663 million people around the world don’t have access to clean water. Join us in prayer for children and families who are thirsty and lack this most basic necessity.
Why World Vision is in Zambia
Ongoing challenges for Zambia include rural poverty and high unemployment levels. To address these issues, World Vision offered business skills trainings so men and women could start small businesses and provide for their children. Savings groups we started continue to flourish and spread to new communities, so members can accrue small funds for emergencies and access loans to build their businesses. One third of the population does not have access to clean water and one half lives without adequate sanitation. In 2010, we began a clean water campaign, and since then, 614,508 Zambians have gained access to safe drinking water, including 152,301 adults and children in 2015. Waterborne illnesses have been drastically reduced for children as a result of the availability of safe water within 500 meters of their homes, as well as hygiene and sanitation trainings. We worked closely with the Ministry of Health to distribute mosquito nets that guard against malaria. All family members were tested for malaria, even if they didn’t show symptoms, as people can carry the malaria parasite without feeling sick.
We never give up on people
World Vision child sponsorship looks at all the things that prevent children from surviving and thriving in their community, and then works with that community to bring all the pieces of the puzzle together to build a better life for all children. For sponsors, it’s a personal way to show God’s love to a child in need in a life-changing way.
Sponsor a child in Zambia ❯
Progress in Zambia
Thanks to the generous support of donors, we’re making great progress toward the well-being of children and their families.
Child Protection and Care
Boys and girls are safe and valued, well cared for by their families, and participating in their communities as agents of transformation.
- To increase household incomes, we established and strengthened savings and loan groups and trained farmers and community members in business management and entrepreneurship.
- Farmers attended sessions on conservation farming techniques that taught them to increase agricultural production, improve community resiliency after natural disasters, and reduce deforestation.
- We worked to raise community awareness about the negative effects of child abuse and early marriage in order to improve child protection and well-being.
- Farmers were trained on improved irrigation equipment and technologies and received affordable loans to develop their businesses.
- World Vision helped create savings groups, provide business training for women, and helped entrepreneurs market and increase the value of their products.
- We strengthened the prevention of and response to gender-based violence by strengthening survivor services, response efforts, and engagement with boys and men.
Healthy Children and Families
Children and families are well nourished, protected from infection and disease, and have access to essential health services.
- To improve hygiene and sanitation practices, we constructed latrines in local schools and conducted community trainings on the importance of proper waste disposal, latrine use, and handwashing.
- To improve access to safe and clean water, we constructed and rehabilitated borehole wells, trained water committees to manage and repair water sources, and provided training for households in home water treatment techniques.
- In order to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS, Anti AIDS clubs in local schools were strengthened and community health volunteers were trained in prevention of mother-to-child transmission and voluntary counseling and testing services.
- Health and nutrition for mothers and children improved when we provided education to the community on preventing and treating malnutrition and malaria.
- 1,172,790 long-lasting, insecticide-treated nets were distributed, helping to protect 2,824,513 children and family members from malaria.
- 76,500 rapid diagnostic tests, 17,230 malaria treatments, and 45,620 preventative malaria treatments for pregnant women were delivered to local health facilities.
- We provided safe water to communities through installing new wells and water points and rehabilitating existing ones.
- We promoted improved sanitation and hygiene behavior change consistent with good health and nutrition, including effective use and maintenance of hygienic toilets; handwashing with soap after contact with feces and before preparing or eating food; safe drinking water storage and handling; safe disposal of infant feces; sanitary garbage disposal; and proper dishwashing, drying, and storage.
Education for Better Lives
Children have opportunities to learn and to develop their talents, young people are equipped for the future, and families and communities support children's education.
- Parent Teacher Association members and community leaders were trained in the Citizen Voice and Action method to advocate for improved quality education for both girls and boys. CVA helps participants learn to organize and effectively communicate about issues that affect their well-being, such as education and healthcare.
- In order to improve literacy, we trained and strengthened reading clubs and conducted reading competitions at local schools.
- We worked with local partners, including the Ministry of Education, to encourage parents to become more involved in their children's education.
- We improve literacy skills of early grade learners through a mobile reading game that assists struggling students in local language literacy. We also solicit local stories and folktales from community members to use with students with comprehension questions to improve their literacy.
Love of God and Neighbors
Children and families are growing spiritually, local churches are strengthened to demonstrate Christ's love in practical ways, and people are living at peace with their neighbors.
- Our local staff served children and families as a demonstration of God’s unconditional love, seeking always to be faithful ambassadors of Jesus—the reason for our hope.
- We are working closely with churches, helping expand their children’s ministries through Bible camps and Good News clubs. Churches are also helping parents learning better parenting skills, based on biblical values of communication, mutual respect, and loving discipline.
Prayer Requests from Zambia
World Vision's staff in Zambia are asking us to join them in prayer for the following:
Entrepreneurs who are getting small businesses off the ground.
More Zambians to be trained to fix wells, so water sources remain sustainable.
News from Zambia
Blessings overflow: Everlyn’s future is bright because of clean water
Everlyn’s in school, her mother’s garden is thriving, and her family’s faith is stronger. Child sponsorship and clean water have made all the difference.
From the Field
Despite fear, Nivesh walks for water
Though she fears being abducted and killed, 11-year-old Nivesh fetches water from a stream in southern Zambia three times a day to keep her family alive.
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