By Aliko Munde

Chitipa, October 30, Mana: Travelling from Kapoka Trading Centre to Kayanda Village in Senior Chief Mwenemisuku one has to brave a tough ride due to its topography.

After travelling from Kapoka to Kalenge bridge you have to branch to the right, into a meandering dusty earth road as you go to Sokola.

Few kilometres before the Sokola area there is a small newly established earth road, up the Misuku Hills, that leads to Sanga Junior Primary School.

Driving up to Sanga Junior Primary school is not for an amateur driver but a more experienced one.

The school is at the top of the hill and green iron sheets can be seen twinkling from afar when one uses Misuku road to the far right.

The school, constructed in 2020, opened its doors in January 2023.

Paul Mulungu, a community member from Kayanda 1 village in Senior Chief Mwenemisuku in Chitipa District, says the area had difficulties to access quality education because the nearest school was almost 5 kilometres away.

“Our children could start school slightly above the enrollment age because of the long distance to school,” Mulungu explains.

Mulungu says after looking at the challenges for their children to access quality education in the area, the communities decided to request for a school in their area to ease the long distances learners were travelling to attain quality education.

“The nearest school was Chato Full Primary School, which is at a distance of 5 kilometres away. We are now happy that our children start school at the age of six,” he says.

He then applauds the government through Chitipa District Council for introducing Constituency Development Fund (CDF), which he says has helped the area to construct Sanga Junior Primary School.

He also applauds their Member of Parliament (MP) for supporting the request the communities made using constituency development fund.

Member of Parliament for Chitipa East where Sanga Junior Primary School is located, Kezzie Msukwa says he decided to be in support of construction of the school after seeing that children from the area were walking long distances to school and others dropped out at a tender age.

“From Sanga area to Chato or Sokola Primary Schools, it is about 5 kilometres. So, for learners, walking long distances to school was difficult. As a result, children from the Sanga area could start school older than the enrollment age of six,” Msukwa says.

Msukwa says people who were attending school from the area were few hence his decision to be in support of construction of the Sanga Junior Primary School.

“I intend to support construction of other school block, which will accommodate standard four to six. We want learners who are in standard three to transition to four at the same school.  We want Sanga Junior Primary School to be a complete full primary school in the next five years,” he says.

Leave no one behind (LNOB) is one of the six Guiding Principles of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework. LNOB is the central, transformative promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The LNOB represents the unequivocal commitment of all UN Member States to eradicate poverty in all its forms, end discrimination and exclusion, and reduce the inequalities and vulnerabilities that leave people behind and undermine the potential of individuals and of humanity as a whole.

A teacher at the school, Joackim Ngonya, attest to the fact that the government walk the talk by implementing what it says that it does not want to see any child drop out of school due to long distance to school.

Ngonya says construction works for Sanga Junior Primary School started in 2019 up to 2020. The school has enrollment of 50 learners from standard 1-3. And it was opened in January 2023 in term 2.

Ngonya says learners are now happy because they are accessing their education within their village saying the school has one qualified teacher and two volunteer teachers.

“The terrain of the area is mountainous and it was difficult for children to climb each and every day to and from school. That is why the children from the area and surrounding villages were starting school a bit older.

“This is now history because of the construction of Sanga Junior Primary School. This has eased the burden children and even parents were having. The learners are now able to access education less than a kilometre away from their homes,” Ngonya explains.

Chitipa District Education Network (DEN) Chairperson, Sydney Simwaka, describes the construction of Sanga Junior Primary School as good news to the people of Chitipa and Misuku in particular.

Simwaka says the Chitipa District Education Network as an education stakeholder welcomes the development as learners in the junior section were having challenges to access education due to the topography of the area.

“I hope the good gesture will be emulated by the other constituencies just to ensure that education services are brought closer to the people.

We urge the parents to utilise the facility by sending their children to school,” Simwaka says.

By Charlie Ligomeka

Machinga, October 30, Mana: Mpoya -Mdere Rice Scheme farmers in Machinga toured Mua irrigation scheme in Nkhotakota to learn scheme management and other best agricultural practices to turn the Machinga scheme into an agribusiness thing.

Mpoya-Mdere scheme farmer, Agnes Sifa said the tour to Nkhotakota was ideal adding that apart from learning irrigation farming in general, she and the rest of the farmers learnt financial management.

Sifa who is also board of trustee chairperson added that Mpoya Mdere scheme has challenges in managing finances, which prevents the scheme from doing farming as business. 

Malawi Watershed Services Improvement Projects (MWASIP) facilitated the Nkhotakota learning tour, which also provided farmers opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience in rice irrigation farming.

