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January 26, 2022

Local Leadership Will Help Us Emerge From COVID-19 Stronger

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As we approach a new, worrisome phase of the COVID-19 crisis, there are many changes in how the world approaches global health. Not only has the pandemic exposed the broken sutures among key players in the sector, it has also underscored how essential the often-forgotten local communities are in achieving health equity. At the onset of the pandemic, many foreign staff and volunteers were understandably evacuated back to their home countries before borders closed, leaving local staff and communities to take charge. While the global health community lauds itself as a vanguard of justice and equity, such a move during a once-in-a-generation health crisis proved that the sector, while still beneficial, largely relied on the efforts of the community rather than the traditionally more visible foreign professionals.

In fact, for far too long, the wealth of local expertise, knowledge, and passion has been sidelined by international teams and often Western-based headquarters. During the pandemic, aid agencies and development organizations in the Global North have had their own woes too as the US and Europe reported record highs in average new cases and COVID-related deaths. As a result, local staff have, therefore, had more say and freedom when faced with situations that need immediate action. This necessary expediency as a result of the pandemic has meant that local communities have now taken a seat at the decision-making table. It is our hope that they will stay there.

Local organizations across the Global South have shown resilience in tackling this global health crisis and sustaining access to critical health services, including essential surgery. In response to the pandemic, there have been incredibly innovative solutions led by local communities, building upon multi-sectoral partnerships and therefore bypassing the often NGO-rife global health space.

As noted in Harvard Business Review, “about one-fifth of these innovations have come from low- and middle income-countries.” Safe Hands Kenya (SHK) saw 40 private companies and social enterprises form an alliance to rapidly respond to the pandemic last year. The initiative leveraged local knowledge and capacity to distribute masks, hand washing stations, and disinfectants while conducting awareness campaigns on how to prevent COVID-19 infection. SHK bypassed most restrictive aid processes to reach over 1.3 million people in a month. This innovative model has now been nominated by Fast Company as one of the World Changing Ideas of 2020. Health practitioners must recognize the importance of regional and local multi-sectoral partnerships, as even though they can translate into a multitude of challenges and complexities, they can also tap into local leadership and knowledge to provide solutions for the problems communities seek to solve.

For forward-looking nonprofits, not as much has had to change. Watsi, which directly funds patients who need life-saving surgeries through crowdfunding, adopted a local and patient-first model from their founding in 2012. They focus on actively listening to a patient’s own story and needs, and then work to provide direct funding for their cost of medical treatment. Watsi partners with leading local medical providers to refer patients in need of surgery through a system of trust and transparency that supports the local hospitals to set their own priorities on what will have the most impact on patients’ lives. This has led to an open and effective relationship between Watsi and its medical partners in communities around the world, which ensured limited disruptions to patient care during the pandemic.

Additionally, with the majority of their funds coming from individual contributions, Watsi has been able to sustain its model through COVID-19 as harder-to-pin down grants remained scarce.

Global health has always been about eliminating health disparities in vulnerable communities. While this is possible through global cooperation, it can only be achieved by making space for local voices and perspectives in both the development and implementation of solutions. How can we ensure that local communities lead the discussions at the table? This calls for decolonization of the sector with changes such as funding models moving away from bureaucratic, top-down traditional models.

For Kupona Foundation, a nonprofit committed to delivering high-quality healthcare to those who need it most in Tanzania, the pandemic has highlighted the need for unrestricted funding. Kupona’s local partner, Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT), a leading specialist healthcare provider in Tanzania and a lynchpin in their healthcare system, had to prioritize the needs of the community while directing funds towards infection, prevention, and control efforts, as well as staff coverage and salaries due to increased sick and bereavement leave, depleting financial reserves.

As many conventional funders direct their aid to specific projects, and restricted funds to specific COVID needs within the pandemic, this has stifled the broader work of some health organizations such as CCBRT, with salary and administrative costs that still have to be met.

Now more than ever, nonprofits in the Global South must have the discretion to channel funds where necessary and most impactful as evidenced by some funders who have wisely provided much-needed unrestricted mini-grants within this crisis period.

As we navigate out of the pandemic, we wish to hear more directly from the people in whose communities global health organizations work. Additionally, innovation and partnerships must be based on shared values, trust, social justice, and mutual accountability to deliver collective impact to those who need it most. Moving forward, it is our hope that the local communities will take center stage in all conversations as they advocate for change driven by local needs, and not a global solution in search of a problem.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Mackinnon Engen serves as the Executive Director of Watsi. As a global health and humanitarian professional, her experience spans the UN, international and local NGOs, and academic sectors across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Her research includes topics of organizational leadership and effectiveness, economic impact of health interventions, emergency food security, and the humanitarian impact of climate change.

