From Okoa’s inception, creating community transformation has been at the heart of many programs. Collaborative Community Initiatives (CCI) is a branch-off organization that Okoa Refuge supports—they impact many communities through various educational and financial programs. One of their most successful programs is the Maternal Health Program, a program that walks alongside single mothers to ensure they have the tools to thrive as parents and providers to their children. This program has improved the lives of 35 teenage mothers within the communities CCI has worked with for three years now. CCI works in collaboration with the churches of Kaswa, Kabulasoke Christian Fellowship, and Way of Salvation Church.
As with any program Okoa runs, the local church carries out all activities. Each church appoints the CCI program a volunteer to work with the teenage mothers. This volunteer must be living within the village where the program is located for proper accountability and monitoring.
They are not paid to serve but are gifted with incentives like airtime (phone network) and transportation funds to help them perform their responsibilities with CCI. For example, some of the tasks include following up on the immunization schedules, attending skills training, doing hospital visits, and whatever else best suits the mothers and CCI.
The volunteer meets with the young mothers on a regular basis to be updated on how they are fairing through their pregnancy, give counsel, and address their individual challenges. Every quarter, training is conducted by our local health workers, covering topics like nutrition, accidents, first aid, family planning, and other relevant discussions.
The volunteer also identifies any vulnerable teenage pregnancies from the community, investigates how the families are handling the situation, and decides whether the young mother would benefit from the program or not. Some cases are referred to the volunteer by concerned community members and leaders who know about CCI.
Often, CCI has been fortunate that most volunteers are pastors’ wives, which is a blessing to us and the program. The position suits them because of the great responsibility that comes with the job—it requires someone who is selflessly dedicated to service and committed to the gospel. The emotional state of the girls is heavy and can only be managed by the grace of God accompanied by acts of kindness, something that is best expressed and depicted through pastors’ wives.
We aligned our service delivery method with the assumption that the beneficiaries are recruited into the program in their first trimester of pregnancy, journey with the program through all the prenatal visits, and connect the mother to points of delivery (health facilities).
We also give them a care package—a baby bag containing a baby shawl, blanket, baby receivers, mother kit (surgical gloves, cotton wool, gauze, pampers, and a towel), and a few baby clothes.
After the birth, we clear their medical bills and give them a nutrition and food package that promotes healing for the mother’s body and milk production for the baby. This includes things such as cereals and protein-rich foods.
There are a few special cases that call for extra intervention. For example, in circumstances where the mother is failing to lactate, we ask the volunteer to find a fresh milk distributor to provide at least two liters of milk for the baby, covering the cost through CCI.
As we monitor both mother and baby, we keep track of the immunization calendar to ensure that all doses are administered at the proper time to eliminate preventable diseases during the baby’s growth and development
After three months, if both mother and baby are doing well, she is presented with various hands-on skills that CCI provides training and support for, and she is asked to select one. The skills available usually are hairdressing, tailoring, and notebook-making. The program expects her to take on this skill for a year, which should enable her to earn money in just a few months.
The mothers in the maternal health program are also required to participate in a farming program. Each of them is given vegetable and bean seedlings to grow in the backyard of their gardens. The idea is to provide food security in their homes. In addition, the program purchases a field for each specific cohort to farm together on a larger scale for commercial purposes. Organized in groups of six to ten, they are given corn and bean seedlings and sweet potato stems to farm, sell, and share profit.
The mothers sometimes sell in the market, considering they may get a better price for a specific crop over whole sellers. Whoever offers a higher price is the one they deal with. Okoa Refuge is always one of their best customers with good buying prices for the hand-grown beans.
With vegetable growing, an agricultural officer takes them through basic training on how to prepare nursery beds and nurture them unitl the seedlings are ready to be transplanted into the main garden.
Caring for a community will always start with caring for the children and the mothers first. They are the ones who shape the future of their village—that’s why we’re so passionate about ensuring the survival of newborns and protecting at-risk teen moms. Partnering with CCI’s maternal health program is just one way we care for the Ugandan people. See how Okoa Refuge is making a difference in Africa through our work!
