Buy a Motorbike for a rural nurse
Enable a local nurse to provide crucial pediatric care to Malawian women and infants in remote areas where there are no clinics.
Nurses ride motorbikes over challenging terrains to reach the most isolated patients, saving countless lives.
To donate via bank transfer and minimise processing fees, visit justpeoples.org/bank-details.
In Malawi, where 84% of the population resides in remote rural areas, expectant mothers encounter huge challenges accessing maternity healthcare. Public transport is either prohibitively expensive or non-existent, so getting to a clinic during an emergency becomes almost impossible. Pregnant women are forced to walk up to 9 km to a public clinic, even while in labour, putting them at high risk miscarriage and other serious complications.
Difficulties In reaching clinics lead many mothers to resort to using traditional birthing assistants. With professional medical care unavailable, preventable deaths remain a significant concern for women, girls, and children in Malawi during pregnancy, childbirth, and early life. High maternal mortality rates are attributed to unsafe abortions, childbirth complications, and diseases like malaria. Marginalised women living in remote communities, in poverty, or with disabilities, are disproportionately affected.
A nurse conducts an antenatal home visit in rural Malawi where there are no accessible health clinics.
To address these immense challenges, Mercy Kafotokoza, a midwife, nurse, and public health expert, initiated the Nurses on Bikes program. Nurses drive motorbikes through rough, challenging terrains to reach the most isolated patients. Nurses conduct home visits, covering up to 74 kilometers round trip, and provide comprehensive maternity healthcare from pregnancy to infancy.
Since the program's inception in 2016, Mercy's work has proven highly effective. 95% of women have received postnatal care within 24 hours of giving birth, 60% of pregnant women have registered for antenatal care in their first trimester, and 80% of children with concerning symptoms have been attended to within 24 hours.
Expanding the Nurses on Bikes program is crucial. Supporting this project will cover the costs of purchasing a motorbike, training, and obtaining a motorbike license for one nurse. Each new nurse trained and equipped with a motorbike will be able to reach more pregnant women, new mothers and infants in the remotest corners of Malawi, and save hundreds of lives.
To discuss supporting this project reach out to jo@justpeoples.org
Meet Mercy
The midwife and nurse dedicated to eliminating preventable maternal deaths in Malawi
After witnessing multiple preventable deaths while working in a public hospital, Mercy quit her comfortable, secure job and founded her own organisation. Her mission is to provide quality healthcare that is accessible to the most remote Malawians, with a focus on pre- and post- maternity healthcare. Mercy has since built up a team of 130 trained community health workers who have restored dignity and hope in isolated communities, and have treated over 350,000 patients across rural Malawi. Learn more.