Susana Oguntoye serves as the Executive Director to Kupona Foundation. She has almost two decades experience in health research and policy, as well as design, monitoring, evaluation, and implementation around health services development, with a particular focus on international development and global health systems strengthening.

Brian Njoroge is a Partnerships and Communications Officer at Kupona Foundation. He is a 2020-21 Princeton in Africa Fellow and is interested in working in marginalized communities to create change through policy and critical development.

Kate Schwed is an External Communications Advisor at Kupona Foundation. She is a freelance copywriter based in Brooklyn, NY.

*published in One.Surgery’s Hold On, Dear Life! Our wonderful 13th issue of Voices of Surgery in September 2021


October 18, 2021

A Look Back at 2021: Kupona Foundation Transitions

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Dear Friends, 

In a time when the pandemic has hit small enterprises hard, Kupona Foundation has been no exception. Since March 2020, Susana Oguntoye has led the organization and engaged with all of Kupona’s stakeholders, spearheading the Kupona Foundation community and pushing for support for CCBRT. In October 2021, Susana will start a new exciting role in global health in the private sector and will no longer serve as Kupona’s Executive Director. She says, “I am very sad I am no longer able to serve as Kupona’s Executive Director and I have decided therefore not to leave. I will instead immediately transition to Kupona’s Board of Directors.”

Transition in Leadership

Kupona will remain in good hands with the Board of Directors, which both Susana and the former Executive Director of Kupona, Abbey Kocan, have joined. Abbey brings a wealth of knowledge on Kupona operations. She served as Kupona’s Executive Director for nearly seven (7) years through April 2020, consistently providing formative and strategic leadership, including on the ground in Tanzania to CCBRT. 

“This is a critical moment within the pandemic for CCBRT and Kupona Foundation. We expect to consider recruiting a new Executive Director in the near future.”, says Kupona’s Chair of the Board, Robert Schwed. 

Continued Impact

CCBRT continues to be a leading light in healthcare in Tanzania, seeing roughly 500-700 patients every day. The new CCBRT Maternal and Newborn 200-bed Wing has been up and running since April 2021 and can support up to 5,000 deliveries a year. In this moment, we can all continue to support by giving. Kupona will continue to provide a direct channel to support CCBRT’s life-changing programs for women, newborns and people with disabilities, including thousands of children every year.  


December 4, 2020

2020 in Review: Kupona’s Look Back at 2020

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Dear Friends, 

As we wind down 2020, we at Kupona are reflecting on what a year it has been. This was a year dominated by the worldwide pandemic and its effects. Nevertheless, we have been able to do what we do best: provide quality healthcare to mothers, babies, and people living with disabilities in Tanzania. 

First, on behalf of CCBRT, we would like to thank you for your support which has ensured that we continue making an impact despite the ongoing pandemic. As we reflect and celebrate this holiday season, here are some of the things we want to look back at in 2020:

Change in Leadership

Earlier this year, Abbey Kocan stepped down as Executive Director of Kupona after almost seven years of service. She was replaced by Susana Oguntoye, who holds nearly two decades of experience in global health research and policy and joined us from Africare where she was the Director of Monitoring, Evaluation & Knowledge Learning. 

Kupona also welcomed three fellows. Through our partnership with Johnson and Johnson and Princeton in Africa, we hosted three fellows to help us with Resource Mobilization and Digital Communications. Jillian (who left us in August 2020), Michelle and Brian (who joined us then) have brought energy and expertise to our work, and we ask you to join us, thanking them and their sponsors for their invaluable support!

Continued Impact

Despite the challenges due to the pandemic, we have managed to continue providing essential services to the vulnerable communities that need them the most. CCBRT supports over 80,000 deliveries each year and anticipates this will grow with the opening of the new Maternity and Newborn Wing in the Spring of 2021. We understand that mothers and babies cannot wait, and have held the frontlines, providing high-quality and respectful maternity care to 60% of all mother-baby pairs across the Dar es Salaam region (with a population of 6 million+).

Additionally, CCBRT continues to champion disability rights,  changing the lives of children such as Sharon and Jennifer through corrective surgeries and treatment. 

