by lwang | Aug 3, 2012 | Education, Female Empowerment, Health, m2m
Did you know that in resource-poor countries, in the absence of tests and treatment, 40 percent of children are infected with HIV? Thankfully, 2012 Kravis Prize recipient mothers2mothers is working to fill this gap through its treatment clinics across sub-Saharan Africa. The exclusive video is a conversation between Marie-Josée Kravis, selection committee chair for the Kravis Prize and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, and mentor mother Tlalane Phafoli. Phafoli discussed m2m’s programs and the United Nations goal to end pediatric AIDS by 2015: “Right now, I think, mothers2mothers, we are in seven countries. Over a million women are HIV-positive and there are still a lot out there that are not being reached, which really is a pity.” She also shared her own experience: “After the tests were confirmed that I am HIV-positive, all I wanted was to die. I can tell you it wasn’t easy. … Look, I’m still standing, I have a job, I’m able to look after my own child. The minute they see me, that I get up every morning, I carry my bag, I go to work. And not just in work, the clinic, which is the most important place in the community. I’m talking on behalf of the 1,500 mentor mothers who are out there doing the work.” Thanks to m2m, Phafoli and her fellow mentor mothers are able to inspire, educate and guide HIV-infected women receive proper care and treatment! A true Kravis Prize...
by lwang | Jul 13, 2012 | Education, Female Empowerment, Health, m2m
The Global Post’s Tracy Jarrett recently went on a journey to learn about human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the disease that took her mother’s life. She traveled to Cape Town, South Africa and met Maletsatsi Mbayi, a mentor mother at mothers2mothers. Mbayi discussed her duties at the organization, but also shared her story and how m2m changed her life. After learning that she was HIV positive and pregnant, Mbayi said she contemplated committing suicide. However, Mbayi eventually began treatment and told her friends about her disease. She joined a support group at church where she was recruited to be part of the m2m program as an example of someone who had the courage to speak out about her status. Jarrett noted how m2m had changed Mbayi: “It is clear that working for mothers2mothers has empowered Mbayi, who now stands strong and confident, and is noticeably pained when she remembers her darkest hours, when she thought that taking her own life was the only way forward. Her knowledge and her dedication to helping other HIV positive women signify how far she has come.” While listening to Mbayi’s stories, Jarrett thought of her mother. “If my mother had lived, would she also have helped support other HIV-positive mothers? Would she have needed a job like that to help her cope?” she wrote. “As I left I gave Mbayi a hug, squeezing her as if she were my own mother. When I got back to my apartment near the city center, tears swelled in my eyes.” Yet another example of how Kravis Prize winners are changing lives all around the world! “A Daughter’s...
by lwang | Jun 22, 2012 | AIL, Award Ceremony, Community Development, Education, Female Empowerment, Health, Sakena Yacoobi
On June 7, Sakena Yacoobi, 2009 Kravis Prize winner and founder of the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL), was honored with the Asia Foundation’s 2012 Lotus Leadership Award. The award recognizes outstanding individuals and organizations that have made major contributions to the wellbeing of women and their communities in Asia. At the awards ceremony, the Foundation screened this never-before-seen video of Yacoobi discussing the circumstances under which she started her organization. “It was scary. If I was caught, or if one of my teachers would be caught, they would be killed because the policy of that time was … no education at all. But we were doing something against the system. Through education, you can really, completely change an entire family. … Through this program, we graduate thousands and thousands of students.” Yacoobi also discussed the impact and goals of AIL: “Today in Afghanistan, AIL has reached 9.1 million people. I am proud of that. And when you have the power of people, you don’t have to fight with gun[s]. You can communicate and through understanding, you can really bring peace to Afghanistan.” She closed with a powerful message: “I will continue this fight because this fight is not finished yet, for the women of Afghanistan.” Another example of a Kravis Prize winner perpetually fighting for social...
by lwang | May 10, 2012 | Female Empowerment, Health, m2m
Here at the Kravis Prize, we’re proud to say that our winners effect change and actively contribute to solving the leading issues in today’s society. Case in point: Today, mothers2mothers, along with the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Representatives Trent Franks, R-Ariz., Barbara Lee, D-Calif., and James McDermott, D-Wash., are announcing a new bipartisan House resolution: “Recognizing the Potential for the Virtual Elimination of Pediatric HIV and AIDS and Keeping HIV Positive Mothers Alive.” Even greater news, you can get involved! Take the step towards eliminating pediatric AIDS by 2015 and saving mothers in honor of Mother’s Day! Find out more here and take action to support the...
by lwang | Apr 27, 2012 | FAWE, Female Empowerment, Health
Here at the Kravis Prize, we’re proud to say our winners are at the forefront of their field and exemplary leaders in the nonprofit world. Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE), for example, is constantly innovating and implementing new programs that tackle the multi-faceted problems in education. FAWE partnered with the David and Lucile Packard Foundation to develop a three-year program focusing on adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights (ASRHR). Launched in 2010, the initiative aims to ensure that by 2013, some 10,800 adolescent girls from a total of 30 schools and close to 10,000 individuals, including teachers, in surrounding communities will have improved knowledge and skills in regards adolescent girls’ sexual and reproductive health and better access to reliable information and services on reproduction and sexuality. The program was introduced in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. FAWE’s latest newsletter revealed the progress they’ve made: “To date, 600 girls have received scholarships and support to remain in school and are scheduled to complete secondary school by the end of the project in 2013. … To date, 150 teachers and 125 community facilitators have been trained in ASRHR and are in turn training other teachers and community members in the target schools and communities. At school level, community members and schoolgirls are being trained in the production of reusable sanitary towels.” Find out more about the program here. You can also read more about FAWE and their work on our...
by lwang | Apr 19, 2012 | Community Development, Education, Female Empowerment, Health, Sakena Yacoobi
Last month, Kravis Prize winner Sakena Yacoobi attended a 10th-anniversary gathering of the Global Peace Initiative of Women, where she discussed global issues including peace and reconciliation with religious leaders. According to the National Catholic Reporter, the event in Kenya, “Awakening the Healing Heart: Transforming Communities through Love and Compassion,” was conducted over eight days. Yacoobi shared her thoughts with people including Shomberwa Marina Ntamwenge, president of the Federation of Protestant Women in the Ecumenical Church of Democratic Republic of Congo, and Jessica Okello, general secretary of Pan Africa Christian Women Association. What’s even more fascinating is Yacoobi’s story. The article provided a synopsis of her amazing journey: “Dr. Sakena Yacoobi seemed to exemplify the possibilities of the individual against great odds in the extreme. The 61-year-old from Afghanistan came to the United States as a lone teenager just out of high school in the early 1970s at the encouragement of some U.S. Peace Corps volunteers who, she said, recognized that she had potential and that it would not be fully realized in her home country. … She eventually did a master’s in public health at Loma Linda University, and later completed a doctorate in that field.” In addition: “Along the way, she worked four jobs simultaneously at times to supplement scholarship money and in 1987, after her family escaped during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan to refugee camps in Iran, she was able to purchase a house in Michigan and sponsored 13 members of her family to the United States. Once they were settled, she took off for the Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan and began collecting the...
