By Memory Kutengule Chatonda 

Blantyre, November 7, Mana: 44 year-old Mercy Sontho had already planned how she would meaningfully use that month’s Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP) stipend. 

To the contrary, unknown assailants, three in total, attacked her on her way home, foiling all her expectations. 

This left her with many thoughts on how she would recover from the ruthless incident that occurred on March 6, 2021. 

“I vividly recall that they threatened me with sharp knives for the money I got from the pay point or risk losing my life. 

“Since I was engulfed with fear, I surrendered the money amounting to K42, 000. Immediately I complied, they disappeared into the nearby bush," recalls the soft-spoken Sontho, who lost her husband years back.

Today, apart from piecework, Sontho relies on SCTP monthly stipends to feed her five-member family.

Popularly known as Mtukula Pakhomo, SCTP is a Malawi Government initiative under the Social Protection Programme targeting the bottom 10 percent of the poverty strata who are ultra-poor and labor constrained according to the Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, the government arm implementing the programme.

A native of Traditional Authority (TA) Chigaru in Blantyre, Sontho values the monthly stipend, knowing how transformative it is.

Seemingly, little, considering the current economic landscape, at that time, Sontho says she could use the money to buy necessities for her five-member family.

“It was sad because the situation left me in a dilemma. I had planned to use the money to beef up the income generated from vegetable sales to buy foodstuffs,” she laments.

Desperate, Sontho took solace in some foodstuffs that sympathetic community members brought in support of her household.

Her experience reflects the risks posed by the cash payment system used in some social protection programmes like Mtukula Pakhomo. Beneficiaries may lose money that they could have used to alleviate their plight.

Springing from such risks, government introduced the electronic payment system (e-payment) to replace traditional cash payments to protect people like Sontho, with Blantyre being one of the 21 beneficiary districts.

The e-payment system is a digital infrastructure that enables the electronic transfer of funds between individuals or entities.

Sontho today receives her monthly stipends via a mobile wallet on her phone. With this, she feels safe.

“At first, I was hesitant to register for a mobile wallet through Telekom Network Malawi (TNM) Mpamba, but after being sensitized about its benefits, one of which is the security of my money, I accepted,” she says.

Principal Social Welfare Officer responsible for SCTP, Kumbukeni Kauwa, says in Blantyre close to 7,804 beneficiaries under the programme graduated from manual (cash) payments to electronic payments in 2022.

Apart from the e-payment system being used in SCTP, it is also being utilized in processing payments for the participants of the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CS-EPWP), another component under the Social Support for Resilience Livelihood Project (SSRLP), funded by the World Bank and other multi-donor trust funds in the district.

District Project Facilitator for Blantyre, Aubrey Jazza, says CS-EPWP, which was introduced in 2022, focuses on creating visible, durable, and quality assets within micro-catchments that will assist in improving household resilience to shocks among others.

He says to date, the programme has close to 17,000 participants who work in 15 catchment areas of Chilambalare, Mgawa, Lirangwi 2, Mlombozi, Mikundi, Somba, Milare, Mabala, Kamwendo, Likhubula, Masinde, Linjemesi, Nazombe and Zemba.

“The participants receive pay through an E-payment system after working for 30 days. The payment service provider is TNM,” says Jazza.

Shadreck Batamosi, one of the CS-EPWP participants from Linjemesi catchment area, hails the e-payment system, saying it reduces the challenges people face with cash payments.

He cites: “E-payment has reduced the time of waiting at pay points for beneficiaries after walking long distances, and also one is assured of maximum security of his/her money because when they receive the money, it's only them who know."

Overall, electronic transaction has simplified the payment process under the social protection programmes such as SCTP and CS-EPWP being implemented by Blantyre District Council.

Principal Information, Communication Technology Officer for Blantyre, Bengula Mhone, attests to the fact that payment of transfers is done in bulk and everyone receives the money at the same time.

In addition, he says the inclusion of ghost households is easily detected, and only eligible and deserving households are taken on board through the Know Your Customer registration process.

Project Manager for TNM Mpamba, Tsimikizo Chikoya, hails the collaboration that exists between Blantyre District Council and the telecom company in the implementation of social protection programs, particularly on the e-payment system.

He advises beneficiaries to make sure that they don't disclose password of their mobile wallet to other people to avoid being duped.

E-payment aims to prepare the country's economy for the adoption of Digital Financial Services (DFS).

Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) first quarter 2024 report issued on September 4 regarding the national payment system, states that DFS remain the most widely used payment method compared to cash withdrawals and cheques.

Non-bank mobile payments (mobile money services) continue to help millions of Malawians like Sontho, Batamasi and others to receive social cash transfers and CS-EPWP payments from government and other development partners.

The RBM report says: "As of the end of March 2024, the number of non-bank mobile money service subscribers stood at 13.0 million, representing a 2.7 percent increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2023.

This shows that Malawi is making good strides in using mobile money services, which are key drivers of financial inclusion and catalysts for economic growth and development."