The Millennium Villages Project (MVP) is a project of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, the United Nations Development Programme, and Millennium Promise. Millennium Villages are designed to demonstrate how the Millennium Development Goals can be met in rural Africa over 10 years through integrated, community-led development at very low cost. The first Millennium Village was started in Sauri, Kenya in August 2004.

The Millennium Villages seek to end extreme poverty by working with the poorest of the poor, village by village throughout Africa, in partnership with governments and other committed stakeholders, providing affordable and science-based solutions to help people lift themselves out of extreme poverty.

It is an approach to meeting the Millennium Development Goals—eight globally endorsed targets that address the problems of poverty, health, gender equality, and disease. The Millennium Villages aim to promote an integrated approach to rural development. By improving access to clean water, sanitation and other essential infrastructure such as education, food production, basic health care, and by focusing on environmental sustainability, Millennium Villages claims to ensure that communities living in extreme poverty have a real, sustainable opportunity to lift themselves out of the poverty trap.

The Project is empowering 500,000 people across sub-Saharan Africa with the tools and resources they need to break the cycle of extreme poverty for good.

 

Where Are the Millennium Villages

Millennium Villages are divided into different types. There are the original core villages which include different agro-ecological zones covering 14 sites in 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including:

• Sauri and Dertu, Kenya
• Koraro, Ethiopia
• Mbola, Tanzania
• Ruhiira, Uganda
• Mayange, Rwanda
• Mwandama, Malawi
• Pampaida and Ikaram, Nigeria
• Potou, Senegal
• Tiby and Toya, Mali and Bonsaaso, Ghana

There are additional Millennium Villages which are following the Millennium Village program but which are not directly supported through The Earth Institute at Columbia University. These additional villages are located in Liberia, Cambodia, Jordan, Mozambique, Haiti, Cameroon and Benin.

 

Partners

The MVP is a multi-stakeholder project spearheaded by the Earth Institute, Columbia University, where scientists and researchers are helping to bring the latest evidence, technology, and practices into the project; and Millennium Promise, which oversees project operations. The project relies heavily on local governments and community participation in planning and carrying out interventions. Local, regional, and national governments play a key role in selecting MV sites and implementing interventions. The project also partners with several UN organizations, including UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNOPS, the World Food Programme, and the Broadband Commission for Digital Development, a joint initiative of the International Telecommunications Union and UNESCO.

Millennium Promise partners include:

• Agrium Inc. and The Mosaic Company – crop-boosting fertilizer
• Sumitomo Chemical – insecticide treated mosquito nets to cover every sleeping site in the Millennium Villages
• Ericsson, Lenovo, and other electronics and technology companies – school computers, broadband connectivity, and more
• The governments of Japan, South Korea, and the United Kingdom – supporting individual Millennium Villages and essential operations
• The national, regional, and local governments of the MVP’s host countries – Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda

 

 

Financials

Operating in 10 countries across sub-Saharan Africa with headquarters in New York, Millennium Promise oversees a budget of more than $25 million annually. At least 91% of these funds go directly to programs on the ground designed to help communities escape extreme poverty.