Fazila, a young mother from Masasi, Tanzania, was pregnant with her fourth child when she learned she was HIV-positive. Her diagnosis was almost too much for her to bear. She fell into depression, stopped seeing a doctor for prenatal care and stopped taking the antiretroviral medication that she and her unborn baby needed to stay healthy. Soon after her son’s birth, they both became ill.
Their future looked bleak until they became connected with Kizazi Kipya, an aid program implemented across Tanzania by Pact and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Kizazi Kipya, or New Generation, is working to transform the lives of vulnerable Tanzanian children and young people, particularly those affected by HIV. The five-year effort uses a range of interventions to stop the root causes of youth vulnerability and new HIV infections. This includes helping parents and caregivers of vulnerable children to improve their economic opportunities, as well as providing case management to help families improve their health, nutrition, education and psychosocial wellbeing.
Cure Hydration is proud to support Pact by donating a portion of our sales to Kizazi Kipya – which entered Fazila’s life when she and her baby needed it most. A Kizazi Kipya case worker named Bernadetha first learned about Fazila from the staff of a clinic Fazila visited. The clinic helped connect Bernadetha and Fazila, and soon Fazila and her young son were enrolled in Kizazi Kipya.
Bernadetha accompanied Fazila and her baby to a local health facility, where they received clinical and laboratory services. Fazila began taking antiretroviral medication regularly. Her eldest three children were tested for HIV and confirmed to be healthy. At first, Fazila was reluctant to accept testing for her baby, but with support and counseling from Kizazi Kipya, she agreed, and her son was confirmed to be HIV-positive. Bernadetha continued supporting Fazila and her family to make sure she and the baby stayed on antiretrovirals and that he received proper treatment for malnutrition.
Soon, Fazila’s and her son’s health had improved dramatically. “I thank my case workers for lifting me from the darkness,” Fazila says. Her family is one of thousands that Kizazi Kipya has reached since its inception in 2016. In addition to case management and improved health and social services, the program has made a marked difference in families’ lives by employing Pact’s WORTH model. WORTH brings caregivers of vulnerable children together into groups of about 25 to save money, access low-interest loans and start small businesses in order to build stable income. Group members make small savings deposits at weekly meetings, and when a group’s fund grows large enough, members can begin taking loans. WORTH also provides training in literacy, numeracy and entrepreneurship.
Anisia, a mother of six living in Tanzania’s Rukwa region, joined a Kizazi Kipya WORTH group because she was struggling to feed her family. With training and loans from her WORTH group, she started a business buying cereals from farmers in remote villages and selling them at a markup in population centers. She also grows corn and vegetables, using some to feed her family and selling the rest to cover expenses such as health care and improvements to her modest home.
“My income has increased significantly,” Anisia says. “Before Kizazi Kipya, I did not know the right way to come out of poverty. ”
Much of Kizazi Kipya’s work is carried out by local organizations that partner with Pact. Along the way, Pact builds the capacity of these local agencies and non-profits so that they can continue the work once the program ends, making Kizazi Kipya’s impact sustainable.
To learn more, visit pactworld.org/tanzania.
When we first learned about the World Health Organization ORS formula, we were amazed to find that something so simple could treat severe dehydration. Health and humanitarian aid organizations have been saving lives with ORS all over the world for the last five decades. We wanted to give back to this legacy and do our part to improve the lives of those with fewer resources available to them. When we heard about Pact, we immediately saw a fit. Our mission is to empower others to achieve the full potential of body, mind and spirit. We believe that mission aligns perfectly with Pact’s commitment to ensure that all people are able to live healthy, thriving lives.
Pact builds systemic solutions in partnership with local organizations, businesses and governments that create thriving and resilient communities where those it serves are heard, capable and vibrant. On the ground in more than 40 countries, Pact’s integrated, adaptive approach is shaping the future of international development. pactworld.org
