vocabulary, water filtering techniques, salt water eye treatment, and sample dialogues for health education.

Guinea Worm — Vocabulary

Zarma	English
kurkunu	guinea worm
noni	worm
bongu	pond
zara	pagne (cloth)
kokosuyan	to strain/filter
gonyan	to swallow
fusuyan	swollen

Guinea Worm — How It Spreads

Guinea worm (kurkunu) enters the body when a person drinks unfiltered water from a pond (bongu). Tiny water fleas in the pond carry guinea worm larvae. When swallowed, the larvae grow inside the body for about a year. Then the adult worm — sometimes a meter long — slowly emerges through the skin, causing a painful blister and swelling (fusuyan). The affected person often cannot walk or work for weeks.

Guinea Worm — Prevention Phrases

Zarma	English
Ni ma si hamu bongu hari nda ni man kokosu a.	Don’t drink pond water without filtering it.
Ni ma kokos hari nda zara sanni ni ga hamu.	Filter water through a cloth before you drink.
Kurkunu ga furo ni gaham ra nda ni na hamu bongu hari.	Guinea worm enters your body when you drink pond water.
Noni kayna go bongu hari ra — ni moey si hin ka di i.	Many worms are in pond water — your eyes can’t see them.
Ni ma haw hari bonkaano ga wala ni ma kokos a.	Get water from a well or filter it.

Guinea Worm Dialogue — In the Fields

Nafissa meets a group of men working in the fields who are drinking directly from a nearby pond.

Speaker	Zarma	English
Nafissa	Fofo, ay alborey! Aran go ga hamu bongu hari?	Hello, men! Are you drinking pond water?
Man 1	Oho. Hari bonkaano go koyne. Iri gonda faw.	Yes. The well is far. We’re thirsty.
Nafissa	Aran ga faham kurkunu?	Do you know about guinea worm?
Man 2	Oho. Jiri kan cindi ay baba na du kurkunu. A man hin ka dira hal handu fo.	Yes. Last year my father got guinea worm. He couldn’t walk for a month.
Nafissa	Kurkunu ga furo ni gaham ra nda ni na hamu bongu hari. Noni kayna go hari ra — ni moey si hin ka di i.	Guinea worm enters your body when you drink pond water. Many worms are in the water — your eyes can’t see them.
Man 1	Amma iri gonda faw!	But we’re thirsty!
Nafissa	Aran ga hin ka hamu. Amma aran ma kokos hari sanni. Aran gonda zara?	You can drink. But filter the water first. Do you have a cloth?
Man 2	Oho, ay gonda zara fo.	Yes, I have a cloth.
Nafissa	Boori. Ni ma daŋ zara tasa boŋ ga. Ni ma ti hari a ga. Hari ga bisa — noni si bisa.	Good. Put the cloth over a bowl. Pour the water through it. The water passes through — the worms don’t.
Man 1	Yaadin hinne?	Just like that?
Nafissa	Oho. Ni ma zara kokongu hinka wala hinza — a ga boori bisa.	Yes. Fold the cloth two or three times — it works even better.
Man 2	Boori. Iri ga te yaadin za hunkuna.	Good. We’ll do that from now on.
Nafissa	Wati kulu aran ma kokos bongu hari sanni aran ga hamu. Aran ma si dihun.	Always filter pond water before you drink. Don’t forget.

Conjunctivitis — Vocabulary

Zarma	English
mo dori/apolo	conjunctivitis
mo/mo ze	eyes
ciri	salt
mundi	tears
hamne/hamni bi	flies
nyum	to wash
safari	medicine

Conjunctivitis — How It Spreads

Conjunctivitis (mo dori, also called “apolo”) is an eye infection that causes redness, swelling, tearing, and sometimes pus. It spreads through:

Touching infected eyes and then touching other people
Flies (hamney) landing on infected eyes and then on healthy eyes
Sharing towels or cloths with an infected person

Conjunctivitis — Prevention and Treatment

Zarma	English
Ni ma si ni moey zon nda ni kambey.	Don’t touch your eyes with your hands.
Ni ma ni kambey nyum nda safun watikulu.	Wash your hands with soap regularly.
Hamney ga kande mo dori. Ni ma ni moey halassi hamney ga.	Flies carry conjunctivitis. Protect your eyes from flies.
Ni ma nyum mo dori zanke moey nda ciri hari.	Wash the infected child’s eyes with salt water.

