Health

For any child to achieve his or her full potential, the foundational building blocks of good health and nutrition must be established even prior to birth. Undernutrition, infectious diseases, weak or nonexistent health systems, and reduced access to vital health information can have lifelong consequences for children and communities. Investing in a child’s health impacts both their physical and cognitive growth and economic well-being, which can positively affect future educational and productive opportunities.

For this reason, we adopt a whole health systems programming approach in our programming around maternal, newborn, and child health and immunization; reproductive health and family planning; healthy timing and spacing of pregnancies; nutrition; water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH); and infectious diseases, including the prevention and treatment of HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. We focus on crosscutting issues, including gender equality, social inclusion, and disability, collaborating across our sector programs in all aspects of our health programming.

We work in partnership with government health systems, populations, and geographies to empower people to identify and prioritize their own health needs, generate solutions, and set their own goals — equipping them to sustain progress long after we have left. Whether we’re working in stable or fragile states, we help provide lifesaving support and durable solutions for the world’s most vulnerable children and their families.