By Solister Mogha

Zomba, March 21, Mana: Zomba District Council on Friday gave out 150 buffalo push bicycles to volunteer community-based trainers (CBTs) that were trained to set up Village Savings and Loan groups under Social Protection for Gender Empowerment and Resilience (SP-GEAR) project to sustain livelihood of communities under the Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP).

Speaking during the handover of the push bicycles at Sakata Training Center in the area of Traditional Authority Nkagula, District Commissioner, Reinghard Chavula said the volunteer CBT were given the bicycles to ease their mobility in facilitating setting up VSLs among recipients of cash transfers.

She said SCTP was meant to uplift the lives of the vulnerable community members that were listed in the programme, adding that VSL groups formation was an ideal approach to ensure sustainable livelihood among recipients of the cash transfers.

"Our expectations under the Social Cash Transfer Programme is that people should, by end of the programme, graduate from their current status and live a more transformed life other than remaining in poverty. For us to reach this stage, more village banks should be established and sustained,” Chavula said.

The district commissioner therefore appealed to CBTs to encourage community members to do businesses in groups, saying this allows them to have market opportunities for their products on top of easy access to loans.

One of the community based trainers, Exah Nsapato hailed the council after receiving a push bicycle saying this was timely since travelling long distances on foot was a challenge.

“We are just volunteers and we could, in many occasions, use our money to visit the groups and we thank government through UNICEF for the support," Nsapato who supervises a VSL group of over 100 members, added.

She said the bicycles are a big relief, adding that many CBTs have been motivated and will work hard.

“We promise to take good care of the bicycles so that they serve the intended purpose," Nsapato added.

Traditional Authority Nkagula who witnessed the handover, said mobility amongst most of the CBTs was a big setback.

He therefore hailed the council and development partner for the timely support and promised to woo more people to join VSL groups.

SP-GEAR championed by UNICEF is one of the cash plus interventions which among others seek to promote community resilience through establishment of VSL groups.