Little Heroes
Nurturing the Future, One Baby at a Time
It is hard to observe and to tell that each year in Tanzania, approximately 170,000 babies born too soon and 250,000 born too small face a heartbreaking battle for survival
At Gangarru Africa, we believe that every child, no matter their size or start in life, deserves the best chance to grow, thrive, and become a hero in their own story. That’s why we created the Little Heroes Project—an initiative dedicated to providing life-saving Kangaroo Care (KC) for premature and low-birth-weight newborns across Tanzania.
Read our Case Study
Assessing the acceptability of a full buckle textile carrier for Kangaroo Care
The Heart of Little Heroes
Every year, thousands of babies in Tanzania are born too soon or too small, putting their lives at risk. Kangaroo Care, which involves skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby, has been proven to significantly improve their chances of survival and healthy development. But many families don’t have access to the simple tools that make this care possible.
Although the KC practice is favored in Tanzania for babies born too soon or too small, helping reduce mortality rates, mothers using the Skin-To-Skin (STS) method face challenges with existing carriers like khangas[DM1] and cloths, preventing continuous STS contact thus leading to poor outcomes.
WHO recommends 8-24 hours of skin-to skin care for newborns, especially those born too soon or too small.
In the Neonatal ICU wards, both mothers and their fragile infants struggle due to limited incubators and Kangaroo Care facilities, a vital practice that promotes bonding and growth. Little Heroes is here to change that. Through this project, we are producing and distributing Gangarru baby carriers, specifically designed for Kangaroo Care, to families and healthcare facilities across the country.
Gangarru Carriers offer a practical solution, providing warmth, protection, and bonding without requiring special wards, thus reducing hospital space and shortening hospital stays.
Gangarru Carriers can be used in existing postnatal wards or at home, reducing hospital space needed for newborn care, shortening stays, and lowering costs for both mothers and hospitals.
Because every baby deserves the best start in life.
By distributing Babymoon carriers and providing comprehensive training to healthcare professionals and caregivers on the use and benefits of Kangaroo Care, this initiative seeks to significantly improve newborn health outcomes across the country.
We aim to:
- Enhance Newborn Health
Improve the survival and development of babies born too soon or too small through the implementation of KC using the Gangarru carriers.
- Empower Healthcare Providers
Train nurses, midwives, and pregnant mothers on the use of Gangarru carriers and the practice of KC.
- Increase Awareness and Advocacy
Raise awareness about the benefits of KC and the importance of neonatal care.
Our Approach
Our innovative approach facilitates and quantifies the application of Kangaroo Care (KC) using our evidence-based positioning devices. Kangaroo Care is a natural alternative to incubators for preterm and low-birth-weight babies, involving skin-to-skin contact between a mother and her newborn from birth until the baby reaches maturity.
Through Little heroes project, Gangarru Africa is striving to achieve the following key pillars:
- Training Workshops:
Conduct workshops for nurses and midwives on KC and the use of Gangarru carriers and provide training sessions for pregnant mothers and their families on the benefits and application of KC.
- Distribution of Babymoon Carriers:
Distribute carriers to healthcare facilities in the target regions and ensure each facility has an adequate supply of carriers for babies born too soon or too small.
- Ensuring sustainability of the positive outcomes:
Implement a robust monitoring system to track the impact of KC and the use of carriers on neonatal outcomes and collect and analyze data to inform future project expansion and improvement.
How You Can Become a Hero
The Little Heroes Project relies on the generosity of people like you. We aim to reach >20,000 families by the end of 2025. By sponsoring a baby carrier or making a donation, you are not just giving a family a product—you’re giving a newborn a fighting chance. Every contribution ensures that more babies receive the care they desperately need, empowering parents and saving lives.
Saving Lives. Empowering Communities
Gangarru carriers make Kangaroo Care accessible and simple for all parents, supporting the healthy growth of infants, especially those born prematurely or underweight. By promoting this life-saving practice, we help reduce neonatal mortality and contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 3: ensuring healthy lives for all. Each carrier is locally made by women from low-economic backgrounds, creating jobs and fostering sustainable economic growth, advancing Sustainable Development Goal 8. With every carrier, we’re not just helping a newborn—we’re uplifting entire communities.
Gangarru carriers are more than just products—they’re pathways to healthier futures for mothers, babies, and communities.
Join the Mission
By supporting Little Heroes, you become part of a larger movement to reduce infant mortality and give every child a fair start in life. Together, we can make sure that every baby gets the nurturing care they deserve, right from their first breath.
