Livelihood-Based for Orphans and Vulnerable …Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success...
Transcript of Livelihood-Based for Orphans and Vulnerable …Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success...
March 2010
Livelihood-Based Social Protection for Orphans and
Vulnerable Children:
Success Stories from Malawi
Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO)Regional Emergency Office for Southern Africa (REO-SA)
Network Paper u 01 July 2010
© FAO Regional Emergency Office for Southern Africa (REOSA), 2010
Author: Samuel Bota
Design and layout: Handmade Communications, [email protected]
Livelihood-Based Social Protection for Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Success Stories from MalawiDecember 2009
Table of contentsAcronyms 2
Foreword 5
Part 1: Situation Analysis 7
Acknowledgements 8
Introduction 9Background 9Theneedtoreconsiderthelivelihoodpartofthesocialprotectionagendafororphansandothervulnerablechildren 9
Discussion of Key Terms and Concepts 10Socialprotection 10SocialsupportframeworkforMalawi 11Livelihood-basedsocialprotection 11Orphansandothervulnerablechildren 13
Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Related Policies and Strategies 14
National Coordination Structures for Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Related Initiatives 17
A Review of Programmes Related to Orphans and Vulnerable Children 18Socialcashtransferscheme 18Juniorfarmerfieldandlifeschools 18Farminputsubsidyprogramme 19Communityinitiated/drivenprojects 19Livelihood-basedsocialsupportprojects 20Schoolfeedingprogramme 20
Emerging Issues 21
Challenges and Gaps 22
Way Forward 22
Annex 23
Bibliography 29
Part 2: An Observatory of Best Practices 31
The Context of the Study 32Thelivelihoodsperspectiveofsocialprotection 32Objectivesofthestudy 32Identificationandchoiceofbestpractices 32Approachandmethodsofdatacollection 34
How the Projects Were Initiated and Implemented 35Chitungucommunity-basedorganization,Ntcheu 36GoodNewsChildren’sHome,Chikwawa 41TawongaCBO,Karonga 50
Summary of Key Issues 54Livelihoodactivitiesimplemented 54Benefitsofinitiatives 54Thedrivingforceforsuccess 55Challengesandfailuresencountered 56Lessonslearntfromtheexperiences 56Suggestionsforimprovement 56
Part 3: Potential for Scaling Up the Best Practices 59
Introduction 60
Brief Review of the Case Studies 61Identificationofthecasestudiesandmethodologyfordatacollection 61Characteristicsoftheselectedsites 62
Performance of the Case Studies: Critical Success Factors 64Sustainability 64Effectiveness 69Efficiency 71
Models of Childcare Used in the Three Case Studies 73Communityassistedhouseholdchildcare 73Community-managedchildcare 73
Analysis of Potential for Scaling Up 75Lessonsforscalingup 75Whattoscaleup 76
Key Issues for Improvement 77
Recommendations 78
Feasibility of Scaling Up and Policy Implications 79Potentialpolicyandfinancialsupport 79Technicalfeasibility 79
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Acronyms
ADP AreaDevelopmentProgrammeADRA AdventistDevelopmentandReliefAgencyAIDS AcquiredImmuneDeficiencySyndromeCADECOM CatholicDevelopmentCommissionofMalawiCAHC Community-assistedHouseholdChildcareCARE CooperativeforAssistanceandReliefEverywhereCBCC Community-basedChildcareCentreCBO Community-basedOrganizationCMC Community-managedChildcareCMDC Community-managedDayChildcareCMRC Community-managedResidentialChildcareCOPE Community-basedOptionsforProtectionandEmpowermentCORE CommunitiesRespondingtotheHIV/AIDSEpidemicCPAR CanadianPhysiciansforAidandReliefDA DistrictAssemblyDfID DepartmentforInternationalDevelopment(UK)ESCOM ElectricitySupplyCorporationofMalawiEU EuropeanUnionFAO FarmingandAgricultureOrganizationFBO Faith-basedOrganizationFY FiscalYearGNCH GoodNewsChildren’sHomeGTZ GermanTechnicalCooperationAgencyGVH GroupVillageHeadmanHBC Home-basedCareHIV HumanImmunodeficiencyVirusJFFLS JuniorFarmerFieldandLifeSchool
Acronyms
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MANASO MalawiNetworkofAIDSSupportOrganizationsMASAF MalawiSocialActionFundMGDS MalawiGrowthandDevelopmentStrategyMoA MinistryofAgricultureMoCS MinistryofCommunityServicesMoE MinistryofEducationMoEPD MinistryofEconomicPlanningandDevelopmentMoH MinistryofHealthMSH ManagementSciencesforHealthNAC NationalAIDSCommissionNGO Non-governmentalOrganizationsNORAD NorwegianAgencyforDevelopmentCooperationNPA NationalPlanofActionNRU NutritionalRehabilitationUnitOSA OrphanSupportAfricaOVC OrphansandVulnerableChildrenRAAAP RapidAssessment,AnalysisandActionPlanningRHVP RegionalHungerandVulnerabilityProgrammeSADC SouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunityUN UnitedNationsUNAIDS JointUnitedNationsProgrammeforHIV/AIDSUNDP UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgrammeUNICEF UnitedNationsChildren’sFundUSAID UnitedStatesAgencyforInternationalDevelopmentVSL VillageSavingsandLoansWFP WorldFoodProgramme
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Foreword
Itismypleasuretointroducetoyouthisnetworkpaper,whichdocumentssuccessstoriesfromMala-
wioflivelihood-basedsocialprotectionprogrammesfor orphans and vulnerable children (OVC). Theprogrammeshaveimprovedthelivesofthechildrenthey reach significantly. They have demonstrat-edthatwitha livelihood-basedapproach,notablechangescanbeachievedinchildren’slives,includingimprovedfoodandnutritionsecurity,acquisitionofproductivelivelihoodskills, improvedhealth,spir-itualandsociallife,andreducedpovertyandvulner-ability.Thereisanurgentneedtolearnfromthesestoriesandincreaseoureffortstoextendandrepli-catesuchprogrammesthroughouttheregion,sothatwecanreachalargernumberofvulnerablechildren.
Thisstudyisaresultofthejointeffortsofseveralstakeholders that form the Regional Inter-AgencyTaskTeamonChildrenandHIVandAIDS(RIATT)inEastandSouthernAfrica.Inparticular,IwishtomentionthenationalOVCTechnicalWorkingGroupandtheNationalSocialSupportTechnicalCommit-tee. The Ministry of Gender, Children and Com-munityDevelopmentgavecontinuoussupportandguidancetothestudy.
RIATT is a regional multi-sectoral mechanismthatwasformedinOctober2006,withabroadrep-resentation which includes participants from theAfricanUnion,theSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity(SADC)ParliamentaryForum,interna-tionalcooperatingpartners,civil societypartnersandacademia,theUnitedNationsChildren’sFund,theUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgrammeandtheFoodandAgricultureOrganization(FAO).Thesestakeholdersshareacommonobjectiveofgalvaniz-ingandcoordinatingeffortstoalleviatetheimpactsofpovertyandHIVonchildrenintheseregionsinasustainablemanner.
Thispaperisacriticaldocumentforsharingbestpracticesandlessonslearnedandadvocatingforthepromotionandscalingupoflivelihoodbasedsocialprotectionprogrammesfororphansandvulnerablechildren.Thistypeofprogrammingaddressesthecoreof the issueof thepersistentvulnerabilityofchildrenasaresultofHIVandAIDS,povertyandother social challenges which persist, despite theextensiveworkbeingdonebyanumberof socialservicesandhumanitarianorganizations.Thepaper
documentsdurablesolutionsthatmeettheinadequa-ciesofcurrentinterventionsandprogrammes.
