The highlight of the trip was the official inauguration of the new Nsondole Sub-Epicenter building. These buildings are a true monument to The Hunger Project’s partnership with the community, as about 20% of the total cost is contributed by the community in the form of land donation, bricks for building and other materials.

As a Sub-Epicenter, the building is slightly smaller than a full Epicenter, but still has a large meeting room for community mobilization, a community garden for food production, a food bank for storage, and a credit room.

Another new Sub-Epicenter is also being mobilized in an area called Mpingo. The community has attended Vision, Commitment and Action Workshops and has mobilized the land and molded 120,000 bricks need to start construction of a Sub-Epicenter building. The community was very excited about having their own Sub-Epicenter because some of them have visited other Epicenters and Sub-Epicenters and were impressed by the activities taking place there. Construction is scheduled to begin in March and should be completed by the end of April.

Even though the building has yet to be constructed, the community has already started planting communal gardens for the future food bank. In addition, the Epicenter Committee has been elected with an equal number of women and men. Another six women and five men have completed training as HIV/AIDS animators and have started conducting “HIV/AIDS & Gender Inequality Workshops” in their villages. AWFFI credit and SPIA (men’s) credit programs have been launched are and being guided by locally-elected AWFFI and SPIA Loan Committees.

The AWFFI program has been functioning in Malawi for three years, and the impact is evident as women build brick houses for their families, which is a dream come true. Many women have undertaken pig-farming and cattle-raising which have proven highly profitable.

One group of AWFFI women started a salt-making business. The area has a naturally high level of salt in the soil which they extract by mixing the soil with water, filtering mud through sacks, and then boiling the water down to salt crystals. The final product is a very fine white salt that’s table-ready!

At the Nchalo Epicenter, about 300 people attend the Adult Literacy graduation ceremony for 101 learners. Ninety-five of the learners were women and six were men. The learners were truly exuberant about their accomplishment, and the ceremony was a colorful affair with frequent cheering as the graduates received their certificates.

We visited the Jali Epicenter to see their achievements since last year. About 200 people attended the VCA conducted by Dr. Tadesse. In addition, the President of the Epicenter Committee shared their successes including the expansion of income generating activities, food production and the Food Bank, “drug revolving funds” which offer low cost medicines in the villages, Traditional Birth Attendants, HIV/AIDS Animators and the HIV/AIDS & Gender Inequality workshops, Water and Sanitation, Bed Nets to protect against malaria and Adult Literacy.

During our visit, the Country Director, Callista Chimombo, resigned from her post. The Project Officer, Rowlands Koatcha, has assumed her duties as the Country Director.