Monday, December 14, 2009

Project that opens people’s eyes

Rose Nyirenda was a businessperson many enjoyed buying from. It is not that she knew how to market her goods. Neither was it because her goods were the best. All businesspersons sold the same goods.

The attraction to Nyirenda’s goods was her ignorance. She could not count. Thus, when she gave change, it was more than what a buyer was supposed to get. Who would have avoided such kind of a generous businessperson?

“I never got the best possible benefits from my business. People were just stealing from me,” she said.

“I spent a lot on transporting fish mostly from Mlowe to Nkhata Bay.”

That is not the only misery Nyirenda went through. She could also not read or write. As a result, her life was something she never enjoyed. Someone had to be by her side to give a helping hand.

That was not all. Because of her illiteracy, Nyirenda never knew what to do to prevent some preventable diseases that easily smashed her household.

But the situation is different now. And one feeling they would steal from Nyirenda again would have a rude awakening as she will expose them clean.

“I now know how to read and write. My business is booming now. Besides, I know what to do to live a better life,” says the 31-year-old mother of four.

“I know a lot about issues to do with HIV and Aids. I know how to keep my home clean and hygienic. I don’t see diseases like cholera within my home anymore.”

Nyirenda is among a group of older men and women that joined literacy classes at Chinguluwe primary school in T/A Timbiri’s area in Nkhata Bay.

The classes are under the Functional Literacy for Integrated Rural Development (Flird) programme. It is run by the United Nations Volunteers (UNVs) and seeks to integrate different development works around reading and writing.

“The programme started in May 2005 and has adopted a concept called Regenerated Freirian Literacy through Empowering Community Techniques (Reflect),” said Flird Coordinator Prince Kaunda.

“The villagers now understand a number of development works. They have embarked on road construction. They also construct toilets to improve their livelihoods and started community based organisations (CBOs) to deal with issues of HIV and Aids.”

According to Kaunda, the programme has also cultivated a better understanding of gender issues in people of the area. They have also become successors in almost everything they have embarked on.

Currently, the programme covers 65 villages. It runs to 2011 and by that time, it is expected that capacity building will have been achieved.

With the period it has been alive, the programme has attracted many people. There were only seven participants when the literacy classes started in 2006.

But at some point, the figure shot to 60. Unfortunately, because of religious beliefs, a number of participants have pulled out.

“Some of our colleagues mainly those belonging to the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) church pulled out because they said they could not rear pigs,” said Nyirenda.

“We tried to reason with them that pigs were not the only option. We encouraged them to rear goats but they still insisted. However, one of the SDA members understood us and is now doing very well after agreeing to take up goat farming.”

Such has been the only drawback to the programme. However, the programme has proven a success in other aspects. As a result, when the UNV Deputy Executive Coordinator Naheed Haque visited the project recently, those who have seen the benefits recommended that it should be replicated across the country.

Said Haque: “From the impression I have gotten from the projects we visited, functional literacy has manifested itself as the entry point to all aspects of development.”

“After learning how to read and write, people can get into income generating activities like pig farming as we saw down there. This improves their economic status.”

Haque said there are up to 94 United Nations volunteers in the country. They are involved mainly in the health sector, social welfare and community development.

The programme that has opened the eyes of people like Nyirenda falls under social welfare.

“We want to raise the spirit of community participation in development projects. At the end of the day, we want to put development projects in the hands of the community,” added Haque.

The success of projects like Nkhata Bay’s Flird is what raised the impact of UN volunteers in the country thereby attracting Haque to visit them.

She said as a new person at the UN Volunteers headquarters, she had to familiarise herself with countries that were transmitting success stories. She said Malawi and Zambia are some of the successful stories in Africa.

The Nkhata Bay project, small as it may look, has impetus to push Malawi for a long way in its quest to achieve the millennium development goals (MDGs) by 2015.

In Nkhata Bay, the project is already achieving goal one, namely to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger.

However, the knowledge Nyirenda revealed indicates that she could also directly help in achieving goals six and seven, namely to combat HIV/Aids, malaria and other diseases and to ensure environmental sustainability, respectively.

The other goals include to achieve universal primary education (goal 2), to promote gender equality and empower women (goal 3), to reduce child mortality (goal 4), to improve maternal health (goal 5) and to develop a global partnership for development (goal 8).

If it were not for this programme, Nyirenda could still have been a victim of exploiters today. But, her success will not go without mention of one John Mtambo, her teacher.

“My focus on topics is very simple,” said Mtambo about his classes which run for two hours.

