Noma (cancrum oris) is an acute and ravaging gangrenous infection affecting the face. The victims of Noma are mainly children under the age of 6, caught in a vicious circle of extreme poverty and chronic malnutrition.

Facing Africa currently funds two teams of highly skilled and experienced volunteer surgeons from the UK, Germany, France and Holland to Ethiopia each year to perform complex facial reconstructive surgery on the victims of the disease noma. Each team is made up of 4 surgeons (plastic, maxillo-facial and cranio-facial), 3 anaesthetists, an anaesthetic assistant, 3 operating room nurses, 3 ward nurses, a doctor and 2 wound care nurses. Each surgical mission spends 2 weeks in Ethiopia and generally carries out 35 – 45 facial reconstructions. The cost of each mission is around £ 75,000 

In addition Facing Africa also encourages local doctors, surgeons and nurses to attend lectures and presentations done by our volunteers in order to teach them new and better procedures and techniques. Ethiopian surgeons are invited to observe and assist during surgery. Facing Africa also donates surgical instruments, consumables and disposables to Ethiopian hospitals at the end of each mission.

Im not running a marathon or anything like that, but my personal challenge is to live as frugally as possible for the next 4 months by not drinking alcohol, wasting food, petrol, or electrcity. I'll not be purchasing any non essential items as i need to be able to support myself as i will not have had any income for 3 months..... 

I am donating 8 weks of my time to this cause as unpaid leave from my work place so iwith my time and your cash we can literally help put a smile back on these  childrens faces

For more information  a documentary can be found on facing africa website www.facingafrica.org 

Thanks for your donations to a very worthwhile cause....