Zvandiri Prize Winner

Zvandiri has been announced as a winner of the UpLink – World Economic Forum Youth Mental Health Challenge! The World Economic Forum, in partnership with Salesforce and UNICEF, selected the best innovations that are changing the future of youth mental health. Salesforce, UNICEF and UpLink ran a challenge to find the best innovations in this space. These innovators will take part in a tailored programme to help them scale and reach more young people in need.

Zvandiri connects young people living with HIV with peer counsellors to assure health, happiness and hope. Three randomised controlled trials have demonstrated that the Zvandiri model leads to significantly better outcomes for young people living with HIV, with 42% of young people more likely to have a suppressed viral load and a reduction in poor mental health from 62% to 2%. Zvandiri’s holistic approach is evidence-based, innovative and ensures sustainable impact. Zvandiri started in Zimbabwe and has been adopted and scaled in 10 countries with 3000 CATS supporting 96,000 young people across Sub-Saharan Africa.