The UK charity Chasing Zero was set up in 2011 with a primary charitable mission to see zero AIDS related deaths in Africa. Around the same time the IMPACT (improving parent and child outcomes) programme was set up by Tearfund and the trustees of Chasing Zero decided to support this programme from donations raised in the UK. HIV and AIDs are important risk factors for expectant and new mums (a 6-fold increase in maternal mortality risk) in many African countries – for example about 1 in 3 women in the IMPACT programme in Malawi are living with HIV (see meet the mums -1000 day stories).

Since then the IMPACT programme has expanded to 7 countries in Africa and extended in duration to support the critical 1000 day period – from conception to age 2.

In 2016 Pregnancy Twinning was launched as a way of enabling pregnant women, new mums and their families and friends in the UK to support vulnerable pregnant women in Africa. This was part of the concept of ‘twinning pregnancies across the world’.

In 2019, following recognition that the 1000 days period was just as important in the UK context, the scope of Pregnancy Twinning was expanded to include information and resources for UK mums, particularly around mental health.

Our team is led by David Deakin, who set up the programme in Africa, founded Pregnancy Twinning, and who is also a qualified UK Counsellor (BACP Registered) .

Our team has over 25 combined years of experience, of involvement with pregnancy and early child development in both Africa and the U.K.  We want to ensure that whether you are concerned for mums in Africa or the UK that you have the most up to date findings, so that mums can then make the best decisions for them and their infants.