Infant Health and Community Kitchens

AEE Rwanda programs frequently include infant health and nutrition components to address malnutrition and stunting in Rwanda’s high-risk areas. Our nutrition groups — a specialized form of self-help and savings group — each comprise around twenty women who are mothers of, or care for, children under the age of three.

Claire, a community health worker, addresses her two nutrition groups.

In Nyamirama Cell, located in Rwanda’s Nyaruguru District, Claire, a dedicated community health worker, leads two such groups. Claire trains her groups on the essentials of a healthy diet, explaining that a balanced meal “includes cereals and pseudo-cereals — like quinoa — to strengthen the body, legumes, and in addition to that, meat, whitebait, fish, and eggs. To prevent disease, we include vegetables, leafy greens, and fruit. We use all that in the kitchen to feed us well.”

Twice a month, the group members gather for a community kitchen, where each brings whatever food they have and cooks it together. “The purpose is for every parent to observe how it is cooked and then do the same in their own homes,” Claire says, “because only twice a month would not be enough to achieve the goal of reducing malnutrition.”

At the start of the project, Claire assessed the nutrition status of the children in her groups, following Rwanda’s Ministry of Health standards. She found four children in yellow status and two in red — serious indicators of malnutrition.

Honorine with her mother Eugenia

One of those children was Honorine, the 14-month-old daughter of Eugenia.

“The child weighed like six kilograms; she was stunting,” Eugenia recalls. “When the project started, they came and taught us how to prepare meals and porridge — what should be put in.” Eleven months later, Honorine had doubled her weight.

“Now she plays and runs around, and she sings together with the other children at her early childhood center.”

Eugenia has also seen improvements in herself.

“Because the project provided us with vegetables, the way I used to prepare a meal without vegetables changed, and I myself added some weight. These changes affected me positively and I am able to breastfeed well.”

Parents must have the means to prepare healthy meals at home. The project builds food security through kitchen gardens and income-generating activities. Kitchen gardens are small, water-efficient vegetable gardens ensuring that nutritious foods are close to hand. Group members contribute savings at weekly meetings, and the pooled savings are turned into loans for income-generating activities or to meet occasional payments such as health insurance.

Francoise with her son Germaine, 2 years.

Francoise, another mother in the groups, shares her experiences: “Getting together, we have grown vegetables and we are able to feed our own children. We also take money and save. The way we save, we add the savings together and then we can buy chickens or rabbits. That way we help each other develop, elevate each other, and we are able to feed our children so they get out of malnutrition.”

Francoise’s son Germaine was not one of those identified as being in yellow or red status, but she says that “before, his weight did not increase much, but ever since I joined, I can see that he is growing. Even me — my skin is clearer and I am more beautiful — we eat vegetables and there is no problem.”

Eleven months from the start of the project, Claire is proud that all children in her groups are now in green status, and she is confident they will stay there. As Eugenia reflects: “We can’t work with the project forever, but they leave us with lessons and we will use them.”

AEE project staff with Claire, a community health worker with the project