OUR PROGRAM
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Maternity Care using the Kaabilo Baama Initiative
BAFROW’s Kaabilo Baama Initiative complements and enhances the work of BAFROW Family Clinics by contributing to the reduction of maternal and neonatal mortality in communities.
The Initiative was conceived in response to concerns expressed by community women about the high incidence of maternal and new-born morbidity and mortality and the urgent need for improved maternity health care services.
Our Strategy
- Builds on the strengths of the kaabilo system—an existing community-based, task-oriented socio-economic network working toward livelihood improvement
- Engages kaabilo baamas (community-appointed “mothers”) and transforms them into Community-Based Counsellors (CBCs)
- Empowers communities with the assistance of kaabilo baamas—using the Participatory Rural Communication Appraisal (PRCA) approach—to audit their own systems and practices, identify challenges and find solutions to reproductive health and economic empowerment issues, with emphasis on maternity care
Training and Education
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Training in maternity care delivered to 48 kaabilo baamas from XXX villages in XXX
Through BAFROW’s Functional Literacy Program, Kaabilo baamas have received structured learning on:
- Maternal and neonatal health (e.g. early antenatal booking, safe delivery by trained midwives/doctors, neonatal and infant care, mother and infant nutrition, family planning)
- The risks of FGM and its link to obstetric complications
- Leadership and interpersonal communication skills, and literacy in their local language
Supported by IEC materials, they:
- Create community awareness and engage men and youth
- Hold health talks at BAFROW clinics
- Conduct one-to-one, couple and group counselling on family planning, nutrition and maternity concerns
- Monitor pregnant women using data collection tools with graphic images of danger signs (e.g. high blood pressure, bleeding, anaemia)
- Facilitate access to emergency obstetric care for women showing danger signs
- Serve as focal persons for maternity issues
Economic Empowerment
Kaabilo baamas have received:
Training in income-generating skills (e.g. tailoring, baking, tie & dye) at our Training and Empowerment Centre
Small loans to establish businesses, enabling them to:
- Subsidize the cost of emergency obstetric and neonatal care for poor and vulnerable women in their communities
- Reduce household financial constraints
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Tie and dye is one of many skills provided to kaabilo baamas to support income-generation ventures.
Impact of the initiative
- Strengthened community capacity to reduce maternal and neonatal deaths
- Created sustainable pathways for both health improvement and economic empowerment
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BAFROW
156, Mosque Road, Serrekunda,The Gambia
- +220 66 25 639, +220 37 73 500
- info@bafrow.org
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BAFROW Model Centre
Mandinaba Village, West Coast Region, The Gambia
- +220 37 00 783
© 2026 BAFROW