Barrial Blanco

  • Overview
  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Business
  • Public Health

Overview

Barrial Blanco is located in the Province of Comarca Ngabe-Bugle and Global Brigades began working with community members in March 2021. Community members have access to credit through an established and thriving community bank which will support continued investment in local businesses and home improvement projects for families within the community. People in Barrial Blanco are primarily dedicated to agriculture and trading. Global Brigades is currently working with Business brigades in Barrial Blanco and the community is on the wait-list for eventual Holistic Model implementation as part of Global Brigades’ strategic plan in Panama.

Corregimiento: Ngabe-Bugle
District: Ngabe-Bugle

Homes : 23
Population : 155
Water System : Not Started
Community Bank : Not Started
Electricity : No
Health Center : No
Community Health Workers : Active Implementation
% of Homes with Latrines : 83%
Education in the Community : No schools in the community
Distance from Lodging Facility (km) : 37 KM

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Barrial Blanco but has not yet begun with the Medical Brigades program. Now in the planning phase, mobile clinics will start as soon as feasible.

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS:

A group of CHWs from East Panama, trained in 2019

Barrial Blanco has 1 Community Health Worker currently in training. Community Health Workers, or Agentes Comunitarios en Salud (ACeS), work on a volunteer basis as advocates for healthcare within their communities.

Their primary responsibilities include: educating community members to prevent common illnesses, providing emergency first aid, supporting pregnant mothers and newborns, and following up with chronic patients. The presence of these volunteers and their advocacy for health within their community contributes to the sustainability of healthcare supported by Global Brigades’ Medical Program and is one of the most impactful disease prevention strategies in rural communities.

Community Health Workers : Active Implementation
Distance from Nearest Health Center : 3 KM
Common Illnesses in Children : Common colds, diarrhea
Common Illnesses in Adults : High blood pressure, common cold

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Barrial Blanco but has not yet begun with the Dental Brigades program.  Now in the planning phase, mobile clinics will start as soon as feasible.

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

BARRIAL BLANCO’S ECONOMIC CHALLENGE

Community members in Barrial Blanco typically lack access to financial resources locally. The majority of them don’t have bank accounts and there are only limited informal forms of credit available. For example, a person could obtain ‘credit’ at a local store by buying something now and paying later, simply adding it to their ‘tab,’ but there would be no formalized credit transaction.

Larger financial institutions do not approve loans to community members without a fixed income, making it difficult for local micro-enterprises to grow and thrive. Most community members have to travel to the nearest city to be able to open a bank account. Even if individuals wish to travel the distance, not all community members can become members of these financial institutions since the bank requires a fixed income to do so.

6

Volunteers

44

Loans Disbursed

BARRIAL BLANCO’S MICROFINANCE SOLUTION

The Business Program works to stimulate the local economy by organizing community volunteers around a community bank, or caja rural, which is entirely owned and operated by its members. The Business Program provides training and support to help strengthen these community banks. In order to pool their limited funds together, increase the capital available to the community bank, and expand the impact of its financial services, each member contributes a capitalization fee for which they receive a proportional amount of the bank’s dividends at the end of its fiscal year. Upon the completion of six months of executive board training, the community bank begins giving out loans to bank members to spur economic growth and home improvement projects.

Barrial Blanco’s community bank was established in 2021 with the support of Global Brigades.  

BARRIAL BLANCO’S BUSINESS SOLUTION

Building off of a strong relationship developed in partnership with Global Brigades as a Holistic Community, Barrial Blanco looks to receive financial training and business consulting to expand and improve its local microenterprises.

As members of the Community Bank, Barrial Blanco’s micro-enterprises, contribute to savings accounts and budget for loans to expand their businesses in the future. Through the help of Business Brigades, clients get advice on their most concerning business challenges and can also receive assistance in developing sustainable agriculture practices since many local businesses are based on cultivating produce and raising animals.

BUSINESS VOLUNTEERS IN BARRIAL BLANCO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
St. Thomas University April 2022 6

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Barrial Blanco but has not yet begun with the Public Health Brigades program. Now in the planning phase, the delivery and installation of household health products will start as soon as feasible.

% of homes with latrines : 83%
% of homes with eco stoves : 100%
% of homes with water filters : 0
Common house materials : Wood, Mud, Zinc

Local Reference Points

View the map to see the closest volunteer lodging facilities, hospitals, and other relevant points of reference.

  • Feature