APRIL 26, 2006

Great Results in Malawi!

By Sanaz Memarsadeghi

April 26, 2006

 

Today marked our last epicenter visit in Malawi.  During the past week, we have visited all 5 epicenters in Malawi and witnessed the progress that has been made as our partners work toward ending hunger and becoming self-reliant.

Dr. Tadesse with literacy class graduates at Jali.

On Friday, April 21, we began our epicenter visits in Jali.  We started the day with a visit to the home of AWFFI partner Mrs. Flora Mangiriza.  Mrs. Mangiriza has achieved great success through her participation in the AWFFI program.  After first taking and successfully repaying a cattle loan, she then took a pig loan worth 45,000 Kwacha ($342) in December 2003.  Beginning with only three pigs, she now has 50 and has earned ~700,000 Kwacha ($5,330) from pig sales.  With this income she has been able to rebuild her home, purchase agricultural inputs, and begin poultry-raising as well.  This year in Jali, the AWFFI women will be trained in village banking with the intention of mobilizing to form their own rural bank.  After visiting Mrs. Mangiriza and the maternity of one of the 12 Hunger Project-trained traditional birth attendants in Jali, we were very warmly welcomed at the epicenter site by over 600 partners.  At the epicenter’s health center, we saw partners receiving free HIV testing and counseling.  Meanwhile, at the food processing unit, AWFFI partners have been trained to make soymilk, juices, dried fruits and vegetables, cakes, and breads as income-generating activities.  Following the performance of an HIV/AIDS awareness theatre troupe, Dr. Tadesse presided over the graduation of 98 partners from adult literacy classes.

The Board members of the new rural bank in Nsondole celebrating with their certificate of official recognition

Saturday, April 22 marked the inauguration of the rural bank at Nsondole Epicenter.  This is the first officially recognized, women-led savings and credit cooperative (SACCO) bank in Malawi.  575 female partners are members of the new bank , and these women have successfully mobilized 525,000 Kwacha ($3,998) in savings.  The bank’s inauguration was marked by the disbursement of 2 loans totaling 173,200 Kwacha ($1,119) to 2 groups of 22 women.  The President of Malawi’s Microfinance Network and a representative from the Malawi Union of Savings and Credit Cooperatives (MUSCO) were in attendance for the event.  The Board members of the new bank sang, danced, and rejoiced when Dr. Tadesse presented them with their official certificate of recognition.  Like their counterparts in Jali, AWFFI partners in Nsondole are also engaged in food processing, and we were able to see their final products.  In addition to inaugurating the rural bank, Dr. Tadesse also presided over the adult literacy class graduation of 23 partners.

The Ligowe Epicenter AWFFI Loan Committee

On Monday, April 24, we went to Ligowe, Malawi’s newest epicenter.  At Ligowe, the epicenter building is currently under construction.  The visit was marked by the opening of the Bed-net Program, an anti-malaria initiative existing in all THP-Malawi epicenters.  Under this program, THP purchases bed-nets from UNICEF at a subsidized price of 80 Kwacha ($.61) each and then gives them to the epicenter in the form of a loan.  The community then sells the bed-nets at 100 Kwacha ($.76), repays THP, and is able to generate savings.  The visit to Ligowe was also marked by the 100% repayment of AWFFI loans by the three existing loan groups in the epicenter.  Ligowe AWFFI partners are extremely enthusiastic about participating in the AWFFI program and are even saving more than is required.  AWFFI Project Officer Gertrude Kamvuluvulu says that AWFFI partners are off to a very strong start, and at least 6 more groups will receive loans during this quarter.

The Nchalo Epicenter irrigation project.

On Tuesday, April 25 at Nchalo Epicenter, 132 learners graduated from adult literacy class.   In addition to presiding over their graduation, we also visited the site of an irrigation scheme which is enabling 30 families to cultivate maize during the dry season.  Now able to grow food year-round, these partners are making real progress towards ending hunger in their communities.  The epicenter has also made advances in health and HIV/AIDS prevention.  There are 13 trained traditional birth attendants in the epicenter which are enabling women to have safer deliveries.  Free HIV testing and counseling is available, and the THP HIV/AIDS Project Officer has assisted the community in forming a Community-Based Organization of HIV-positive persons.   At Nchalo, we also visited the home of Chrissy Zondiwa, the chairperson of the epicenter committee (yes, a female chairperson for the entire epicenter!).   Ms. Zondiwa is also a successful participant in the AWFFI program.  Since taking a loan of three pigs in 2005, she has sold 5 pigs, extended her pigsty, and now has a total of 11 piglets and 3 pigs.  She stated that she will finish repaying her loan in June and that from then on that she will be self-reliant and will not request any further loans from The Hunger Project.

THP Malawi Country Director, Rowlands Kaotcha conducting a VCA workshop in Mpingo.

Today, our epicenter visits came to a close at Mpingo.  14 partners received certificates and graduated from adult literacy class.  Country Director Rowlands Kaotcha and Dr. Tadesse led interactive VCAs with 400 community members, reaffirming their commitment to end hunger and poverty.  The community also took the initiative to create a four-person education committee which will perform outreach and work to increase male participation in adult literacy classes.  As in Nchalo, the chairperson of the epicenter committee in Mpingo is a woman, and under her leadership, the community has declared that it will repay all outstanding loans by the end of July.