Gender and blindness in Tanzania:Trying to think outside the eye care box
Marceline FindaKilimanjaro Centre for Community
Ophthalmology
Challenges• Elderly women often
the most marginalized in society
• Blindness often leads to a sense of shame among women
• Health care systems generally not women friendly– Even when brought closer
to the community
Working within the health system…. likely not adequate to address the
problem
• Awareness• Promotion to village leaders,
church leaders, posters, radio announcements
• Accessibility• Outreach to provide transport
for people to hospital for surgery
• Affordability• Made cataract surgery within
the capacity of the population to pay
Experience in Tanzania & other countries in eastern Africa
• We can increase use of services by men and women….but still not achieving gender equity
KCCO’s ongoing learning…
• Women talking to women– Sentinel program
• Women as entrepreneurs
and eye care promoters
• Microfinance and eye health – Taking advantage of
existing microfinance groups to spread eye-care messages
Women as eye care advocates… and entrepreneurs
• Entrepreneurship;– Women were given basic
entrepreneurship training– Some were provided with
funds to start business– They were asked to
advocate eye care services
• Increase in eye care uptake by both men and women– Still not enough
Entrepreneurship…lessons learned
• Some women were highly committed in both the business and in eye care advocacy
• Some women focused only on their new businesses
• Some did neither
• Although program was productive altogether, it was time consuming.
• Microfinance!
• Mostly situated in rural settings
• Most members are women
• Their main goal is to alleviate poverty
• In many villages, every woman belongs to a group
• Regular meetings– often once a week
• Other health programs have used microfinance to spread specific messages (…but not all successful)
Why microfinance?
About eye health• Microfinance
members were trained on eye heath, diabetes and physical disabilities
• The members then talked to and referred people to the eye-outreach clinics
Challenges and limitations
• Financial problems– Transport costs– Other NGOs
• Other more important diseases–Malaria, HIV, malnutrition;
• Need for counseling
Next step…potential for working with Zambia
• Most groups did not practice microfinance– Group income generating activities
• Groups are involved in other activities– Adult literacy, nutrition,– Growth-monitoring – HIV/AIDS and malaria.– Home based care (HBC)