World Vision International

World Vision, a child-focused Christian organisation, seeks every child to experience God’s love, and that their perspectives contribute to theological reflection and practice. We adopted a child-participation approach, centring their voices to enrich theological reflection and programmatic development. In-depth interviews with 658 children across Bolivia, Senegal, Lesotho, Uganda, Albania, Iraq, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, reflected lived experiences of love, God’s love, and hope. The importance of human connectivity, helping children feel loved and grow in hope emerged as the overarching theme. 7 Christian theologians constructed theological understanding of how the transformative power of God’s love leads to hope, expressed through six measurable “signs of hope” rooted in Biblical doctrine and informed by the children’s voices. The child-informed, child-centred, child-relevant approach, offers theological depth, strategic programmatic direction, and a practical measurement tool. This article outlines methodology, theological insights, and implications for integrating child-voice into Christian development work, furthering practical theology and child-focused practice.

BackgroundGlobally, iron-deficiency anemia is the most common micronutrient deficiency and a leading cause of disability-adjusted life years lost among adolescent girls 10–19 years of age. Adolescent girls’ voices are often excluded from shaping the interventions and policies designed to support them. We used participatory formative research methods—photovoice and adolescent-centered design (ACD)—to explore nutrition-related challenges, opportunities, and preferences among adolescent girls in Monapo District, Mozambique, and used the findings to contextualize a nutrition curriculum and supplement delivery platform.MethodsWe purposively selected 16 girls from three rural and peri-rural secondary schools divided equally into two age groups (13–16 years and 17–20 years) and asked them to take photos of their food environment. Following a week of photo-taking, participants discussed their photos using the SHOWeD methodology in two workshops and in follow-up individual interviews. We also conducted three ACD group discussions with girls 13 to 20 years, each consisting of 10 to 12 participants, to explore consumption and supplement packaging preferences.ResultsThematic analysis of photos and transcripts showed that participants preferred locally grown foods and indigenous protein sources and were actively engaged in agriculture and household chores, highlighting opportunities for nutritional improvement. However, their nutrition was constrained by seasonal food shortages, inequitable household responsibilities compared to boys, and limited social capital. While school-based supplementation is the standard practice, participants strongly preferred to take supplements at home to avoid stigma and benefit from the comfort and privacy of their own homes. We used these insights to refine the adolescent nutrition curriculum and design a multiple micronutrient supplementation delivery platform.ConclusionsPhotovoice provided rich visual data about the lived experiences of adolescent girls in a fragile and resource-constrained context, without the influence of an external researcher interpreting everyday realities, and elicited valuable insights into the barriers, opportunities, and potential improvements in nutrition programming. Integrating photovoice and ACD into program design can increase program acceptability and potential for effectiveness. This research also highlights the need to prioritize adolescent engagement and underscores the inadequacy of one-size-fits-all approaches, such as school-based supplementation programs.

BackgroundDespite the growing adoption of the Family Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) approach to empower caregivers in detecting child malnutrition, limited evidence exists on whether caregivers act on identified cases by seeking care and factors influencing their decisions. Most research has focused on the accuracy of caregiver MUAC measurements, leaving a gap in understanding behavioral, social, emotional, and contextual barriers to care-seeking. Addressing this gap is critical for informing interventions to ensure early detection translates into timely treatment. This study aimed to explore the barriers and facilitators influencing care-seeking practices within a Family MUAC program in South Sudan.MethodsWe conducted a mixed-methods, prospective, non-randomized study in Central Equatoria and Warrap States, South Sudan, between March 2022 and January 2023. We enrolled 2,893 children aged 5–53 months and trained their caregivers on using MUAC tapes. Caregivers were followed for 8 months, including three monitoring visits and baseline/endline surveys, capturing self-reported care-seeking practices. Qualitative data were obtained through 20 focus group discussions (FGDs) with caregivers, using the Health Belief Model as a theoretical framework to explore perceptions, barriers, and enablers of care-seeking. A combined deductive and inductive coding approach was used for thematic analysis.ResultsAmong children identified with wasting using MUAC tapes, 86.5% of caregivers sought care, with significantly higher rates in Warrap (97.6%) than Central Equatoria (79.4%) (p < 0.008). Barriers to care-seeking included distance to health facilities (18.9%), transportation costs (11.3%), and treatment costs (9.4%). Qualitative findings revealed additional challenges such as social stigma, lack of knowledge about where to seek care, and negative experiences with health workers. Despite some caregivers reporting a lack of encouragement, most valued the MUAC tapes, used them weekly, and were confident in their ability to take accurate measurements.ConclusionsPolicies and programmatic interventions should consider integrating Family MUAC programs with community-based financial initiatives like savings groups to address financial barriers. Tailoring interventions to rural and urban contexts through formative research can enhance program effectiveness, while training health workers in compassionate care may improve caregiver trust and increase care-seeking rates. Strengthening these areas can maximize the impact of Family MUAC and improve child health outcomes.Trial registrationN/A.

