: clients
Safe Water and AIDS Project (SWAP)
Safe Water and AIDS Project (SWAP)
Not-for-profit
Year launched: 2005Approach
Target geography
Target Population
Target income level
- Bottom 20%
- Lower-middle income (20-40%)
- Middle-income (40-60%)
- Higher middle-income (60-80%)
Health focus
- Family planning and reproductive health
- HIV/AIDS
- Malaria and other vector borne diseases
- Maternal, newborn and child health
- Nutrition
Summary
The Safe Water and AIDS Project (SWAP) trains community health promoters who undertake door to door sales of health and hygiene products and provide health information.Program goals
SWAP's goals are to increase income from environment friendly and health oriented micro enterprises and improve the health status of vulnerable communities SWAP's objectives include:
- Prevention of water related diseases and other leading causes of childhood illness and death, such as malaria, malnutrition and respiratory infection.
- Improvement of the health of HIV support group members as well of the general public by promoting and selling household water treatment and other health and hygiene products.
- Supporting economic well-being of vulnerable populations by empowering HIV community self help groups to generate income through provision of products and services.
Key program components
SWAP was started in 2005 through support from Rotary Atlanta. It was officially registered in Kenya as a non-governmental organization (NGO) in June 2006, with a Board of Directors. SWAP aims to improve the health and socio-economic status of Kenyan people through disease prevention and socio-economic empowerment of the target population.
The SWAP program establishes business centers, called "Jamii Centers," where trained female community health promoters sell health products. These products are also sold door to door, with the Jamii Center acting as a central distribution hub. Community health promoters are trained about safe water, and health as well as business skills, record keeping, stock management, behavioral change techniques, primary health care, and social marketing. The women are also offered the opportunity to obtain microcredit.
Community health promoters sell products such as WaterGuard, PUR, modified clay pots, insecticide treated bednets, condoms, protein fortified flour, skin antiseptic, clean cook stoves, diapers, sanitary pads, soaps and detergents , and other products. This project enables the women to improve the health of their neighbors while earning money to support their families.
SWAP also provides a number of AIDS related programs to the community including psycosocial support and scholarships for AIDS orphans, and participation in the Kisumu World AIDS Marathon. SWAP promotes and sells safe water and health products at subsidized prices to the HIV support groups and self help groups, who buy the products at wholesale price and sell at retail price. SWAP established a research department in 2007 with technical support from CDC Atlanta. SWAP has since done various effectiveness studies evaluating the health and economic impact of health interventions, products and technologies. SWAP has a fully operational water lab.
SWAP partners with local and international organizations including the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), CARE Kenya, government of Kenya line Ministry, WHO, World Bank, Ministry of Health, USAID, UNICEF, Gates Foundation and Population Services International, Kenya for the implementation of various projects. In recognition of SWAP's rapid growth and success at reaching the neediest populations, the project was a winner of the World Bank Global Development Marketplace Award and USAID DIV 1 million dollar award. In 2014 SWAP became winners of the Crystal of Hope Award donated by Swarovski at Life Ball in Vienna. The country director was decorated by the Dutch Queen as Knight in the Order of Orange Nassau for her work in SWAP reaching to vulnerable communities.
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