SADCstatistics from2008 indicate that15percentofchildreninMalawiwereorphaned.Thereareevenharsherrealities inotherpartsoftheregion,suchasZambiaandZimbabwe,whereabout20percentofchildrenwereestimatedtobeorphaned.Ma-lawi isacountryofover13millionpeople,wheretwomillionchildrensufferchronicallyfromnotonlylackoffoodandnutritionsecurity,butthedignitythatcomesfromaself-realizedproductivelivelihood.Itisvitaltolookbeyondtheneedforimmediatesolu-tionstopulltheseorphanedandvulnerablechildrenoutofdestitution,andtopursuemoresustainablelong-terminterventionsthatensurethatchildrendonotregresswhensupportisnolongeravailable;inter-ventionsthatprovidetheneededassistancebutalsoensurethatchildrenareempoweredtorealizetheirfullpotentialinlifeandplaytheirmuch-neededroleinnation-building.
Ihopethatthispaperwillbewidelyreadandwillinspirethepromotion,developmentandup-scalingoflivelihoodprogrammesthattakeaholisticviewofhumandevelopmentandprioritizethesustainabil-ityandpredictabilityoflivelihoodsovershort-termoutcomes.
Cindy F. HollemanSub-Regional Emergency Coordinator of Southern Africa
Foreword
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Acknowledgements
Wegreatlyappreciatethevaluabletechnicalin-putprovidedbyMallaMabonaoftheMinistry
ofGender,ChildrenandCommunityDevelopment,FadzaiMukonoweshuroandMichelleRemmeofFAO,PetronellaMasabaneofUNICEF,andallthemem-bersoftheNationalOVCTechnicalWorkingGroupandtheNationalSocialSupportTechnicalCommit-tee who provided extremely useful feedback andtechnicalguidancethroughouttheprocess.Welookforwardtoanequallyconstructiveandproductivecollaborationinthefuture.
Chronology of OVC Social Protection Initiatives in Malawi
1991 UNConventionontheRightsoftheChildratified
1991 FirstNationalConsultationontheSituationofOVCheld,leadingtotheformationoftheNationalTaskForceonOVC
1992 OVCpolicyguidelinesproduced
1993/4 OVCNeedsAssessment&Na-tionalOVCSituationAnalysisonCarePracticescommissioned
1996 FoundationlaidforaNationalOrphanCareProgramme
1999 OrphanCareTrainingManualandBestPracticesCompendiumproduced
2003 NationalOrphanCarePolicyadopted
2004 RAAAPprocesscommissioned
2005 NPAforOVC,2005-2009adopted
AdaptedfromNPA2005-2009,June2005
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Introduction
Background
ThisSituationAnalysisReportispartofabroaderreviewandassessmentofagriculturalandliveli-
hood-basedsocialprotectionfororphansandothervulnerablechildren(OVC)programmesinMalawithataredeemedtohavepotentialforreplicationandscalingup.TheUnitedNations(UN)andPartnersAl-lianceforlivelihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVCchampionsthisinitiativeagainstthebackgroundofawidelyacknowledgedneedforacoordinatedap-proachandresponseamongamultiplicityofstake-holders to reduce transaction costs, and improveefficiencyandeffectiveness intheeffortsthatareintendedtobuildabetterfutureforOVC.DuringtheGlobalOVCPartnersForuminOctober2003,adeci-sionwasmadetoundertakejointrapidassessment,analysisandactionplanning (RAAAP) toactasabasisforOVCnationalresponses.Theoverallobjec-tiveoftheRAAAPprocesswastoidentifyimmediatekeyactionsneededtosignificantlyscaleupnationalmultisectoralresponsesinanumberofcountriesinsub-SaharanAfrica.Similarly,theneedforcoordina-tionandleadershiponOVCissueswasacknowledgedandexpressedbytheSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity(SADC)ministersin2004throughtheCapeTownDeclaration,and furtherby the inter-governmentalconferencein2006throughwhatisknownastheLivingstoneCallforAction.
Followingsuchappealsforgreatercommitment,cooperation and action to provide social protec-tion,countriesintheregionhavemadevariousre-sponses.Bymid2005,sixteencountriesinsouthernandeasternAfrica,includingMalawi,completedthefirstRAAAPphasewhichresultedinthedesignoftheSADCNationalPlanofAction(NPA)forOVC.TheUNandPartnersAllianceforlivelihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVCwasformedinearly2006betweenUNagencies(FAO[FoodandAgriculturalOrganization],UNICEF[UnitedNationsChildren’sFund]andWPF[WorldFoodProgramme]),govern-ments(lineministriesfortheNPA),andcivilsocietyorganizationssuchasCARE(CooperativeforAssist-anceandReliefEverywhere)andOxfam.
InMalawi,theRAAAPprocesswascommissionedin2004,facilitatedbyanationaltaskforceforOVCwithsupportfromthetechnicalworkinggroupon
OVCwhichcomprisedtechnicalstafffromUNICEF,UNAIDS(JointUnitedNationsProgrammeforHIV/AIDS),USAID(UnitedStatesAgencyforInternationalDevelopment)andWFP.TheRAAAPcontributedagreatdealtothedevelopmentofthe2005–2009NPAforOVC.ThedevelopmentoftheNPAwasfacilitatedbyacountrysteeringcommitteewhichcomprisedmembersfromkeylineministriesofgovernment,UNagencies,donors,theNationalAIDSCommissionandthechairofthenationaltaskforceforOVC.
Theneedtoreconsiderthelivelihoodpartofthesocialprotectionagendafororphansandothervulnerablechildren
InMalawi,itisgenerallyacknowledgedthatthede-velopmentoftheNPAhasraisedtheprofileofOVC
andledtoimprovementsinfundingOVCprojects.However,ithasalsobeenargued,bothinthecoun-tryandintheregion,thatsupporttoOVCprojectshasmainlyfocusedoneducationandchildprotec-tionwithoutadequatelyaddressingthelivelihood-basedsocialprotectionneedsofOVC1.Basedonthisassertion,FAOwasmandatedtoreviewandassessinnovativeagriculturalandlivelihoodprogrammesfromtheperspectiveoftheemergingsocialprotec-tionagendaforOVCandinthecontextofHIVandAIDSintheeasternandsouthernAfricanregions,inordertoidentifypromisingpracticesthatcouldbereplicatedandscaledup.Thisstudyisthereforepartofthisregionaleffort.
1.Aframeworktoreviewandassessinnovativeagriculturalandlive-lihoodprogrammesrelatedtotheemergingsocialprotectionagendaforchildrenvulnerabletoandfromHIVandAIDS,February2006.
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Discussion of Key Terms and Concepts
Socialprotection
Socialprotectionisbroadlydefinedas:“allpublicandprivateinitiativesthatprovideincomeorcon-
sumptiontransferstothepoor,protectthevulner-ableagainstlivelihoodrisks,andenhancethesocialstatusandrightsofthemarginalized,withtheob-jectivesofreducingtheeconomicandsocialvulner-abilityofpoor,vulnerableandmarginalizedgroups”(Norton,A.,et al, 2001).
Fromthisperspective, socialprotectioneffortsdealnotonlywithabsolutedeprivation,risksandvulnerabilityofthepoorest,butalsocoverinitiativesthataimtoguardagainstshocksandstressesthatwouldpushthecurrentlynon-poorintoadownwardspiralofpoverty.‘Public’inthiscasereferstoactionsorresponsesofgovernmentandcivilsocietyorgani-zations,oracombinationofinstitutionsfromthesesectors.AccordingtoNorton,theoverallrationaleforsocialprotectionis“topromotedynamic,cohe-siveandstablesocietiesthroughincreasedequityandsecurity”.