BackgroundRwanda has made remarkable progress in scaling up HIV testing, treatment, and healthcare services. Recent data show that 95% of people living with HIV (PLWH) were aware of their status, 97.5% of them are on antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 98% of those who are on treatment have achieved viral suppression. Importantly, growing body of evidence supports the Undetectable = Untransmittable (U = U) concept, affirming that PLWH who maintain an undetectable viral load do not transmit HIV to their sexual partners. This pivotal breakthrough in HIV care has transformed public health strategies and stigma reduction efforts. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of PLWH on the U = U concept in health facilities in Rwanda.MethodsAn exploratory qualitative study was conducted at three purposively selected health facilities in Rwanda from December 1 to 30, 2023. An interview guide was used to collect data, and data saturation was reached after enrolling 43 PLWH. The data was analyzed using conventional thematic analysis.ResultsThe majority of participants demonstrated good knowledge of HIV transmission, with the U = U concept being particularly well-understood among discordant couples and individuals who have been on treatment for over 10 years. Three themes emerged from the analysis: [1] comprehensive knowledge of HIV transmission among PLWH; [2] reasons for disclosing HIV status and linking to care; and [3] acceptability of the U = U concept.ConclusionOur findings highlight the necessity for broader dissemination of the U = U concept across all PLWH subpopulations. Further research is essential to better understand the challenges faced by PLWH, which is critical for achieving the UNAIDS goal of ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Chure Hills is considered as youngest Himalaya in the Himalayan chain. These hills are also considered vulnerable due to its fragile nature and unpredictable natural and human intervention. On this ground, this study attempts to explore the land use and land cover change pattern and its driving forces in the Chure-Terai hills of Mithila Municipality. This study involved the analysis of freely available satellite images of the study area which was downloaded from USGS. The Landsat 7 and Land sat 8 satellite images from 2000 to 2020 have been extracted for the land use/land cover mapping. Supervised classification has been carried out through Remote Sensing and GIS software. With reference of the Land Use Act, 2019 seven major classes have been classified in the study area which includes Forest area, Agriculture area, Settlement area, Grassland, Water body, Sediment Area, and Landslide Area. Based on observation throughout the research, despite the dominancy of forest and agriculture, both were declining continuously by -3.66% from 2000 to 2010 &amp; -3.77% from 2010-2020 and agriculture area by -4.86% from 2000 to 2010 and -4.03% from 2010-2020. Similarly, increment of grassland or say barren land by (+7.26%) and (+4.02%) has been observed. This observation concluded that this change was due to human encroachment, and haphazard settlement. Side-by-side disaster events have also increased whereas the water body has been degrading due to the illegal extraction of construction materials from the Chure region and braided characteristics of the river.

Abstract Background: Malaria is a major public health problem in Angola, with Anopheles gambiae s.l. and An. funestus s.l. being the primary vectors. This study aimed to clarify the information gaps concerning the abundance, geographical dispersion, blood feeding patterns, and insecticide resistance of local Anopheles spp. populations using molecular methods to identify sibling species, the origin of blood meals, Plasmodium falciparuminfection rates, and the presence of knockdown resistance (kdr) mutations. Methods: Adult mosquitoes were collected indoors using CDC light traps from nine randomly selected households at two sentinel sites with distinct ecological characteristics. The samples were collected from 1 February to 30 June 2022. Anopheles mosquitoes were morphologically identified and subjected to molecular identification. Unfed Anopheles females were tested for the presence of Plasmodium falciparum DNA in head and thorax, and engorged females were screened for the source of the blood-meals. Additionally, members of An. gambiae complex were genotyped for the presence of the L1014F and L1014S kdr mutations. Results: In total, 2,226 adult mosquitoes were collected, including 733 Anopheles females. Molecular identification revealed the presence of Anopheles coluzzi, An. gambiae s.s., An. arabiensis, and An. funestus s.s. Notably, there was the first record of An. coluzzi/An. gambiae s.s. hybrid and An. vaneedeni in Benguela province. Plasmodium falciparuminfection rates for Anopheles coluzzii at the urban sentinel site and Anopheles funestus s.s. at the rural site were 23.1% and 5.7%, respectively. The L1014F kdr mutation was discovered in both resistant and susceptible An. coluzzii mosquitoes, while the L1014S mutation was detected in An. gambiae s.s. for the first time in Benguela province. No kdr mutations were found in the An. arabiensis. Conclusions: This study provides valuable insights into the molecular characteristics of malaria vectors from the province of Benguela, emphasising the need for continuous surveillance of local Anophelespopulations regarding the establishment of both kdr mutations for tailoring vector control interventions.

