The Capacity Project/Ethiopia and the BBC World Service Trust co-produced a 25-minute radio show, which aired October 12 on Ethiopia National Radio.

The program focused on the contribution of the Mothers’ Support Groups (MSG) toward retaining HIV-positive pregnant women in the health care system after they learn their status and providing education for prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT). MSG is a component of the Capacity Project’s PMTCT program in Ethiopia.

The radio show also featured clips from interviews with new MSG members, mentor mothers and a health provider. A Capacity Project staff member spoke about the MSG’s success in supporting HIV-positive women’s health needs and as a model social group. MSG began in three sites in 2005; by June 2008 it had scaled up to 50 sites, trained 135 mentor mothers and 60 site coordinators, enrolled 1,566 mothers in the program and graduated 234 women from the support groups.

November 2008