A Holistic Mission of Hope

In the impoverished regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, where sweltering heat, relentless poverty, and inadequate healthcare converge, diseases like malaria, cholera, and yellow fever claim countless lives. Yet amid these familiar killers lurks a lesser-known but devastating threat: the jigger plague.

Jiggers, or Tunga penetrans, are carnivorous parasitic fleas that burrow into human skin, particularly targeting the soft flesh of children aged 6 months to 9 years. Thriving in the dirt floors of mud-brick homes, dusty schoolyards, and rural villages, these nearly invisible pests invade their hosts, laying hundreds of eggs. 

Left untreated, infestations lead to agonizing inflammation, ulceration, and secondary infections like tetanus or gangrene. Over 2.4 million children in Kenya alone suffer from this preventable condition, their bodies often hosting 30–40 jigger nests at once.

The human toll of this crisis is starkly captured in the story of Anna, an 8-year-old girl from a village near Mt. Elgon. Crippled by jigger-infested feet and hands, she lay on the ground, her limbs oozing sores rendering her unable to walk or care for herself. 

“We had to turn scores of children away after our first clinic,” recalls Pastor Barack Nyongesa, director of Partnership for Better Life (PBL). 

“Anna’s pain haunted me. Her cure required just $3 of medicine, but we’d run out.”

For children like Anna, the jigger’s assault is relentless. The parasites cause round-the-clock pain, night sweats, and itching so severe it disrupts sleep, schooling, and basic hygiene. Many victims, living without clean water or access to doctors, face social stigma as their communities label them “cursed.”

In 2017, PBL launched a holistic mission to combat jiggers. Armed with razors, antiseptics, and organic pesticides, their teams train local pastors, teachers, and villagers to treat infestations and spray homes and schools. 

“No government or NGO has reached these remote areas,” says Art Hobba, PBL’s founder. “After we heal the sick, villages call them ‘Blessed of God.’ It’s a miracle to witness.”

A Race Against Time

Despite progress, the need outstrips resources. School principals plead for help, but funding gaps leave countless children untreated. “This is a growing catastrophe,” Art emphasizes. “Jiggers are easy to cure and prevent—if we act together.”

Pastor Barack explains how children in Kenya (and surrounding countries) suffer greatly from tiny mites called "Jiggers," which burrow deeply into the skin of their hands and feet.