The Huairou Commission and GROOTS International are proud to announce that the Mathare Mother’s Development Center (part of GROOTS Kenya) and the Rwanda Women’s Network Village of Hope were honored at last week’s International AIDS Conference in Toronto as finalists in the Red Ribbon Awards Contest: Celebrating Community Leadership and Action on AIDS.

As Red Ribbon Award Finalists, the Mathare Mother’s Development Center and the Village of Hope were awarded $5000 and were supported to participate in the International AIDS Conference as a part of the Community Dialogue Space: Gii Maa Moob Min, organized by UNDP and the Equator Initiative. They were further honored by dignitaries including Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland, HRH Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway and Dr. Helene Gayle at an awards ceremony on 16th August at the University of Toronto.

This inaugural award, presented by UNDP in partnership with UNAIDS, is intended to draw attention to the many contributions communities are making in response to the devastating HIV/AIDS pandemic and “aims to support creative and sustainable ways to provide care, treatment and support to people living with HIV/AIDS.” (see www.redribbonaward.org for more information including a full list of finalists).

During the week-long Community Dialogue Space, these two groups, along with 23 other finalist communities (listed below) were able to present their work to conference attendees, thereby highlighting the extraordinary contributions they are making to the fight against HIV/AIDS.

The Mathare Mother’s Development Centre (MMDC) is a network of 30 self-help groups in Mathare—one of the largest slums in Africa—that brings women together for capacity building, to respond to collective issues, and to learn the power of space in governance. This group works within Nairobi’s second largest informal settlement and encompasses various community projects, including home-based care and support groups for people living with HIV/AIDS, a daycare centre, and a knitting project for orphaned girls.

Since the beginning of MMDC in 1996, caregivers like Rose Omia and Lucy Marete have been dedicated to the vision of a better future for themselves and their families. Rose Omia is a trained community health worker working full-time with the Baraka Health Clinic in Mathare. As a leader, she assists with the management and development of MMDC and links grassroots caregivers with the services of the clinic.

Lucy Marete is a full-time caregiver and is the chair of the home-based care committee. She also heads the knitting project, volunteering her knitting machine and her time to provide knitting lessons to a group of girls in the community. This project was implemented by five caregivers in 2003 as a response to the growing number of orphans due to HIV/AIDS. With time, the project expanded to include crochet lessons as well as mentoring and spiritual support from other MMDC members. In learning how to design and make clothing, these young women are gaining marketable skills and business experience that will improve the livelihoods of themselves as well as their families.

As part of GROOTS Kenya (Grassroots Organizations Operation Together in Sisterhood) MMDC shares experiences, challenges, achievements, and knowledge with women across Kenya. A decade after its inception, Mathare Mothers Development Centre continues to be an example of the capacity of grassroots women to do development work with little or no resources from outside sources.

The Rwanda Women’s Network Village of Hope began as a community initiative to respond to physical and psychological trauma being suffered by women who had survived the 1994 genocide. The Village of Hope, in addition to providing housing to 120 women and their families, offers services to over 1000 women in the surrounding community, including medical services, counseling, education and income-generating activities. An emphasis is placed on women living with AIDS, who are treated in a holistic manner.

Peninah Abatoni is the director of the Village of Hope. She herself is a sign of hope, not only coordinating the activities at the VoH, but also providing counseling for women who have been victims of rape and violence, many of them HIV positive. Peninah not only provides them with services, but empowers these women, actively engaging them in the activities at the Village of Hope, thereby providing them with a supportive, secure environment where they can talk, laugh and cry with their peers, and help other women to heal.

For more information on the Huairou Commission at the International AIDS Conference,
Contact: Shannon.Hayes@huairou.org
For more information on the Mathare Mother's Development Center,
Contact GROOTS Kenya at: Grootsk@grootskenya.org
For more information on the Village of Hope,
Contact the Rwanda Women's Network at: Rwawnet@rwanda1.com