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>>Halima
Shaikh 
Pimpalgoan Unda Village
Coming from very little,
Halima is living proof of the power of change.
Known only as somebody’s wife
or somebody’s daughter, Halima received little respect as a poor
Muslim woman in a village comprised predominately of Hindus. As
a big gambler, her husband took all of her earnings, lost their
house and farm, and accumulated large amounts of debt. When she
approached money lenders, she could not get a loan because she
had nothing to her name. That, however, didn’t stop them from
lending to her husband who again and again gambled it away.
Like many in her situation, daily life was hardly bearable.
When the Comprehensive Rural
Health Project (“CRHP”) came to her village, she was selected as
a Community Health Worker (“CHW”), a job that few in the
community valued at the time. She was illiterate, and on her
first day at CRHP she did not have the courage to say a word.
Although there was no food at her home, she was able to eat
through the nutritional program at CRHP and gain valuable health
training that she took back to her village. At first, Halima
hesitated when going from house to house as part of the
immunization program. With the support of teammates and with
the practical training from CRHP twice a week, Halima gained
confidence in making house calls.
Halima has helped create
change in many areas in her village including health, business,
and education. She describes one widespread belief on pregnancy
that she fought, “Women thought they should eat less so that the
babies would be smaller and they would have fewer complications
like c-sections. Even though women already get less food in the
household, I had to educate them that they should eat more food
for the babies to be healthy.” During her time as a CHW, not
one of the mothers or babies that Halima delivered died - a
drastic change from before. Halima went on to form women’s
groups among five villages not only to spread knowledge like
prenatal care and family planning but also to build friendships
across castes and encourage women to support each other through
lending clubs. Halima explains, “Through CRHP, women’s clubs
would get loans to purchase goats, cows, sewing machines, and
shops. With access to these resources, they were able to earn
more income and reduce their family poverty.” Most recently,
Halima helped raise money for a high school in her village so
that girls can now study up to 10th grade. Girls from four
different villages now come from up to 10km away to attend
school.
As compared to her first days
at CRHP, Halima is no longer quiet in nature. She is well
respected in the village and now trains other health workers in
her community. She advises other CHWs, “To be a good CHW you
need to listen carefully to others. You need to treat everyone
in the village like a family member. Most importantly you
cannot act too prideful or no one will let you help them.”
Halima has come a far way, now with 15 saris as compared to
before when she only had one that she washed and rewashed every
day. She makes a good profit from her various businesses to
live on and now owns a house and farm. Times for her and her
family have indeed changed. Now most of the families call her
doctor, invite her for tea, and give her a lot of respect. She
is no longer just someone’s wife or daughter. Halima leaves us
with one parting thought, “Because of the love and support of
CRHP, we changed a lot. And, that’s why we think other
communities can change like us.”
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