2022 was the last year of activities in the Bomoyi project. However, at the end of 2022 Sanru asked for a costed extension of 2MSEK and additional 6 months to finalise certain activities. The reason for the costed extension relates to large exchange losses which resulted in Sanru not being able to finalise some activities that were deemed important to achieve the objectives set out in the project. The Embassy approved the costed extension of 2MSEK in order for Sanru to finalise the following planned activities:
Purchase and transport of essential medicines (as well as storage fees).
Purchase and install solar panels in 2 ISTMs and 98 Health Facilities .
Final audit.
Field visits to project sites to supervise and ensure activities completion.
With the additional 2 MSEK the Bomoyi project budget increased to SEK 89 386 329. During 2022, the second cohort of 121 A1 nurses were fully trained and graduated. Sanru recruited their target of 120 nurses, but one nurse who had heard of the conversion training asked to be added to the training at own cost, raising the number to 121 nurses.
During the course of implementation, it was observed that Sanru had rehabilitated/constructed clinics that the midwives being trained were not affiliated to. In 2021, a recommendation was made for Sanru to try and rehabilitate clinics that the midwives in training will return to or be recruited to. During 2022 it was noted that a number of midwives who had returned back to the clinics where they used to work, had left their jobs due to lack of motivation and lack of material and equipment to conduct care according to what they had learned during their training. This underpins the observation made in 2021 that Sanru should have refurbished clinics where nurses were associated and/or deployed nurses to the newly constructed facilities which were equipped sufficiently by the Bomoyi project.
Despite this a decrease of child death rates was noted in both Kasai and Maniema. In Kasai it went from 131 per 100.000 live births in 2019 to 33.9 in 2022, and in Maniema it went from 204 per 100.000 live births in 2019 76 per 100.000 live births in 2022.
During field visits it has been noted how well anchored the project is in provincial and local structures. There has been active participation and engagement from DPS and ISTM during meetings with them during field visits. The provincial ministries have been present at important ceremonies such as the 2022 graduation ceremonies of the second cohort. Following the ceremonies of the second cohort, the provincial governors in the 2 provinces committed to facilitate the assignment of the midwives to Sanru rehabilitated and equipped centers, and reassured them that they would do what was necessary to ensure that the assigned midwives would receive a salary from the Congolese government. Upon receiving the end term evaluation, it will also be important to assess the added value of piloting the 18 month curriculum (instead of using the national 12-month curriculum), which includes 6 months clinical training (placement at a maternity center). During 2022, the Bomoyi supported Midwife Alain Bakangana Mungu, from ISTM Kindu, successfully finalised his PhD at Great Lake University of Kisumu. He was supervised by Professor Malin Bogren from Gothenburg University (UGOT) as assistant supervisor through the MOU Sanru has had with UGOT. Alain Bakangana Mungu graduated 7 Nov 2022 with a PhD thesis titled: Training Midwives on the effects of rational use of oxytocin in Maniema Province Case Of 5 Basic Maternity Hospitals in Kindu City (DRC).
Based on their findings from the Bomoyi project, Sanru in 2022 managed to work on a peer-reviewed research article, published in the Journal of Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health, titled Assessing the Accessibility and Healthcare Quality of Maternal and Child Health Services in Health Facilities of Kasai Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo: A CrossSectional Study.
There are impressive findings on how the Bomoyi project has increased the coverage of midwives in the two provinces with declining child deaths as a result. This will be covered in the statement on the final report and evaluation as well as the 2023 CoP.