“We also learnt how scheme management committee and board of trustee operate to ensure effective scheme management,” she said, adding that the visiting farmers also learnt effectiveness of Bua-Water Users Association (WUA).

She explained that introduction of membership fees and byelaws that govern the scheme were things Mpoya Mdere Scheme needed to emulate to ensure sustainability.

Agricultural Extension Development Officer (AEDO) for Ntubwi Extension Planning Area (EPA) in Machinga,  Kondwani Kadewere said was impressed that Machinga farmers learnt a lot from their Nkhotakota counterparts.

The AEDO expressed hope that the Machinga farmers will implement what they learnt from the experienced Bua farmers.

“This was a learning tour and l know that they have learnt a lot from fellow farmers in Nkhotakota that farming should be regarded as business,” he added.

President for Bua WUA, Alfred Chiweza hailed the World Bank funded MWASIP for facilitating the learning tour, saying this was also an experience sharing opportunity.

He therefore encouraged collaboration among the Mpoya-Mdere Scheme members and to put in place byelaws that should help to govern the scheme for better results.

A consultant working with MWASIP, Norius Kayira said Bua Irrigation Scheme was a better thing to learn from and expressed hope that the visiting Mpoya –Mdere farmers will implement what they learnt during the tour.

She added that collaboration and good financial management were key issues for successful agribusiness.    Bua Rice Irrigation Scheme has been operating since 1976.

By Catherine Chikopa & Dalitso Kampira

Thyolo, October 30, Mana: Communities in Thyolo District have hailed government for implementing various social protection programmes such as the Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP) and Climate Smart Public Works Programme (CSPWP), which are improving their livelihoods.

During the launch of Social Protection Week on Tuesday, a representative of the beneficiaries, Hamilton Lyson from Kadzuwa Village in Traditional Authority Bvumbwe said the programmes have positively impacted their community.

“The money we receive helps us buy fertilizer, food for our families and even livestock, enabling us to better support ourselves,” he said.

Lyson also appealed to government and its development partners to continue supporting the programmes, emphasizing their critical role in sustaining families’ livelihoods.

Another beneficiary, Ellen Mwanga added that the programmes have allowed their families to become self-sufficient.

“With the SCTP and CSPWP, we can now provide for our families without external help. Most of us used to beg from other people but this came to an end," she said.

Senior Chief Inkosi Bvumbwe said the CSPWP is helping participants to practice climate smart agricultural practices leading to more sustainable farming practices.

District Commissioner for Thyolo, Hudson Kuphanga expressed satisfaction with the programmes' progress, noting that beneficiaries have been able to purchase livestock, such as goats.

Minister of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, Jean Sendeza disclosed that K900 million has been allocated to cover four months of payments for beneficiaries who had not received funds previously in Thyolo.

By: Brighton Chimsinde

Mchinji, October 30, Mana: Some elderly people and persons with disabilities, who are among the vulnerable group, have described digital finance services as a rescue for their lives.

Random interviews in Mchinji District, through the ongoing digital finance services (DFS) awareness campaign, led by the Ministry of Finance in conjunction with the Reserve Bank of Malawi have revealed.

One of the elderly persons, Jefita Jason, a mechanic at Kapiri Trading Centre, in the district, said he prefers using digital finance services, considering his age and physical fitness.

“To tell the truth, digital money has come to rescue our lives. At my age, I cannot manage to struggle with thugs hence carrying or keeping a lot of cash is life risking. Thieves can easily rob me of the millions and displaying resistance they can kill me or leave me with injuries,” Jason said.

In her comment Juliet Brandson, a physically challenged person at Nyoka Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Nyoka in the district says she prefers the digital money services because it is safe and convenient.

“I have no problem with digital money and I prefer it because it is safe, convenient and easy. It also gives me the liberty to do almost everything on my phone like buying talk-time, paying various products, receiving money and among others,” Brandson said.

Team leader for the Mchinji DFS awareness campaign, Joshua Kunkumbira, said it was encouraging seeing the elderly and people with disabilities testifying about the multiple benefits of digital money.

“It is a source of encouragement and pride for us, that members of groups that were previously considered vulnerable are now sharing their testimonies regarding the significance of digital finance services,” Kunkumbira said.

Mchinji is currently conducting a 20 day DFS awareness campaign.

By Leah Malimbasa

Chikwawa, October 30, Mana: Outdoor learning often comes with distractions, and most learners fail to concentrate on lessons due to numerous disturbances associated with learning in the open among the extreme hot and comfortability.

But in Chikwawa District, where temperatures can soar up to 44 degrees Celsius, learning outside the classroom in sweltering heat is a struggle for many young learners, and sometimes, it makes learning difficult.

