60%
Below the national poverty line
Zambia's Living Conditions Monitoring Survey reported this national poverty estimate. It is a measure of household consumption, not a 2026 headcount.
Source [1]
Why Zambia
A request for work. A calling to walk together.
Zambia is home to people with skills, faith, ambition and deep commitments to one another. It is also a place where poverty, hunger and barriers to work and care place many lives under pressure. Our calling is to meet people in those difficult places, listen, and walk alongside them toward restoration.
Research reviewed 10 October 2026. Figures below refer to different survey years and projection periods; they are not a single 2026 census.
Voices from the Streets
“Give us job.”
In the early days of this ministry in Zambia, one request heard repeatedly on the streets was for work. There were young people unable to find jobs, and adults and children asking for food or money because they were hungry. These were face-to-face encounters with people whose needs could no longer feel distant. Yet what was visible on the streets revealed only part of the hardship each person carried.
Based on first-hand encounters shared with HEMEFund in October 2026. These observations describe particular encounters, not every Zambian or a national count.
For HEMEFund, these encounters became a call to draw closer: to learn each person’s name, listen to their story, offer practical care, and connect them with people and opportunities that can help them take the next step.
The Reality, With Dates
Three figures, each with its own source and date
Each figure describes a different aspect of hardship. Read its date and definition alongside it.
29.1%
Youth unemployment, ages 15–24
Share of the youth labour force unemployed, not the share of all young people. ZamStats' overall unemployment rate was 12.9%; for ages 19–34 it was 18.4%.
Source [2]
Over 1.2 million
Projected high acute food insecurity
IPC Phase 3 (Crisis) or above, in the population analysed. A projection issued 24 August 2026, not a confirmed count for today.
Source [3]
Six Realities
Six realities behind the request
When Basic Needs Compete
Poverty can make a meal, transport to a clinic, rent or school materials compete for the same limited money. The 2022 poverty estimates differed sharply: 78.8% in rural areas and 31.9% in urban areas. A national average cannot describe every neighbourhood or family. [1]
Work That Can Sustain a Life
Unemployment is only part of the difficulty. Work can also be irregular or poorly paid. The World Bank describes a shortage of productive jobs and scarce wage employment, with many private-sector jobs in small informal businesses. The request for a job is also a request for a chance to contribute and support a household. [4]
Hunger After the Harvest
Food security improved after the drought, but recovery has not reached everyone. IPC estimated about 698,000 people faced Crisis-level or worse acute food insecurity in April–September 2026. Its forecast rises above 1.2 million for the following lean season. Poverty and repeated climate shocks continue to threaten access to food. [3]
Health and the Cost of Delay
Illness can make earning a living harder; limited income and transport can make care harder to reach. UNICEF identifies affordability, transport, medicines and continuity of services as areas needing attention. Its 8 October 2026 update describes continuing, overlapping food, climate and public-health pressures, including cholera. These are national challenges, not diagnoses of people pictured on our website. [5][6]
Electricity and Everyday Livelihoods
The 2024 drought reduced available power by about one third, according to the World Bank. Households, small businesses and public services bore the disruption. A loss of power can interrupt a working day, water pumping, refrigeration or study. The World Bank reports improved electricity supply in 2026; the severe past shortages should not be read as a claim about today's hours of supply. [7][8]
Life Without a Secure Home
Homelessness and street-connected childhood need careful description. In March 2025, a ministerial statement to Parliament reported 2022 census figures of 1,918 homeless individuals in Lusaka Province and 1,427 in Copperbelt Province. These are historical provincial counts, not a national 2026 estimate, and not a count of all children living or working on streets. [9]In January 2025, Zambia launched Street Outreach Guidelines to strengthen protection and coordinated care for children in street situations. The Ministry and UNICEF also acknowledged gaps in information about their numbers and circumstances. [10]A child working on a street may still have a home or family. A person asking for food may have a different story from someone sleeping outside. We begin by listening, rather than assuming. Each person's safety, relationships and choices matter.
