Photo by Lee Ann Bartran
Words by Lee Ann Bartran and Darshel Diaz
Malawi, located in Southeast Africa, is frequently referred to as the warm heart of the continent for the kindness of its people. With a population of 18.9 million, it shares its borders with Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia. Less known for its contributions to the tea industry, Malawi is the second largest tea producer in Africa, after Kenya, with plantations dating back to the 19th century.
Generating 11 million dollars (USD) in 2016 alone, according to The Reserve Bank of Malawi, the tea industry is a significant source of profit relative to other powerful economic drivers in the country. Despite the financial gain, however, plantation workers continue to experience low incomes and poor living conditions.
According to the International Labour Organization, the majority of the working population work in the agriculture sector. The tea industry employs roughly 50,000 seasonal workers during the peak harvest season from November to April, and women make up thirty percent of this workforce. Women are closely supervised by men while they work within the factories, pick tea leaves, and engage in other work within the fields. There is a lack of human resource policies in place to assist women or advocate for their rights and growth opportunities within the workforce.
Photo by Lee Ann Bartran
The dry season, consequently, results in the workforce being significantly reduced, forcing workers to find employment opportunities elsewhere.
The Chipembere Community Development Organization (CCDO), based in the Southern region of Malawi, Thyolo district, was established in 2010. Its mission is to educate youth and women with entrepreneurial skills, promote gender equality, increase access to healthcare, and teach community members how to make nutritious meals from local resources. They strongly believe that by empowering and investing in women, benefits will stretch across the community; more children attend and remain in school, families are healthier, and communities become more resilient.
Community development, especially when precarious working conditions are present, is crucial to ensure that individuals amongst a specific community have adequate resources and support to secure revenue and promote a healthy way of living. Tackling workforce issues can come in many forms. In the case of Chipembere, equipping women with entrepreneurial skills is one of the alternatives.
Photo by Lee Ann Bartran
The Chisomo and Tikondane Village Savings and Loan Program partners with local women to develop their entrepreneurial skills. Skills around their Savings and Loan Program program are developed while improving the participants’ math and necessary financial skills at the same time. After these workshops, women can use the money generated to cover medical expenses, purchase goats or chickens, or to pay school fees for their children.
Mercy Chingwanda, a participant of the Savings and Loan Program, said, “in our community, we have twenty-two members in the village savings and loan program. With the help of CCDO, we started this group to improve economics in our community. Each member contributes to 30,000 Kwacha. Now working together, we feel stronger and can make extra money for our families.”
The program manager at Chipembere, Boniface Mbewe said, “I do this work because I know I have the possibility to bring change to my community. I want to see young girls finishing secondary education. I want to see people living with HIV getting assistance in their communities. I want to see the youth in our communities to be able to have jobs.”
With these skills, community members have more confidence to address other prevalent challenges.
Photo by Lee Ann Bartran
According to a 2017 UNICEF State of the World`s Children Report, forty-two percent of girls are married before the age of eighteen, and nine percent are married by the age of fifteen. Malawi has the 12th highest prevalence rate of child marriage in the world.
To address child marriage in Malawi, Chipembere has partnered with another NGO, called Rise Up Malawi. Together, they created the Child Marriage Prevention Program to reduce the current number of child marriages within their villages.
Alongside local authorities, the Child Marriage Act was passed in 2017, stating that if the father or uncle of a family permits for their daughter to be married before she is eighteen years old, they are penalized two goats. Goats are considered a top asset for families because they provide income and food. Since the onset of this program, there has been a 7 percent decline in child marriage.
In addition, they have been working collaboratively with local community members to create an environmental committee to combat the challenges faced due to climate change. The two main goals of the committee are to replant Magnolia trees in villages that need more wood and to implement beekeeping. This will increase pollination and will serve as an additional source of income while creating new jobs for the community.
Photo by Lee Ann Bartran
“I have a passion for my community. As a young person, I want to be of service to my community. My presence gives them hope,” said staff member, Shywanga Ali.
“I encourage and guide them because I want to see change within the community. They should be able to wake up in the morning and get a cup of tea, take their lunch and live happily, without suffering. I want to help them so they can contribute positively to the community, but they can’t do that if they are suffering.”
Visit the Chipembere website to support their recent initiatives.
