Women lead Vanuatu’s COVID-19 community response
Training that translates into action is always the most valuable. And this is what happened when ni-Vanuatu women attended a World Health Organisation and Vanuatu Ministry of Health training on management of the COVID-19 response in Vanuatu.
Above: Women leaders from the WITTT network mobilised within 24 hours to conduct COVID-19 outreach in their communities. Image: Action Aid Vanuatu
Women leaders from the Women I Tok Tok Tugeta (WITTT) network attended the training on March 25. On March 26, the women had gathered their communities to share COVID-19 health messages through a creative and engaging role-play of their own design. They demonstrated effective handwashing techniques, cough and sneeze etiquette and the importance of social distancing using used their one-metre arm span.
In the first five days the WITTT women leaders reached 903 households, totaling to approximately 5,418 people across Eton, Rentapau and Russet Plantation on Efate Island. These efforts were aligned with and assisted the Ministry of Health in raising community awareness of COVID-19 and how to prepare and protect themselves.
The WITTT network is supported by Action Aid Vanuatu and is an active partner in the AHP Disaster READY Vanuatu program, building the capacity of women leaders to support disaster preparedness in their communities and ensure the needs and priorities of women are met.
The extensive WITTT network and the profile they have within their communities meant the women could quickly mobilise to support the Government of Vanuatu’s COVID-19 response. The disaster preparedness work they have undertaken through the Disaster READY program also meant they had the skills and knowledge needed to move quickly – they knew how to reach their communities, who were the most vulnerable individuals, and how to best communicate the COVID-19 messages.
Action Aid Country Program Manager Flora Vano was happy with the speed at which the WITTT women leaders could mobilise and get COVID-19 messages into the communities.
“We are really pleased with how many people we’ve been able to reach so far. The more people we can talk to and share the knowledge with, the more likely we will be able to prevent any spread of this virus,” said Flora.
“The community leaders were amazed to see how the women had prepared. We had one day of training and then we rolled out the demonstrations the very next day - it was all the time we needed because we already have lot of the knowledge and the networks were ready to go. These efforts are a powerful demonstration of women-led localisation in practice.”
In Vanuatu, women have stepped up to become trusted sources of information about the COVID-19 virus. In the process of doing so, these women have established themselves as leaders in times of crisis - a shift in social position that extends beyond this specific health crisis. In the case of the WITTT network, it is a testament to the leadership shown and work undertaken by these women to establish themselves as key players in disaster preparedness activities.
The WHO training, while beneficial to developing a coordinated community response, also highlighted the challenges that communities across Vanuatu face to put key preventative measures in place.
‘It is all well and good saying that we need to wash our hands with clean water and soap, but a lot of villages source their water from rivers and rain catchments so access to clean water isn’t always possible,’ shared Flora.
The Australian Government, through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership and the Disaster READY program, is supporting the Government of Vanuatu in both the COVID-19 and Tropical Cyclone Harold response efforts.
Inclusive disaster preparedness is a cornerstone of the Disaster READY program, and the ability of the WITTT network to mobilise and support government responses highlights the value strong, inclusive preparedness work.
Original story published by ActionAid Australia: https://actionaid.org.au/women-lead-vanuatu-covid-19-community-response/