France, May 31 -- In the dim light of early morning in eastern Kenya, Lucia ties a shawl around her head, hauls a red backpack on to her shoulders and sets out on foot.The bag contains only a few essential medicines, but for the families in this remote village, it may as well contain miracles.

For more than 10 years, Lucia has been the closest thing to a doctor many here have seen.

She is a Community Health Worker, or CHW - part of a vast but often overlooked network of women who quietly sustain Kenya's rural healthcare system.

Every day before sunrise, she walks up to 20 kilometres on dusty paths and rocky hills to visit people in their homes - checking on pregnant mothers, tending to sick childrenand referring emergency cases to dist...