Tag archives for Democratic Republic of the Congo

Catching Mosquitoes, Not Fish: Returning Bed Nets to their Proper Use in the DRC

Posted by Amélie Sow-Dia, PharmD., MHS, Consultant with Overseas Strategic Consulting, a partner on USAID’s Democratic Republic of Congo-Integrated Health Project on Monday, May 6th 2013

It is 1 p.m. in the village of Kavimvira. The sun is high over Lake Tanganyika, at the foot of the Mitumba Mountain, in scenic South Kivu. Frank Baraka has packed the bounty of the morning fishing trip and folded his nets, when his cell phone chimes to signal an incoming text message: “Sleep every night under an Insecticide-Treated Net (ITN), to protect your family from malaria,” he reads out loud, amused, to his fishing companion. “This is exactly the message my wife has been pounding at home lately,” Roger Amisi responds. “She says that she heard it at the ETL (Education-Through-Listening) meeting, with Nathalie, you know, the primary school teacher.” Delaying his lunch, Frank hurries to Nathalie Niéla’s compound to find out about the messages. “Malaria kills children in our community,” Nathalie says. “Sleep under a net every night, to live safe from malaria” she confirms. This is the call to action of the Malaria 3+1 Campaign implemented by USAID’s Democratic Republic of Congo-Integrated Health Project (DRC-IHP), in partnership with C-Change. An estimated 140,949 Congolese from 194 villages were exposed to campaign messages on malaria awareness and prevention. In a country where only five percent of pregnant women receive proper preventive malaria therapy, and malaria accounts for nearly 40 percent of child deaths, prevention is a critical priority. Nathalie is one of 37 women ETL facilitators recently trained in the DRC-IHP’s field office of Uvira. “Thanks to ETL, our husbands no longer use the nets to fish or to protect vegetable gardens,” she affirms proudly. “Nets now serve their purpose of protecting children and pregnant women from mosquito bites.” ETL is one pillar of IHP’s Tuendeni-Kumpala Behavior Change Communication strategy which empowers communities to adopt health-seeking behaviors. Tuendeni-Kumpala which means “moving forward” in Swahili and Tshiluba (two local languages), is an integrated strategy in which ETL facilitators work in synergy with other innovative communication approaches such as mobile technology, to increase the reach and enhance the behavioral impact of project interventions such as malaria prevention and use of reproductive health services. Through this partnership between USAID, DRC-IHP and C-Change, a total of 64,584 ITNs were distributed across Bukavu, Kolwezi, Uvira, and Kamina, supporting the effort to boost the number of people using insecticide-treated nets. Campaign results from two health zones point to the value of ETL, in terms of actual ITN use. After four months, 89 percent of the 9,471 households exposed to campaign activities in Uvira slept every night under an ITN. By contrast, 82 percent of the 12,965 households involved in Kamina (Katanga province) reported adoption of the preventive behavior. When the campaign was launched in June 2012, ETL was not yet rolled out in Kamina. For the project’s communication team, the difference illustrates the powerful effect of ETL. “ETL truly shows results here,” said Donat Ngoyi, DRC-IHP Communication Expert in Uvira. “This approach will, no doubt, help us meet our malaria prevention and treatment goals.” The DRC-Integrated Health Project (DRC-IHP) — a five-year USAID cooperative agreement led by Management Sciences for Health in partnership with the International Rescue Committee, and Overseas Strategic Consulting, Ltd — is strengthening the leadership and governance capacity of people working in the health sector to improve the access, availability, and quality of services within 80 target health zones. Photo Credit: USAID Global health

In the DRC, where only five percent of pregnant women receive proper preventive malaria therapy, and malaria accounts for nearly 40 percent of child deaths, prevention is a critical priority. Read more >>

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Non-hormonal Methods of Contraception Meet Need in DRC

Posted by Christopher Hook, Program Assistant, USAID’s Office of Population and Reproductive Health on Friday, April 19th 2013

Christopher Hook with members of Maman An’Sar. Photo credit: USAID

USAID programs have worked to meet the needs of women in the DRC by expanding access to a wide range of family planning choices Read more >>

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In Congo, Helping Children Catch Up in the Classroom

Posted by Sinziana Demian, IRC on Wednesday, April 17th 2013

Leontina and Ester during their first week of school in more than four years. Until recently the girls were among an estimated 7.6 million Congolese children who do not attend school. They are now making up for lost time in an accelerated learning program run by the International Rescue Committee. Photo credit: Sinziana Demian, IRC

International Rescue Committee and USAID are helping 1,100 boys and girls in Congo catch up on their studies at the primary level and work toward admissions to secondary school. Read more >>

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Separating Children from Armed Groups in the DRC

Posted by Suzanne Truchard, Peace and Stability Officer DLI, USAID/DRC on Wednesday, April 10th 2013

Children formerly associated with armed groups engaging in recreational activities at a USAID-supported transit center in Bukavu, South Kivu. Photo credit: Dan Rono

Since 2011, USAID, UNICEF and local partners’ child protection work with UNICEF has separated over 1,100 children from armed groups in the DRC. Read more >>

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A New Life for Goma’s Water System

Posted by Erin Gray, Mercy Corps on Wednesday, April 3rd 2013

Siya Marguerite's children. Photo credit: Mercy Corps

Overhaul of dilapidated infrastructure means a lasting source of water comes to hundreds of thousands of DRC’s most vulnerable. Read more >>

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WWE Divas Help Refugees in Rwanda Fight Malaria

Posted by Alicia Fox and Natalya Fox, WWE Divas on Thursday, March 28th 2013

WWE Divas Alicia Fox and Natalya Fox during their visit to Rwanda. They helped distribute bed nets to mothers and families, and visited health clinics and youth centers at the camps. Photo credit: Craig Ambrosio, WWE

Recently, WWE Divas Alicia and Natalya Fox, along with the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets campaign, visited Rwanda to meet mothers and children fighting malaria. Read more >>

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Aid to Internally Displaced Persons in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Posted by Darlene Mauldin, Senior Disaster Operations Specialist, Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance on Wednesday, March 27th 2013

More than 12,000 water containers, 3,000 blankets and 1,000 kitchen sets were airlifted to Katanga Province in DRC from USAID’s stockpiles in Dubai, The United Arab Emirates (UAE). Photo credit: UNICEF

USAID has responded to urgent needs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by airlifting more than $270,000 worth of emergency relief supplies to the region. Read more >>

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