Food Aid for Mponda Village, Domasii, nr Zomba, Malawi.

One of our main focuses is to provide food for Makwawa and the local village, Mponda, due in Malawi's 'hungry months'. Just before the rainy season the food has run out, the ground is to dry to grow food in the summer so there are a few months of severe hunger and malnutrition in villages across Malawi.

Food aid for Mponda Village 2015

The charity Makwawa Malawi began in 2002 when Robert and Leigh visited Makwawa where the Scout Campsite and House built in 1950-52 by Dick "Skipper" Belcher, Robert's father. On this first visit they encountered the reality of famine in the neighbouring village of Mponda.

In the months between September and April/May, if the last years harvest was poor and had run out and next years won't be yet ready, people will go hungry. These months are called the "hungry months". At best they last for only two months, when people only have one meal a day. At worst they last for more than two months. If the rains fail to fall then there is no harvest, hence a famine.

Since 2002, depending on the level of shortfall in the harvest, the charity has sent money for maize, also known as corn, which is the Malawians staple food.

Most Malawians are peasant subsistence farmers. Even those with an income will have a garden to grow their own food. Without sufficient food, growth is stunted and energy for the brain is secondary to other essential functions of the body.

We are glad to know that the chief of Mponda village, Hamilton Kamwendo, makes sure that other villages also benefit from their good fortune and that the maize is shared around as much as possible.

However, we realised that this situation was not sustainable and that there were other issues that needed addressing. And so the Irrigation Project and Permaculture Courses have been introduced.

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