In the past year, O’bai Conteh made an important contribution to addressing sexual and reproductive health in his home country Sierra Leone. O’bai’s studies at IDS were supported by the IDS Graduate Scholarship. O’bai graduated from the IDS MA Gender and Development in 2018 and is currently working as a Project Analyst at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Sierra Leone.
The Covid-19 pandemic interrupted many dimensions of our lives. In Sierra Leone it created great uncertainty for many social services such as health and education. At UNFPA, their concern was how to address the uncertainty around the continuation of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services for women and girls. O’bai’s work as a key member of the country coordination team was to better understand uncertainty on access and utilisation of sexual and reproductive health services and navigate through it. This was done through support to communities with sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) education aimed at improving knowledge and reducing risky behaviours in adolescents and young people to prevent sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and unplanned pregnancy.
During this time, O’bai facilitated and coordinated the planning and implementation of an emergency obstetric and general surgical training programme designed to benefit rural communities. As a result, 13 surgical training students graduated with support from UNFPA. By improving the skills of mid-level healthcare personnel – such as Surgical Assistant Community Health Officers who conduct most caesarean sections in district health facilities – the programme has helped to enhance women’s access to skilled health care providers and services that can help them have a fit pregnancy, safe birth and healthy baby.
Reflecting on his time at IDS, O’bai said:
‘IDS provided a work-integrated learning opportunity for me to develop an awareness of workplace culture, and enhance critical workplace skills, such as positive leadership and communication. The knowledge and experience gained at IDS helped me foster collaboration to help vulnerable girls and women in Sierra Leone.’
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