Project profile — Canada-Africa Initiative to Address Maternal, Newborn and Child Mortality - COVID-19 Response

• Kenya (25.00%)
• Ethiopia (25.00%)
• Senegal (25.00%)
• Malawi (25.00%)

• Health education:
Health education (12261) (5.00%)
Health personnel development (12281) (10.00%)
• Health: COVID-19 control (12264) (65.00%)
• Population Policies/Programmes And Reproductive Health: Population policy and administrative management (13010) (10.00%)
• Basic sanitation:
Basic sanitation (14032) (5.00%)
Education and training in water supply and sanitation (14081) (5.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (significant objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (not targeted)
• Trade development (not targeted)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (not targeted)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (significant objective)
• Youth Issues (significant objective)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (significant objective)
• Nutrition (not targeted)
• Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) (not targeted)

This project aims to reduce maternal, neonatal and child mortality in select communities by working with local health authorities, and supporting the use of an integrated approach focused on health, nutrition, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). The project is also providing additional funds in response to the immediate needs of the COVID-19 pandemic by training and supporting health care workers, reaching communities on critical health topics, and providing water, sanitation and hygiene supplies to health facilities and communities. Project activities include: (1) training and supporting health care workers to respond to COVID-19 and sexual and gender-based violence; (2) developing and implementing community engagement strategies on COVID-19 that integrate prevention of sexual and gender-based violence; and (3) supporting health facilities and communities with critical water, sanitation and hygiene supplies. The COVID-19 activities are expected to directly benefit 676,794 individuals (including 380,949 women and girls), comprised of health care workers, community health workers and other community agents.

The expected intermediate outcomes for this initiative include: (1) improved delivery of essential health services to mothers, pregnant women, newborns and children under five; (2) improved utilization of essential health services by mothers, pregnant women, newborns and children under five; and (3) increased consumption of nutritious foods and supplements by mothers, pregnant women, newborns and children under five.

Results achieved as of the end of the project (June 2022) include: (1) trained 28,958 community health workers (18,512 women and 10,446 men) on how to prevent and respond to COVID-19; (2) reached 33,508,044 community members (17,272,664 women and 16,235,380 men) with key health information through community engagement, education and communication campaigns. The topics covered included: COVID-19, maternal and child health, and sexual and gender-based violence; (3) trained 3,085 teachers (920 women and 2,165 men) in Kenya and Malawi on COVID-19 prevention and psychosocial first aid related to sexual and gender-based violence; and (4) provided 1,287 handwashing stations to health facilities, schools and community spaces to prevent and control infections.

• Proactive disclosure
• Related activities: Canada-Africa Initiative to Address Maternal and Child Mortality - COVID-19 Response