Organic Health Response for HIV/AIDS in Kenya

First of all, a huge thank you to everyone whose donations thus far have helped move us towards a completed Community Center, a staff of trained HIV counselors, and internet access for thousands of Kenya’s most at risk men, women and children. And we are making progress! The Ekialo Kiona community center has been under construction for the past two months—the foundation is laid, walls are coming up, and with continued support we are on schedule for an October completion (see attached photos). In addition to work on the Center itself, we’ve added exciting new partners to help develop not only a community run radiostation and IT program, but also an affiliated youth development program. As noted in the main project summary, EKR will broadcast with a10KW transmitter from the top of Soklo mountain on Mfangano Island to ensure the maximum possible coverage. This station will feature community-driven programs, designed in collaboration with international partners, aimed at raising health awareness, mobilizing youth activism, improving social solidarity, introducing sustainable agriculture and fishing ideas, entertainment, and preserving the endangered Suba language and cultural identity. The station brings together local residents to design programming that cuts to the heart of the health crisis on Mfangano. Produced in Suba and Luo language, EKR will help maintain our network of micro-clinics, give young people a chance to contribute their voices, and cement a sense of solidarity for thousands of isolated people across Lake Victoria. We are working with the African Broadcast Association (ABA) and Youth Factor, a pro-bono consulting group dedicated to facilitating youth empowerment projects, on a variety of short and long-term goals. These include the instillation of radio equipment, hiring and training local staff, and most excitingly, designing a state of the art youth radio program that will get the young people of Mfangano directly involved in fighting the HIV epidemic in their communities. With the continued support of foundations, international partners, and individual donors like you, the EKR will begin broadcasting in February 2010. In addition to recent work on the EKR, we have made great strides in developing the personnel and resources necessary to launch micro-clinics in the Spring of 2010. A micro-clinic represents a therapy management collective of neighbors, relatives, and friends who come together to provide psycho-social, nutritional, and treatment-adherence support for people living with HIV/AIDS. Through partnership with the Global Micro-Clinic Project, OHR is designing special workshops to empower 100 teams of 5-8 people with practical tools to address the biological and social aspects of HIV/AIDS infection. This micro-clinic network will serve as a social infrastructure across Mfangano to implement sustainable initiatives such as organic farm plots, composting bio-gas latrines, solar cooking ovens, and other innovative health programs. In July an international team including staff from GMCP, OHR, and Oxford University will travel to Mfangano to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment for the roll-out of micro-clinics across the island next spring. Progress has been consistent so far and with the completion of the center, as well as staffing and program roll-outs, still to come, this promises to be a tremendously exciting year for OHR and the people of Mfangano. On a personal note, this December and January I had an opportunity to spend 2 more months with my friends on Mfangano Island as we prepared to break ground on the Ekialo Kiona Center construction. During our first Organic Health Response Board meeting we used a solar-powerd laptop and cellphone modem to view our GlobalGiving website; one board member jumped with excitement to see his photo on the worldwide web. The vocal appreciation from students, farmers, fishermen, community health workers, and village elders, their overwhelming enthusiasm, and the reinvigorated sense of community present at the work site, reminded me each of the lives that this program is already begining to touch. Thank you for your support, each contribution is bringing us closer to giving these remote villages the tools they need to turn the tide against HIV/AIDS.”