Grassroots Movement for Health and Development (GMHD)

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Grassroots Movement for Health and Development (GMHD) is a local Non Governmental Organization in Lilongwe, Malawi and was formed in 2007. It is operating in Lilongwe, Salima, Kasungu, Mzimba, and Dedza.
The focus of GMHD is to strengthen grassroots initiatives for women´s and children´s health and development.

Our vision
A health and developed society where women are recognized as equal partners in socio and economic development and people's rights are promoted and protected.

Mission Statement
To promote women and children’s health through advocacy, provision of essential health and development services, grassroots community empowerment on health and development, research and coordination with the values of commitment, empathy, integrity, honest, transparence and accountability.

Strategies:
• Capacity building of peer educators to offer counseling and guidance to girls who had early pregnancy and dropped out of school to go back to school.
• Provision of training to girls to build their self esteem, knowledge and understanding of their human rights including sexual and reproductive health rights
• Conducting community campaigns on sexual and reproductive health rights for girls including violence against girls and women
• Conduct role modeling to empower girls to aim high, overcome peer pressure and stigma and discrimination
• Advocacy of communities to empower the grassroots communities to advocate for `health and development issues affecting them.
• Community mobilization of communities to take appropriate actions towards health and development issues of their communities.
• Research and policy analysis. This strategy helps the advocacy activities to be informed and based on facts.

Since 2008, GMHD has implemented a number of programs aimed at empowering young girls to continue with their education: Girls Empowerment on Education

Activities:

• GMHD conducts child rights awareness meetings in schools with learners and teachers on right to education, roles and responsibilities of learners on right to education. GMHD uses a Child rights awareness models. This was through Support for the Action for the Most Marginalized Children Education project.
• GMHD engages children in building their self confidence in life ambitions focusing on career they want to be through use of Hope Kit activities such as Narrow Bridge and Future Island Model. This was through Support for the Action for the Most Marginalized Children Education project.
• GMHD conducted an assessment on access to education by most marginalized children using Community Scorecard Model. The assessment focused on the policies, plans and guidelines on education in Matenje and Kanongola education zone in Salima district. This was through Support for the Action for the Most Marginalized Children Education project.
• GMHD conducted 19 Days of Activism to end child abuse in schools around Mwatibu education zone in TA Chadza in Lilongwe rural. Through AGEWE program.
• Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights dialogue sessions organized by GMHD.
• GMHD trained peer educators to offer counseling to girls who had early pregnancy and stigmatized in the communities because of being going back to school.
• GMHD conducted a consultative meeting on minimum marriage age with community leaders and stakeholders. Through Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE) program, GMHD organized a community leaders´ advocacy training on ending child marriages in Traditional Authority (T/A) Chulu in Kasungu, (TA) Chadza in Lilongwe and (TA) Mtwalo in Mzimba district.
• GMHD organizes community dialogue session meetings with communities to discuss issues that affect children and girls on sexual reproductive health and rights through focus group discussions. GMHD provides a conductive platform for communities to discuss and take action on issues affecting girls well being and advancement through Community Dialogue Sessions.
• GMHD engages media in its activities as a tool for advocacy and sharing of information and knowledge with the general public and stakeholders. GMHD organized a workshop for media team on how they can write and promote stories of SRHR and child rights.
• GMHD conducted community scorecard process program in four education zones on the use of Local Development Fund in promoting children education through infrastructure development through support from UK aid under Kalondolondo program in Lilongwe City.

Alick Chipimo Makiyi is the National Coordinator at Grassroots Movement for Health and Development (GMHD).

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