Communities play and important role in creating demand, ensuring equitable access and promoting accountability.
With funding from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Amref Health Africa in Kenya has adopted a community systems strengthening (CSS) approach that promotes development of informed, capable and coordinated communities and community-based organisations, groups and structures.
Working with sub-recipients, Amref Health Africa continues to strengthen the capacity of communities to implement TB and other community interventions through organisational development of competitively selected community-based organisations (CBOs) with technical assistance and support to community health units to improve their operations.
These organisations become better equipped to mobilise local resources and empower communities to confront their health challenges. Through a network of community health volunteers (CHVs), community health units – the structures that drive the national primary health strategy – can more effectively play their role in TB and HIV prevention and care.
In 2018, Amref Health Africa trained 5,652 CHVs on community TB and supported 3,043 community health extension workers (CHEWs) to coordinate community TB activities across 3,043 health facilities to which they are linked.
These interventions serve to strengthen the link between communities and health facilities, increase demand for services, build the capacity of local groups, promote the involvement of users in monitoring the performance of services and enhance community participation in policy and advocacy forums on health, gender, equality and human rights.
