Strengthening Climate Resilience of the Lao PDR Health System 

Alice*, a mother of three from Turkana County, struggled to keep her children alive as prolonged drought, food insecurity, and poverty pushed her family to the brink. When her four-year-old daughter Charity* developed severe acute malnutrition and began losing her eyesight, Save the Children reached their community through the UK Aid Match-funded ACCEPT project. After receiving life-saving treatment and Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), Charity recovered her strength and sight, giving Alice renewed hope. Today, despite walking three hours to access outreach services and facing ongoing hardship, Alice continues to seek care for her children, determined to give them a healthier future.

In remote Turkana, where access to healthcare is often out of reach, Save the Children's integrated outreach clinics are bringing life-saving health, nutrition and WASH services directly to families. Veronica's story and her son Namonia's recovery from severe acute malnutrition show how timely care is giving children a healthier future while reaching thousands of vulnerable people across the county.

After devastating drought wiped out livestock and pushed families into severe hunger and malnutrition in Garissa, communities are now rebuilding their lives through climate-smart farming supported by Save the Children. Families like Ardo’s are growing nutritious vegetables for the first time, improving children’s health, strengthening food security, and generating income through surplus produce and savings groups. The integrated support combining nutrition treatment, farming training, and financial empowerment is helping communities transition from vulnerability to resilience.