S2E5 : Ismahan Ahmed Adan on Bydelsmødre (District Mothers) in Norway

“We don’t work for the government, that’s really important because the trust between us and the women we support is the most important.” These are the words of Ismahan Ahmed Adan (30), a part-time student of Bachelors in Social Work, a multicultural doula at Oslo university hospital, and volunteer at Bydelsmødre, that translates as ‘’District Mothers’’. Commenced in 2016, Bydelsmødre now has 131 branches in Oslo, in 6 different districts. It focuses on supporting women especially the ones isolated and mothers who are not receiving help in their communities and are unable to contact public institutions. They're given a wide range of support such as translating letters from their children’s school, or initiating the application process for kindergarten, or access to resources such as where to learn Norwegian language or basic rights. ‘Bydelsmødre acts like a cultural bridge by eliminating language barriers and building trust in their communities,’ said Ismahan who was raised in Oslo with roots in Somalia and is fully aware of how crucial this bridge is to empower the women, who trust them to understand their problems better than anyone else. “The initiative that hasn't been in Norway for such a long time, but the impact and the success stories have been so many,” cited Ismahan, who is hopeful to see that every district or neighbourhood in Oslo will have a district mother. About European Initiatives For An Inclusive Society:The Oslo Desk was invited to contribute to a third study visit of the Family+ project in Oslo under a three-day conference between 11th and 13th March. The project aims to overcome the social exclusion of families through family education and empowerment activities, adapted to the needs of the disadvantaged and migrant families. Therefore the conference is part of exchanging knowledge and practices between Germany, Sweden and Norway. However, the conference was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown measures. In collaboration with Oslo VO Rosenhof, an adult learning centre, and funded by Erasmus plus programme of the European Union, are we able to produce a podcast season and series of articles. Text and Podcast cover by Ka Man Mak and Kriti Thepade. Podcast production by Ka Man Mak and Alex Whateley.  Articles by Maria Cecelia Ingles Read articles: www.oslodesk.com