Project Launch: 1-26-16

In the district of Nyamasheke, 39.2% of the population lives in extreme poverty. In an effort to address the prevalence of stunting and malnutrition, this project will train community health workers to educate their communities on the importance of good health practices such as proper nutrition, breastfeeding, and hygiene during the first thousand days of a child’s life. They will also be equipped to build gardens in their villages to provide pregnant women and their families access to nutritious foods.

Final Report: 6/11/16

69 community health workers participated in the trainings, which focused on nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, breastfeeding, family planning, and malaria. Through interactive games, they learned how to create a balanced meal on a low budget, helping to squash misconceptions that eating healthy requires lots of money. Additionally, the community health workers learned new gardening techniques and assisted in building a garden in front of the local health center and were encouraged to build their own home gardens. Before this training, many of the CHWs did not understand the importance of proper hygiene and eating a balanced diet for mothers during pregnancy and after giving birth and were unaware about what constitutes a balanced diet or how to prepare it with limited financial resources. Through this project, they have learned how poor health habits during pregnancy and the first two years of life cause stunting and can have a lifelong impact for children, since the first two years are critical for child development.

Testimonials

"The impact of the trainings on the community is very clear and helpful. What I have understood, I am going to put into action." - Marc, Project Participant 

"To be honest, in my community as well as other areas in Africa, hygiene, nutrition, family planning, and breastfeeding are big challenges. I wish everybody in Africa could attend this training." - Jeremie, Project Leader