Socialprotectioninterventionscanbeclassifiedinto three categoriesdependingon theirprimaryfunctioninimpactingonpeople’slivelihoods(Dor-ward,A.,et al,2007).Theseare:1)welfareinstru-mentswhichprovidereliefandsometimesrecoveryfrom deprivation; 2) risk-insurance instrumentswhichseektoavertdeprivationbyestablishingro-bustandaccessiblerecoverymechanisms;and3)re-silience-buildinginstrumentswhichaimtoenhancereal incomesandcapabilities,buildassetsandpro-moteresistance.
Similarly,theregionalhungerandvulnerabilityprogramme(RHVP)summarizestheperspectivesofthevariousmodels intothreeimportantfunctionsofsocialprotectionas:toprovideforthosewhoareunabletoprovideforthemselves;topreventshocksfromdevastatinghouseholds;andtopromotehouse-holdsbyhelpingthemtoliftthemselvesoutofpov-erty (RHVP, June 2007). Within this framework,socialprotectioninterventionscouldbesaidtobedesignedfor:•Provision or risk coping. Theseincludethemostbasic
safety-nettransferstosavelivesduringemergency,forexample,disasterrelief.
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topreventdeprivationordestitutionbeforeithap-pensbyvariousinsurancemechanisms,forexam-ple,savingsandcreditclubs.
• Promotion or risk reduction.Thesesocialtransfersaimtoprotectlivelihoodsaswellasenhancein-comesandcapabilities,forexample,schoolmealssupportbothnutritionandeducation,andcondi-tionalcashtransfers.
• Otherframeworksincludeafourthcategory,trans-formation,whichseekstoaddressconcernsofsocialequityandexclusion.Transformativeinterventionsincludechanges to the regulatory framework toprotectsociallyvulnerablegroups,aswellassen-sitizationcampaignstotransformpublicattitudesandbehaviourandenhancesocialequity,forin-stance,theHIV/AIDSAnti-StigmaCampaign(De-vereuxandSabates-Wheeler,2004).
SocialsupportframeworkforMalawi
Social protection can mean different things todifferent people depending on the situation
andobjectives.InMalawi,adecisionwastakeninNovember2006tousetheterm‘socialsupport’andnot ‘socialprotection’.Forthisreason,andforthepurposesofthisreport,theterms‘socialsupport’and‘socialprotection’havebeenusedinterchangeably.
SocialsupportinitiativesinMalawihavelargelybeenintheformofsocialsafety-netprovisiontotheultra-poor,orphansandothervulnerablegroupsintimesofdisastersuchasfloodsanddroughts.Socialsupportprovisionofrelieffood,clothingorshelterisregardedasamoralobligationofgovernmenttosavelivesandalleviatethesufferingofitscitizens.How-ever,thereisincreasingrealizationthatsocialsafetynetsmustbecomplimentedbydurablemechanismsforpromotingproductionamongthepoorandvul-nerableinordertoincreasetheirabilitytoproduceforthemselvesandreducedependenceonhandouts.
Forthisreason,thethenMinistryofEconomicPlanningandDevelopment(MoEPD),nowtheMin-istryofDevelopmentPlanningandCooperation,hasdraftedaframeworktoguidetheplanningandim-plementationofsocialsupportinterventionsinMa-lawi(DraftSocialSupportPolicy,November2008).Theframeworkdrawsextensivelyfromtheotherlive-lihoodandsocialprotectionframeworks.Thesocial
supportframework,inparticular,focusesonhouse-holdsandindividualsbelowtheMalawipovertyline.
Livelihood-basedsocialprotection
Livelihood. Alivelihoodcomprisespeople,theirca-pabilitiesandtheirmeansofliving,includingfood,incomeandassets.Simplyput,alivelihoodisawayspeoplemakea livingandmeet theneedsof theirlives.
Livelihood-based social protection. Aninitiativethere-forequalifiestobealivelihood-basedsocialprotec-tioninterventionifitprovidesmeansofbringingthemostvulnerablegroupsintothedevelopmentprocessthroughprotection,preventionandpromotionwith-inatransformativeagendatoensuretheimmediateandfuturelivelihoodsofthesegroups.
Devereux and his colleagues have argued that“althoughtherearelinkagesbetweensomeformofsocialprotectionandlivelihoodpromotion,socialprotection isnever enoughon itsown to addressthe underlying causes of chronic poverty andvulnerability,which in ruralMalawiare largelyaproductoflackofassetsatthehouseholdlevelandmarket failures at the sectoral level, in a contextofrecurrentnaturalrisksandpolicyfailuresatthenational level” (Devereux,et al,2006).AccordingtoRHVP,substantialandsustainedinvestment(toreducevulnerability) is required in the followingpriorityareas:• Strengtheningproductionsuchas improvingse-
curity of access to land, livestock and farm in-puts,promotingsmall-scaleirrigation,supportingmorediversified,sustainableanddrought-resilientfarming systems, and building in measures toadapttoclimatechange,especiallyinsmall-scaleagriculture;
• Supporting markets, especially in food andagriculture;
• Enhancingoff-farmemploymentopportunities;• Buildinginfrastructureandassets;• Improvingbasicservicessuchashealthandeduca-
tionservices,includingthoseaimedatcurbingHIVandAIDS,tuberculosisandmalaria;
• Reducingsocialmarginalisationandexclusion;
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Draft Outline Social Support Programme
CATEGORIES AND THEIR SOCIAL SUPPORT NEEDS
• Employment
• Skillbuilding
• Capital
• Productiveassets
• Protectionfromasset/capitalerosion
• Survival
• Productiveassets
• Employment
POTENTIAL SOCIAL SUPPORT PROGRAMMES/INTERVENTIONS
PROVISION AND PROMOTION
• Public works programmes• School feeding• Cash and food for assets
combined with skills build-ing and cash for consump-tion or adult literacy training
PROTECTION & PROMOTION
• Agricultural input subsidy• Public works programme• Insurance programmes
(social, crop and livestock)• Village savings and loans• Micro-credit/micro-finance
PROVISION
• Social cash transfers • School feeding
30%
22%
12%
10%
Moderately Poor
Ultra-poor with Labour Capacity
Ultra-poor & Incapacitated
*TobefundedjointlybyGovernmentwithsupportfromdevelopmentpartnersthroughasingleSocialSupportBasketMechanism
• Survival
• Investmentinhumancapital
52%MALAWI POVERTY LINE
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• Strengtheninggovernanceinstitutionsandpolicyprocesses;and
• Expandingpublicrevenue.
TheUNandPartnersAllianceidentifyfourimpor-tantpointsthatmustbeconsideredwhendealingwithlivelihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVC:• Notallsocialprotectionislivelihoodsbased;• Targeting is critical, particularlywith regard to
OVCinthecontextofHIVandAIDS,andwithintheirhouseholdandcommunityenvironments;
• Thepurposeoflivelihood-basedsocialprotectionistoprotectthedestitute,topreventthevulner-ablefromslidingintodestitution,andtopromotefuturelivelihoodsofOVC.ThispurposeisframedbyatransformativeagendatowardsempoweringOVCandmeetingtheneedsofcaregivers;and
• Themechanismoflivelihood-basedsocialprotec-tionmustbeaccessible, inexpensiveandpredict-able–excludingadhocwelfare-typeinterventions.
Boththesestandpointsstrengthentheimportanceofconsideringlivelihoodwithinthebroadersocialprotectionframework.WithintheMalawisocialsup-portframework,livelihoodissuescomeinatthefol-lowingtwostages:• Provisionandpromotion(ultrapoorhouseholds
withlabour);and• Protection and promotion (moderately poor
households).
