Malawi project profile

Mikolongwe ADP

Education
Schools in the Mikolongwe area have high drop out rates among girls, due to early marriage, pregnancy and migration. Teachers are poorly trained and few students pass national exams.

World Vision holds community meetings to highlight the importance of girls’ education and supports girls and boys through secondary school. It holds inter-school debating competitions and quizzes and provides mock examinations to prepare students for official exams. Refresher-training courses and education assessment meetings improve teachers’ skills and introduce topics such as child rights and HIV prevention.

HIV and AIDS
HIV and AIDS are significant challenges to World Vision’s development work. Poor health reduces the amount of food families can produce and causes children to drop out of school to care for family members. Household resources are stretched as they accomodate orphaned children.

World Vision trains community leaders, teachers, churches and youth groups to disseminate HIV-prevention messages. It establishes and supports local committees to visit and care for families and grow vegetables and run day-care centres to ensure young children receive at least one nutritious meal a day.

A vocational-training institution supported by Mikolongwe ADP teaches young people carpentry and tailoring so they can better support their families. HIV-prevention messages are promoted through all of Mikolongwe ADP’s work in education, agriculture and community leadership development.

Agriculture
Most households grow maize for food. Other common crops include peanuts, sorghum, cassava, sweet potatoes and some vegetables. Erratic rainfall, infertile soils, small landholdings and poor farming practices make it difficult for farmers to grow enough food to meet their families’ needs.

The ADP establishes farmers’ associations, provides farmers with drought-resistant seed varieties and teaches modern agricultural methods, such as crop diversification, composting and soil and water conservation. It establishes irrigation systems, seed multiplication sites and tree nurseries.

Poultry and female goats improve protein intake, and increase incomes through the sale of eggs and milk. The animals are provided by World Vision through a scheme where farmers pass the off-spring on to other households. Spices, chillies and sunflowers are promoted as alternative sources of income.

Community leadership
The ADP supports leadership and project management training for members of local development committees, made up of traditional leaders, government community development staff and local people. Training in development management and child rights helps to make World Vision’s work with the Mikolongwe community sustainable into the future. World Vision also continues to support previously established water and sanitation and HIV and AIDS support committees as they become self sustaining.

Sustainable development
World Vision started Mikolongwe ADP in 1999, and is working with the community to enhance ongoing development. Progress is evaluated every four years, and when the community reaches its goals World Vision will begin to reduce its support, allowing the community to direct its own development.