In the third episode of Change Voices frayintermedia CEO Paula Fray talks to Naomi Tulay-Solanke, all the way from Liberia, about how to start and sustain an organisation.

Naomi is the founder and director of Community Health Initiative and is at the forefront of providing health access to marginalised communities. While her initial aims focused on reproductive health and education for young girls, Naomi had the added challenge of starting her organisation amid the crisis of an Ebola epidemic.

Her work is groundbreaking. She helps women get improved access to healthcare while developing sustainable solutions to their problems.

Naomi is increasing reproductive health awareness and helping to keep young girls in schools, partly by breaking cultural taboos around issues such as menstruation. She has also developed an effective, reusable sanitary pad made from locally available materials though her Pad4Girls project, which helps keep girls in school during their menstrual periods. The young girls make the pads themselves while she trains women’s cooperatives to produce a version certified by the Ministry of Health, that is sold to generate income.

In this episode Naomi shares some of the challenges in starting and sustaining an organisation, as well as lessons learned along the way.