Actions taken:
This report summarizes progress based on the pledged objectives and action plan. Aligned with Canada’s commitment to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) for all, we implemented projects in Mali, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, focusing on the health of women, adolescent girls, children, and newborns. The funding for these projects primarily originated from contributions by the Canadian populace and Global Affairs Canada, with implementation overseen by the Canadian Red Cross (CRC).
In Mali, the Santé des adolescentes au Mali (SAM) project (April 2021 – June 2026), led by CRC with partners (Malian Red Cross, MIT D-Lab, and CPHDA) aims to improve SRHR for adolescent girls in Fana, Kati, and Ouelessebougou. The project targets three areas: enhancing SRHR practices, reducing early marriage, and improving maternal and child health. Despite delays and disruptions due to armed conflict and insecurity, local community workers have maintained essential activities.
The “Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds” (project in South Sudan (February 2020 – June 2023), funded by Global Affairs Canada and CRC, sought to improve education and protection from gender-based violence for girls in Gogrial West County. Implemented with the South Sudan Red Cross, the project also enhanced hygiene, sanitation, and COVID-19 awareness in 38 schools. Despite disruptions from the pandemic and ongoing armed conflict, the project coordinated with World Vision and the GESS (Girls Education South Sudan) program to support a safer educational environment.
With support from Global Affairs Canada, CRC assisted the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) from 2013 to 2021 in aiding Afghans affected by disasters. The project, spanning all 34 provinces, reached over 1.4 million people (36% female; 64% male) and improved ARCS’s disaster response capabilities, resulting in more efficient humanitarian assistance. It enhanced ARCS’s disaster response management through better systems and training, strengthened the Health and Care Department for improved health disaster response, and boosted organizational capacity for effective disaster management. These improvements enabled ARCS to deliver accountable, efficient, and effective relief operations. Additionally, ARCS’s Mobile Health Teams increased access to primary health care in hard-to-reach areas, notably aiding women who face significant barriers to care.
Since the 2015 earthquake in Nepal, the CRC has supported a health systems strengthening program focused on reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health (RMNCAH), particularly aiding pregnant women and adolescents. In 2024, the project evolved to support evidence-based decision-making by ministries of health and policymakers through the Nepal Climate Change and Health Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment. This initiative identifies vulnerabilities in health systems and populations, especially for families with pregnant women or newborns, to enhance and adapt SRHR services in response to climate change challenges.
Since 2017, CRC has been responding to the needs of refugees who fled from Rakhine State, Myanmar into neighbouring Bangladesh, including supporting long-term programming. From 2017 to 2021, the Canadian Red Cross, along with other Red Cross Red Crescent partners, supported Rohingya refugees with projects focused on maternal health, SGBV mitigation, and the distribution of dignity kits.
See attached summary of activities carried out.
