Sisters COVID-19 Response: Final Report

Facing an unprecedented moment, and with the support of GHR, SRW teamed up with Alight to reach over 1,300 Sisters and 54,000 people in their communities across 37 countries, getting them the tools they need to keep their communities safe.

The Approach

From mid-April through July 2020, we convened hundreds of Sisters, helping protect those most at risk. Our approach included three phases, each tailored to support these community’s unique needs and context:

1. Provide individualized, virtual emergency planning sessions and training with Alight medial supervisors.
2. Channel more resources to Sisters, to supply things like masks, protection gear, gloves, and soap, according to their specific needs.
3. Sent digital health messaging toolkits, developed by Alight and translated for each context, so that Sisters can share with their communities.

The Impact

Training

*72 COVID-19 prevention and preparedness trainings conducted
*722 Sisters in attendance

Resources

*56 projects, supported by a micro-grant of $1,000 each
*564 Sisters supported by micro-grants
*Reached 23 countries across Africa, Latin America, Asia, & the Middle East
*In total, 54,000 people were supported through the micro-grants

Messaging
More than 19 million people were reached through Sisters via Alight’s In Our Hands COVID-19 prevention messaging campaign, distributed through context-relevant social media, radio, and television messages, as well as posters, flyers, face-to-face messaging, and more

Sisters in Action

Through $1,000 micro-grants, we channeled support to Sisters in some of the most marginalized communities in the world. With the flexibility of the micro-grant, Sisters were empowered to provide the resources specific to each neighborhood, each town, each country.

*Sister Cynthia in Bihar, India provided food security support and soap for daily laborers, who were deeply affected by COVID-19 lockdowns.
*Sister Ruth in Kenya stocked up on much-needed masks, scrubs, and personal protection equipment for the health clinic she runs.
*Sister Astridah in Zambia set up hand washing stations, gloves, and soap in her community, as well as pioneered a COVID-19 prevention and information radio program with In Our Hands messaging, reaching thousands of people.
*And Sister Estela in Ecuador was able to purchase critical medications, delivering them to 75 seniors who were able to stay safe at home.

The Global Sisters COVID-19 Response was a co-creation of  Sisters Rising Worldwide, Alight, GHR, IDEO.org, a diverse group of Catholic Sister communities, and a cohort of private sector physicians, working to activate and unite Catholic Sisters for a global COVID-19 prevention and response program.