Our impact in numbers

How do we create the biggest impact? Max Foundation started with that question, which led us to where we are today. From water pumps to Healthy Villages, from a volunteer to a professional organisation, from Bangladesh to Nepal and Ethiopia. This worked: in our programme areas in Bangladesh, we achieved a 50% reduction in stunting!

     

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Max Foundation results

Impact longread

Click on the image below to go straight to our impact longread! In it, we explain how the Healthy Village approach made a 50% decrease in stunting possible in our programme areas, as well as why this is so cost-effective, and more.

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Max Foundation innovations

as local government 'Best Practices'

Local government in Bangladesh has chosen to feature 10 of Max Foundation's innovations in their "Best Practice compendium".

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Max TapWater and the Delta Plan:

an interview with Riad

Riad Mahmud, Max Foundation Bangladesh Director, was interviewed by Joep Janssen from the Nextblue platform

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Community voices

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Growing out of stunting, step by step

Jibon's story Expand article

Jibon is the youngest of three brothers living in the north-east of Bangladesh. His mother has her hands full running the household and looking after her children. Jibon’s father leaves the house early in the morning to seek work. As a day laborer, he has a hard time providing for his family. When his parents found out Jibon was severely stunted during a growth monitoring session, they realized they had to improve their baby’s health.

Together with other family members, they improved their hygiene habits to help Jibon grow healthy.

His mother attended courtyard sessions of the community health promoter. There she learned about good sanitation, hygiene and nutrition habits. Jibon loves to eat foods like eggs, milk, and khichuri, which have high nutritional value. Jibon’s health is gradually improving, from severely to moderately stunted, and on the right track.

Jibon’s parents saved money to build a latrine. Later on, the family invested in a handwashing device and soap. These healthy practices improved the well-being of the whole family.

A sanitation business woman 

The story of Shahera Khatun Expand article

Shahera Khatun is a single mother of 3 children. She also runs her own sanitation business. It requires hard labour, and is more commonly done by men.

Shahera started small a few years ago, and steadily grew her business. She now has expanded to sell a variety of sanitation and hygiene products.

Last year during COVID-19, her business suffered as people couldn’t afford to invest in sanitation. Luckily business is picking up again.

We are happy to see Shahera’s business grow!

The year that changed everything

Suisaya's story Expand article

Suisaya is in class four of the Yangsa School in Golkhali (Bangladesh). One year ago, there were no water and sanitation facilities at her school. She did not have anything to drink all day and when she had to go to the toilet, she walked into the field. As a girl, she always felt vulnerable. Max Foundation worked with school management to fix this.

Now, there is a water well in the school yard and separate latrines for girls and boys. Since then, children at her school suffer less from diarrhoea. Hygiene education also contributed: all children learned to wash their hands after visiting the toilets.

When we ask Suisaya about this, she says with a big smile: “I wash my hands when I have visited the latrine. You get ill if you don’t. I like to wash my hands.”