Projects in Peru

Community Health

The Community Health Project has been active in Peru since 2002. Community Health Facilitators work directly with health service providers and school professionals to promote healthy behaviors that will contribute to the reduction of malnutrition, anemia, and adolescent pregnancy in rural communities.

Community Health Facilitators strengthen the capacity and enhance the efforts of health professionals and community health promoters to encourage the adoption of healthy behaviors, increasing the effectiveness of the Integrated Health Service Model.

Community Health Facilitators also leverage relationships and capacity-building methodologies to work effectively with health service providers and school professionals to strengthen their capacity to deliver curriculum focused on sexual reproductive health and life skills, and to provide systems of support to youth to make positive lifestyle choices. This work entails collaborating with local high schools to form youth peer educator groups to help promote and sustain healthy behavior change, such as improved life skills, leadership, and adolescent pregnancy prevention. Community Health Facilitators use interactive and participatory training approaches to model how to train to sexual and reproductive health topics more effectively, so teachers and youth peer educators learn how to apply these training methods in their work.

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene

The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) project began in 2008 after a major earthquake struck the southern zone of Peru. WASH is focused on rural areas of the highlands of the country WASH Facilitators focus on strengthening the capacity of local government authorities and local water committees to develop Water and Sanitation Safety Plans and stronger management practices of the water and sanitation services, such us administration, operation, and maintenance.

At local health centers, WASH Facilitators work with the environmental health personnel and/or the health promotion area to improve sanitation education training in households and schools. This work could include rational use of water, water treatment at home, and teaching proper hand washing techniques. WASH facilitators also promote environmental projects in schools.

Community Economic Development

The Community Economic Development (CED) program seeks to enhance the capacity of the most vulnerable populations, especially women and youth in rural communities, to expand their economic opportunities in income generation, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy so that they can achieve economic security and improve their quality of life.

Volunteers collaborate with a diverse range of community partners. These partners include local government entities, such as: economic and social development offices, women's groups, producer associations, artisan associations, schoolteachers, students, community-based organizations, government social programs, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

CED Volunteer work includes:

• Training women's groups, small business owners, and students in basic personal money management skills such as creating personal/household budgets, maintaining financial records, developing financial plans, and related topics.
• Establishing and operating community savings groups (CSGs), which are small, community-formed groups that provide savings and lending services at the community level.
• Training youth in entrepreneurial behaviors and providing foundational business skills at high schools and technical institutions. This includes training high school teachers in planning and delivering entrepreneurship courses for their students.
• Training community members, with a strong focus on women, in personal development (self-esteem, leadership, personal vision, etc.) and basic business skills including market assessment, business planning, bookkeeping, and marketing.

Youth in Development

The Youth Development project has been active in Peru since 2004. Youth Development Facilitators work directly with youth service providers and youth to build life and vocational skills and enhance their engagement in the community. A primary role is supporting the implementation of tutoring programs in local high schools. Youth Development Facilitators work with tutoring coordinators to co-facilitate education topics focused on career orientation and parenting schools’ programs.

Youth Development Facilitators support local governments who are expected to deliver summer camps and extracurricular activities like sports, music, and dance programs. Finally, Youth Development Facilitators train and support youth service providers in the implementation of positive youth development activities such as project design and management workshops.