Thebasicconsiderationisthatpoorandvulnerablehouseholdshavesomecapacitytoengageinproduc-tiveeconomicchoicesandcanthereforebeassistedtoearnalivingandeventuallygraduateoutofpov-erty.OVCandhouseholdstakingcareofOVCpromi-nentlyfeatureinthiscategory.
Orphansandothervulnerablechildren
TheMalawiGovernmentdefinesanorphanasachildundertheageof18yearswhohaslostone
orbothparentsbecauseofdeath.Avulnerablechildisdefinedasachildwhohasnoparentsorguardians,staysaloneorwithelderlyparents,orlivesinasibling-headedhousehold,orhasnofixedplaceofabodeandlacksaccesstohealthcare,materialandpsychological
care,educationandhasnoshelter(NationalOVCPol-icy,2003).
Byimplication,notallorphansmaybevulnerablechildren,andnotallvulnerablechildrenareorphans.However,increaseddeathsofprime-ageparentsduetoAIDSandtheresultantfailureoftheextendedfamilysystemtocopewiththeburdenofcareandsupportfortheorphanshasincreasedtheprobabilityoforphanedchildrenbeingvulnerable.Inotherwords,achildwhohaslostoneorbothparentsfacesveryhighriskoffuturepoverty.
Devereux et al havenotedthat“manyMalawiansaremorevulnerabletodaythaninthepastbecausehazardsappeartohaveincreased.”Theyciteassomeofthefactorsthathavedecreasedpeople’sabilitytocopeasbeingerraticrainfallandfoodproduction,increasedspreadofHIV,volatileprices andmarkets failures,andanoverwhelmedinformalsocialsupportnetworkthatisnolongerabletoprovideassistance.Theyfur-therobservethat “poorerhouseholdscareformoreorphansthanricherhouseholds,andfemale-headedhouseholdshave,onaverage,moreorphansacrosstheincomerange,withpoorerfemale-headedhouseholdscaringforthemostorphans”(Devereux,et al,2006).Thisimpliesthatmanymorechildren(orphanandnon-orphan)faceahighriskofpovertyduetonaturalandman-madedisasters.
TheimportanceoftheextendedfamilysysteminprovidingcareandsupportforOVC,asrecognisedbytheNationalPolicyonOVC(2003),cannotbechal-lenged.However, it is also acknowledged, ashigh-lightedabove,thatextendedfamilieshavegenerallybeenover-stretchedtotheextentthatwithoutexternalsupport,theymaynotcopewiththeincreasedburdenofOVCcareandsupport.Besides,mostofthesupportthatisprovidedbyorthroughtheextendedfamilysystemtendstobeforrelieftominimizedeprivationandsavelivesofOVC;itisrarelydesignedtoempowerthecommunitiesorOVCtodevelopmechanismsforavertingdeprivationandbuildingresilience.
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Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Related Policies and Strategies
TheGovernmentofMalawihascommitteditselftoupliftingthelivelihoodsofOVCthroughvari-
ouspolicies,strategiesandlegalinstruments,andbyadoptingorratifyinginternationalagreementsandcharters.
AnimportantsteptowardsthisprocesswasthedevelopmentandadoptionoftheNationalPolicyonOrphansandotherVulnerableChildrenin2003;itsoverarchinggoalis“tofacilitatesupportforcare,pro-tection,anddevelopmentofOVCinacoordinatedmannerinordertoprovidethemwithanenviron-mentinwhichtheyrealizetheirfullrightsandpo-tentials.”Amongotherissues,thepolicyemphasizestheimportanceofextendedfamilyandactivepar-ticipationofcommunitiesinprovidingcareandsup-portthroughcommunity-basedapproaches.Guidedby thispolicy, theNationalPlanofAction (NPA)forOVC2005-2009, launched in2005, isanother
milestonethathasimprovedfundingopportunitiesandenhancedresponsiveactionforOVCinterven-tionsbythegovernmentanditspartners.TheplancommitstheGovernmentofMalawitotakepracticalstepstoensurethattherightsofallOVCarefullymet.Itoutlinesactionstobeimplementedandfinan-cialrequirementsnecessarytopromotethesurvival,growth,development,well-beingandprotectionofOVCinthecountry.
Followinggovernment’scommitmentandadop-tionofthesetwodocuments,throughthegrantsfa-cility,theNationalAIDSCommissioncommittedatotalofUS$19.5millionfromtheGlobalFundforfiveyears(beginningin2005)tointerveneinthreestrategicareasoftheNPA:• Socialcashtransferscheme;• Legalenvironment;and• Monitoringandevaluation.
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Thefundalsoprovidessupportincapacitybuilding(strategicarea4).
With the fundingsupport, theNationalSocialCashTransferProgrammepilotedcashsupportfor5,000 ultra-poor households and 10,000 orphanswhichenhancedschoolattendancebyOVC.In2007,atotalof15,543OVCreceivedbursariestoattendsecondaryschool,whichsignificantlyreduceddrop-outsamongOVCatsecondaryschoollevel.TheMin-istryofEducation,ScienceandTechnologyreached635,000pupils(82,500OVC)withaschoolfeedingprogrammeinprimaryschools.
Community-basedchildcarecentres(CBCCs)pro-videdfoodsupportto82,000orphans(20percentofthebeneficiaries).CommunitieshaveestablishedcommunalgardenstoprovidefoodforCBCCsaswellasothervulnerablepopulationgroupssuchaspeoplelivingwithHIV(DraftExtendedHIVandAIDSNa-tionalActionFramework2010–2012).
ThegrantfacilitysupportfromtheNationalAIDSCommission(NAC)alsoenabledthethenMinistryofWomenandChildDevelopment,nowtheMinistryofGender,ChildrenandCommunityDevelopment,tocreateawarenessoftheplightofOVC.
Theministryhasalsobeenabletodevelopdiffer-entsetsofguidelinesandrelevantpolicies,suchas:• TheNationalPolicyonEarlyChildDevelopment
(2006),whosegoalistoprovidetheMalawianchildwithhighqualityservicesinearlychildhoodcarethatensurethechild’ssurvival,growth,protectionanddevelopmentthatwouldleadtohis/heractiveparticipationinnationaldevelopment.
• TheFosterFamilyGuidelines(2008),whoseinten-tionistoprovidecriteriafortargetingfosterfami-liesthatmaynothaveenougheconomicresourcestocarefortheOVC.Otherguidelinesdevelopedinclude:» Educationsupport;» Managementofchildcarehomesandorphanages;» Formationof community-basedorganizations
(CBOs)andfaithbasedorganizations(FBOs);and» Alternativecare.
TheNPAisnowdueforreviewasitsimplementationperiodexpiresattheendof2009.
Malawi’s Growth and Development Strategy (2006-2011).IssuesofOVChavealsobeenfullyrecognisedinthebroadernationaleconomicframework.Thisstrategyistheoverarchingpolicyframeworkofgovernmentforwealthcreationandeconomicgrowthasameansforreducingpovertyonasustainablebasis.TheMa-lawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS)distinguishesfivethematicareas,namely:sustain-ableeconomicgrowth;socialprotectionanddisas-termanagement;socialdevelopment;infrastructuredevelopment;andimprovedgovernance.
