By Steve Chirombo

Dedza, March 16, Mana: Director of Finance for Dedza district council, Idah Mphangwe, has said the ongoing smooth pay parade for the participants under the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CS-EPWP) clearly indicates that communities now understand the project’s requirements.

Mphangwe said this on Friday during the supervision of some sites where the pay parade was being conducted in the area of Senior Chief Kachindamoto in the district.

She expressed satisfaction with the progress of the pay parade, saying, unlike the previous phases, no grievances were being reported.

“In our previous pay parades, we could have serious issues being reported which could choke the processes but that is not the case now,” said Mphangwe.

She said issues like missing names and IDs marred the previous pay parades, which could affect other participants' access to their money up until such grievances were sorted out after some days of waiting.

Mphangwe said it has always been the message from the council for the participants to ensure that the money is used for the intended purposes so that their livelihoods are transformed.

“We are glad to hear testimonies from most participants that the money is helping them in one way or the other. For example, others have told us that they used the funds for the previous phase to buy fertilizer while others bought food,” she stated.

While pleading for the continuation of the programme, she further said that there is a great impact on the communities, adding that aside the monetary aspect, the environment is being cared for and that more assets are being created.

The council’s CS-EPWP District Project Facilitator, Jocaster Mnemba Khoriyo, echoed Mphangwe’s sentiments, saying the pay parade in all the 24 catchments was progressing well.

“There is order in all sites, systems are stable and people are getting their money properly, which clearly shows that they can understand the processes,” she said.

One of the participants, Ethel Size, from Group Village Head Mkwaila in the area, who was receiving her money at Mganja Primary School, said just like in the previous phases, the money came at the right time as the beneficiaries were able to sort out some problems at household level like buying food, clothes and also providing for their school going children.

“Through the programme, most trees have survived which is a plus for us. We were greatly hit by deforestation. I call upon fellow communities to utilize this opportunity for their betterment and the future generation,” she said.

Another participant, Davite Zakaria of Kabulika Village, hailed CS-EPWP, saying apart from receiving cash, their livelihoods have improved through the construction of swales, planting of vetiver grass, among others, describing them as assets that have prevented wash aways which used to affect their crops.

“Let me thank government and other partners for this programme. I also appeal to my fellow community members to keep on with the program as it is also equipping us with certain skills,” he said.

There are 21,411 participants in all the 24 catchments with each receiving K48,000 in the fourth phase of the pay parade in Dedza district.

CS-EPWP is one of the components of the Social Support for Resilience Livelihoods Project (SSRLP) being implemented by the National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC) with funding from the World Bank Multi-Donor Trust Fund.