Introduction
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) HEARTH programme engages private
partners to co-design high impact, sustainable development activities that conserve high-biodiversity
landscapes and improve the well-being and prosperity of communities that depend on these
landscapes.
USAID and its partners collaborate through HEARTH in many development fields. These include
natural resource management, maternal and child health, nutrition, and governance. Investing in
human well-being can reduce pressure on nature, while healthier ecosystems improve human
health, food security and other development outcomes.
Kafue HEARTH Alliance – The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and i4Life and Luangwa Valley HEARTH
Alliance – Frankfurt Zoological Society and i4Life
Project objective: Communities living in target Game Management Areas (GMAs) and surrounding
areas have increased access to basic health and water, sanitation and hygiene WASH information,
services, and technologies; and practice positive health seeking behaviours related to Maternal and
Child Health (MCH) and WASH.
Currently, the basic health and WASH needs of communities across the northeastern Kafue
landscape and Luangwa Vally are inadequate and link with other threats and challenges to the area’s
sustainable conservation, economic prosperity, and overall resilience.
The project aims to support communities with a greater awareness of health (particularly MCH) and
WASH and self-motivate for information and services that meet the communities’ health and WASH
needs and priorities.
Aim: By 2025 people in the ecologically sensitive areas will have increased awareness of and access
to basic health and WASH information and services through the following activities:
Increase knowledge of key issues affecting child and maternal health, e.g.,
● Newborn health
● Maternal health: nutrition, birth spacing
● Child health: nutrition, pneumonia, diarrhoea
● Immunisations
● Environmental health
● Conduct health facility open houses to promote the health services available and the role of
Community Health Workers (CHWs).
● Produce and strategically distribute information, education, and communication (IEC) materials
● Conduct mass awareness creation activities
● Engage mass media to promote appropriate behaviours.
● Strengthen and scale up community mobilisation initiatives.
● Social behaviour changes and communication strategy.
● Skills enhancement at the facility level and integrated refresher trainings for Community Health
Workers (CHWs).
● Improve service accessibility through periodic integrated mobile outreach services