EPISODE 1 of the Matches on the Map expedition:

On the 16th of September 2023 - World Marrow Donor Day, we got onto the road after 4 years of building Betsy to embark on the world's first inter-continental stem cell donor recruitment drive with the goal of putting Matches on the Map!

This expedition will take us across three continents and 64-countries throughout the next decade in the hopes of signing up thousands of potential life savers. Betsy, our truck-home, runs on used cooking oil to make the project financially viable and we document and film the entire journey - so that you can come along for the ride!

The Kingdom of Eswatini (Swaziland) is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa to its north, west, south, and southeast and Mozambique to its northeast. At no more than 200 km (120 mi) north to south and 130 km (81 mi) east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry lowveld.

The government is an absolute monarchy, the last of its kind in Africa, and has been ruled by King Mswati III since 1986. The Swazi population faces major health issues: HIV/AIDS and (to a lesser extent) tuberculosis are widespread. 28% of the adult population is HIV-positive. As of 2018, Eswatini has the 12th-lowest life expectancy in the world, at 58 years.

With an awesome mountain pass, easy border crossing and our first wild camp behind us, we make our first stop at the small, rejuvenated ghost town of Bulembu. With an interesting history and a promising future, we connect and share with the local community and get the opportunity to chat to the Bulembu high school, do a quick hike, get some contacts and hit the gravel road pass towards Pigg's Peak, Maguga Dam and Ngwenya Glass.

On the first episode of Matches on the Map, we manage to find 21 willing heroes who sign up to save lives!

To read more about the project, please visit:
www.NuminousExpeditions.co.za

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Facebook: @NuminousE
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