Fourteen-year-old Ethel Limbikani, is a learner at Gombwa Junior Primary School which opened for learning in 2021 with an enrolment of 385 learners but only had a single classroom block.

“We were learning outside, and during rainfall, classes were disturbed. When hot, it was also difficult to concentrate while sitting under the scorching sun,” says Ethel.

Such hardships caught the attention of Chikwawa Nkombedzi Constituency, Member of Parliament, Abida Mia, who is also the Minister of Water and Sanitation.

“The sad background of Gombwa Junior Primary School inspired me to engage an extra gear towards improving education standards in my constituency. Most learners were learning in the outdoors, which exposed them to harsh weather conditions; hence my intervention to make a difference,” she explains.

Determined to create more conducive learning environments in her constituency, the MP mobilised K46. million from the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and built a new classroom block at Gombwa Junior Primary School. 

According to the school’s head teacher, Chikwasha Simba Jimu, learners are no longer left at the mercy of harsh weather conditions, saying they comfortable, learning in a safe and well-structured space. 

Jimu says the MP, Chikwawa District Council and other stakeholders closely monitored the CDF procurement process and made careful follow-ups on project funds.

“Through close scrutiny, we were able to monitor how the project was progressing together with local structures such as Area Development Committees (ADC), Village Development Committees (VDC) and project committees to ensure that community members had a stake in the project. The learning structure also transformed the physical landscape of the school and the attitudes of teachers and learners alike, 

“The new classroom block has eased the burden of overcrowding, allowing teachers to conduct lessons in a comfortable environment while giving each learner the space they need to engage fully in their studies,” says Jimu.

Chikwawa District Council’s Director of Education, Youth and Sports, Gertrude Zimba concurs with Jimu on the broad impact the development has on education in the district.

“The Ministry of Education recommends a classroom ratio of 1:60. However, in Chikwawa an average classroom has 132 learners.

“This reduces interaction between teachers and learners as overcrowded classrooms make it difficult for teachers to give each student the attention they deserve, ultimately impacting learning outcomes,” says Zimba.

She adds that quality classroom infrastructure is essential for delivering education that meets national and global standards.

Aligned with the Malawi 2063 vision, which prioritizes human capital development, investments in educational facilities play a crucial role in building the foundation for a skilled and educated population.

The new classrooms also support Sustainable Development Goal 4, which aims for inclusive and equitable quality education for all.

To ensure the classroom block remains in good condition, Zimba emphasises a collaborative approach. 

“We will work together with teachers, learners, and the community and the district council will allocate funds for ongoing maintenance, safeguarding this valuable resource for future generations,” she adds.

Meanwhile, Senior Group Village Head, Nzangaya expresses gratitude to both the government and Mia for working to improve education standards in the area. 

He adds: “Our children were covering about six kilometres on foot to the nearby school, but this new classroom block will ease our children’s tiresome treks to other schools. 

“We have already employed two security guards to help us safeguard the new classroom block for the benefit of future students.”

Quality classroom infrastructure is essential for delivering education that meets national and global standards. Aligned with the Malawi 2063 vision, which prioritizes human capital development, investments in educational facilities play a crucial role in building the foundation for a skilled and educated population. Such projects also support Sustainable Development Goal 4, which aims for inclusive and equitable quality education for all.

By Wongani Mkandawire

Nkhotakota, August 26, MANA: First lady Madam Monica Chakwera, has called on women and girls in the country to work hard in preventing fistula by avoiding situations which leave them vulnerable to the disease.

Speaking during the commemoration of World Fistula Day at Mkaika Community Day Secondary School in Nkhotakota on Monday, Madam Chakwera said fistula can be prevented by among other things avoiding underage pregnancies in girls.

 Madam Chakwera encouraged women to take their time and focus on education until the right age where their bodies are matured enough to reproduce without negative side effects on their health.

Deputy Minister of Health Halima Daud said her ministry is working tirelessly to make sure information as well as contraceptives are made available to women and girls living in hard to reach areas to fight unintended pregnancies in communities as one way of preventing fistula cases.

She called upon chiefs, church leaders and community leaders to encourage those suffering from fistula in their communities to get medical treatment noting that fistula is a treatable condition and as such should not be a source of shame and embarrassment.

Nkhotakota District Council Chairperson Charles Chimzukuzuku, commended the government and it's partners for intensifying the fight against fistula

Freedom from fistula in collaboration with UNFPA is implementing a three-year project called empowering empowering women with obsteric fistula to ensure access to quality obsteric fistula care and social reintergration in nkhotakota with funds from the government of Iceland.