IssuesofOVCfeatureprominentlyinthesecondpillar(socialprotectionanddisastermanagement)upontherealizationthat“suchcategoriesofpeoplearevulnerabletorisksandtypicallylackappropriateriskmanagementinstruments,andthisconstrainsthemfromengaginginhigherreturneconomicactiv-itiestoenablethemtomoveoutofchronicpoverty.”Theaim,therefore,istoincreaseassetsofthepoorandmostvulnerabletoenablethemtomeaningfullyengageinsustainablegrowthandimprovetheirlives.Bydesignatingsocialprotectionasthesecondpil-larinthisstrategy,governmenthasdemonstrateditsstrongcommitmenttoreducepovertyandvulner-abilityamongOVCandultra-poormembersofsoci-ety.Keystrategiesoutlinedunderthispillarinclude:• Providing efficient andeffective support to the
poorandthemostvulnerablewithverylimitedmeansofproduction;
• Improvingplanningandintegrationofknowledgeontheneedsofthechronicallypoor;
• Providingopportunitiesforpoorfarmersandruralcommunitiestograduatefrompovertybyfacilitat-ingtheirintegrationintomainstreamagriculturalproductivityandenablingthemtocreatewealth;
• Promotingasavingscultureinpublicworkspro-grammes;and
• Providingcapitalforincome-generatingactivities.
Food Security Policy (2006).Thispolicyidentifiesso-cialprotectionasanimportantcomponentofen-suringfoodsecurity(therighttofood)forthemostvulnerable sections of society. This calls for thegovernmentandotherstakeholdersto“providedis-tinctlytargetedsafetynetscautiousoftheneedtoavoidcreatingdependencyandnegativeimpacts”.Thesocialprotectioninterventionsaresupposedto
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be“designedtoenablethevulnerabletograduallybuildup their assets soas toescape the threatofpovertyinasustainablewayandtoincreasetheirresiliencetoshocks”.Oneofthesocialprotectionin-terventionsidentifiedisfoodaid.Thisissupposedtobeprovidedfordesperatelyvulnerablepeoplewhoseneedscannotbeaddressedthroughanymeaning-fullyviableprogrammesotherthanbeingsupportedbyspecialprogrammes.Otherinterventionsincludeagriculturalinputsupportandsubsidies.
National Nutritional Policy (2006).Thisnationalpol-icyalsoseeks to improvethenutritionalstatusofvulnerablegroups(infantsandyoungchildren,preg-nantandlactatingwomen,school-agedchildren,theyouthandelderly).Someofthestrategiestobeim-plementedincludebuildingcommunities’capacitytoadequatelycareforthesocioeconomicallydeprivedandnutritionallyvulnerablegroups,andtodevelopdietaryneedsforvulnerablegroupsinMalawi.Thepolicyalsocallsforpromotingandsupportingpal-liativecareandcommunity-copingmechanismsforHIV-positiveandaffectedhouseholds.
The National Safety Nets Strategy and Programme (2003).Thisprogrammeaimstoimprovethelivelihoodsofthemostvulnerableandmarginalizedgroupsinsoci-etybyenablingthemtoenhancetheirproductivity,therebyincreasingtheirself-reliance.Theobjectivesoftheprogrammeincludetheprovisionofeconomi-cally justifiablesocialsupport thatprotectsassetsandenhancestheproductivityofthemostvulner-ableandmarginalizedgroups.Theprogrammealsoundertakestoanalysetheimpactofsafety-net in-terventionsonthemostvulnerableandmarginal-izedgroupsandhowsuchimpactsaffectnationalproductivity.
The key principles for the programme includecommunity participation and sustainability; en-hancedproductivity;transparencyandaccountabili-ty;andgenderbalance.Someofthekeyinterventionsincludetargetednutritionprogrammesthatprovidesupplementary feeding services to malnourishedchildren(especiallyorphans)anddestitutefamilies.Another key intervention involves direct-transferprogrammesthatprovidesupporttothepoorandvulnerablegroupswhohaveverylimitedaccessto
factorsofproduction, includingpeopleindisastersituationsandorphans.
Draft Social Support Policy (2008).Thispolicyintendsto contribute towards the fight against extremepovertyandvulnerability.Aftertherealizationofthefailuresofthesafety-netprogrammestoreducepovertyandvulnerabilityduetopoorcoordination,lackofcommitmentbyimplementersandpoorfund-ing, theSocialSupportPolicywillprovideanop-portunityforpropercoordinationofprogrammesbygovernmentthatwilltargetthemoderatelypoortoenhancetheirproductivity,andtheultra-poorforwelfare support. For the first time, there is anat-temptbygovernmenttodistinguishbetweenthetwosocialcategoriesofthepoor,i.e.moderatelypoorandultra-poor.Thepolicyfurtherdistinguishesbetweentheultra-poorthathavelabourresourcesandthosethatcannotfendforthemselves.Theseare impor-tantdistinctions,sincesomepoorpeoplehavebeenleftoutofsafety-netinterventionsaswellasmain-streamdevelopmentinterventions.Byconsideringproduction-orientedspecialprogrammesfortheul-tra-poor,thepolicywillenablevulnerablegroupstofullyparticipateineconomicdevelopmentandavertdependence.Thesecategories,oftheultra-poorandthemoderatelypoor,arethetargetcategoriesforthelivelihood-basedsocialsupportinterventions.
Onceadopted,thepolicymaysignificantly im-provethesituationofOVC.Anumberofdevelopmentpartners such as the European Union, the GlobalFundthroughNAC,IrishAid,theGermanTechnicalCooperationAgencyandtheUnitedNationsDevel-opmentProgramme,andpotentiallyAustralianAidandtheUKDepartmentforInternationalDevelop-ment,havepledgedfinancialand/ortechnicalsup-portfortheimplementationofthesocialprotectionprogrammes,butthisisdependentontheapprovalofthepolicy.Thereisconcern,however,thatthepolicyistakingtoolongtobeadopted.Otherchallengesincludeinadequateunderstandingofsocialprotec-tionamongstakeholdersandinadequatepoliticalwillandcommitmenttoimplementsocialprotectionpro-grammes.Thereissomedoubtregardingthepolicy’simpactondevelopment.Thereis,therefore,aneedtoincreasehumancapacitytochampiontheinitiativeandintensifysocialprotectionawarenesscampaigns.
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Part 1: Situation Analysis
National Coordination Structures for Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Related Initiatives
National OVC Steering Committee.Thecommitteeover-seesandadviseskeypolicymakersonmattersrelatedtotheimplementationoftheNationalPlanofActionforOVC.ItischairedbytheprincipalsecretaryintheMinistryofWomenandChildDevelopmentandiscomposedofprincipalsecretaries,directorsandrep-resentativesfromkeyOVCstakeholders(governmentlineministries,UNagencies,donors, internationalandlocalnon-governmentalorganizations(NGOs),community-basedorganizations(CBOs)andfaith-basedorganizations(FBOs).
OVC Technical Working Group.Thisworkinggroupprovidestechnicalassistanceinspecificdomainsre-latedtoandinsupportoftheimplementationoftheNationalPlanofActionforOVC.Itcomprisesrel-evanttechnicalexpertsfromgovernmentlinemin-istries,UNagencies,donors,internationalandlocalNGOs,CBOsandFBOs.
National Social Support Steering Committee.TheMinis-tryofEconomicPlanningandDevelopmentwillbethecoordinatingagencyandsecretariatfortheNa-tionalSocialSupportProgramme.Itwillberespon-sibleformattersofpolicyandresourcemobilizationandwillcompriseprincipalsecretariesfromthekeylineministries,headsofmissionsforthedevelop-mentpartnerinstitutionsandcivilsociety.Thesteer-ingcommitteewillbechairedbytheChiefSecretarytotheMalawi’sPresidentandCabinet.
National Social Support Technical Committee.Thiswillberesponsibleforprovidingtechnicaldirectionandrecommendationsonprogrammeimplementation.ItwillcomprisedirectorsandischairedbytheSecre-taryforEconomicPlanningandDevelopment.
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A Review of Programmes Related to Orphans and Vulnerable Children
Socialcashtransferscheme
Cashtransfersare increasinginpopularityasameansofaddressingissuesofvulnerabilityand
foodinsecurity,andasalternativestocommoditytransfers. Cash transfers are also known to havepotential for empowering beneficiaries throughstrengtheningtheirlivelihoodsandcontributingtothegrowthoflocaleconomies.
