Although the African continent is rich in raw materials and resources, that wealth has not translated into widespread relief for most of the people living there. Sub-Saharan Africa alone accounts for two-thirds of the global extreme poor*. Children International operates in the African nation of Zambia, where many children, youth and marginalized households face overlapping barriers that make it harder to stay healthy, keep learning and build a stable future.
According to the United Nations Child Poverty Report, 70.6% of Zambian children live in multidimensional poverty*— meaning they are deprived in at least two essential areas of well-being, such as nutrition, health, education, water, sanitation, housing or access to information.
The Zambian education system is understaffed and underfunded, making it difficult for young children who fall behind to catch up. The detrimental health effects of malnutrition in Zambian children are widespread, often causing setbacks that can last a lifetime when not addressed. Unemployment and underemployment among youth also create wide-ranging personal and societal deficits.
These challenges can affect every stage of a young person’s life. Recent labor data reveals that more than half of Zambian youth ages 15–24 are not in formal education, employment or vocational training*, underscoring how limited opportunity can follow children into adolescence and early adulthood. Sponsorship helps marginalized children access safe spaces, caring support and proven programs that help them overcome obstacles and move toward long-term stability.
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Your monthly gift of $39 is an investment that gives your child access to safe spaces, a supportive team and a proven path to help them envision — and build — a future free from poverty. This essential support equips young people with access to the health, educational, social and emotional learning, life skills and employability resources needed to achieve long-term stability.
As a sponsor, you’ll see your impact firsthand through letters and photos from your child. You can even visit your child in Africa!
Note: “Most at Risk” flag are children facing the least stable living circumstances and fewest resources.
Child sponsorship connects two people — a sponsor with a generous heart and a child living in poverty. From toddlerhood to young adulthood, our child and youth development program equips kids with crucial life and job skills to break the cycle of poverty. For good.
At Children International, we believe every child deserves the chance to thrive. And with support from caring individuals and philanthropic organizations, young people around the world are unlocking their potential. As they get older, they gain vital life skills and explore future career paths that help them pursue meaningful work and path out of poverty.
Your role as a sponsor and friend in your child’s life makes all this possible — and lets them know they are not alone in their fight for a better future.
*Tax-deductible
Without the kinds of interventions sponsors make possible, many children and families in and around Lusaka, Zambia, would have limited access to quality medical care and essential health education. Our programs work alongside families and local institutions to strengthen education and health outcomes and improve overall well-being.
Sponsorship also helps create opportunities beyond immediate needs. Through education, life skills and job-readiness programs, children and youth gain the tools they need to move forward with confidence and pursue their full potential.
Our trained local staff provide safe, welcoming environments where children feel supported and valued. In these spaces, they receive education support, develop social and emotional skills, and prepare for future opportunities — including continued education and employability training for older youth.
When you sponsor a child in Africa, you do more than meet practical needs — you remind them that they matter. This meaningful connection can inspire confidence, boost motivation and create a renewed sense of what’s possible for their future.
With roughly 70% of Zambian children living in multi-dimensional poverty, your sponsorship gives an African child reliable access to resources that are more difficult to secure in their highly marginalized neighborhoods. This vital support includes education assistance, preventative and curative health services, emotional well-being lessons, empowerment programs, employability assistance, and much more.
And the ripple effect of sponsorship means you aren’t just helping one African child. By providing tools for children and youth to become empowered and escape poverty, sponsorship uplifts families and helps improve entire communities.
Creating safer and more supportive environments increases stability and security in the neglected homes and neighborhoods where we operate. This work includes building and sustaining strong partnerships that strengthen and improve educational and medical institutions in and around our communities.
*Sources: United Nations | World Bank Group | Ministry of Labor, Zambia
Children International is proud to support children, families and communities in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines and Zambia.
82% of Children International’s total operating expenses fund programs for children and youth. Most of your donation dollars go toward exactly what you intended — supporting children in poverty.
Child sponsorship is a voluntary, ongoing contribution you can cancel at any time — you’re in charge of how long you sponsor (and how many kids you sponsor).
You can change your monthly giving anytime by contacting our Care Team. Your child will continue receiving program benefits, and we’ll find another sponsor as soon as possible.
Children International is a global child and youth development organization working to end poverty for good. Headquartered in Kansas City, we serve 218,000+ children across 10 countries, creating lasting change that helps them reach their full potential.
Ending poverty begins with children. That’s why we invest in programs for children and youth throughout their first two decades of life — strengthening communities through local staff, education and health access, empowerment, career readiness, and partnerships that help families break the cycle of generational poverty.
If you recently attended a concert and received a child packet, you were provided with a code that you can use to begin sponsoring that child. Please click here to go to children.org/start and enter your code.
When you sponsor, we'll send you more info about your child, including a photo and a quick-start guide to child sponsorship. You'll also:
You can make changes to your monthly giving anytime. Please contact our Care Team to adjust, delay or cancel. And because we've made a commitment that we'll be a part of our kids' lives until they graduate, your sponsored child will continue to receive benefits from the program, and we will work to find a new sponsor as soon as possible.
