The Situation
Pro Mujer is a leading women's organization in Latin America. Founded in 1990, Pro Mujer pioneered an integrated approach to empowering women based on a unique delivery model and a growing suite of financial, health, and education services. The organization has impacted more than 2 million women across Latin America, the majority of whom work in the informal sector as micro-entrepreneurs (e.g., food vendors in local markets, artisans, and shopkeepers). Pro Mujer expanded to Nicaragua in 1996, where it currently serves 43,000 women and their families.
The Roadblock
Since 2018, political protests and civil unrest have flared in Nicaragua, disproportionately impacting women. Unemployment and gender-based violence continue to soar, and lack of access to healthcare continues to put women at risk. Pro Mujer has persevered in supporting low-income women and their families in this climate. But the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the need for its services among vulnerable communities and has threatened women's access to essential services, including healthcare.
Open Road's Response
With a charitable grant of $50,000 from ORA, Pro Mujer implemented chatbot technology via WhatsApp to provide verified COVID-19 information to patients. Leveraging a database of existing Pro Mujer patients, the chatbot identifies patients exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms and provides location-specific protocols to obtaining care and treatment. In Nicaragua, the chatbot will serve approximately 43,000 women clients and their family members, providing tailored information, follow-up care, and one-on-one counseling.
To learn more visit: promujer.org