The Network of Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (NEED) is an organization of 265 social entrepreneurs, committed to empowering the underprivileged sections of society, with a particular focus on women and children. Their work is carried out in one of the most populated, under-served, and poverty-stricken areas of India, namely the Northern states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Uttar Pradesh is India’s most populous state with a population of 190 million people, where 80% of the poor lives in the rural areas and approximately a third lives below the poverty line. In the state of Bihar half of its population of 90 million people live in extreme poverty. NEED endeavours to improve the living conditions of the rural and urban poor in these states by generating sustainable livelihoods and overall well-being of the community. An important strategy of NEED to realize this is by way of its health programs focused in particular on children.

NEED carries the conviction that the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being. Since many people in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar do not have access to decent and affordable health services, in particular children, NEED took up the task to initiate health programs that specifically target these most deprived groups of society. Over the years it has thoroughly expanded its outreach and diversified its program in order to touch upon the many health related issues and to further improve the capacities of the local communities to deal with it. We believe that it is not only necessary to provide health services to the poor, but that it is equally important that the communities in which we work become independent. Therefore our health programs are totally community-driven which is, in our view, the best way to mobilize people and make them self-reliant and autonomous, capable to address their own problems in a sustainable manner.

Project 'Improve Children's Health and Development With the implementation of our project ‘Improve Children’s Health and Development’ in 2007 we endeavour to reach out to all children that need health services to improve their standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of him- or herself and their family. Below we concisely elaborate on our approach to the local health problems and how we build capacities at the grassroots level:

- NEED trains local people to become Village Health Guides (VHGs) who take up the role of local health providers. The VHGs are all women who, besides providing health services, also raise awareness about various health issues, such as, HIV/AIDS, Diarrhea, Polio and hygienic issues important for children.

- Health & Sanitation Campaigns at Non Formal Education Centers and Primary Schools promoted by NEED.

- Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) are midwifes who offer care to childbearing women during their pregnancy.

- Community Women Health Literacy Centers are established and function as local centers from which health services are distributed. They are not only an important contact point for the local community but also for private and public institutions engaged in providing health services. Furthermore, these centers are engaged in advocacy.

- Depending on the grassroots realities, we organize workshops engaging policy officials, trainings, and health camps, and advocacy campaigns in the local communities to provide information on various health issues. During these meetings health manuals are distributed.

- NEED closely collaborates with private as well as public institutions dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, or the promotion, maintenance and improvement of health. These institutions also play a significant role in training local people to become VHGs.

- NEED has established Reproductive and Child Health programs (RCHs) to raise awareness about all kinds of aspects of women’s reproductive health across their reproductive cycle. Subjects such as maternal and child health care, use of contraceptives, and the safe management of unwanted pregnancies are brought up.

- NEED organizes vaccination programs to vaccinate children and pregnant women against Polio, Khasra, BCG & DPT etc.

- Local Nutrition Committees have been established to inform children and their immediate community about the risks associated to their diet, for example a low intake of iron-rich food.

- We distribute subsidized safe drinking water kits which purifies the water.

- NEED is also highly involved in advocacy and lobbying on state-level on various issues related to health.

For results please download our attachment.

• Children's Health and Dev. Program-Update May 2010 (PDF)