Charity Boosts Over 450 Vulnerable Farmers With Inputs
The initiative aligned with Zoe’s mission to empower orphaned youth and cement food security through agribusiness ventures.
DOWA, Malawi — A nonprofit dedicated to uplifting orphaned and disadvantaged youth distributed crop seeds and fertiliser worth K40 million to over 450 recipients in Malawi’s Dowa district this week, writes Mphatso M'bang'ombe.
Zoe Empowers targets teenage heads of households and young adults aged 15 to 22 from the region's most impoverished families.
Communication facilitator Frackson Maotcha said Thursday's giveaway equipped beneficiaries selected from across 23 villages to attain a sustainable harvest.
“Our objective is to ensure that even the most vulnerable groups of people are able to generate income for themselves and are also able to have food for the whole year,” Maotcha said after ceremonies held in the Traditional Authority Mponela, Chakhaza, and Dzoole areas.
Zoe organisers taught participants principles of nutrition along with safe storage techniques, animal husbandry basics, and modern farming best practices to maximise yields.
The initiative aligned with Zoe’s mission to empower orphaned youth and cement food security through agribusiness ventures.
“We believe orphaned youth, when empowered by supportive communities, can lead their own journey from extreme poverty to self-sufficiency, eliminating the need for endless aid,” Maotcha explained.
Beneficiary and aspiring entrepreneur Kelvin Mkwapatira thanked Zoe staff for outfitting him with two 50-kilogram fertiliser bags plus maize and soy seed packs.
Rabson Limbikani, a district social welfare officer, applauded the intervention preparing youth to succeed as commercial farmers, — critical to developing Malawi’s agricultural economy.
“As the ministry, we appreciate Zoe’s interventions in helping uplift the lives of orphans and vulnerable children,” Limbikani said.