“We start by reciting the alphabet and then graphics and we start learning how to take on problems.”

He added that his classes include a practical work on how to take care of livestock. There is also a provision for participants to study in the library.

5 comments:

  1. одиночество вдвоем и только дети радуются жизни у меня и эту радость забрали я дома сижу под гипнозом и мама под гипнозом отдала карточки скупе не работает нина крес помоги интернет единственное средство борьбы за единство в семье мы под гипнозом и ваши проверки это театр казадаев придумал театр а насилии как в детстве продожается как шкодники шалуны гипноз моей семьи и разрушение целомудренности любви и новый год в городе где нас насиловали и убивали хочется спрятаться под водой или в пустыне а араба или в кении или в московком зоопарке с моими друзьями гарилами интересно невесту к нему привезли или в дельфинарии покормите дельина радостью и верностью в японии и прогоните ксамкам он умирать поплыл за меня в японию а я хочу что бу у него было свидание с семьей и цель в жизни и мы ее крохотная часть интелекты воды это решение всех проблем бысро весело смешно сексуально дельфины это любят украина кривой рог керчь казадаев сергей

    ReplyDelete
  2. с новым годом английский мир и англия это не только англия люди любящие королевскую семью и мысленно советующиеся с чарльзом как вырасчивать помидоры он прекрасный ботаник и я как электрик под гипнозом милостиво просил электрические приборы для роста растений и белок мозга я все таки и скотлон-ярд учил и люблю за правильные решения рстениякак свидетели это не всегда факт, а засудить привиденя можно но образы появляющиеся в нашем современном мире это тудно, и доводит до сумашествия-арушениекибер пространства этотолько друзьям, и пожалуйста принц ЧАРЬЗ пожертвйте синхроизацию ваших лондонских часов для всемирной связи, это мон записть кк благоторительный взнос в мировой фонд милиард доларов, и я по росхождению отвечаю за ремя и моя семья фонд времени это самое дорогое на земле и подписание контракта константирует нашу взрослость отношения к нему, машина времени на прокат вот мои изобретения, я прошусь быть реальным комисаром оон а не духовным и время на новый год постоянное мое родство япония россия англия америка болгария сори княжеское с милости вашей и лорда позволяет просить вас зделать организацию и синхронизировать время по ядерным эталонам что к смеху трудно, и россию прошу разрешить синхронизировать время г-н медведев прошу и вас внести в фонд стоимостью в милиард-милиард на новогодне время, это услуга и моя цена за синхронизацию времени-жертва добровольная и обжалованию не подлежит, а в японии милиард за синхронизацию времени это пожертвование услуги за которую стоит платить уменя всгда не хватало денег и за слуги организованные мной я вам на новогоднем поздравлении друг друга прошу разешит ебе записать актив в тако сумме, обама президент америки я понял время и милостиво рошу вс оказать миру услугу снхронизация времен интернета как блаотворительый взнос в фонд "время константы" оценнной в милиар -милиардов это моя просьба к вам и треовательный совет для президентов и смелость принятого решения, настойчивость длявашего спраедиво заслужнного обогащения и процветания.амэн.искренне ваш казадаев сергей.ребята братя сестры милые мои президеты и короли еньги оон деньги оон деньги оон эт звучит ох простая попрошайка. +3005457978 Украина кивой рог.

    ReplyDelete
  3. If all people would take the initiative to give a helping hand to the less fortunate, the world would be a better place to live. Lets all try to make an impact.

    Nderitu

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello
    from we already offer them our help and diffusion of the project in the program of radio on line educational Inclusion
    greetings
    alejandra

    ReplyDelete
  5. An opening FILM is made by creating awareness..We need more support and Help for the cause by creating awareness via the largest source MEDIA.."The Sacred One", it is a reality based movie which revolves around the de-humanizing practice of getting young girls married to the deity of the temple in lieu of which the girl is then forced to have sexual relation with the priest and other prominent personalities of the region. The girl is then known as Devdasi- the wife of the God and is forbidden from getting married, this tradition is still practiced in certain parts of India despite having been declared as Illegal by the government. The movie is a depiction of one such Devdasi who tries to keep her daughter away from getting entangled in this web.... but... Alas!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ExiGbuuiqs

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp4L8DDMgpA

    We have already involved two NGO's and chariatable trust to stop this cruel system .But we do need more support to haelp these young girls and women.

    We are looking for organizations who would help us in creating such awareness and spreading the word via the largest source FILM-MEDIA.

    The movie has been shot in English language, on DG BETA50 with a ratio of 16:9 .

    ReplyDelete