The situation

Cambodia has been spared the brunt of the virus in our various areas of operation. In mid-March, the Cambodian government took strict measures to avoid population movements. Today, the kingdom remains one of the few countries not to have suffered any casualties. On the socio-economic front, however, there are major concerns, with the crisis affecting three of the country's economic engines: tourism, manufactured exports and foreign direct investment. These engines account for 70% of the country's growth and 40% of its paid employment.

THE SITUATION

The ‘big island’ closed its borders on 19 March and a state of health emergency was declared two days later. The confinement and restrictions on movement between the different regions of the country are severely hampering commercial and economic activities, and the people who make their living from selling their agricultural or fishing produce are particularly hard hit by this market paralysis. The families of groundnut growers that we support are particularly hard hit.

Within our learning community, I have been looking more specifically at intersectionality (a concept aimed at revealing the plurality of discrimination) in gender-based violence. When it interacts with other forms of exclusion based on origin, socio-economic status, age, etc., the effects accumulate and shape their sense of power, resilience and position in social and economic life. Our programme to support healthcare systems in Bolivia therefore takes into account the many forms of marginalisation faced by women.

In Cambodia, women are supported to engage in sustainable agricultural practices and entrepreneurial activities. For example, after joining a savings group, they have access to more goods and services and can then take on a greater role within their families. Several women have even initiated their own women farmers' group to discuss community issues, but also health and wellbeing aspects.

Every year, our team welcomes many interns, students and researchers who are interested in our projects. So it's only natural that we should call on this pool of motivation and knowledge to help us analyse and develop our approach to gender and our actions aimed specifically at women. Three students answered our call. They share their experiences with us.

Why did you choose to do your internship at LC?

Louvain Coopération and its partners are implementing numerous actions aimed, directly or indirectly, at equality between women and men. At the dawn of our new five-year programme, it was essential to question the diversity of approaches chosen by these projects, their contextualisation, the methodologies used and, of course, the objectives of societal transformation targeted.

Louvain Coopération is also active in Burundi to improve access to healthcare through community health insurance schemes. This year, a brand new initiative is taking shape, with a particular focus on women's health and women's representation within the mutual health organisations.

Since 2006, Mutualités Libres and Louvain Coopération have been working together to create and develop health mutuals to guarantee access to healthcare for the entire population. These structures play a vital role in women's health. Christian Horemans, International Affairs Expert at the Union nationale des Mutualités Libres, and Brice Titipo, Head of the Access to Healthcare and Health Promotion Programme in West Africa for Louvain Coopération, talk about our joint health projects. Interview.

The mutual health insurance schemes that we support in Burundi give affiliated women access to all pregnancy-related care. But until now, more serious illnesses such as cervical or breast cancer were not covered. This is about to change. "Many women die in ignorance. They are treated by healers when they could be treated more quickly and effectively if they were diagnosed early enough. It's vital that they are made aware of the existence of these diseases and how to recognise them," insists Dr Jeanine.

In December, Hélène, Manon and Gwendolyn, three medical students at UCLouvain, completed a placement in Cambodia at one of our partner hospitals. One of them reflects on this human and medical experience.