Read about the impact you helped us achieve in Kupona and CCBRT’s 2019 Annual Reports.

Next Steps

With the opening of the new 200-bed Maternity and Newborn Wing in early 2021, CCBRT will provide services to more people than ever before. This will help us extend essential services across Tanzania, and you can support us here. 

Every gift you give changes lives. We aim to raise $30,000 by December 31and any amount you give will be matched dollar for dollar!

We have so far raised more than $15,000 and we are thankful for your support this year. You are the driving force behind this life-changing work, and we are so grateful. Donate today, and join us in transforming healthcare to unleash the potential of thousands of people in Tanzania.

Happy holidays to you and yours!
P.S.: You can also change lives while protecting yourself by purchasing a mask from us. The women recovering from obstetric fistula at The Mabinti Center now make 2-layered masks using beautiful fabrics to keep Tanzanians and CCBRT staff safe, in addition to hand-sewing bags, pillows, and other household items. The Kupona Team got a shipment of Mabinti masks, so please reach out to us if you are interested in purchasing any, or you know of anyone else who might want some. 


September 3, 2020

Showing up for moms and babies: Ensuring respectful maternal care

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Co-Authored by Watsi and Kupona Foundation

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted access to essential maternal and child health services. UNICEF recently highlighted a severe shortage of resources, including midwives, transportation disruptions that prevent pregnant women and mothers from accessing care, and patients’ general reluctance to visit hospitals due to risk of COVID-19 infection, meaning that when patients do seek care, their condition is often already critical. 

We know that women need to attend antenatal care visits, deliver with a skilled healthcare provider, have access to emergency surgery if the need arises, and receive postnatal care to ensure optimal health outcomes for both mothers and babies. In addition, babies born with congenital anomalies need timely access to care to help ensure they survive and thrive.

Harvard’s Maternal Health Task Force shared estimates that the disruption of health services due to COVID-19 has, in the best-case scenario, created 42,240 additional child deaths and 2,030 additional maternal deaths worldwide, every month.

Additional maternal and child deaths per month modeled by researchers’ scenarios

In short, maternal and child healthcare cannot wait and must be prioritized throughout every stage of this pandemic. Without access to life-saving interventions and responding to pregnant women’s needs, many more mothers and children will die from treatable and preventable conditions. 

What can be done to address this pressing global problem? Watsi and Kupona Foundation are proud to be a part of the solution to this global problem by providing respectful, high-quality, and patient-centered care to mothers and children in resource-poor settings during this time of crisis. This includes listening to pregnant and laboring women and responding to their needs. The investments we make now will ensure that our medical partners emerge from this crisis healthier, stronger, and more resilient in the years ahead.

Kupona Foundation is a nonprofit committed to delivering high quality healthcare to those who need it most in Tanzania. Our local partner, Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania  (CCBRT), is a leading specialist healthcare provider in Tanzania and a lynchpin in their healthcare system. Since 2009, CCBRT has designed and implemented a comprehensive maternal health system strengthening initiative that has put patient voices at the heart of service delivery. CCBRT works with 23 public health facilities across Dar es Salaam, one of the largest cities in Tanzania, to build their capacity for high quality, respectful, and inclusive maternal and newborn healthcare. Even though this work has become more challenging during COVID-19, mothers and babies can’t wait. 

As Dr. Brenda, a leading practitioner from Tanzania, recently shared in The Lancet, “To fulfill the complex demands of COVID-19 management while continuing essential reproductive health services, the number of maternity staff needs to be increased, capacitated, and provided with personal protective equipment, essential medicines, and access to integrated, relevant, and realistic guidelines on respectful maternity and COVID-19 services.”

Tanzania is one of ten countries in the world that, together, contribute to 61% of global maternal deaths and 66% of global newborn deaths. In Tanzania each year, 11,000 women die due to complications of pregnancy and childbirth, and 66,000 newborns will not survive their first month of life. It is estimated that over 80% of these deaths could be prevented if pregnant women had access to respectful maternity care.  

By training over 7,000 health workers on clinical skills across the childbirth continuum, including respectful maternity care practices, CCBRT’s Maternal Health team has enabled a 48% reduction in the maternal mortality ratio, a 19% reduction in the stillbirth rate, and improved the quality of care for over 800,000 mothers in Tanzania.

