60 million girls in Zambia
It’s a quick jump from the DRC to Zambia, where we have supported two projects. The first was, in fact, our very first project upon the establishment of the 60 million girls Foundation. For both projects, we partnered with the Stephen Lewis Foundation (SLF), an organization that has proved to be a marvellous partner over the past 15 years. Its partner on the ground, the Umoyo Training Centre, implemented a project to support vulnerable girls orphaned by HIV/AIDS and train them for jobs.
The second project, unusually a grant of $50,000, was located in the rural Eastern Province of Zambia. SLF’s grass-roots partner, Young, Happy, Healthy and Safe (YHHS), is a community-based organization that works to strengthen and protect girls and women. YHHS provided information on sexual and reproductive health and HIV prevention, paid school fees and produced sanitary pads, as well as providing school supplies. YHHS also integrated the Mobile Learning Lab (MLL) to empower girls and women with technical information and knowledge. The MLL provided dependable access to critical information about the curriculum, training modules, sexual and reproductive health, gender-based violence, amongst others.
A YHHS student shows off her new uniform and school supplies.
Would you like to know more about Zambia?
Welcome!
Bemba proverb: Uwabamba tabambuluka (You cannot forget a skill that you have mastered well.) Bemba is one of the most widely spoken languages in Zambia and one of the seven recognized regional languages.
A few facts
- Zambia is a completely landlocked country.
- Zambia is home to five large African mammal species: lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and African buffalos.
- It is well known for the Victoria Falls, a spectacular waterfall known in the Lozi language as Mosi-oa-Tunya, meaning “The Smoke that Thunders”. Located on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, the falls are double the height of Niagara Falls and over twice its width.
Mosi-oa-Tunya / Victoria Falls (Zambia, Zimbabwe) Photo: Véronique Dauge
Girls’ education in Zambia
- 64% of its population living on less than $2 a day, making it one of the poorest countries in the world.
- Due to Zambia’s extreme poverty, many girls and women miss out on the opportunity to receive an education.
- Unfortunately, this leads to serious repercussions for the youth in the country. In fact, Zambia is 13th out of 15 African countries with the lowest rates of literacy and numeracy for teen girls.
- In rural areas, 27% of females have no education, primarily due to poverty, pregnancy, and early marriages.
- Early marriages play a big role in contributing to female dropout rates; therefore, initiatives encouraging women to delay marriage are likely to decrease dropout rates.
Where to hike?
There are so many places to hike in Zambia. Here are a few options:
- Mutinondo Wilderness is approximately 600 kilometres from the capital, Lusaka, and can be reached by car or by train. Hikers can either camp or stay in chalets.
- Lavushi Manda National Park is ideally suited for hiking, with or without a guide. You can hike to the peak of the 1,754-metre Lavushi Mountain in a two-and-a-half-hour hike and watch the sun rise over the red rocks.