Project highlight: Wild4Life

Egmont Partner Wild4Life in Zimbabwe is changing the narrative on what can be achieved for health outcomes in poorly-resourced environments, giving even the most remote communities access to life-saving healthcare.

Wild4Life strengthens existing healthcare structures by mentoring clinic staff and village Health Workers (VHWs), supporting outreach and forming community-based support groups for people with HIV. They joined our portfolio in 2018, scaling their successful healthcare programme in rural north-western Zimbabwe.

While public healthcare is free, rural clinics are often understaffed and lack medicines. Many people cannot afford the travel costs to reach them, and when they do, service quality is poor. Their work in Hwange District dramatically improved HIV care, taking it from one of the lowest ART coverage rates nationally to second best among 62 districts.

Since joining Egmont’s portfolio, Wild4Life has expanded into Binga, a district where healthcare access is hindered by cultural resistance and poor infrastructure. In just two years, they formed support groups for 61% of Binga’s population with HIV (3,482 people), increased viral load monitoring by 1,562%, and improved TB diagnosis rates by 53% through clinical mentoring and outreach.

Between 2021 and 2023, Wild4Life expanded into Lupane and collaborated with Egmont Partners ACT Zimbabwe and Youth Advocates, strengthening referral networks and tackling low health-seeking behaviours. In January 2024, they launched a three-year project to integrate these learnings across 11 rural clinics in Binga and Lupane.

A key initiative has been clinical mentorship to improve care quality. By the end of 2024, 94% of sick children were receiving correct treatment, and monitoring of women in labour had risen to 82%. Training on data management reduced clinic record discrepancies from 7% to 3%.

To further support healthcare workers, Wild4Life have introduced a toll-free helpline, offering real-time access to expert advice. This innovation, inspired by Youth Advocates, has been vital for remote mentoring, emergency cases, and specialist-led group training sessions.

Community engagement remains central, particularly in maternal health. Community dialogues often focus on increasing male involvement in pregnancy care — key to improving antenatal bookings, which remain low (35%) due to distance and transport costs. Wild4Life aims to expand these efforts to drive demand for maternal healthcare.

The project also supports 235 VHWs, ensuring they have up-to-date skills to provide essential care in remote communities. A new clinic appointment system helped retain 96% of HIV+ patients in care for over two years, with 98% achieving viral suppression — exceeding global 95-95-95 targets.

Reaching the hardest-to-access communities remains a priority. In 2024 alone, 102 outreach clinics provided 7,434 people with medical services, including vaccinations, HIV testing, and family planning. Immunisation coverage improved significantly, with 98% of previously unvaccinated children now protected. New secondary health services like dental and eye care were introduced, benefiting 471 people.

Wild4Life’s impact has been transformative: children are 26% more likely to receive timely vaccinations, maternal deaths have been eliminated, and viral suppression among people with HIV has surpassed 98%. Over 2025 and 2026, Wild4Life aims to reach 41,986 people with quality healthcare, reducing home births to 5%, increasing early antenatal visits to 60%, and ensuring 90% of adolescents living with HIV receive proper care.