World Neighbors

World Neighbors is an international development organization striving to eliminate hunger, poverty and disease in the poorest, most isolated rural villages in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. World Neighbors invests in people and their communities by training and inspiring them to create their own life-changing solutions through programs in agriculture, literacy, water, health and environmental protection. Since 1951, more than 28 million people in 45 countries have transformed their lives with the support of World Neighbors. Our programs focus on hunger, poverty, disease and the environment. Communities tell World Neighbors what their needs are, and World Neighbors, in turn, works with them to acquire the knowledge, skills and organization to solve their problems.

WN's purpose is to strengthen the capacity of marginalized communities to meet their needs and to su

Goal One: To continue advocating for marginalized populations, women’s equity, rights and health.

Goal Two: To increase the number of communities/individuals served in the geographic areas where WN has programs and explore possibilities for expansion into other areas in existing countries and new countries.

Goal Three: To work with field staff to ensure consistent monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of all programs, using uniform definitions of terms and outcomes, and to continually refine and improve processes for M&E.

1. Over the past year our field leadership team, consisting of five Regional Directors (in Latin America and the Caribbean, West Africa, East Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia) all received individual media relations training. Working one-on-one with a specialized consultant, the staff learned about speaking with journalists, developing story ideas and editorials and honing their public speaking skills. 2. We nominated one of younger staff in Oklahoma to a year-long course with the United States Global Leadership Coalition and she was accepted to the 2021 inaugural class of “Next Gen Global Leaders.” She is meeting with other young leaders from around the country and leading professionals in the field of international development throughout this calendar year.

Empowering community members as program leaders and working in collaboration with government and NGO partners is key to the WN mission of creating lasting change. WN typically works in communities for eight to 10 years, beginning by helping community members set their own priorities and continuing through years of progressive training and technical support. Our goal is that when WN graduates a community, its leaders will continue implementing program initiatives through savings and credit groups, farmer-to-farmer exchanges, and agricultural/entrepreneurship cooperatives. By collaborating with government and NGO entities throughout the process, WN maximizes the effectiveness of its programming and policy advocacy, frequently engages as a thought leader, and helps communities develop enduring support networks. WN actively promotes its programs through robust traditional marketing and communications such as a quarterly newsletter and through social media.

COVID-19 restrictions on travel and gatherings presented significant obstacles in fiscal year 2021 (the year ending June 30, 2021), but by utilizing technology and creatively adapting to the new circumstances, WN was able to keep programs moving forward in more than 700 communities in 13 countries worldwide. WN’s commitment to hiring local trainers and empowering community members as program mobilizers and volunteers served us well during this crisis. WN adapted during the pandemic by: • Restrictions kept WN’s regional and national staff from traveling to our remote and rural communities, but they were able to utilize virtual communication tools to stay in contact with local trainers and community mobilizers who, in turn, continued to implement program activities. • Because travel restrictions limited access to agricultural supplies and markets, WN helped farmers adapt their crop strategies. For example: planting crops that could be consumed locally, making organic fertilizers and pesticides utilizing animal waste, and growing native crops using locally-sourced seeds. Farmers in our communities improved post-harvest storage conditions and converted crops to valued-added products, for example groundnuts to peanut butter. • Rather than traditional trainings that drew all adults of a village and large-scale multi-community events like health fairs, we held smaller trainings and events, strictly adhering to safety protocols. • We incorporated COVID-19 education and precautions into established water, sanitation and hygiene programs and trainings conducted by community and reproductive health volunteers. • Within our rural livelihoods focus area, WN encouraged the launching of small businesses such as mask or soap production, that capitalized on market demands. • Recognizing the pandemic’s mental toll on WN’s regional staff, our President and CEO increased the frequency and scope of Zoom calls with Regional Directors and their teams.