“Jamii Shupavu,” a Swahili phrase for “A Resilient Community,” is an initiative designed to address the growing health impacts of climate change at community level in Tanzania. This community-driven project ensures that timely, accurate, and relevant information reaches the most affected people, empowering them with the awareness, knowledge, and tools needed to respond effectively.
At the heart of the Jamii Shupavu project is a strong belief in the power of Community Health Workers (CHWs) and local leadership, especially women and youth, to drive change. By training community health workers and youth leaders to recognize and respond to climate-related health threats, this initiative promotes locally-driven solutions that improve resilience, equity, and overall well-being.
Project Objectives
- Capacity Building: Equip community health workers (CHWs) and youth with knowledge and skills to identify health threats related to climate change, such as vector-borne diseases, nutrition challenges, and mental health, and co-create practical community-led responses.
- Community-Led Campaigns: Design and implement local campaigns to raise awareness and inspire action around climate and health.
- Establish Climate Health Communities: Develop and support community-based networks to lead local interventions on mental health, nutrition, and disease prevention as climate-health related impacts
- Advocacy and Partnerships: Work with local and national stakeholders to advocate for policies and actions that address climate-related health risks and prioritize vulnerable populations.
Scope
The project aims to train 200 people, comprising 100 community health workers and 100 youth leaders, across the Manyara, Morogoro, Lindi, and Kilimanjaro regions as key actors and champions for the initiative.The trainings are conducted by experts from relevant partners such as National Malaria Control Program, District Health Offices and PO-RALG.. Gender equality and equity is a key priority, with a strong focus on uplifting women and youth as change agents in the communities.
Where We Are – Lindi, Tanzania.
The first phase of Jamii Shupavu was successfully piloted in Lindi, where 20 community health workers underwent training and were equipped with bicycles to improve their mobility and reach within communities. This simple yet impactful intervention is already helping CHWs save time and expand their reach, particularly in critical health outreach efforts related to malaria prevention and climate-sensitive health education. The bicycle handover ceremony was graced by the District Health Officer, who expressed appreciation for the initiative’s contribution to community health efforts. We also partnered with the district office that helped select the CHWs and committed to continue following up and supervising them on ground.
We are dedicated to fostering community health and development
Our Vision
To build healthy, developed and resilient communities in Africa.
Our mission
To enhance community development through improving quality of health services and building sustainable development initiatives in Tanzania and Africa at large.
OUR CORE VALUES
Sustainability | Scalability | Equity and Inclusion | Collaboration | Innovation
