We’ve officially started our “Women for Health: Community Health Champions” project funded by the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives!
This project aims to empower women to lead community-based health initiatives and decrease HIV-related stigma in Papua New Guinea. LOH will work in two high-burden, low socioeconomic communities in Port Moresby and one in Mt. Hagen. Our Community health champions will meet every week in female-only forums to discuss community health challenges and drive ideas for change. The LOH team will conduct fortnightly interactive health-related sessions in each community. By increasing health literacy and awareness, LOH firmly believes that the program inherently ensures sustainability. Women with increased knowledge will be more likely to access care for themselves and their families. Moreover, empowered women are more likely to share knowledge to empower others. Communities involved in the program will see a snowball effect of learning and increased access to healthcare.
To kick off the project, leadership workshops are being conducted in Port Moresby and Mt Hagen with our 63 health champions. These workshops aim to provide women with an understanding of their potential as leaders. Our health champions will develop a range of skills to enable them to undertake positive and ethical leadership roles in their communities. It will build the capacity and confidence of women to take an active role in decision-making processes in the community around health.
LOH has developed safety protocols in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions set in place by the Government of PNG. Our safety procedures aim to ensure the continuation of our activities while respecting and sustaining national efforts to prevent the spread of the virus.
Thanks to the Government of Canada for supporting this project through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives!