The Lipiri community programme
The Lipiri community development programme is located in Dowa
district in the central region of Malawi. World Vision reaches 223
villages with a total population of 26,900. World Vision's
partnership with Lipiri started in 2008 and is envisaged to
continue until 2020, when the community will be have the resources
and skills to take on responsibility for its own development. World
Vision started working in Lipiri fairly recently, but great
progress is being made in the current key focus areas of education
and food security.
Issues covered: Education, food
security, malnutrition
Updates on World Vision's work
Education
- The Lipiri education project aims to support 5000 preschool and
primary school pupils, as well as 1200 adults, to receive basic
quality education and literacy competency. Improvements to the
learning environment so far have already resulted in a one-fifth
increase in the number of girls enrolling in primary school.
- To help improve the quality of education and reduce school
dropout rates, World Vision distributed 180 text books to students
in two high schools in the past year.
Agriculture and food security
- With almost half of the children aged 6 months to 3 years
suffering from the effects of malnutrition, Lipiri farmers are
being trained in modern farming methods to improve crop production.
Since the start of the programme, World Vision staff have witnessed
a 70 per cent adoption rate of modern agricultural practices by
farmers to increase crop yields.
- To improve families' food security and household income, 210
farmers were supported with fertiliser and maize seeds. Fifty
farmers were also assisted with soya bean, groundnut and bean
seeds.
The Lipiri community is in the fifth year of its development
journey with World Vision.
Life on
the ground in Lipiri
No more learning on a cold and dusty floor
World Vision and the Lipiri community are
working together to improve the learning environment, so pupils,
like Esmie, do not drop out.
Esmie attends Chilimmimba Primary School. She is one of 509
pupils who have already benefited from World Vision's education
programme in Lipiri. As part of World Vision's distribution of 300
desks to 11 schools in the area, Esmie's school received 50 new
desks. Says Esmie: "Previously, we used to sit on the floor or on
bricks. Not only was this uncomfortable and cold, but our uniforms
would get dirty every day. Today, I am happy that I sit at a modern
desk."
World Vision has discovered one of the reasons why girls in
senior classes drop out of school is because they are too
embarrassed to sit on the floor. The aim is now to source even more
desks to achieve the ratio of two students to one desk, instead of
three or four that still occurs. World Vision and the community are
also encouraging all the girls who had dropped out to return to
school.
Malawi at a glance
Malawians call their scenic, densely populated country the warm
heart of Africa. Their nation faces many challenges: HIV and AIDS,
a growing population, limited natural resources, drought and
environmental degradation.
