Village Health Works

Fighting Poverty with an Integrated Approach in Burundi

Location: Burundi, Africa

Village Health Works (VHW):  Grantee in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015

Village Health Works is an innovative, comprehensive health and community development organization that has operated in Burundi since 2007, one of the world’s poorest and most neglected nations.  The VHS model integrates health care with food security and nutrition, business and financial literacy education, and income-generation through agricultural and craft cooperatives. 

It maintains a modern, 45-bed hospital that provides preventive, primary, and emergency care to as many as 175 patients every day.  VHW also has agriculture, livestock, and environmental protection programs; these programs support on-site gardens and livestock management, as well as 20 school gardens, 72 cooperatives, and 650 household gardens in the overall catchment area. VHW staff educate more than 100 pre-schoolers and offer after-school classes for another 250 students; they also train teachers and principals. 

Through these assorted programs, the most vulnerable Burundians of all ages have the opportunity to improve the quality of their lives.  The communities grow marketplace produce and livestock to generate income for sustained self-support.

For more information, see: http://www.villagehealthworks.org/.

GRANT SUMMARY AND PURPOSE

2012:  $25,000 to establish 12 agricultural and three selling cooperative of 20-30 families each.

2013:  $25,000 to stabilize the 12 multi-family cooperatives created the prior year.

2014:  $20,000 to expand on-site demonstration gardens and livestock herds to provide nutritious food to pre-schoolers and pay salaries for approximately 30 birth monitors.

2015:  $25,000 to maintain and expand demonstration and production gardens that provide nutrition assistance to pre-schoolers and clinic patients.  Funds also will support monitoring and evaluation fo the programs.

IMPACT

Increased living standards and higher family incomes (grow by as much as $4/day).