Female Community Health Workers Can Unlock Health For All

By Babalwa Mbono Babalwa Mbono, Strategic Project Officer for mothers2mothers and former Mentor Mother, delivers an intervention at the United Nations Multi-Stakeholder Hearing on Universal Health Coverage in New York, May 2023.May 24, 2023The global health community is in Geneva this week for the76th World Health Assembly (WHA). With this year’s theme“Saving lives, driving health for all,” it is critical for the conversations to be laser-focused on turning words into action to deliver for themore than half a billion people across the African continent who still do not have access to basic health care. For us atmothers2mothers, an African Primary Health Care NGO and member of theFrontline Health Worker Coalition, this focus should especially hone in on the vital and life-saving role that female community health workers (CHWs) are playing in unlocking health for all for their peers. More needs to be done to ensure local female CHW voices are represented in global fora.I was in New York earlier this month for theMulti-Stakeholder Hearings on Tuberculosis, Pandemic Preparedness and Response, and Universal Health Coverage (UHC), where Idelivered an intervention from the floor and highlighted the contribution of CHWs. But it struck me how much more needs to be done to ensure that local female CHW voices are represented in global fora to truly improve the working conditions and guarantee the fair recognition and remuneration they deserve. Too few of ...
Source: IntraHealth International - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: HIV & AIDS Policy Advocacy World Health Assembly Community Health Workers Source Type: news