Plan is present in Africa and Europe in the following countries; Albania, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Guinea, Niger, Sierra Leone, Togo, Ghana, Senegal, Liberia, Guinea Bissau and Mali.

Overview of the region

Of the estimated 330 million children in sub-Saharan Africa, over 140 million live in extreme poverty. Children in Africa are more likely than children in any other region of the world to grow up malnourished, without schooling and affected by conflict and HIV/AIDS. The under-five mortality rate varies within the whole of Africa, but in south Saharan Africa it was 175/1000 in 2000. This is significantly higher than that of any other region, and the improvement in the region over the past decades has also been very small, when compared to Asia or the Americas. 34% of people are malnourished; HIV/AIDS continues to ravage parts of the region – with Sub-Saharan Africa accounting for 70% of all new infections in the world.

The distribution of the population is changing rapidly as rural-urban migration continues. This, coupled with the prevailing poverty, has changed the traditional structure of African families in many places. The number of female and children-headed households has increased, with a recent estimation of 1/3 of households headed by women. These trends, combined with male labour migration and HIV/AIDS, have contributed to the gradual disappearance of traditional child care support systems, which mothers have relied on.

Plan’s work in the region

Plan works with children, families, communities, governments and civil society to improve the lives of children in 21 countries in Africa and Eastern Europe.

The issues affecting children in the region, with differing degrees of importance in the countries include:

• poverty
• vulnerability to the weather
• poor public services
• bad governance
• debt
• trade obstacles
• HIV/AIDS
• cultural attitudes towards change
• child trafficking
• and, in some countries, conflict.

Plan is assisting families to:

• improve their livelihood and reduce poverty
• providing access to safe drinking water
• helping those affected by HIV/AIDS, disasters and unrest
• and improving education in the region.