About us/Zambian Partners/Annual reports

It began in 2004 when a group of Swiss doctors visited Kashikishi, a remote town in northern Zambia. Due to the rampant AIDS epidemic, they encountered overwhelming numbers of orphans and vulnerable children. The society was, and still is, characterized by poverty, lack of educational opportunities, and poor health – especially sexual and reproductive health. Due to deeply engrained gender inequality, women and girls were particularly victimized. Soon thereafter Jody Stähelin founded the non-profit, non-denominational organization, Jumpstart Switzerland, with the goal of tackling these challenges.

Board of Directors

President

Jody Stähelin is an American/Swiss paediatrician, board-certified in the USA and Switzerland, who works as a clinical paediatrician in Switzerland. Her special interest is paediatric infectious diseases. Jody has been involved in health-related projects in Eastern Europe and Africa for over 20 years. In January 2012 she completed a Masters Degree in International Health at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. She has attended seminars in management of non-profit organizations at the Verbands Management Institute, Freiburg, Switzerland. Jody lives in Basel, Switzerland, is married to an innovative Swiss doctor and is the mother of two wonderful, brazenly individualistic, grown-up sons.

Treasurer

Louise Vilén, of Swedish and Canadian descent, received a Doctorate in Developmental Psychology from the University of Bern. Her PhD thesis concerned sexual risk-taking behaviour in Swiss youth. She has worked in Costa Rica and rural South Africa running programs in sexual and reproductive health. Currently she is employed as Special Advisor to the Bureau of Child Affairs in Canton Solothurn. She is married to a thoughtful medical virologist and is the mother of four young boys.

Board Member

Judith Safford, a United Kingdom/Swiss citizen, acquired her PhD in Economics at the University of Freiburg in Breisgau, Germany. Judith’s interest has focused on management of non-profit organisations, and to this end she has acquired additional training (Diplom NPO-Managerin Verbands Management Institut, Freiburg, Switzerland). Counselling and coaching can be added to her list of interests (with over 400 hours of European accredited training), as well as IT technology, in particular non-profit management software. Judith is a consultant for non-profit organisations and is engaged as a patient expert and advocate. Judith, the mother of two young adults (Lukas and Melina), still sneaks off whenever time permits to tramp along a snowy mountain slope or scamper up a rock wall.

Zambian Partner Organizations

Jumpstart Switzerland works with Zambian grass roots partner organizations in order to harness local initiative and build community capacity. All projects are conceived and planned cooperatively and implemented by the local Zambian partner organization.

Bumi Bwesu Youth Centre

Bumi Bwesu, which means “our health”, is a local centre whose goal is to promote the sexual and reproductive health of young people, in particular to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, promote family planning, reduce gender-based violence in the community as well as treat survivors of all forms of gender-based and household violence.

Lubuto Jumpstart Women's Empowerment

Lubuto means “light”: this name reflects the hope and empowerment that comes with women’s economic self-sufficiency. Lubuto evaluates income-generating projects, awards micro-credit to women, coaches fledgling businesses and monitors their progress. In addition, Lubuto provides community outreach in sexual and reproductive health, family planning, and gender issues.