Gardens for Health International: Growing Rwanda's Way Out of Malnutrition

Gardens for Health International has worked since 2007 alongside rural health centers in Rwanda's Gasabo and Burera districts to break the link between farming and childhood malnutrition. The organization trains families flagged as at-risk through health-center screenings to plant home gardens of nutrient-dense vegetables, legumes and fruit, shifting households from emergency food aid toward growing their own balanced diets. Demonstration gardens at eight health centers act as hands-on classrooms where neighbors learn techniques they then replicate at home. GHI's Maternal & Child Nutrition Program has now served more than 25,800 families, alongside distributing small livestock and helping households form village savings groups to sustain the gains.