We are Wandikweza
We are a community driven maternal and child health organization building Malawi's last-mile health system.
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​We partner with public health facilities to transform access to maternal and child health at scale through Proactive Doorstep Care model.
Healthcare closer to the people.
For Wandikweza, "Healthcare closer to the people" is about meeting families where they live. Through Proactive Doorstep Care, we bring preventive, promotive and referral services directly to households living in extreme poverty, while strengthening linkages to public health facilities and ensuring continuity of care across the life course.
The Context
Wandikweza operates in the context of rural Malawi, where preventable maternal, newborn, child and adolescent deaths remain high despite the existence of public health services. Large segments of the population live in extreme poverty, in geographically dispersed and hard-to-reach communities where distance to health facilities, transport costs, limited health information and overstretched frontline systems create persistent barriers to care.
The Maternal and Child Health Crisis in Malawi
Malawi continues to face a significant maternal and child health crisis, driven by persistent gaps in access, equity and continuity of care, especially for families living in extreme poverty and in rural, hard-to-reach areas.
Despite progress over the past decade, preventable causes remain the leading drivers of maternal and child deaths in Malawi.
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The reality
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Preventable maternal and child deaths persist in rural Malawi
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Cost, distance, delays and late referrals cost lives
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Facilities are overwhelmed, yet most risks begin at home.
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The health system fails families before they ever reach a facility.
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For Women
Women still die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth such as severe bleeding, infections, high blood pressure and obstructed labor, conditions that are largely preventable or treatable with timely, skilled care.
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The maternal mortality rate is 225 deaths per 100,000 live births.
For Adolescents
Adolescents, particularly girls under 19, face heightened risks due to early pregnancy, limited access to reproductive health services and delayed care-seeking.
For children under five
In children under five, illnesses such as malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, malnutrition and neonatal infections remain major causes of death. These conditions are not inherently fatal; children die because treatment often comes too late, if at all. Newborns are especially vulnerable in the first days and weeks of life, when lack of postnatal follow-up and delayed recognition of danger signs can quickly become life-threatening.
For Public Health Facilities
At the core of the crisis is a last-mile access gap. Many rural households are located far from health facilities, lack affordable transport and face shortages of timely information and follow-up care. Health facilities are often overstretched, making it difficult to provide proactive outreach or continuity of care beyond the clinic walls. As a result, care is frequently reactive rather than preventive, and families seek help only when complications are advanced.
Our Solution
Proactive Doorstep Care
A trusted Community Health Worker, supported by a Midwife on Wheels, for every community.
Addressing maternal and child health crisis requires moving beyond facility-based care alone and strengthening community-level delivery, early detection, referral and follow-up, ensuring that lifesaving care reaches families before it is too late.