{"id":9896,"date":"2026-03-16T14:32:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T14:32:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/us\/?p=9896"},"modified":"2026-03-16T14:37:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T14:37:24","slug":"boston-chair-says-zambia-visit-made-him-proud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/us\/boston-chair-says-zambia-visit-made-him-proud\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Proud To Be Involved,’ Says Boston Chair After Zambia Trip"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Rob McGoey, Chair, Boston Advisory Board, Self Help Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had the opportunity to visit projects in Zambia late last year. The The trip gave me a deeper appreciation for both the challenges faced by local communities, and of the remarkable impact of this work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zambia is a vast country with a population of about 22 million people.  <\/strong>It’s <\/strong>slightly bigger than Texas, with roughly two-thirds the population. Between 50\u201360%<\/strong> of people live in extreme poverty, meaning less than $2.15 per day<\/strong>. Poverty in rural areas, where 70% of people rely on farming, can be as high as 80%. Approximately half the population is under 18<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2024, the government introduced free education. This is a positive change, providing new opportunities for future generations. However, schools have very limited resources. In addition, poverty impacts school attendance and performance in many ways; for example, malnutrition in children, girls who do not have access to sanitary products, and sickness and disease from poor sanitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tackling issues of environment, resources, knowledge, and tradition at any scale that is impactful is very complex. On this visit, we learned that such change involves finding willing participants, engaging communities, understanding the complete value chain, educating people, implementing new practices and new technologies, organizing individuals into groups who can source and sell goods at better prices and, very importantly, creating the knowledge, access to resources, and confidence that inspires people to continue to innovate and expand beyond any initial help provided by SHA. In addition, it requires close collaboration with many other organizations, such as tribal, local, and national government bodies and other NGOs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SELF HELP AFRICA’S WORK<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We travelled to Zambia’s Southern Province, and visited two projects that are underway in the area:<\/p>\n\n\n\n