Blantyre Urban, Malawi

Food relief helped struggling families.

The cholera situation has stabilised but the other two issues still remain big challenges.

Despite the challenges, Blantyre Urban ADP had many achievements.

The following are some of Blantyre Urban ADP’s achievements since October 2001:

Special assistance

• Supplied food relief (maize flour) to over 2080 sponsored children and almost 300 families headed by elderly people or children.
  
• Provided roofing materials for a family whose house was damaged during the rainy season.
  
• Provided blankets and food to 2070 sponsored children.

Health

• Donated four bicycle ambulances valued at approximately $NZ2934 to the community. The ambulances are light metal trailers, which are towed by bicycles.
  
• They can transport sick people to the nearest clinic, thereby saving many lives.
  
• Trained Village Health Committee members in various health-related matters, such as cholera management and control, how to cast concrete san plats (foot slabs for latrines) and HIV/AIDS prevention.
  
• Trained 36 Orphan Care Committee members in the care of orphans, HIV/AIDS prevention and counselling. The committee operates a vegetable garden, the produce being sold to help orphans pay school fees and living expenses. Older orphans assist the committee members with the gardening, learning valuable skills in the process.
  
• Arranged for 10 female Orphan Care Committee members to attend a two-week training course at a weaving factory. The ADP will provide materials to these women as a start-up loan so that they can establish a clothing business, the proceeds of which will help orphans in their care.
  
• Trained Home-based Care Committee members in management of chronically ill patients and operating community drug revolving funds. When drugs are sold, the profits are banked to pay for new supplies.
  
• Replenished first aid kits in all eight schools in the ADP area. First aid treatment gives prompt attention to child ailments and helps reduce school absenteeism. In 2002, more than 5800 pupils received first aid treatment at the schools.
  
• Paid transport costs (to hospital), medical bills and food expenses for 69 children.
  
• Trained 34 orphans, aged 13 to 18 years, in skills such as carpentry, tinsmith work and how to run a small business.
  
• Trained 77 Village Action Committees in HIV/AIDS prevention. The committees are the central point of community activities, being led by village headmen. The committees are responsible for spreading the AIDS prevention message.
  
• Printed and distributed 600 tee-shirts with anti-AIDS messages to anti-AIDS clubs and Health Committees.
  
• Supplied cholera medicines, gloves, facemasks to all health centres, and chlorine to over 13,000 families to help control the cholera outbreak that swept the country. ADP staff and health committees continued to educate people about cholera prevention and control. Despite these measures, sadly 12 of the reported 647 cholera patients in Blantyre Urban ADP died.
  
• Supplied medicine to curb an outbreak of scabies. The disease spread quickly and was worse in Ndirande township, especially among children. The spread was caused by overcrowding in small houses and exacerbated by the lack of appropriate medicines at Government hospitals. The situation is now under control, although sporadic cases are still reported. Village Health Committees continue to educate people about sanitation and hygiene.
  
• Carried out a nutritional survey to determine the level of malnutrition in children under five years of age.
  
• Held health check-ups for 2080 children. Common problems diagnosed included enlarged spleens (chronic malaria), malnutrition and skin diseases. Treatment was organised for these children.
  
• Helped parents with funeral costs for four sponsored children who died. Sixty-four parents of sponsored children also died last year, most of them after long illnesses that were AIDS-related.

Education

• Assisted 40 especially needy sponsored children by paying for school fees. Most of these children are orphans who would otherwise not be able to afford to go to school. Study materials and uniforms were provided for 32 sponsored children.
  
• Supplied 80 school desks. Children sit two to a desk, so this seated 160 children who previously had to have their lessons seated on the ground.

Water

• Installed six shallow well pumps to increase access to clean drinking water for over 10,800 families in Nkolokoti township. This will reduce the incidence of water-borne diseases such as cholera.
  
• Trained 45 Water Committee members on pump maintenance so they can maintain the pumps without World Vision assistance. The committees have opened community bank accounts from which money will be withdrawn to pay for maintenance costs. (Water user fees will keep the accounts topped up.)

Economic development

• Trained 98 Loan Committee members from various community banks in recruiting and screening new loan applicants, loan recovery and leadership skills. The banks have their own loan recovery policies and deal with defaulters without World Vision involvement. The banks are lending to needy people in the community at an interest rate lower than that charged by World Vision’s own SEDP (Small Enterprise Development Programme). This is a positive sign that small business development will continue in the community after World Vision’s involvement is complete.
  
• Disbursed loans amounting to Malawian Kwacha 3,298,000 (approximately $NZ85,280) to 23 community banks. Eighty-nine percent of the loan clients are women, who generally have a better repayment record.

Advocacy

• Trained chiefs, committee chairmen and other local leaders in child protection policies. The leaders are expected to play an active advocacy role in their community, ensuring that adults are not abusing children.