Educational Program

Madrasa Early Childhood Programme in Kenya supports socio-economically marginalized communities to establish and manage preschools that are: high-quality, gender responsive, culturally relevant, age appropriate (for children aged four to five), and sustainable. Their preschool model has 5 core interdependent components: An integrative and evidence-based early child development curriculum. Teacher professional development training. School environment. School management and leadership. Community engagement.

Every year about 44 million abortions take place worldwide. Roughly half of these abortions occur in legally restricted settings and are unsafe. As a result, unsafe abortion is a major contributor to maternal mortality and morbidity. Tens of thousands of women die and millions more suffer disabilities from unsafe abortion each year; women in the Global South, and in particular women in low-resource and conflict-affected settings, are the ones who bear the burden of this global health inequity.

Lack of financial empowerment & inadequate personal health knowledge amongst women in Nigerian IDP camps accentuates barriers to access & utilization of Health Care. Financial emasculation blunts decision making process of women and potentiates problem of gender inequality & marginalization that directly leads to early forced marriage, prolonged childbearing with higher risk of maternal mortality & morbidity. We will tackle the inadequate personal health knowledge & financial emasculation

Neonatal mortality rate has decreased dramatically in Peru in the last two decades. However, unacceptable gaps between the poorest and richest quintiles remain (14.7 vs. 7.6 deaths per 1,000 live births). Neonatal asphyxia accounts for more than 20% of these deaths. One critical reason is that, although the coverage of institutional deliveries has also increased, the quality of management of newborns with asphyxia is far from optimal, due to the lack of adequately trained health personnel.

Violence leaves a legacy of poverty and psychological trauma [1,2]. Children who experienced violence during early childhood lag in cognitive and socioemotional development, while victimized mothers are likely to neglect their children [3,4]. Protecting children from effects of violence, toxic stress, and deficits in maternal care is a key challenge in contexts of violence and humanitarian crises. We will implement and evaluate a group-based psychosocial program for victimized mothers with children 0 to 5 in Colombia, a country devastated by violence.

Maternal mortality ratio in Ghana continues to be high at 144 per 100,000 live births in 2014, there is low uptake of modern family planning services particularly Intra Uterine Devices (IUDs) which have been shown to be safe, highly effective, cost-effective and available. Currently, only midwives are trained to provide IUD services and on average 1 midwife to 1475 women of reproductive age. The study seeks to assess the feasibility of task-sharing to enable auxiliary nurses provide IUD services

One in five adolescent girls in the Dominican Republic (DR) are or have been pregnant by the time they turn 20 years old (ENDESA). Adolescent pregnancy increases physical and mental health risks for women, and is a major contributor to poverty (WHO). Children of adolescent mothers are also more likely to experience serious health problems at birth. Prevention of adolescent pregnancy is currently a key maternal and child health (MCH) priority of the Dominican Ministry of Health.

Lack of essential healthcare is a significant reason of mother & child morbidity/mortality in Pakistan. While access to services is a major factor, people’s inadequate knowledge and lack of motivation towards healthful steps is also a contributor. Gender imbalance and fatalistic beliefs are important underlying factors. Innovations are required that create a positive family and social environment around the mother-infant dyad resulting in improved behaviors including the use of services.

To assess the acceptability and feasibility of teaching primary care health workers in 4 frontier counties in Kenya to use a nonverbal pictorial scale to screen, detect, and document peri- and post-partum depression (PPD) among mothers who access services at their health facilities.

Forced migration due to global conflict, renders women & children especially vulnerable to sexual & gender based violence (SGBV) that requires immediate & long term psychological & gynecological health services: contraception, sexual health & reproductive rights; prevention & treatment of mood, anxiety, trauma disorders & feelings of helplessness & desperation. Healing & prevention are dependent on empowering women to cope with current circumstances & defend their sexual/psychological rights.