CCBRT midwife delivering antenatal care to a mother in Tanzania during Covid-19

Watsi is an international medical nonprofit that funds essential surgical care for patients facing extreme poverty across the Global South. We have been guided by our values throughout the current global health crisis, and led by our commitment to put our local medical partners and patients first in everything we do.  In response to local needs during COVID-19, Watsi has increased funding towards maternal care by more than 10% since March. In partnership with African Mission Healthcare, Watsi also launched two new hospital sites in southern Uganda and central Kenya to reach more mothers and children in need of essential healthcare now and in the years ahead.

Kyarimpa, a nursery school teacher from Uganda, is among the patients we have recently helped access safe labor and delivery care. Due to COVID-19 she has been unable to work and has consequently faced significant financial insecurity. Fortunately, Watsi donors were able to support her maternal care and she safely delivered a healthy baby girl.

Kyarimpa shared, “Thank you, Watsi, for supporting us financially and saving our lives. Thank you for being my pillar during these uncertain times. I will always remember your help.”

A proud new mom: Kyarimpa, a Watsi maternity care patient, and her baby.

Tibasiima is another Watsi patient who recently delivered her ninth child, a healthy baby boy. Both mom and baby are doing well thanks to the efforts of the talented frontline healthcare professionals at Rushoroza Hospital in Uganda. She and her husband work as small-scale farmers, but they have a difficult time providing for their large family. Tibasiima told us after her delivery:

“God sent us to Rushoroza Hospital. We were very lucky, we walked to Rushoroza Hospital because we had no transport means. Thank you, Watsi, for we had no way out. We shall take good care of our child through farming.”

Tibasiima, a Watsi maternity care patient, heading home with her new baby.

Although the world is facing unprecedented challenges as a result of COVID-19, we cannot afford to leave mothers and their babies behind because they are our future. We must continue to respectfully meet their unique and complex needs during the pandemic and beyond. Both Kupona and Watsi are committed to prioritizing the healthcare needs of mothers and babies,  amplifying their voices and experiences, and supporting frontline health workers to ensure we best serve our patients. 

We hope that you will join us at this critical moment in helping to lift up mothers and their babies for a brighter future. In doing so, we are confident that, together, we can emerge from this time of uncertainty with empowered families, healthier communities, and strengthened health systems. 

Join us today in creating a stronger tomorrow for mothers and their babies across the globe. 

Co-Authored by Mackinnon & Laura at Watsi with Susana & Paley at Kupona Foundation


August 3, 2020

Breast is Best

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For World Breastfeeding Week (August 1st-7th), Kupona Foundation is highlighting the work CCBRT, our sister hospital, does to support mothers and newborns in Tanzania.

When the CCBRT team discovered the start of breastfeeding for sick and preterm newborns admitted to the neonatal care units of Dar es Salaam is often very delayed, CCBRT responded with a project (funded by Laerdal Foundation) on early and exclusive breastfeeding, emphasizing how vital this is for low birthweight or premature newborns.

Breast milk is the healthiest nutrition a newborn can get, and breastfeeding is the single most effective intervention to reduce neonatal mortality. It is absolutely critical that newborns receive all the benefits of breastmilk feeding as early as possible. Often vulnerable newborns, if premature or sick, are too weak to breastfeed. Mothers have to pump their breast milk so their newborn babies can drink by cup or tube feeding. These mothers and newborns need extra care and support.

Sarah, a nurse at CCBRT, shows the correct way of holding a baby during breastfeeding.

The most effective technique to pump breast milk has to be taught to mothers as it requires some practice. “Mama Breast” is a breastfeeding simulator developed by our partner, Laerdal Global Health, which enables nurses to demonstrate and teach these skills easily. A one-week breastfeeding counselling course is offered at the CCBRT Academy to nurses and midwives from our maternal health partner sites to facilitate such education to mothers everywhere they work. 

Today in Tanzania, only half of all newborn babies receive breastfeeding within the first hour of life as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the rate of exclusive breastfeeding within the first 6 months is at 59% (UNICEF data: https://data.unicef.org/country/tza/). With over 80,000 deliveries supported by CCBRT every year, our goal is to ensure that these directly benefit but also many more; we want to support as many babies in Tanzania as possible get the healthiest start in life and that especially vulnerable newborns who are sick or born too soon get our extra care and support.


June 25, 2020

Expectant mothers and newborns can’t wait

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Guest post by Dr. Brenda D’Mello, Technical Lead for CCBRT’s Maternal Health Efforts 


Expectant mothers and newborns can’t wait. We need PPE to keep our staff and patients safe.


