Health and Nutrition

The challenge: Globally, at least 400 million people lack access to essential health services. Every year, more than five million children die globally before their fifth birthday largely due to preventable or treatable illness, and this risk is twice as high for children born into poverty. Risks are also high for women: the proportion of women who do not survive childbirth is 14 times higher in the developing world than it is in developed countries like Canada.

Moreover, global nutrition statistics indicate that almost half of deaths in children under five are linked to poor nutrition, and 790 million people worldwide do not have the calories they need to reach their full potential. Access to and uptake of health and nutrition services are also often hindered by gender, social, cultural, and financial barriers, which have implications for lifelong well-being and productivity.

Our solution: We harness the longstanding work of the AKDN with communities and village organizations to enable people – particularly those living in geographically remote areas – to optimize their health and well-being and reach their full potential.

Our programs help people make healthy choices and get quality care when an issue arises – even in remote areas. We promote public and community health awareness, teach and train health professionals of all kinds, and improve health facilities, ranging from basic rural clinics to specialized centres for treatment and research on a global scale. We work with communities to encourage positive health and nutrition behaviours, improve access to nutritious crops, and integrate nutrition into health systems. We aim to build efficient, appropriate, and sustainable health systems, and improve the health and nutritional status, especially for vulnerable groups like women and children.

Afghanistan Crisis – Health and Psychosocial Support (ACHPSS)

Duration: 2025-2026 Location: Afghanistan (Kabul, Parwan, Daikundi, and Samangan provinces) Reach: 135,205 (71,857 F, 63,348 M) Description The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is

STRIDES for SRHR through Resilient Health Systems (STRIDES)

Duration: 2025-2032 Location: Kenya (Kilifi), Mozambique (Cabo Delgado) Reach: 457,996, including women ages 20-49 and adolescent girls ages 10-19 Budget: $25 million CAD ($22.5

Ripples of change: Women’s Change Groups in Mozambique

Gender inequality, often rooted in unequal sociocultural norms, is a daily challenge in Mozambique’s northern province of Cabo Delgado.  To

Dispatch from the Fellows: Empowering adolescent girls through menstrual cups

Sarah Abbott was placed in Kampala, Uganda, as part of AKFC’s International Youth Fellowship program. Never did I predict that

“You’re not alone”: Youth perspectives on mental health

This article was written by Sameer Somani and Amna Khan, members of AKFC’s Youth Advisory Committee, for Mental Health Week. 

The Mobile Clinic: Bringing care to the doorsteps of communities

In Cabo Delgado, Mozambique’s northernmost province, access to health care is difficult due to a shortage of facilities and workers,

In Safe Hands: Meet Awa and Zura

Awa and Zura are among more than a million Mozambicans who have been internally displaced by conflict in Cabo Delgado,

More than a room: Safe spaces for girls in Mozambique

In areas affected by conflict and displacement, women and girls face exacerbated patterns of discrimination that affect their wellbeing. In

On the road to save lives: Mobile health clinics in Mozambique

In the lush landscapes of Cabo Delgado, where the roads are often unpaved and health facilities are few and far