Transforming Women and Children Welfare Through Care Groups 

Although Rwanda has registered strides in improving nutritional intake for women and children, numerous challenges still abound. According to the Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Analysis (2015), about 20% of households nationwide are considered food insecure. In Gatsibo alone, the study found that about 3% of households are severely food insecure. 

One Gatsibo resident who has experienced this challenge is Denyse Nyirabakunzi, a resident of Kageyo sector, Gituza cell, Kabacuzi village. It was worrying not being able to properly feed her six children. But something more worrying caught Nyirabakunzi’s attention. There were two malnourished children in her neighborhood who appeared sickly and underweight. They did not have enough to eat. Nyirabakunzi wanted to help but was hampered by her limited knowledge of nutrition. 

‘’We didn’t know how to prepare diversified diets because of limited knowledge on nutrition,” said Nyirabakunzi. 

An opportunity arrived when Nyirabakunzi was recruited by community health workers to join one of the local Care Groups, usually made up of 20 to 30 members. Funded by USAID, the Feed the Future Rwanda Hinga Weze activity utilizes Care Groups to disseminate nutrition messages and encourage members to save and improve hygiene. Hinga Weze mainly aims to sustainably increase smallholder farmers’ income and increase the resilience of Rwanda’s agriculture and food to a changing climate. 

Through her group, Nyirabakunzi and fellow members are able to receive messages on nutrition and conduct cooking demonstrations. Her group is one of the 1,219 new ones Hinga Weze has established in 10 districts, consisting of more than 34,000 households that are coached by community health workers and farmer promoters. In Gatsibo alone, Hinga Weze groups supported 2,000 households. 

With help from fellow Care Group members, Nyirabakunzi provided nutritious foods for the two malnourished children and taught their families how to diversify and prepare diets and maintain hygiene to fight against germs. And there is more. Her care group has been able to save $56 (51,000 RWF), part of which is used to acquire nutritious foods for cooking demonstrations. 

“I have learned to prepare a balanced and diversified diet and how to preserve vegetables to be used during dry seasons,” Nyirabakunzi said as she emphasized the importance of peer learning. 

She has set up a kitchen garden near her home to serve as a model for other community members and to provide vegetables for her own family. Using  Nyirabakunzi’s demonstration garden, 53 neighboring households have set up their own kitchen gardens. Nyirabakunzi is preparing for the larger mission of ensuring that her village is food-secure and free of malnourished children.