Women4Women

"Women4Women" was introduced to support the community in Penukonda, where food insecurity is widespread, by providing nutritious food on a regular monthly basis to pregnant and breastfeeding women in need.

In many cases, a housewife, whether pregnant or not, does not plan her diet according to her nutritional needs. There are several reasons for this: she may be preoccupied with ensuring that her family has enough food at all, the right kinds of food may not be available, or there may simply be a lack of awareness and knowledge about proper nutrition. As a result, insufficient nutrition puts pregnant and lactating women at high risk, increasing the chances of birth defects among newborns and contributing to stunted childhood development.

The idea behind Women4Women is to improve maternal health, which has a direct impact on the nutrition and development of the child. Adequate nutrition during the first 1,000 days of life can have a profound effect on a child’s ability to grow, learn, and eventually break the cycle of poverty. By supporting mothers, the programme also helps address child malnutrition, one of the leading contributors to mortality in children under five.

In addition to providing food, nurses from the Shirdi Sai Medical Clinic care for these women and visit them in their villages to understand their needs and raise awareness about general health and nutrition.

The "Women4Women" programme was carried out from January 2018 to April 2019, over a total period of 16 months. During this time, around 7,500 women participated in the programme. A total of 583 babies were delivered, including 294 boys and 289 girls. The total expenditure for the programme amounted to INR 2,743,600, which is approximately EUR 27,800 or USD 29,000. After April 2019, the government continued the programme.

If you are interested in supporting the "Women4Women" project and would like to care for those in need, you are warmly welcome to volunteer or donate.