Thank You, Translators!
Our impact is only as strong as our partnerships. Fortunately, our enthusiastic and dedicated network of translation partners help bring our health information to people we otherwise would not reach.
When we sent out our English COVID-19 Fact Sheet at the beginning of March, we were overwhelmed by the number of people who wrote back and expressed interest in translating the information into more languages. Some were already translation partners, but we also heard from new people who were eager to do their part to address this crisis. These translators have been instrumental in helping us produce our Coronavirus (COVID-19) Fact Sheet in 20 languages in a matter of weeks. This week’s newsletter raises the curtain on Hesperian’s translation process and shines a spotlight on one of our translation stars.
Meet our long-time partner, David Katusabe. David is a founding member of COBIHESA-Community Based Initiatives in Health, Water and Sanitation, a non-profit organization formed in 2002 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Since 2002, David has been leading his team to adapt Hesperian resources for local contexts, including translation into Kiswahili. Here is what David had to say when we asked him why he believes translating health information is important:
“Simply to increase access to quality health information for millions of people all over the world who may not access it due to lack of competency in the dominant colonial languages of communication, research and knowledge development. The right to health elaborated under different international conventions and agreements can hardly be achieved without universal access to quality health information. Access to quality health information is essential for a healthy lifestyle, to reduce the risk of diseases, and, in many situations, it is the first line of protection against many health problems. The importance of universal access to quality health information is showcased in the current response to COVID 19 and a host of other health problems that affect developing countries, including HIV and AIDS, malnutrition, unsafe abortion etc.”
We are grateful to our entire network of translators for helping to ensure that language is not a barrier to being informed and making the right choices for our health! Please email us at [email protected] if you would like to translate our COVID-19 Fact Sheet into your language.