My colleagues and I are on the frontlines of maternal and newborn healthcare services in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania delivering services in Dar es Salaam to over 10,000 people every month. Our maternal newborn and child health team trains midwives, performs deliveries, and welcomes over 80,000 newborn babies into the world every year. Work in Dar es Salaam has always been challenged by shortages in staff, supplies, equipment and, in this large vibrant city, substantial  overcrowding. In the context of Covid-19, this work has become even more challenging. While some non-essential services can be scaled back in the face of a pandemic, childbirth and related life threatening emergencies are on their own timeline that cannot wait for the situation to improve.


As the healthcare system adapts to these unprecedented times, one of CCBRT’s partner facilities, the busiest maternal and newborn healthcare facility in this region, was forced to pivot to become a Covid-19 treatment center. This funnelled demand for maternal and newborn healthcare services to smaller downstream facilities, stretching the capacity and making distancing between patients and staff  impossible. Additionally, shortages of protective equipment and supply chain gaps caused by the global lockdown have severely stretched an already fragile health system. 

CCBRTs response to the COVID 19 pandemic recognizes how critical a healthy workforce is for continued service delivery. We prioritize quality care for pregnant women before, during and after labor, ensure babies are still delivered safely and that our patients and staff are protected through this pandemic.

Urgent help is needed to keep our colleagues and patients safe as we deliver essential services across the Dar es Salaam region. A donation of $30 will equip one midwife with the necessary PPE to perform a safe delivery. $10 will equip a mother and her baby with masks. As we grapple with the change in practice, a small recurring donation will help my team and I at CCBRT ensure the safety of healthcare workers and the continuity of maternal and newborn services through this new season.

Donate today to keep CCBRT's Staff & patients safe


April 2, 2020

Kupona & CCBRT: United Against COVID-19

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Our hearts go out to you and your families during this global pandemic and we are wishing you well. The Kupona Foundation team would like to update you on what is happening in Tanzania at CCBRT following this outbreak of COVID-19.

COVID-19 affects us all and we must be united in our response. Kupona Foundation is committed to supporting our sister organization in Tanzania, CCBRT, during this difficult time. Despite the risks and challenges, CCBRT’s frontline health workers continue to provide life-changing and life-saving care for the most vulnerable, notably  women, children, and people with disabilities. 

CCBRT’s Response to COVID-19
CCBRT management has set up a team led by Dr. Bedan Gichanga, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), to lead and coordinate its efforts in COVID-19 planning and preparedness. The team is closely monitoring the viral spread and categorizing the crisis to respond appropriately. This has resulted in a multi-level emergency protocol informed by the Tanzanian Ministry of Health, the status and developments in Dar es Salaam, and the phase of the epidemic. This multi-level response is to ensure that CCBRT can continue to provide its life-changing services without creating undue exposure to both its staff and patients. 

Safety measures CCBRT has implemented thus far

  • Regular briefings and education sessions about COVID-19 to front line health workers and to other staff both in Dar es Salaam and Moshi.  
  • Promoting hand hygiene and investing in additional infection prevention measures at entry points and within the campus (sanitizer, treated running water and soap).
  • Limiting visitors to in-patients to 1 at a time. 
  • Promoting cashless payments via mobile money.
  • Setting up an isolation room(s) in readiness/ preparedness for any activity.
  • Conducting temperature checks for all incoming staff, patients, and visitors at all entries to the hospital. 
  • Instructing any staff members who are not well to stay home and directing staff members who are or who may be in a risk category to contact HR in advance for planning purposes.

Program related updates 

  • CCBRT is minimizing the number of women they are treating for obstetric fistula. 
  • At the clubfoot clinic, new cases have been deferred to July.
  • Previously scheduled trainings and outreach programs (screenings) have been postponed.

Immediate Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic

  • Suspended the travel of two Ophthalmology and Orthopedics specialists who were visiting from other countries. 
  • A decrease in sales at the Mabinti Centre, both at their workshop and in the retail shop.
  • Suspended all scheduled trainings at the CCBRT Academy.
  • Reductions in capacity on the ground, as a number of CCBRT’s expatriate staff have had to leave the country, including three of the five members of CCBRT’s fundraising team.
  • Reduced capacity for provision of high quality maternal and newborn healthcare in CCBRT-supported sites as staff are pulled for COVID-19 preparedness.