AsocialcashtransferschemeiscurrentlypilotedinthesevendistrictsofMchinji,Salima,Machinga,Mangochi,Likoma,ChitipaandPhalombethroughfundingfromtheNACGrantFacility(Round5GlobalFundOVC)HIVandAIDSPooledFundingPartners,UNICEFandAustralianAid.TheMinistryofWomenandChildDevelopmentimplementstheprogrammethroughdistrictassemblies.
ByFebruary2009,theprogrammehadtransferredfunds to23,651households, giving anaverageofK2,000(aboutUS$14)perhouseholdpermonthwithanaverageannualcost,including15percentadmin-istrativecosts,ofUS$200perhouseholdperyear.Theprogrammefundingrequirement isanticipatedtoincreasefromaroundUS$6millionin2008/09toUS$59.2millionin2013/14,andcoveragetoincreasefrom23,651householdsto295,708householdsintherespectiveyears.
Some reported challenges of the programmeinclude:• Delaysinpaymentstobeneficiaries,mainlyduring
crucialmonthsofJanuarytoMarch;• Failureofsomebeneficiarieswhograduateoutof
theprogrammetosustainthemselvesbeforeslidingbackintodestitution,andthereforetheneedfordurablemechanismsforresilienceandcontinuedfollowupforbeneficiariestounderstandlong-termhealth,humandevelopmentandeconomicimpactsofcash;
• Inadequatetrainingforvolunteerswhodothetar-geting;and
• Targetingmechanismsthatexcludeequallydeserv-inghouseholds.
TheWorldFoodProgramme (WFP)has alsobeeninvolved in social cash transfer schemes, mainlythrough twopilotprojects,oneofwhichwas im-plemented in Nsanje and Chikwawa districts in
2005 involving16,600peopleatacostofaroundUS$500,000.Thesecondprojectwasconductedbe-tweenOctober2008andMay2009inMachingaandMangochidistricts.Itinvolved11,100householdsatacostofUS$2.97million.ThepilotprojectinMach-ingaandMangochiisaimedattestingtherelativeadvantagesanddisadvantagesofconditional foodtransfers,cashtransfers,andamixoffoodandcashtransfers.Theconditionalityisthattransfers(foods,cashorfoodandcash)aremadeafterparticipationinidentifiedcommunityasset-creationactivities.
Reportedachievement,particularlyfromthefirstWFPpilot inNsanjeandChikwawa,wasincreasedirrigated land(271hectares)andincreasedyields.However,household foodconsumptionwas lowerthanplannedbecausehouseholdsspent20to40percentoftheircashtransfersonnon-fooditems.
Juniorfarmerfieldandlifeschools
Juniorfarmerfieldandlifeschools(JFFLS)areaninitiativethataimstoempowervulnerableteenage
girlsandboys(12to20year-olds)withagricultureandlifeskillsthatwillensureimprovedlivelihoodsand the long-term food and nutrition security oftheirhouseholds.JFFLSisahands-on,out-of-class-roomagricultureandlifeskillslearningprogrammeforvulnerablechildrenandyouths.MalawipilotedeightJFFLSinMangochiandNtcheudistricts.
Ateamofthreevolunteerfacilitatorsisrecruited,comprisingaschoolteacheroryouthgroupcoordina-tororchildprotectioncoordinator,aleadfarmerforimprovingagriculturalskills,andasocialanimatorwhoisanexpertindrama,thearts,danceandcrea-tiveactivities.Eligiblechildrenarerecruitedintotheprogrammebythecommunityusingcriteriawhichhasbeenagreedupon,andwiththeconsentofthechildrenconcerned.Communitymembersarealsoinvolvedintheidentificationoftheinterventionstobeintroducedandlocationforthefieldtraining.
EmphasisofJFFLSisplacedonlow-inputproduc-tionandlabour-savingtechnologiestoaddressthelossofadultlabour.Emphasisisalsoplacedonskillsandknowledgethatchildrenhavenotlearnedduetoillnessordeathofoneorbothparents.Byinclud-ingtraditionalknowledge,theapproachalsoaimstomaintainindigenousknowledgeaboutlocalcrops,
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Part 1: Situation Analysis
medicinalplantsandbiodiversity.Partofthefoodproducedissoldtoprovidein-
comefor theOVCandtheirhouseholds,andpartofthefoodisprovideddirectlytoparticipantsforconsumptionintheirhouseholds.
Potentialconstraintsandchallengesinclude:• Unavailabilityofcapitalstarter-packsforgraduat-
ingchildrenwhorequireimplements,seedsandothermaterialssotheycancontinueproduction.Initially resourceswerenotavailable tosupportthesewhichlimitedopportunitiesfollowinggrad-uation.Iftheseareunavailableattheendoftheprogramme,ithasusuallybeenextended.
• Furtherpracticeandutilizationoftechniquesout-sideoftrainingandfollowinggraduationmaybelimitedinsomecaseswherechildren’sguardiansdonotprovidetheenvironmentsoropportunitiestopracticethem.
Farminputsubsidyprogramme
Thisprogrammeisaimedatimprovingthefoodsecurityandincomesofresource-poorsmallhold-
erfarmers.TheseincludeAIDS-affectedhouseholds,child-headedhouseholds,elderly-headedhouseholds,andfemale-headedhouseholds.Theprogrammehasbeeninplacesincethe2005/6seasonasaroll-outprogramme across all the districts in Malawi. In2008/09thefollowinginputsweredistributed:• Fertilizertargeting1,500,000maizefarmersand
200,000tobaccofarmers;• 1,900,000couponsforpurchasingimprovedseeds;
and• 435,000flexiblecouponstopurchaseeitherferti-
lizersorseed.
It iswidelyacknowledgedthattheprogrammehasimprovedthefoodsecuritysituationinMalawiandhas turned thecountry’s situationaround fromapredominantly food-importing country to a foodself-reliantone.Anecdotalevidencealsoshowsthatmostbeneficiariesoftheprogrammehaveimprovedhouseholdfoodsecurityandhavealsomadesomeincomefromthesaleofcrops.However,therehavebeenquestionsraisedonwhetherindeedthepoorestandmostvulnerablecategoriesreallybenefitedfrom
theprogramme,consideringtheinherentweaknessesintheprogrammeintermsof inclusion/exclusionerrors,highprobabilityofthepoorerbeneficiariesexchangingtheircouponsforcashorotherneces-sities,andinsomecasesdelaysorunavailabilityoftheinputs.
Themajorsignificanceoftheprogrammeisthatithas receivedsubstantial localand internationalsupport,andgovernmentisstronglycommittedtoimplementing the programme in the future. It isthereforelikelytocontinuereceivingfundingfromgovernmentanddevelopmentpartners.
Communityinitiated/drivenprojects
TheMinistryofWomenandChildDevelopment,throughthedistrictsocialwelfareoffices,facili-
tatescommunity-initiatedsocialsupport interven-tionsforOVC.Throughthisapproach,CBOsinitiateorarefacilitatedtodeveloplivelihood-basedinter-ventionstargetingOVCinparticular.Someofthetypicalinterventionactivitiesinclude:• Food security for OVC and households keeping
OVCthroughvillagegardens,smalllivestockandnutritionsupplementationforcommunity-basedchildcarecentres;
• Education support through provision of basicschoolrequirementsandnecessitiessuchasschooluniforms,exercisebooksandwritingmaterials;
• HIVandAIDSawarenessand life skills throughgeneralawarenessmeetingsandspecialsessionsforchildrenandOVC;and
• Incomegenerationsuchasmaizemills,dairyingandganyu(piecework)toraisemoneyforassistingtheOVCwiththebasicnecessitiesoflife.
