Healthcare

From Pilot to Policy Community Power in Public Systems #SkollWF 2026

Skoll Foundation
Skoll Foundation•May 26, 2026

Why It Matters

Scaling professional CHW systems reshapes public health delivery, unlocking budgetary support and measurable health outcomes across low‑ and middle‑income countries.

Key Takeaways

  • •Define gaps, rally coalitions, and track adoption via DRIVE framework.
  • •Over 50 countries now salary community health workers, up from none.
  • •Brazil’s CHW model pays half‑million workers double minimum wage.
  • •Cross‑sector coalitions in Zambia link schools, health, media, parliament.
  • •Mapping policy windows accelerates timing of advocacy and budget decisions.

Summary

The Skoll World Forum 2026 session examined how pilot projects can become lasting public‑sector policies, spotlighting the professionalization of community health workers (CHWs) and cross‑sector health‑education initiatives.

Presenters introduced the DRIVE framework—Define the gap, Rally the coalition, Identify windows, Voice demand, Engineer adoption—showing how it has helped move CHWs from unpaid volunteers to salaried, supervised staff in more than 50 nations. Brazil’s success, paying half‑million CHWs double the minimum wage, and Kenya’s national association demanding inclusion in policy discussions illustrate concrete outcomes. Mapping policy windows and tracking adoption across a hundred countries enable timely advocacy and measurable impact.

Maureen Wauda’s testimony amplified the voices of 47 Kenyan counties, while Liberia’s shift to salaried CHWs cut malaria prevalence in half within five years. Healthy Learners’ “deep and wide” strategy in Zambia linked ministries, civil‑society coalitions, media, and parliament to embed school‑based health services, underscoring the power of broad, multi‑level engagement.

The discussion signals that coordinated, data‑driven coalitions can transform fragmented pilots into systemic reforms, offering a replicable blueprint for other health, education, and democracy movements seeking sustainable public‑sector adoption.

Original Description

Community-driven solutions often prove their impact through pilots. Far fewer make the leap into national policy and public budgets. How does that shift happen? This interactive session explores how movements can translate emergent innovation into government adoption and sustained domestic financing. Drawing on lessons from the professional community health worker movement and cross-sector efforts in education, health, and democracy, participants will surface proven strategies for turning grassroots organizing into policy adoption and public investment. Come ready to share what has worked in your context and leave with tactics to identify winnable moments, unlock funding, and build political will across sectors.
This session has been curated in partnership with Community Health Impact Coalition (CHIC).
Ignicious Bulongo
Co-founder & Chief Visionary Officer
Healthy Learners
@HealthyLearners-zm
Lonnie Hackett
Co-founder & CEO
Healthy Learners
@HealthyLearners-zm
Flávia Pellegrino
Executive Director
Pacto pela Democracia
@PactopelaDemocracia
Maureen Wauda
Community Health Worker
Lwala Community Alliance
@LwalaCommunity
Bernardo Xavier
Community Health Worker
Brazil's Unified Health System
Madeleine Ballard
Founder & CEO
Community Health Impact Coalition (CHIC)
@communityhealthimpactcoalition
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