Elevating Country Voices
Hear from the frontlines of community health. Find stories and interviews of community health workers and community health program managers that will deepen understanding of their crucial function delivering lifesaving care to communities.
Strengthening the Foundation: Kenya’s Journey to a Mature and Resilient Community Health System
Community health is a critical foundation for achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Kenya, delivering essential services to households, especially in underserved areas. As the first point of contact with the health system, Community Health Workers (CHWs) play a vital role in prevention, health promotion, and linkage to care. However, the effectiveness of community health systems depends not just on their existence, but on how well they function. Measuring the maturity of these systems allows stakeholders to assess performance across key components, such as governance, financing, training, and data use and identify actionable gaps. This ensures that community health is not only expanded but strengthened…
Strengthening Health Systems in the Central African Republic: A Strategic Push Toward Universal Health Coverage
The Central African Republic (CAR) Government has made important strides in improving the health of its people over recent years. However, persistent challenges remain: a shortage of health workers, a limited number of health facilities – especially in rural areas – and constrained funding continue to hamper access to essential health services. The burden of communicable diseases such as malaria, respiratory infections, and diarrheal diseases remains high, with children and vulnerable populations bearing the brunt. Maternal and child mortality rates are still among the highest in the region. To address these challenges, the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) of…
Protecting the Frontline: Why Ending Gender-Based Violence Is Essential to Strengthening Community Health Systems
Would you visit a vulnerable household if you could save a life, but may also be putting yourself at risk of gender-based violence? Through better health financing, this is a dilemma which we want to ensure Community Health Workers no longer face. Introduction Every year on 25th November – 10th December, the world marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, a stark reminder of the urgent need to address one of the most pervasive human rights violations of our time: gender-based violence (GBV). This day also signals the start of the 16 Days of Activism, a…
From Our Partners
Why counties must invest in community health services
Africa Frontline First is an initiative to fund community health programs in sub-Saharan Africa. While this initiative aims to deploy 200,000 professional CHWs by 2030, existing community health volunteers lack essential resources and financial incentives. In this piece, two CHVs from Kenya discuss why county governments must invest in community health services.
–> read more at Nation Africa
How health workers are leading Africa’s COVID-19 response
Community health workers have long responded to disease outbreaks while maintaining lifesaving services. In this September 2021 opinion piece, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s president from 2006 to 2018, and Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, share their thoughts on investments that should be prioritized to end the COVID-19 pandemic and realize health for all.
–> read more at Devex
COVID-19 highlights the need for community health
Over recent years, the world has faced two Ebola outbreaks, the constant threat of pandemic influenza, and now the global spread of novel coronavirus and the COVID-19 pandemic. In developing countries, these threats risk exacerbating existing high burdens of communicable diseases associated with millions of preventable deaths. Community health is essential for pandemic preparedness (prevention, surveillance, response) and remains essential for achieving the World Health Organization’s Sustainable Development Goals. The global scale and impact of the current pandemic demonstrates that this cuts across geographies, levels of income, and types of health systems.
–> read more at Think Global Health