How Pressures Can Overlap
One setback can deepen another
Illustrative connections, not a measured sequence or a story that fits everyone.
- Unreliable income
- Food insecurity
- Barriers to healthcare
- Housing insecurity
- Isolation and disrupted relationships
One setback can deepen another. Support works best when people and services stay connected.
Why We Walk Together
Relationship gives practical care continuity
We believe God calls us to love our neighbours and draw near to people who are overlooked. Food, medical care and a safe place to sleep matter urgently. So do attention, trust, friendship and the experience of belonging. Relationship gives practical care continuity.
What began with sharing food with four children who said they were hungry has grown into a ministry bringing together around 70 young Zambian professionals and volunteers, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, lawyers, and accountants. Their knowledge, commitment and relationships are central to this ministry. This is HEMEFund's account of its beginnings, not a statistic from the national reports above.
Frontline Restoration Ministry means meeting people where hardship is being lived, listening carefully, offering immediate care within our capacity, and helping connect each person with appropriate support. Our aim is sustained accompaniment toward dignity, community and a life with opportunity.
Many Hands, One Shared Responsibility
The network we seek to build
Person / Family
HEMEFund — Listen • Connect • Follow through
Government & social services
Hospitals & health professionals
Child protection & family care services
Schools & skills training
Churches & community groups
Businesses & employers
Individuals & volunteers
Person / Family
HEMEFund — Listen • Connect • Follow through
Government & social services
Hospitals & health professionals
Child protection & family care services
Schools & skills training
Churches & community groups
Businesses & employers
Individuals & volunteers
The network we seek to build. These are types of collaborators, not a claim of formal partnership with any named institution.
Housing. Education. Medicine. Employment.
We seek to connect existing strengths across society, so that help can continue beyond a single meal, consultation or visit. Safe family-based care and child-protection assessment guide appropriate pathways for children; housing and livelihood support must fit each person's situation.
Recovery Deserves to Be Told, Too
Progress and hardship can coexist
Zambia's story includes progress: stronger agricultural production and improved power supply in 2026, alongside government, community and professional efforts to respond. These gains matter. They can coexist with serious hardship for people who still lack reliable income, food, care or a secure home. [8]
Walk With Us
Bring what you can. Walk with us.
Bring your skills, relationships, opportunities or time. Help us listen well, connect responsibly and keep walking with people.
Our visionSources & How to Read This Page
Sources and how to read this page
Reviewed 10 October 2026. Survey dates, publication dates and forecast periods are stated separately. National statistics describe populations; they do not establish the circumstances of any individual we meet. Sources support the context, not an endorsement of HEMEFund.
- [1]Zambia Statistics Agency, 2022 Living Conditions Monitoring Survey, poverty results (2022 estimates; report available 2024).Read source
- [2]Zambia Statistics Agency, 2024 Labour Force Survey, summary indicators (report posted 2025).Read source
- [3]IPC, Zambia: April–September 2026 and projection October 2026–March 2027, released 24 August 2026.Read source
- [4]World Bank, Zambia's Road to Growth and Better Jobs, 16 January 2025.Read source
- [5]UNICEF Zambia, Health and HIV (undated thematic page; reviewed 10 October 2026).Read source
- [6]UNICEF Zambia, EU partnership strengthens emergency preparedness and response, 8 October 2026.Read source
- [7]World Bank, Powering Zambia's Transformation: From Electricity Crisis to Catalyst for Growth and Jobs (2026 update discussing 2024 drought).Read source
- [8]World Bank, Zambia country overview (2026 economic overview; reviewed 10 October 2026).Read source
- [9]National Assembly of Zambia, ministerial statement of 4 March 2025 discussing revised 2022 census results.Read source
- [10]Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, Street Outreach Guidelines launch, 13 January 2025.Read source