This World Health Worker Week (April 2-8), we honor the health workers around the world who work every day to improve health in their communities. This photo essay illustrates the important role that community health volunteers play in strengthening Madagascar's health system.
Community health volunteers (CHVs) play a critical role in providing primary health care services in Madagascar, especially for rural populations who live far from health facilities. In many areas of the country, CHVs often collectively offer services to more people than health centers do. CHVs are important extensions of the Malagasy health system, particularly for women and children.
As of 2016, the USAID Mikolo Project, led by MSH and funded by USAID, supported nearly 7,000 CHVs across 506 communes. They fill a critical gap in human resources for health in support of the Ministry of Public Health’s efforts to improve health care in the country.
A CHV provides reproductive health education.