Althoughsuchinitiativesfacemanychallengessuchasinadequatefunding,poormanagementandcom-mitment,inprincipletheypresenthugeopportunityfor:• Relatively lower administrative/overhead costs
sinceactivitiesareplannedandmanagedbythecommunities;
• Developmentofasenseofownershipandempow-ermentthroughlocalcapacityindesignandman-agement;and
• Minimaldisruptiontothestatusquo.
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Livelihood-basedsocialsupportprojects
Anumber of livelihood-based social supportprojectshavebeencompleted,arebeingimple-
mented,orarebeingplannedorinitiatedbyinter-nationalandlocalNGOs,FBOsandgovernmentordonors.Someofthecompletedoron-goingprojectshavebeendetailedintheAnnex.Thecommonfea-turesoftheseprojectsare:• Definitefundingfromasingledonororaconsor-
tiumofdonors;• Definedprojecttimeframe,usuallybetweenone
andfiveyears;• Usuallyadministeredfromoutsidethecommunity;
and• Formallydocumentedandusuallyincludesformal
evaluation.
Althoughthisisthemostcommonandpopularformofdevelopmentintervention,thereareusuallyprob-lemswiththesustainabilityofactivitiesafter theprojecthasbeenphasedout.‘Boutique’projectshavealsobeencriticizedforlackingbroad-basedimpactandreplicationofgoodlessons.Asaresult,thereisnowastrongerpushforscalability,replicationandsustainabilityofprojectinterventions.
Schoolfeedingprogramme
The World Food Programme implements theschoolfeedingprojectinprimaryschoolsof13
districts:Kasungu,Lilongwe,Salima,Dedza,Man-gochi,Thyolo,Nsanje,Ntcheu,Chikwawa,Chirad-zulu,Zomba,MulanjeandPhalombe.ThisisdoneinpartnershipwiththeMinistryofEducation,ScienceandTechnology.Althoughtheprogrammecoversallprimaryschoolpupilsinthetargetschoolsanddis-tricts,girlsandorphanedboysarethemaintarget.Forexample,anindividualtake-homefoodrationof12.5kilogrammesofcereals isprovidedtoallgirlsandorphanedboysintheupperclasses(Standards5to8)duringeachmonthoftheleanperiod(JanuarytoMarch)onconditionthattheyattendclassesforatleast80percentoftheschooldaysinthemonth.
Theprogrammesupports635,000pupilsofwhich63,500boysand330,200girlsareOVC.Someofthereportedbenefitssofarare:
• SchoolattendancebyOVChasimproved;and• Foodsecurity forhouseholds fosteringOVChas
improvedthroughtake-homerations.
Somechallengesnotedare:• Sincetheschoolfeedingprogrammeonlytackles
thefoodaspect,ithaslittleornocontroloverpro-visionofotheraspectsoflivelihoodsuchasagri-cultureandvocationalskills,whichmaybeequallyimportantfortheOVCtobuildsustainableliveli-hoodsandenhancetheirfutureprospects.
• Unlessadequatefundingisguaranteed,forexam-plethroughthenationalbudget,theprogrammemaynotbesustainedintothefuture.
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Emerging Issues
Policy link
TheSocialSupportPolicy,apartfromtakingtoolongtobecompleted,cameinmuchlaterafter
policiessuchasOVCandearlychildhooddevelop-ment policies were developed. In principle, theseearlierpolicies shoulddevolve fromor link to thebroaderpolicy.ItmaythereforebenecessarytoreviewsuchpoliciesinlinewiththeSocialSupportPolicyonceitisadopted.Thereisalsoacallforreconsidera-tionoftheearlierpoliciesastowhethertheseshouldcontinuetostandaspoliciesorbeframedasstrategiessupportingthebroaderpolicy.Sometimestoomanypolicies tendtobeconfusing.Ontheotherhand,verybroadpoliciesmaysometimesfailtoprovidead-equateguidanceinspecificareas,suchasOVC.Itisrecommendedthatathoroughreviewbecarriedouttomakesuchadecision.
CoordinationIssuesoflivelihoodandsocialprotectioncutacrosssectorsanddisciplines.However,theactualinstitu-tionsandpeopleinvolvedseemtobelimited,totheextentthatthesameinstitutionsandpeopleareindifferentcommitteesandtechnicalworkinggroups.It isevenmoredifficult ifoneofficerwhopartici-patesinalowercommitteeisalsoaskedtorepresenttheinstitutioninahighercommittee,whichissup-posedtoconsiderrecommendationsfromthelowercommittee.Inthislight,thecomplaintthattherearetoomanycommitteesappearstobejustified.How-ever,ithasalsobeenarguedthatsometimesparallelcommitteesareformedbecausethemainonesaredormant.Dissolvingthenon-functioningcommit-teesmaybedifficultbecauseofthelegalfactorsthatmaybeinvolved.
Therealissueisnotaboutwhethertherearetoomanycommittees,butrathertheextenttowhichis-suesinonecommitteeoverlapwiththoseofanother.Toomanyoverlapscouldjustifyamalgamationofthecommitteesandstreamliningthetermsofreference.
Common understanding of social protection/supportIsitnecessarytohaveacommonunderstandingofsocialprotection/supportanditscomponents?ThisquestionisraisedsinceitemergedfromthestudythattheconceptofsocialprotectioninMalawihas
evolvedandchangedovertime,dependingonwhoor which institution exerted the most influencebasedontheirmandateorareaof interest.Varietyin thinkinghas led to a varietyof interventions,suchasamongsocialsafety-nets, livelihood-basedsocialprotectionandsocialcashtransfers,tonamejustafew.Theauthorsofthisstudysubscribetotheperceptionofasocialprotection/supportagendaasagraduatedcontinuuminwhichotherparticipantsforminterventionstages.Thesocialprotection/sup-port agenda shouldbepromotedas an integratedpackagewith specificphasesof intervention thatlinktothebroaderhumandevelopmentperspective.
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Theproposednextstepsforthestudywillinclude:
• DiscussionoftheSituationAnalysisReportwithkeystakeholderswill furtherseektheirviewsoncriteriaforprioritizingprojectsforstudywithineachmodelorapproach,forexample,thedurationinwhichtheprojecthasbeenimplemented,OVCasthemaintargetoftheprojectorprogramme,andprominenceoflivelihoodswithintheprojectorprogramme.
• Preliminaryfieldvisitsanddiscussionswithprojectimplementerswillbedonetoprioritizeprojectsbased on the criteria for selection. One projectwithineachmodel/approach(community-initiatedprojects,JFFLS,socialcashschemes,schoolfeed-ingprogrammes,livelihood-basedsocialprotectionprojects)willbechosenforthein-depthstudy.
• Detailedfieldassessmentofeachofthefivepriori-tizedpotentialbestpracticeswillbedonetodocu-mentevidenceandcompileananalysisof:» Successesandchallenges;and» Elementsofreplicationandscalingupsuchasin-
stitutionalstructures,effectiveness,sustainability,costandadaptability.
• Costingofscalingupeachofthepromisingmodels.• Capacitybuildingwithemphasisonwhatscaling
upentails.
Challenges and Gaps
ThepoliciesandstrategiesforOVCarewellar-ticulated.Theoutlookismorepositivewith
thedraftingoftheSocialSupportPolicy.However,thecurrentchallengeistohavetheSocialSupportPolicyadoptedbytheMalawiCabinetintime.Theotherchallengeisensuringthatallthekeystake-holdersareawareoftheexistingpoliciesaswellasthenewpolicy(afteritisadopted).
