Deep Roots

Luapula Kafwa Coordinator, Jane Chibwe, has planted her roots deep in her community. As leader of a trusted and respected group of women and men, Jane has shown her skill in community development, utilizing teamwork to build the Mulundu Community Center! Now that the center itself has been built, new projects are underway at the site, and community members of all ages continue to be passionately involved as vast gardens, latrines, water projects, and a soccer field take shape!

In order to make room for the soccer field so local children could organize teams, plant roots and stumps needed to be removed so the land could be flattened as much as possible. Community volunteers cleared the field by hand (no small task!). After removing the roots, it would have been simple to push them to the side, forgotten on the property. But Jane and her team saw an opportunity to make this useful, and turned the stumps into charcoal! Charcoal is used in the village daily for cooking, using a small brazier. Now they can keep this charcoal for use at the center, cooking porridge for the children who come for educational programs, and for mothers and families who visit the center for health programs to take home if they need it. We’re thankful to partner with leaders who show such resourcefulness and compassion for their community!

Regan Jackson
World Health Day

Kafwa community health workers cooking lunch for students at Zamtan Community School of Peace

Today, on World Health Day, we uplift the important work of our colleagues as they advocate for the health, education, and empowerment of the women and children around them.

When we consider what it means to be healthy, it becomes clear that many issues are rooted in nutrition. If a mother or young child is malnourished, the risks of stunting or underdevelopment are much higher. If a patient receiving medicine cannot afford or access food, their medicine may not work properly, or make them feel even sicker. Barriers to access nutritious foods are barriers to healthy families and communities. 

Our colleagues in Africa see this issue and have identified ways they can address it in their communities. At the community centers in Malawi and the Luapula province of Zambia (and soon the new center in the D.R. Congo), gardening programs have begun in earnest, bringing community members together to clear land, plant crops, and share in the harvest. These serve as “outdoor classrooms”, where people can take what they’ve learned home to start their own small gardens. Our colleagues have also built garden sheds to store tools, seeds, and future harvests that can be distributed to clients or community members during parts of the year that have little food available. 

For years in the Copperbelt province of Zambia, the health workers have been tending to school gardens that augment the school lunch programs, adding nutritious greens to support healthy development. Now, they are looking at opportunities to expand their gardens to provide more food for some of their home-based clients who may be too sick to access it themselves. 

Hunger and malnutrition are major players in barriers to health, and we are grateful that our colleagues continue to provide improved access to nourishment for children and families, and loving support for the most vulnerable.

Regan Jackson
World Water Day 2023

Water is life-sustaining, and our need to protect it is critical. World Water Day centers on the Sustainable Development Goal of universal access to safe water and sanitation by 2030…but we’re off track. Overuse and pollution are causing issues that extend far past local areas. Communities we partner with have seen decreased water availability, and climate change only exacerbates this issue. As water sources deplete, families must use precious time and limited resources to collect life-sustaining water. Families already at risk of inequity will feel these impacts first. Community education, collaboration, and governance are needed to protect our water and balance the needs of people and the planet.

HealthEd Connect is partnering with community health workers in several communities on water projects they have advocated for to improve health. Access to potable water is a missing link in many communities, exposing people to preventable health risks. Providing a potable water source closer to the heart of the community, and educating community members about proper maintenance and conservation of the water source, will improve health and sustainability. 

This World Water Day, we invite you to learn about the importance of water resources and how to be good stewards. Access to safe water is not guaranteed and should be protected to the best of our ability!

To find more resources and to learn about World Water Day, visit:https://www.worldwaterday.org/learn

Regan Jackson
International Women's Day 2023

How will you “Embrace Equity” this International Women’s Day? This day is marked to recognize and celebrate women’s achievements, raise awareness about discrimination, and take action to drive gender parity. We're proud to focus our work toward equity through the empowerment of women and children through health, education, and advocacy.

Throughout the 4 countries where we serve, our community health workers are finding new ways to empower themselves. With the community health worker leadership development award, women can apply to learn new skills that may not have been accessible to them before due to status or fees. Some choose income-generating opportunities, such as learning to tailor, cater, or bake. Others pursue personal goals, like learning English or finishing high school (many of our health worker colleagues were not afforded the opportunity of secondary education). Some use the award to improve their abilities to serve their community, by learning to give immunizations or becoming traditional birth attendants. Whatever their goals, our colleagues utilize the award to improve conditions for themselves, their families, and their communities! We are grateful that this program is fulfilling its purpose in supporting opportunities for women to develop their skills as health workers, entrepreneurs, and community leaders. 

