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The Ascend Futures Foundation team
Youth-Focused · Women-Led · Lusaka, Zambia

Building Dreams,Transforming Communities

Ascend Futures Foundation is a Zambian youth-focused and women-led non-profit advancing equitable health, gender justice, and youth leadership.

Explore Our Work Who We Are
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Districts across 7 provinces
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People reached digitally
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Health providers trained in HIV prevention
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Ascenders — community ambassadors
Youth LeadershipYouth Leadership SRHR & HIV PreventionSRHR & HIV Community AdvocacyAdvocacy Climate & HealthClimate & Health Child Protection & Gender JusticeChild Protection
Our Strategic Model

Where We Lead,
Where We Build

Explore Our Work
AFF staff member explaining HIV prevention options to a community member
Core Priority
Where We Lead

SRHR & HIV Prevention

Our flagship pillar: prevention literacy, demand generation, and access to youth-friendly, rights-based services — from oral PrEP to long-acting injectable Cabotegravir, the Dapivirine Ring, and Lenacapavir.

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AFF engaging traditional leaders on community accountability
Where We Lead

Community Advocacy & Systems Accountability

Community-led monitoring, youth advocacy, and policy engagement that make health systems more responsive — we implement, and we influence the systems around implementation.

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An AFF facilitator leading a school session on climate and child protection
Where We Build
Where We Build

Climate & Health · Child Protection & Gender Justice

Phased, evidence-led growth at the climate and health intersection, alongside gender-transformative work to prevent and respond to sexual and gender-based violence.

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Our Impact

Real Reach,
Measured Progress

From health facilities to school clubs to national launches — our reach is measured and reported through a robust MERL framework.

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People Reached Directly
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Overall Digital Reach
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Health Facilities Supported
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Health Service Providers Trained
Community engagement in Lusaka
AFF staff member discussing HIV prevention options with a community member
"We see young people not as recipients of development but as the people already driving it."
— Executive Director, Ascend Futures Foundation
How We Work

Principles That Guide
Everything We Do

More About Us
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Rights-based and gender-responsive programming, with youth leadership, participation, and meaningful engagement at the centre.

Rights & Youth Leadership
Implementation principle
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Community ownership, localisation, and sustainability — locally driven solutions that strengthen resilience and accountability.

Community Ownership
Implementation principle
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Partnership-driven implementation with evidence-informed programming, inclusion, and equity across every pillar.

Partnership & Evidence
Implementation principle