Welcome to Afri Afya
You are not Logged in! Log in to get more information.
Afri Afya
African Network for Health Knowledge Management and Communication.
AfriAfya (African Network for Health Knowledge Management and Communication) is a leading agency in the knowledge management and communication with rural and other marginalised communities.
Afri Afya
African Network for Health Knowledge Management and Communication is a consortium of health
NGOs that was set up in April 2000 to explore ways of harnessing information and communication
technology (ICTs) for community health and development in rural and marginalized communities.
We have in the last nine years implemented projects that seek to leverage the potential of
ICTs to increase access to community health and development information in rural Kenyan settings.
In doing this we have partnered with not only our seven founding agencies, but also with other
organizations to set up projects that provide ICT equipment and give local community members
ICT skills to enhance information and knowledge sharing. We have supported the concept of
Resource Centers as focal points both for creating and sharing health and development information
at community level.
The centers have stimulated the convergence of traditional methods of
communication with modern ICTs. This has enriched the process of creating, repackaging and
dispersing information ‘beyond the computer’. We have also established a Knowledge Management
Unit at the AfriAfya Hub in Nairobi to respond to community information requests by gathering
and repackaging from different sources both local and global. We have also diversified the
health and development topics in relation to community needs.
We have been recognized both locally and internationally for excellence and innovation in our work. AfriAfya was a finalist
in the IICD 2002 ICT stories competition, and was one of five laureates named for the prestigious
2003 Tech Museum Awards: Technology Benefiting Humanity. We have presented our work at many
forums such as the WSIS, where we have contributed in discussions on application of ICTs in
community health and development. We have established and nurtured working collaborations and
partnerships with local and international organizations. One of these partnerships named the
‘Academic NGO’ with North American Universities involves the creation of health knowledge management
systems. We host the East African Regional Network Hub. We have continued to grow our programme
and scale up activities.
We have increased our presence from initial 7 pilot sites in 2001 to about
36 sites in different parts of Kenya and Somalia in 2008. We have also explored more innovative
approaches on the use of ICTs and health and collaborated in projects that have documented their
results and impact.
Our Founding Agencies
• Aga Khan Health Services, Kenya
• African Medical Research Foundation (AMREF)
• CARE Kenya
• Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK)
• HealthNet Kenya
• Ministry of Health
• Plan Kenya
• World Vision Kenya
AfriAfya and World Vision- The Partnership
While modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have provided commercial entities,
universities, ministries, research institutions and big hospitals with information for their
activities,they have done relatively little for rural communities. Rural and poor communities
are left out of the benefits that arise from these modern ICTs-in both giving and receiving
information. Despite this being the information age, millions of children and youths have been
denied the empowerment that comes with information. Children, being the generation of the future
ought to be exposed to potentially useful health and development information that will arguably
shape a better future for them.
As a result, World Vision Kenya and AfriAfya have formed a partnership geared towards improving
the use of ICTs for increased health and development, knowledge sharing, and teaching among children,
women, and people with disabilities. With support from Australian Government AID (AusAID) and
World Vision Australia, this initiative is being implemented in three selected ADPs of World Vision Kenya
which are: Osiligi ADP in Kajiado District of Rift Valley Province, Katito ADP in Nyando district of
Nyanza province, and Taru ADP in Kwale District of Coast Province. One community learning centre (CLC)
has been established in each of the 3 ADPs and they are intended to be focal points of community
learning and a repository of knowledge. These CLCs are equipped with an assortment of ICT
equipment such as computer, printer, phones, TV, DVD, digital camera and mobile phones.
These ICTs will be used as tools to facilitate learning on health and development.
![]()
Success Stories
- 1. AfriAfya and World Vision Partner in Establishing Community Learning Centers
- 2. The Community Learning Center Project - A report by Diana Warira
- 3. Kisapuk CLC Launch
- 4. Willy Mwangi: Mukamaka Community resource centre
- 5. A Homa Bay farmer’s triumph over the striga weed: A story illustrating how the network promotes sharing of information
- 6. Orengo Paul Wycliffe: Nyakongo community resource center
- 7. ICTs add zest to the work of community health ambassadors in North Nyakach Location, Kisumu.
- 8. Linking a rural dispensary to the information highway
- 9. AfriAfya holds a successful community open day
- 10. Improving health through child-centered activities: the case of Diemo Primary School, Kisumu.
Dr Chris Wood
A warm aura and a contagious smile define the person that was Dr. Christopher Wood. Known as Chris to friends
and family, he is the man behind the inception of AfriAfya in 2001. A hilarious nature and easy attitude towards
work saw him strive through the years, his age not withstanding, to see the dissemination of health and development
information to the rural and marginalized communities through the use of ICTs. Read More
AfriAfya Biennial report 07-08
The years 2007/08 have seen an unprecedented level of growth for AfriAfya....
Addressing Local Needs with Practical Information
Deaconess Philip is known widely in King’ong’o village as a....
AfriAfya and CBHIS
Community voices are rarely heard when it comes to planning for their health....
AfriAfya and child centered activities
In 2001, a school near the shores of Lake Victoria caused a wave of excitement...
Situated in the outskirts of Kisumu City in Kenya’s Nyanza province is Barkorwa Community resource center. It is housed in the Barkorwa Mixed Primary School in Upper Kombewa Division, Kisumu West District......... Read More
Deaconess Philip is known widely in King’ong’o village as a church social worker with a heart for everyone. She is also a community educator and most new ideas that reach women in this small village in the heart of Mitaboni Division, Eastern Province have a lot to do with her efforts........ Read More
In 2001, a school near the shores of Lake Victoria caused a wave of excitement in the surrounding community when an array of ICTs – a computer, printer and a Worldspace radio landed there....... Read More
Orengo Paul Wycliffe: Nyakongo community resource center. Orengo Paul Wycliffe is a 13 years old class 8 pupil in Nyakongo Primary School, Madiany Division in Kisumu. Nyakongo Resource Centre is..... Read More