In Zambia, our Girls Achievement Program (GAP) scholarship for grades 8-12 addresses education bias while offering academic and social-emotional support. It’s still common for girls to have less chance of being supported through high school as compared to their male peers. To lessen this gap, we award five scholarships to girls for every one scholarship to a boy. We know it’s not equal - but it’s equitable - recognizing that girls don't all start with the same privileges, and adjustments are required to level the playing field. The longer a girl stays in school, the better her odds of economic stability, decision-making autonomy, and confidence to enact change. 

We are grateful for the efforts of all who make HealthEd Connect an organization that actively works to “Embrace Equity” and empower women! For more resources on International Women’s Day, click here.

Regan Jackson
Home Visits Make a Difference

Mapalo Kafwa team preparing for home visiting.

We often talk about the ways our community health worker colleagues change lives through advocacy, wraparound programs at the schools and community centers, or health trainings in their communities. Often though, these larger-scale programs are put into place because of the home visits they make.

For example, the Kafwa in Mapalo, Zambia, meet on Fridays and prepare to visit homes. They go out together, meeting with the clients they’ve adopted and checking on how they’re progressing. They provide encouragement and care, two vital parts of healing, and look for ways they can help. They may bring small salves or medicines, food they’ve packaged for the family, or just themselves, but each visit is important to their clients! These house calls build relationships with their clients and trust with the community. When big ideas come up for new programs or community trainings, they have a firm foundation to stand on and advocate for change! We are so grateful for their work that empowers communities by empowering women and children!

Kafwa members and client in Mapalo, Zambia

Regan Jackson
GAP scholars are ready!

The Kasompe GAP and General Scholar students with leaders Ireen Matete (front left) and Loveness Mulemba (front right)

This year's new Girls Achievement Program (GAP) and General scholars have received their school supplies and are excited for high school! GAP Leaders from each one of our sister schools have been busy, walking scholars to their new high schools to enroll and to purchase uniforms, books, backpacks, shoes, and other materials. These preparations take a great deal of time but make a big difference as scholars begin their high school careers. Students can attend classes feeling prepared, proud, and full of potential.

When they meet weekly with their Keeping in Touch (KIT) Club, scholars can share together about their high school experiences, work on homework together, receive tutoring support, and access to computers at our schools. We are grateful for the teachers, GAP and KIT leaders, and many supporters who ensure that these students are educated and empowered!

Kasompe Kafwa leader Ireen Matete with GAP student Elizabeth Kapembwa

Mapalo KIT students at a weekly meeting

Regan Jackson
Community Health in Nepal

Community health worker volunteer, Yanso Yimchunger

Biratnagar, Nepal community health worker coordinator, Sangeeta, has been busy with her team making community visits and hosting awareness camps to improve health practices for families!

These community events are an important way of disseminating information to the groups that will use it without needing to go door-to-door. Having a local leader means that the camps can be flexible and up-to-date with issues the community may be facing. In Biratnagar, for instance, Sangeeta and her team held camps about maternity care, nutrition, avoiding child marriage, alcohol withdrawal, and personal hygiene. Health camps can be quite large, with a recent Dengue fever camp being attended by over 80 people!

Women and children are often the groups in the highest attendance, and this gives them the important role of sharing what they’ve learned with their family and friends. Empowering women with the knowledge to improve the health and wellbeing of their family and community! 

Regan Jackson
Healing Salve

Pictured: Alex and his mother

In the Luapula province of Zambia, a boy name Alex was struggling with a wound that simply would not heal. His mother brought him to the local hospital for treatments, but this leg wound persisted for months. Thankfully, the hospital they were visiting is the same one our Luapula Kafwa coordinator Jane volunteers at! The doctors recommended that Alex and his mother visit with Jane, as the Kafwa have a very good track record of treating wounds. Sure enough, after counseling the pair on preparing and administering guava leaf antiseptic, followed by antibiotic ointment for the areas of the wound that persisted, Jane reports that Alex is doing much better now! 

Alex’s story is not unique. All of our community health worker colleagues have been trained in wound care, and have built a trusted reputation with the community and local clinics. Some patients may even be referred from the clinics to the health workers when someone is faced with difficult ongoing cases. We are so proud that the health workers’ years of experience and persistence result in knowledge gained and people healed!

Regan Jackson