Anticipated Long Term Effects
CCBRT anticipates that the Tanzanian economy will take a significant hit due to reduced tourism, (Tanzania’s biggest foreign exchange earner), and potential closures such as those we are experiencing in the United States, and expects to see further decreases in the number of expatriates staying in-country. 

In Tanzania, we know the health system is much less elastic than in the U.S. and elsewhere with most of the healthcare infrastructure already at capacity and not meeting demand in full. Their epidemic is just starting with only 19 reported cases as of this weekend, and one death. CCBRT represents one of the facilities we know is trusted to provide high quality care. Part of the impact of an epidemic is that these facilities are put under severe pressure leaving existing care to lag and morbidity and mortality to rise as a result of COVID-19 as well as existing and significant unmet health needs.

We are anticipating a significant reduction in patient revenue at CCBRT and decreases in partner and donor revenue due to COVID-19, at a time when donor and partner support is needed more than ever.

How can you help?
We are thankful for the continued support of the Kupona community, even as we all experience our own personal and professional challenges during this unprecedented time of uncertainty.  Unrestricted support is vital as we navigate this pandemic and prepare for the after effects that may unfold. If you are in a position to do so, you can support our frontline health workers by making an unrestricted gift, helping us provide the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and additional support that our health workers need to stay safe and continue to serve the most vulnerable in the community. 

Thank you, and be well during these challenging times. 


February 27, 2020

This International Women’s Day, Meet Radhia

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In celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8th, we want to celebrate the courage, perseverance, and strength of the women we serve in Tanzania, and the healthcare workers who support them. 

Radhia first took her Mabinti Centre (‘Mabinti’) training course in 2012 and joined Mabinti as a full-time staff member in 2013. Her activities at Mabinti include cutting and measuring all of the fabric for bags and clothing and visiting the Kariakoo fabric market to barter for and purchase more fabric. Radhia is also the resident expert on making Binti dolls. Since 2013, Radhia has taught all new Mabinti trainees and staff members to make Binti dolls. Making the dolls is her favorite work task, and it is also what she believes she is best at.

Radhia developed obstetric fistula after giving birth to her first child. When she went into labor, her husband took her to the hospital where she labored for two days with no progression. Tragically, her baby died while she was at the hospital. Radhia’s husband left her immediately after she lost her baby. The doctors at the hospital recognized that Radhia had developed fistula during the prolonged labor, and referred her to CCBRT for treatment. At CCBRT, she underwent surgery and comprehensive treatment to repair her fistula. She was invited to join the Mabinti Centre training course shortly after she left CCBRT as a patient.

At the Mabinti Centre, Radhia completed the one-year training course, where she learned how to sew, make batik print, bead, and make clothing patterns. She also attended educational sessions on family planning and entrepreneurship. Radhia excelled in the training and was a great team member. After the course, she was invited to join Mabinti as a full-time employee. She was thrilled to be offered the job because she had never had a job before. Radhia especially enjoys her time at Mabinti because of the opportunity to spend time with other women who lived with fistula, the financial stability, and the opportunity for ongoing education and growth through frequent workshops on health, family planning and entrepreneurship.

In 2017, Radhia got pregnant again. As an employee at Mabinti, CCBRT’s expert OB/GYNs monitored her pregnancy closely to ensure that she received the proper care as a high-risk pregnancy after fistula. Dr. Brenda, head of the Maternal Health Capacity Building Program, personally monitored Radhia’s pregnancy, and recommended she give birth in Amana Hospital, one of the health centers in CCBRT’s Maternal Health Capacity Building Network. Radhia underwent a C-section, and safely gave birth to a healthy baby.  She is incredibly grateful to CCBRT for treating her fistula in 2012, giving her employment at the Mabinti Centre, and providing expert support and care throughout her second pregnancy and childbirth. She never expected to be financially stable or to have a (now 3-year-old) child. Radhia encourages all women to reach out for help if they suspect they have fistula, and hopes that other women can find opportunities like she has at Mabinti.


February 26, 2020

Leadership Transition at Kupona Foundation

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New York City – The Kupona Foundation (‘Kupona’) Board of Directors announced today that Abbey Kocan will step down as Executive Director of Kupona after almost seven (7) years of service. She will be succeeded by Susana Oguntoye, who was previously Director of Monitoring, Evaluation & Knowledge Learning at Africare.