Introduction: Concerns regarding Academic Performance (AP) and student Well-Being (WB) have grown as a result of the increased usage of Social Media Use (SMU) among Secondary Level Students (SLS). The main aim of this research is to examine the impact of SMU on academic performance and wellbeing among male and female secondary-level students in Nepal. Materials and Methods: In this study, an analytical cross-sectional analysis was conducted on 229 students in Grades 8, 9, and 10 at a boarding school in Kathmandu, using probability-based stratified sampling techniques with two boarding schools as strata. The research tool was a self-administered questionnaire with four sections addressing SMU, AP, and WB, as well as well-structured tools utilized by researchers. All ethical approval was obtained before conducting the study. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, regression analysis, and the t-test. Results: The study examined the relationship between SMU and AP and WB. Neither hypothesis H1 nor H2 was supported, demonstrating no significant impact of SMU on AP or WB. Though, a significant difference in SMU between male and female students was detected. The majority of students were male students who favored using Facebook. Conclusion: Further examination is recommended to fully comprehend the complex association between SMU, AP, and WB. The study highlights the need for guidance and supervision from parents, teachers, and authority figures to prevent undesirable effects on students’ WB and AP. Researchers may suggest models such as emotional intelligence to increase self-awareness, self-management, empathy, and communication. Appropriate policies and models are urgently needed to prevent serious issues related with SMU among students.

In early 2020, the world became aware of a new global threat. Covid-19 spread rapidly, upending the lives and livelihoods of people around the world. With support from the Research and Evidence Division of the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, we initiated a new social science research programme that focused on the impact of the pandemic called the Covid Collective. Given the scale of the challenge, we wanted the Collective – as its name suggests – to be highly collaborative, involving effective partnerships and engagement. The purpose of the Collective is to generate research and knowledge in response to the most pressing development challenges emerging from the pandemic. This required rapid generation of policy-relevant evidence to inform decision-making, as we moved from crisis to recovery phase and beyond. We saw a need for transformations in perspective, worldview, and practice, and we believed that this could be achieved through a genuine integration of social science alongside other scientific approaches being adopted to address this global crisis.

Children’s participation and accountability to children are increasingly common aspirations of child-focused organisations; development agencies and research institutions frequently use young people’s advisory councils as one path to participation. A key challenge is to not only find meaningful ways to institutionalise children’s views as part of organisational decision making, but also to identify and address barriers to participation. This article presents the findings of a commissioned landscape assessment to identify good practices and lessons learned from child-focused agencies, in order to inform the operationalisation of children’s requests on programme improvements and accountability to children. The study was exploratory and qualitative. It included primary and secondary data collection, including a desk review, key informant interviews with adults and young people, and focus group discussions with young people. The findings showed common elements of organisational models of child participation and insights from children and young people on the types of decisions they want to influence, reasons why they should be heard, and how-to approaches to support their meaningful participation. Other findings focused on key challenges of children’s participation in governance, including adult mindsets, low capacity, and structural restrictions, and lessons learned on enabling factors, such as organisation-wide buy-in, and space and inclusion for children and young people. Further inquiry could inform the purpose, scope, and appropriateness of child participation in governance structures within child-focused organisations.

BackgroundRoutine health information system(s) (RHIS) facilitate the collection of health data at all levels of the health system allowing estimates of disease prevalence, treatment and preventive intervention coverage, and risk factors to guide disease control strategies. This core health system pillar remains underdeveloped in many low-income and middle-income countries. Efforts to improve RHIS data coverage, quality and timeliness were launched over 10 years ago.MethodsA systematic review was performed across 12 databases and literature search engines for both peer-reviewed articles and grey literature reports on RHIS interventions. Studies were analysed in three stages: (1) categorisation of RHIS intervention components and processes; (2) comparison of intervention component effectiveness and (3) whether the post-intervention outcome improved above the WHO integrated disease surveillance response framework data quality standard of 80% or above.Results5294 references were screened, resulting in 56 studies. Three key performance determinants—technical, organisational and behavioural—were proposed as critical to RHIS strengthening. Seventy-seven per cent [77%] of studies identified addressed all three determinants. The most frequently implemented intervention components were ‘providing training’ and ‘using an electronic health management information systems’. Ninety-three per cent [93%] of pre–post or controlled trial studies showed improvements in one or more data quality outputs, but after applying a standard threshold of >80% post-intervention, this number reduced to 68%. There was an observed benefit of multi-component interventions that either conducted data quality training or that addressed improvement across multiple processes and determinants of RHIS.ConclusionHolistic data quality interventions that address multiple determinants should be continuously practised for strengthening RHIS. Studies with clearly defined and pragmatic outcomes are required for future RHIS improvement interventions. These should be accompanied by qualitative studies and cost analyses to understand which investments are needed to sustain high-quality RHIS in low-income and middle-income countries.