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Yawose project empowers vulnerable women, youth in Mzimba and Nkhata Bay districts
Yawose program empowers vulnerable women and youth in Mzimba and Nkhata Bay through agriculture and finance-Victor Musongole.
Malawi-A financial and agricultural empowerment program by the Youth and Women for Sustainable Environment (Yawose) has improved the lives and households of vulnerable women and youth in Mzimba and Nkhata Bay districts, writes Victor Musongole.
The Yawose Project, implemented by the Mzuzu Diocese with support from Germany Meeting Point, has trained up to 150 people in bee-keeping, poultry farming, making cooking stoves, and distributing fruit trees.
Veronica Nyirenda, the project's field officer, reported that 90% of the beneficiaries have been economically empowered.
"We gave all beneficiaries chicks, fruit seedlings, and we trained them in the production of cooking stoves as well as bee farming. This has really helped to change their status at home," said Nyirenda.
The project has had a positive impact on the lives of many beneficiaries, who have been able to build decent houses, buy iron sheets, and sell cooking stoves. Some have even built up their own businesses by selling eggs, chicken, and honey.
Thomas Msofi, a youth beneficiary from Nkhokoma, said that the project has helped them stay away from unproductive behavior.
"The income-generating activities are uplifting our lives and helping us spend our time wisely while keeping us from unproductive behaviour. With proceeds from chicken, fruit, and honey sales plus village savings and loans that came with the project, our lives have improved for the better," he said.
The project has also been successful in promoting village savings and loans, which have assisted beneficiaries like Witness Sakala to pay school fees for her children.
"I'm now able to pay school fees for my children with proceeds from chicken sales and VSL. Currently, I sell chicken and eggs, which help me to provide for my family without problems," she said.
Kobina Banda, the chairperson for the Kadete group in Nkhatabay, praised the project and reported that it has changed lives in the area.
"The Kroiler chicks we got from this project have helped to improve our chicken breed, as crossbreeds from our local and these Kroiler have faster growth. We can now afford a better life, all thanks to Yawose," he said.
The project has also received praise from Group Village Head Gowamo from Kanthete, who said he would ensure that the activities continue to impact other people who had not benefited in the initial phases.
He also suggested that if other organizations replicate the project's interventions in other parts of the country, poverty could be eradicated.
The project, which began in 2020, is expected to end in September 2022.