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The Banna, like the Aari benefit from immunization programs for children, which lower the rate of tetanus, measles and other diseases. A new hospital in Jinka, the regional capital, meets a real felt need. The Banna generally do not practice female genital mutilation, but several of their neighbors do.The capital of the region, Jinka, is located about 60 miles from Kenya and 80 miles from Sudan. Few Banna actually live in Jinka, but many visit the market there and some attend high school there. The Banna traditionally have cattle-raiding wars with the neighboring Mali, Bodi, and Mursi. As the Gospel spreads among these people groups, the wars diminish.
Like the Aari, the Banna may attribute
sickness, infertility and death to the
resentment of a deceased relative. The
relative is appeased by the offering of
a sacrifice. When a person dies, a
sheep may be slaughtered and its
intestines "read" to find the cause of
death.SIM built an elementary school for the Banna people at Alduba in the 1990s, and most of the students are children of believers. SIM also built a clinic in 1988, which helped open people's hearts to the Gospel. It was handed over to the government in 2002 so that our nurse, Sharon Smith, could focus on her first love, evangelism and teaching, in cooperation with the Word of Life (SIM-related) Church. I would estimate the literacy rate among the Banna at less than 3%. My hope and prayer is that, as in South Korea, the church leaders will establish a church policy and literacy effort that results in 100% literacy. So far they have only Mark's Gospel and John's third epistle in their language. I won't be satisfied until they have the whole Bible.
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