Robert Schwed, President of The Board of Directors, said, “On behalf of the entire team at Kupona, I would like to thank Abbey for her dedicated service and leadership. Since 2013, Abbey has built and led a team that mobilized over $7M for Kupona’s sister organization, CCBRT, the largest provider of disability and rehabilitation services in Tanzania and a key partner to the Tanzanian government in the fight to improve maternal and newborn healthcare. Abbey also drove the mobilization of medical and technical advisors to help CCBRT move toward a sustainable operating model. After Abbey informed us of her decision to leave her position, the Board conducted an extensive search to find the right person to lead Kupona and to work closely with the leadership of CCBRT. We are thrilled that we have been able to recruit Susana.”

Susana Oguntoye brings nearly two decades of experience with health research and policy, most recently working on design, monitoring, evaluation and implementation of health services programs, with a particular focus on international development and global health systems. At Africare, Susana built and managed operations for six countries and led monitoring and evaluation in 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Raised in Nigeria and Germany, Susana holds a Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology & Immunology from King’s College, University of London, and a Master of Public Health degree from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

“I feel exceptionally fortunate to be given this opportunity to become part of the Kupona Foundation and CCBRT family,” said Susana. “It means the world to me to be able to impact so many lives and renews for me the reasons I chose, so long ago now, to work in public health, and on health disparities in particular. I thank Abbey and the Kupona Board of Directors for putting their faith in me and look forward to working together with CCBRT to ensure high quality healthcare reaches those most in need.”

Abbey shared: “It has been an honor to be a part of this community, to work closely with CCBRT’s leadership and colleagues across the organization, and to be able to see the direct impact that our donors and partners have on thousands of children, mothers and adults living with disabilities in Tanzania every year. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with so many inspiring donors, partners, peers, Board members and advisors. I am incredibly excited that Susana will be taking the helm. Her skills and experience are exactly what is needed at this point in the organization’s life cycle. I see great things ahead for CCBRT and Kupona under Susana’s leadership in the United States.”

Abbey and Susana will work side by side during a period of transition starting in March 2020.

About Kupona Foundation

Kupona means ‘to heal’ in Kiswahili. Kupona Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to delivering high quality healthcare to those who need it most. Kupona focuses on Tanzania, a country rich in potential but severely impacted by extreme poverty, a challenge compounded by one of the highest population growth rates in the world. Kupona’s partner, CCBRT (Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania), is a leading healthcare provider specializing in disability, rehabilitation and maternal and newborn healthcare. A key player in the Tanzanian healthcare system, CCBRT has over two and a half decades of service to the Tanzanian community and partnership with the Government of Tanzania.                                                                               


December 11, 2019

This Holiday Season, Meet Elizabeth

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Did you know that an estimated 2 million children in Tanzania are in need of pediatric eye services? Many of those children will lose their sight or suffer with a visual impairment, which will affect almost every aspect of their future — their ability to play, go to school and lead a productive life. Thanks to the support of our donors and partners, children like Elizabeth are able to receive the sight-restoring treatment they need. 

CCBRT was established in 1994 as a community based rehabilitation program committed to serving people with correctable blindness in Dar es Salaam. Today, CCBRT’s largest service area remains its work in eye care. CCBRT’s ophthalmology department focuses on services in high demand in the Tanzanian community, including cataracts, glaucoma, trauma, tumors, trachoma, and diabetic eye disease. On average, cataract surgeries account for 50% of the eye surgeries provided at the CCBRT Hospital.

“My little sister and I were fighting over something, and accidentally, she poked me in the eye. My eye started reacting, and I had to be taken to the CCBRT clinic. I was told my eye was damaged and needed to be removed,” Elizabeth recalled.

In 2018, CCBRT performed over 6,800 eye surgeries and nearly 69,000 consultations at its hospital in Dar es Salaam. CCBRT is one of only three facilities in Tanzania that offers pediatric eye services and is the only facility in the country that makes artificial eyes from scratch for children like Elizabeth. 

“I experienced many challenges before the operation. In class, my performance was dropping. Sometimes I wouldn’t be able to attend class for a month, or even two. I also stopped playing with my friends. I was worried I would hurt my eye. But ever since the operation, I’ve felt like a normal person. Some people don’t even notice I have an artificial eye. I’m grateful, because now I am on track with my studies,” Elizabeth told us. Elizabeth’s future is brighter thanks to the support of donors like you.

Help make pediatric eye services available to more children like Elizabeth by making a tax-deductible gift today.


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