Our Story
SNEHA is a non-profit organisation that works with women, children and families in communities; and with public health and safety systems. Our innovative work in vulnerable settlements aims to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity, child malnutrition, reduce adolescent anaemia and gender-based violence - all key determinants of health equity for the family and the community at large.
SNEHA's Journey
In the early 1990s, neonatologist Dr. Armida Fernandez and her team were routinely caring for underweight and premature infants born into low-income households. These households often faced poor nutritional and health outcomes,especially among mothers and children. Dr. Fernandez and her team wanted to develop sustainable interventions that would go beyond simply providing stop gap solutions.
They spent time in Mumbai’s low-income settlements, learning about the compounding challenges of lack of information, resources and access to quality health services. SNEHA was thus established in 1999 to work on the twin goals of improving health-seeking behaviour among underserved communities and improving quality of public health services. Today, SNEHA is a 500+ person-strong organisation with extensive on-ground experience in helping build healthy lives of urban women and children. Its vision, mission and values affirm its commitment to the health of vulnerable women, children and families.
We are working towards bridging the health equity gap and going beyond fighting illness to ‘Raising Health for All’.
Milestones
1999
A group of philanthropists and neonatologists working in Mumbai’s largest public hospitals launch SNEHA
2000
The Centre for Violence against Women and Children established in the low-income settlements of Dharavi
2004
Launch of the City Initiative for Newborn Health, an initiative in partnership with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and University College London
2007
Sure Start Project launched in partnership with PATH and Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai to improve quality of maternal and neonatal health care
2011
India’s largest urban Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) programme launched for children aged 0-3 years in Dharavi
2012
Received a five-year grant from Wellcome Trust for a cluster randomised controlled trial testing the effectiveness of community health resource centres
2013
Awarded a grant from WHO’s Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research to scale and strengthen referral systems for maternal and newborn health
2015
Upscaled our maternal and newborn health referral system beyond Mumbai to six neighbouring municipal corporations
2016
SNEHA chosen as ‘Mother NGO’ by National Urban Health Mission, Maharashtra to form women’s groups (Mahila Arogya Samitis) in communities across Maharashtra
2017
Launched a cluster randomised controlled trial in partnership with University College London on community interventions for prevention of violence against women and girls
2018
SNEHA designated nodal agency for training police personnel across 91 Mumbai police stations
2019
Department of Women and Child Development, Maharashtra, appointed SNEHA as “Implementing Agency” to run Mumbai’s first 24/7 ‘One Stop Center’.
2020
SNEHA deepened community interventions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to address food insecurity, increase uptake of Government social protection schemes, support public health systems for COVID-19 screening and related support
2021
Launched a new programme on Prevention of Violence against Children with a goal to ensure children’s safety and well-being.
2022
Started Mumbai's first palliative care OPD in partnership with Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation