Action For Health : Empowering Communities in Mali

For a long time, women living in disadvantaged communities in West Africa have been treated simply as housewives, incapable of participating in the management of family finances. The women in our programs have hope for a different future - hope that they can better themselves and their families. That hope motivates women in one of our groups, named Belle Dame de Sabalibougou (Beautiful Woman of Sabalibougou).

Madame Koura speaks highly of her savings group, and their successes: 

“The program is the best program that we women could ever have. From the beginning of its operations to today, we have seen big changes in our lives. The savings in our two group funds have been an enormous help to us. Thanks to these funds, we know without a doubt that we will have money for our health needs and other small needs.

Even though it’s true that we are a young group, our health fund has already subsidized about ten prescriptions either for children or their mothers. Today, a lot of us have started small economic activities. We cannot be anything but proud of this program.” 

Madame Awa adds:

“Outside of better financial access, this program has really helped pregnant women. The program provides reimbursements for the costs of our prenatal consultations during our pregnancy, which motivates us to frequently visit the health centers. We joined this program not too long ago, but the impact is already perceptible in our group. 

"Outside of our group activities, we have initiated a solidarity tradition to further strengthen our bonds. Each time a mother gives birth, we collect a piece of soap from each member of the group so that the new mother can wash her newborn. We sincerely thank Mali Health. [The old proverb applies:] they’ve taught us to fish, rather than giving us fish. This initiative truly puts women first. We invite all women to join us to take care of ourselves and our children with the support of Mali Health.” 

Belle Dame is a group of 27 women in the community of Sabalibougou who have joined our programs. The members of the Belle Dame group save 100 CFA (~20¢) per week, which is evenly split between their health fund and their general fund for income-generating activities. The group was founded in March 2016 with the help of animateur Bourahima D.