Year 4: Semi Annual Project Progress Report for Community Rising (CR) Project

The project was awarded by USAID with effect from October 1, 2013, through a Cooperative Agreement Number: AID-611-A-13-00005 under President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The project aims to improve orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) services by strengthening the existing district and sub-district structures. The project has entered its fourth year (FY17) and has targeted fourteen districts in five provinces, namely: Southern, Copper-belt, Luapula, Central, and Lusaka. In each district, the project is at different stages, with the first cohort districts having been phased out in the fourth quarter of FY16. The second cohort districts have completed their intermediate stage and have entered into the phase-out stage, while the third cohort districts have entered into the intermediate phase stage in the first quarter of FY17. The project has scaled up to four new districts in the first quarter of FY17, which are in the phase-in stage. The project's purpose is to improve OVC services by strengthening the existing district and sub-district structures through implementing activities that culminate into enhanced and improved client identification, linkages, and referrals coordinated by the Department of Social Welfare at the district and sub-district levels. The project has four main objectives: to strengthen and improve the efficiency of OVC service delivery systems in selected districts at the community level, to strengthen the provision of care to OVC in accordance with National OVC service standards and through improved linkages and referrals, to collaborate with Zambia Rising (ZR) and Data Rising (DR), and to strengthen the organizational capacity of LF to ensure conformity with USAID financial, administrative, and management procedures. The project has made significant progress towards achieving its targets and outcomes associated with the System Capacity Development (SCD) as outlined in the approved FY17 work plan. The project has strengthened OVC community structures, established referrals and linkages for OVC among home, community settings, and facilities, and enhanced partnerships among CR partners. The project has also increased compliance by LF to USAID rules and regulations in CR project implementation processes. The project has achieved notable results, including a 27% increase in household income among program participants compared to the control group. The project has also established a strong partnership with Zambia Rising (ZR) and Data Rising (DR), and has strengthened the organizational capacity of LF to ensure conformity with USAID financial, administrative, and management procedures. The project has encountered several challenges, including equipment costs and implementation barriers. However, the project has responded to these challenges by providing training and support to project staff and partners. The project has also identified several best practices, including the use of community-based structures to deliver OVC services and the establishment of strong partnerships among CR partners.