We’re excited to share in this newsletter the impact of our work in collaboration with our learning partners, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and Emory University. Our commitment to finish the job in water and health in Zambia is to reach everyone, everywhere work with clean water in 29 areas of Zambia (1 million people) and upgrade 150 rural health clinics in these areas.
The upgrade of health clinics includes providing clean water directly on premises, handwashing stations, flush toilets and showers, and ways to manage waste including infectious waste. We train community health workers to diagnose and address the leading causes of illness. We also improve health by providing communities with access to clean water and improved sanitation and hygiene.
UNC collaboration
To better understand what’s working and where lives are truly being changed through our finish the job work, World Vision partnered with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). Together, we took a close look at our work in Luwingu District in northern Zambia.
What we did
We sought to understand how our work, which includes a partnership with the Zambian government, is helping people live healthier lives. The UNC team used a variety of approaches to review our program, including a review of program data, evaluations, and documents, and a mix of conducting new household surveys, health facility assessments, and in-depth conversations with caregivers and frontline health workers. This approach allowed us to examine our program from a variety of angles to see both the hard data and the real-life experiences behind it—how community-based care is improving, health facilities are being upgraded, and access to lifesaving services is expanding.
Impact measured
What we have found so far is deeply encouraging. Based on program evaluation and healthcare facility survey data, there is clear evidence of progress in reducing pneumonia, malaria, and diarrhea, and in improving water and sanitation. Parents and other caregivers are seeking treatment sooner when their children are sick. Community health workers now have the tools and training to diagnose and manage childhood illnesses close to home. Families are better protected against malaria and diarrheal disease. And health facilities supported through this work are safer, cleaner, and more dignified places—especially for mothers and newborns. Taken together, the evidence shows how smart, strategic investments—at both the household and facility level—deliver measurable, lasting impact and help children not just survive, but truly thrive. We are excited to share more results as the analysis continues.
Research summaries
Here are summaries of the evaluations conducted in Zambia by UNC:
Measuring impact on elimination of extreme poverty
World Vision’s Beyond Access is our proven effort to help eliminate extreme poverty by effective sequencing of behavior change, water access, and economic empowerment. It is a specific effort to build agency and opportunity for women while including men as part of the process.
Simply put, when households believe they can change their situation for the better and when women gain time and energy because they are not hauling water, they can then learn business skills and earn an income that lifts their families out of poverty.
Emory Collaboration
We partnered with Emory University and local learning partners to refine our program approach and measure Beyond Access program resultsin the four countries where we began implementation (Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya and Zimbabwe).
Across all four countries, women earning income from small businesses or employment increased by an average of 42 percentage points. Women with personal savings increased by an average of 51 percentage points. In addition, by participating in savings groups, gaining access to capital and financial literacy, and learning business skills, women increased their incomes and built their savings.
Perhaps most encouraging was the increased participation of women in community decision-making around water and sanitation services, which increased by an average of 31%. When women have voice and agency in decisions that affect their daily lives, the benefits cascade throughout the household and community.
World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. Motivated by our faith in Jesus Christ, we serve alongside the poor and oppressed as a demonstration of God’s unconditional love for all people. World Vision serves all people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.
In 2024, 87% of World Vision's total operating expenses were used for programs that benefit children, families, and communities in need. Learn More.
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