Building the Future: How Investing in Women and Girls is Transforming Zambia’s Human Capital

In May, Cathy Gumbo from Chisamba District in Zambia shared her story. Just 16 years old, she had been struggling to stay in class. Her family couldn't always afford the basics - uniforms, books, and sanitary supplies. But with a bursary from the GEWEL Project, she now attends school regularly and is planning for what comes next, her future.

Meanwhile, Bertha, a young mother, is pursuing a nursing certificate. And Doreen Zyambo, 55, once a vendor with uncertain income, now runs her own small enterprise after receiving training, seed capital, and ongoing mentorship.

When women and girls are supported with the right tools, they build pathways out of poverty-for themselves and for their families and communities. Yet for too many, those pathways aren't there yet.

In Zambia, poverty remains entrenched in rural areas. Adolescent girls face high dropout rates. Women struggle to access capital, markets, or skills training. Maternal and child undernutrition remains widespread, affecting the foundations of learning, growth, and future earnings.

These challenges reinforce one another. There is tremendous unrealized potential at scale, as Zambia faces significant human capital gaps that persist from early childhood through adulthood and interventions that are fragmented, siloed, or fail to reach those most in need.

With help from partners, the government is working to change this, building on experience and what worked in the 1^st phase of the Girls' Education and Women's Empowerment and Livelihoods Project (GEWEL). The 2^nd phase will expand the efforts nationwide and link cash transfers, education, nutrition, and livelihoods into an integrated delivery platform. It launched in May 2025, with $157 million in financing.

The Girls' Education and Women's Empowerment and Livelihoods for Human Capital Project (GEWEL2) aims to create tangible pathways for the most vulnerable to move out of poverty, with a focus on communities where girls' education is at risk and livelihoods are scarce through the four following interlinked components:

1. Foundational Social Cash Transfer and Nutrition builds on Zambia's flagship Social Cash Transfer (SCT) program to directly address food insecurity and malnutrition by combining nutrition cash top-ups with behavioural training and nutrition services. This supports early childhood development in the first 1,000 days and improves health outcomes for at-risk mothers and infants.

2. Keeping Girls in School and Beyond provides subsidies and vocational opportunities for adolescent girls, ensuring they gain the skills and confidence needed to pursue higher education, enter the workforce, or start entrepreneurial ventures.

3. Supporting Women's Livelihoods for Climate-Smart Productive Inclusion equips women with training in business and conservation agriculture, and provides seed capital, savings groups, and mentorship, as well as access to markets and value chains, enhancing their economic independence and climate resilience.

4. Institutional Strengthening and Systems Building for Cash 'Plus' Delivery advances girls' and women's empowerment and adaptive social protection through digital tools, dynamic registries, and grievance mechanisms, bolstering Zambia's resilience to climate and other shocks.

There are many more like Cathy, Bertha and Doreen. Girls are staying in school. Women are earning and saving. Families are eating better. And local governments are engaging with a delivery system that reaches those previously left out.

As the project expands to all 116 districts, the focus must remain on quality, consistency, and accountability. Building the right systems is only part of the equation. Sustaining trust, ensuring that delivery is predictable and fair, and adapting to climate and economic shocks, and build a future where every girl stays in school, every woman can earn a living, and no household is left behind.

GEWEL2 is supported by the World Bank, the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children, and Adolescents, and Trust Fund donors, including Germany, Ireland, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.