Safe childbirth and growing up healthy in Nong and Sepone

In 2006, a group of Laotian health professionals saw what MCNV employees in Vietnam managed to achieve. Also on their side of the border there were many health problems and they asked MCNV for  help. That was the beginning of our cooperation in the border district of Nong in Laos, ‘diseases do not stop at the border’. Since then, Nong has already better sanitation, drinking water and better nutrition. But good care for mother and child has been left behind, too many women and babies die during or after childbirth. There is insufficient knowledge about safe childbirth and women do not know where to go for help and advice during and after pregnancy.

Village health workers in the lead

We came up with a plan for Nong and the nearby district of Sepone, where the load of experience we gained in Nong now comes in handy. We want to train the village health workers in how to take care of pregnancy and childbirth, in postnatal care and good and sufficient nutrition for (pregnant) women and children. Village health workers are close to the people, speak the local language, know the traditions and recognize the difficulties from their own experience. Having faith in village health workers ensures that mothers will follow the advice and feel supported in the care of the family.

First aid in every village

The more than 150 villages in Nong and Sepone are located in a hard-to-reach area. If something goes wrong during or after childbirth, a care worker from the district health center will never get to the village in time. By in each village teaching a village health worker a number of lifesaving procedures, there is (emergency) aid close by and we reduce the chance of death during or after childbirth.

Support the women and children in Nong and Sepone!

With an amount of € 20,000, we can train 158 village health workers in Nong and Sepone so that the women in the villages can give birth safely and the baby and child mortality, which is now far too high, can quickly decrease. We use some of the money to help young mothers with a first advice on healthy nutrition for their babies and small children to get a chance to grow up healthy. This is a beautiful plan that we would very much like to take further, together with you!

On behalf of our team: Thank you very much for your (extra) contributions!
Karin Vlug

Our strength remains: help where it is most needed

In Vietnam and Laos, the effects of COVID-19 have also been felt, but the situation in both countries has been under control for a number of months. This is important for the most vulnerable people that MCNV supports. Of course, work has been left, meetings in the villages have not been held and our colleagues in Vietnam and Laos were temporarily unable to travel, but fortunately the damage has been limited and the work is in full swing.

Even after the recent severe floods in the central and southern of Vietnam and Laos, the thread has been picked up again. Houses are being built and building land is being re-flattened and processed to plant rice and other crops. This is a lot of work and takes time, but support is being given from all sides , including from our donors.

Not all can do it on their own

As you know, MCNV always jumps in where other, external, help is missing. That’s how we’ve been working since the early days and that’s where our strength lies. Of course, you may wonder whether the role of MCNV is still crucial, whether the people in Vietnam in particular should not be able to take care of themselves, to be responsible for themselves. That is partly true, in many places in Vietnam our aid is no longer needed. But in a number of other – mostly remote areas – our aid is really indispensable. That’s what we’re going for in 2021, that’s what we are all about!

From vulnerable to resilient

In 2020, we asked for your support for a new forestry project and for food projects in Vietnam and Laos, programs that you have enthusiastically contributed to. You gave vulnerable families in remote areas a chance to get better nutrition for the children in a different, sustainable way and to gain a more stable income. Together with you, we try to make these people more resilient so that in times of adversity they have something to fall back on.

A new year, new opportunities!

In order to catch up with the work and to be able to bring it further, we ask for your (extra) gift this Christmas. Our employees in Vietnam and Laos are very keen to continue to support the families who are not yet able to make it on their own. Your extra Christmas gift will ultimately benefit the poorest. Thank you very much for your loyalty and support!

Karin Vlug
MCNV Amsterdam

You can read all about our special Christmas campaign on page 4 and 5 of our Magazine.