A Mother & Child Community Development Initiative Chilenje, Zambia

Our Charity & How We Help On The Ground

46% of the population lives in extreme poverty.

A brief insight

Zambia which was formerly Northern Rhodesia was an English protectorate until 1964, the year of Zambian independence. There was a forward thinking development of the education system under the English protectorate. This emphasis on education became part of the Zambian tradition and even today a very high percentage of children are attending school.

According to a recent United Nations Development Report, Zambia is regarded as the least developed landlocked country where 46% of the population lives in extreme poverty.

Post colonial policy responses were driven by concerns for social justice but falling commodity prices and regional conflicts resulted in a long period of economic decline. Market-orientated reforms in the 1990's partly contributed to rates of economic growth of about 4.5% per annum. Nevertheless growth with equity remains a major need if Zambia is to make sustainable progress in reducing human poverty.

In Zambia HIV/AIDS is a major contributor to capacity erosion. The prevalence is currently about 16% and poses unprecedented threats. Burdens increasingly fall on women and children (the official prevalence rate among women in 2005 was between 18 and 20%). The epidemic has produced more than 1 million orphans in a country of 11.3 million. This makes HIV/AIDS a generational challenge ravaging social, economic, civil, and political life and the natural environment.

The primary consequences of poverty & HIV:

1. Poverty is a major obstacle to children being educated, which is the most effective way to break the cycle of poverty.
2. In tragic situations where both parents have died of HIV the eldest child, sometimes as young as ten, is thrust into a head of household role and will valiantly attempt to hold the remaining family together.
3. When a family calamitously breaks down the children take to the streets for survival. Zambia has a large population of street orphans.

Zambia: People & Culture

• although Zambia has a profusion of people from different ethnic backgrounds, tension is virtually non existent
• Zambia's social structure is defined by the immediate & extended family
• fertility is a culturally vital part of a woman's identity
• HIV positive women are often stigmatised socially and are fearful of coming forward for testing and treatment
• in general men do not come forward for testing

ARV drugs, which greatly increase the longevity of positive HIV patients, are available in Zambia. However, coming forward for the necessary testing requires enormous courage because of the profound stigma attached to HIV. Overcoming the social stigma of HIV is the first step towards overcoming the disease itself. For HIV positive pregnant women healthcare options are available which can greatly decrease the chance that her baby will be born HIV positive. In addition, simple preventative training, as regards mother to child transmission, can also be accessed. In many cases, it is when a women becomes pregnant that she wants to know her HIV status. It is at this critical point that positive health intervention can and needs to take place.

Community Care: The Solution

Community care projects being developed are the most effective way of bringing education and support to their communities.