Salt Water Eye Treatment

Steps in Zarma

Ni ma haŋ hari hanno tasa ra. — Put clean water in a bowl.
Ni ma daŋ ciri kayna — kawra fo hinne. — Add a little salt — just one spoonful.
Ni ma girma hal ciri ma yangu. — Stir until the salt dissolves.
Ni ma nyum zanke moey nda ciri hari, anniya nda zara hanno. — Wash the child’s eyes with the salt water, gently with a clean cloth.
Ni ma te yaadin cee hinka zaaro ra. — Do this two times per day.
Nda a man boori jiri hinza banda, ni ma konda zanke dispensaire ga. — If it’s not better after three days, take the child to the dispensaire.

Important Notes

Use clean water only (hari hanno).
Do not use too much salt — only one small spoonful per bowl.
Use a separate clean cloth for each infected person.
Wash hands with soap after treating the eyes.

Conjunctivitis Dialogue — Treating Aicha

A volunteer visits a compound where a mother’s daughter Aicha has red, swollen eyes.

Speaker	Zarma	English
Volunteer	Fofo! Mate ni go?	Hello! How are you?
Mother	Baani samay. Amma ay ize Aicha — a moey ciray.	Fine. But my daughter Aicha — her eyes hurt.
Volunteer	Kala ay goru. A moey ja — mo dori no.	Let me see. Her eyes are red — it’s conjunctivitis.
Mother	Ifo no ay ga hin ka te?	What can I do?
Volunteer	Ni ga hin ka nyum a moey nda ciri hari.	You can wash her eyes with salt water.
Mother	Ciri hari?	Salt water?
Volunteer	Oho. Ni ma haŋ hari hanno tasa ra. Ni ma daŋ ciri kayna — kawra fo hinne. Ni ma girma hal a ma yangu.	Yes. Put clean water in a bowl. Add a little salt — just one spoonful. Stir until dissolved.
Mother	Koyne?	Then?
Volunteer	Ni ma du zara hanno. Ni ma zama a ciri hari ra. Ni ma nyum Aicha moey anniya anniya.	Get a clean cloth. Dip it in the salt water. Wash Aicha’s eyes gently.
Mother	Cee marje zaaro ra?	How many times per day?
Volunteer	Cee hinka — suba nda wiciri.	Two times — morning and evening.
Mother	Nda a man boori?	If it doesn’t get better?
Volunteer	Nda a man boori jiri hinza banda, ni ma konda a dispensaire ga.	If it’s not better after three days, take her to the dispensaire.
Mother	Ay ga faham. Barka!	I understand. Thank you!
Volunteer	Fo mo — ni ma si Aicha ma zon a moey nda a kambey. Nda hamney ga goro a moey ga, ni ma fu i. A mo, ni ma ni kambey nyum nda safun.	One more thing — don’t let Aicha touch her eyes with her hands. If flies sit on her eyes, chase them away. Also, wash your hands with soap.
Mother	Ifo se?	Why?
Volunteer	Mo dori ga dira boro ga ka boro ga. Nda ni na zon Aicha moey, koyne ni na zon ni woney, ni mo ga du mo dori.	Conjunctivitis passes from person to person. If you touch Aicha’s eyes, then touch your own, you’ll get conjunctivitis too.
Mother	Ay faham. Ay ga haggoy.	I understand. I’ll be careful.

Health — Guinea Worm & Conjunctivitis

Topics Covered

Lesson Material