Africa AHEAD has long been advocating for long term sustainable development of Communities, in a 4 stage process: starting with health and hygiene, continuing to Stage 2 – the application of this knowledge for safe water and sanitation. Because CHCs are often started within the WASH Sector, and despite the SDG call for more integrated developement few donors support Community Health Clubs past the first two stages.
Therefore at this point, CHCs may have insufficient impetus to continue to Stage 3 (Food Agriculture & Nutrition) whereby a balanced diet is achieved through production of food, and even fewer CHC continue to Stage 4 to the manufacturing and selling produce, thus ensuring sustainability of achieved hygiene, water and sanitation through viable income generating projects. Makoni District has up to now been the only District to have supported CHCs in such integrated programmes as originally envisaged in the AHEAD methodology.
However it is good to hear that in Chiredzi District, Zimbabwe, Community Health Clubs have gone to the 4th stage – taking heed of the call by Africa AHEAD to have income generating projects as part of their activities as sustainability measure.
In September 2020 a number of CHC started on a range of projects which includes poultry, waste recycling, soap, cobra, and baking bread. The photo above shows Westhood Health Club in Ward 2 posing for a photo soon after backing bread and buns.
AA WASH Officer and CTC EHT Mr Chandida have made concerted efforts to the establishment of these income generating initiatives and are elated to see it bearing fruit.
Dzingirai WASH Officer. Chiredzi