With support from NAC’s Global Fund, theMinistryofGender,ChildrenandCommunityDe-velopmentrecentlyembarkedonintensiveaware-nesscampaigns,buthavesofaronlyreachedoutto600stakeholders;theyacknowledgetherearestillhugegapsintheunderstandingofthesepoli-cies.Thereforemoreresourceswillberequiredtospeeduptheprocess.
Theprogrammesreviewedinthisstudyreflecta wide variety of approaches of OVC interven-tionsbeingappliedinthecountry.Whilesomeoftheprogrammesareatscale,mostarestillim-plementedasmicro-scaleprojects.Thechallengeishowsuchprogrammesorprojects,whichseemtobedoingwellatmicrolevel,couldbereplicatedorscaledupforwider impactandfasterresults.Unfortunately,cross-programmeinformationonwhatreallyworksiscurrentlyunavailable.Moreo-ver,there is inadequateknowledgeamongmostprogrammedesignersandimplementersaboutef-fectivereplicationandscalingupofaprogrammeorproject.
ThisstudywillthereforetrytoassessvariousprojectswithindifferentapproachesofOVCinter-ventionwiththeintentionofdocumentingpoten-tialbestpracticesandhowtheycouldbereplicatedand/orscaledup,includingthecostsinvolved.Aspartofthestudy,acapacity-buildingsessionforkeyOVC-relatedtechnicalworkinggroupswillbeorganizedandtrainingmaterialsforcascadingthetrainingdeveloped.
Way Forward
Part 1: Situation Analysis
23
Some livelihood-based social protection projects: programmes implemented in Malawi
Project title Enhancing livelihoods and food and nutrition security in the vulnerable SADC countries
Targetedgroup Vulnerablehouseholds
Targetedbeneficiaries Households,individuals
Implementingagency MSH,ConnectHope,ADRA,CADECOM,CPAR,MinistryofAgricultureandFoodSecurity,MinistryofIrrigationandWaterDevelopment,WFP,UNICEF,MoEPD
Contactdetails P.O.Box30750,Lilongwe.E-mail:[email protected]:01773263.Fax:01773263
Partners FAO
Districtscovered Mchinji,Phalombe,Mangochi,Ntcheu,Lilongwe,Nkhotakota,Salima,Mwanza,Ntchisi
Donororlender RepublicofSouthAfrica
Fundingtype Grant
Totalcost US$1,593,172
Disbursedtodate US$1,479,051
Dataentrydate 9October2007
Projectapproved 1January2006
Startdate 1January2006
Completiondate 31October2007
Objectives Components Plannedprojectoutputs IndicatorsToincreaseandintensifyagriculturalproduction/productivityanddiversitytoimproveresilienceofvulnerablehouseholds.
• Small-scaleirrigation• Schoolgardens• HBC/NRUsandJFFLS.
• Irrigationschemesestab-lished;technicallyandmateriallysupported
• 100communitydemon-strationgardensestab-lishedandfunctional
• NutritioneducationactivitiesbuiltintoworkplanforHBCandNRUs
• Improvedagriculturalandlifeskillsforprimaryschoolpupilsestablished.
• Numberofirrigationschemesestablished,technicallyandma-teriallysupported
• 100communitydemon-strationgardensestab-lishedandfunctional
• NutritioneducationactivitiesbuiltintoworkplansforHBCandNRUs
• Improvedagriculturalandlifeskillsforpri-maryschoolpupils.
Annex
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Project title Sustainable nutrition rehabilitation programmeTargetedgroup Householdswithmalnourishedchildren,orphans,vulnerablemothers
Targetedbeneficiaries 6,400households,32,000individuals
Implementingagency ChristianHealthAssociationofMalawi
Contactdetails PrivateBag282,Lilongwe.E-mail:[email protected]:www.danchurchaid.org.Tel:01775180/01771258.Fax:01775406
Partners DanishChurchAid(DCA)
Districtscovered Karonga,Rumphi,Salima,Dedza,Mangochi
Donororlender EuropeanUnion
Fundingtype Grant
Totalcost US$1,200,000
Disbursedtodate US$429,881
Dataentrydate 31March2008
Projectapproved 1December2006
Startdate 1January2007
CompletionDate 31December2009
Objectives Components Plannedprojectoutputs Indicators1.Overallobjective:TocontributetoimprovedlivelihoodsecurityofvulnerableruralhouseholdsinMalawibyenhancingtheirfoodandnutritionstatusinasustainableandrights-baseddevelopmentapproach.
2.Specificobjectives:• Tofacilitatecommunityin-
stitutions,promotedietary,andcropandlivestockdi-versificationatbothhouse-holdandcommunitylevel
• Toenhanceappropriatemotherandchildcareprac-ticesinthecommunities
• Topromotecommu-nity-basedtreatmentofmalnutrition
• Toproviderights-basedcapacity-buildingprocess.
3.Psycho-socialprogrammes.
• Lowinputsustain-ableagriculture
• Establishmentofagro-forestryandfruittreenurseries
• Promotionofseedmul-tiplicationandcom-munalseedbanks
• Smalllivestockintegration• Small-scaleirrigation• Community-basedtreat-
mentofmalnutrition• Community-based
healtheducation• Community-based
growthanddevelop-mentmonitoring
• Strengtheninglinkagesofcommunityinstitutionsinhealthandsanitarystructuresandothersupportinstitutionsindeliveryofhealthservices.
• Communitiesadoptadiversifiedhouseholddietthroughimprovedaccesstoandutiliza-tionofnutritiousfood
• Adequatemotherandchildcarepracticesadoptedbythecommunities
• Appropriatecommunity-basedtreatmentsofmalnutritionadopted
• Communitycapac-ityenhancedthroughpartnershipsandlink-agessupportfornutrition-relatedinitiatives.
• Atleast70%oftargetedhouseholdspractiseproperfoodstorage,preparationandutilizationprac-ticesandtechniques
• 50%oftargetedhouse-holdshaveatleasttwomealsperday
• 90%oftargetedhouse-holdswithaccesstoadequateseedmaterials
• 80%oftargetedhouseholdsadoptingrecommendedtechnologies/practices
• 60%ofthetargetedhouse-holdsadoptingrecom-mendedcarepractices
• 50%reductioninmoth-ersattendingcommu-nityfeedingcentresduetoimprovednutrition
• 90%ofmalnourishedchildrenidentifiedearlyatmoderatestate
• 60%reductionofchil-drenreferredtoNRUs
• Increasedextensionagent/householdcontactration
• Communitiesabletoseekinformationandassist-anceontheirown
• 50%femalerepresenta-tionindecisionmaking.
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Project title Kunyinda Area Development ProgrammeTargetedgroup Girlchildren,orphans,women
Targetedbeneficiaries 22,843individuals
ImplementingAgency WorldVisionMalawi
Contactdetails P.O.Box64,Ngabu.E-mail:[email protected],Web-site:www.worldvision.org.Tel:01427349.Fax:01427496
Partners GovernmentofMalawi
Districtscovered Chikwawa
Donororlender WorldVisionGermany
Fundingtype Grant
Totalcost US$426,500
Disbursedtodate US$123,452
Dataentrydate 20January2007
Projectapproved 4January1999
Startdate 4January1999
Completiondate 30September2013
Objectives Components Plannedprojectoutputs IndicatorsToimprovehouseholdfoodsecurity.
• Livestockproduction• Drought-tolerant
cropproduction• Fooddiversification.
• Livestockcross-breedingprogrammeestablished
• Farminputloanfacil-ityimplemented
• Drought-tolerantcropseeddistributed
• Cropdiversificationpro-grammeimplemented.
• Numberoflive-stockcross-breeds
• Numberoffarmersac-cessingfarminputs
• Numberofdrought-tolerantcrops.
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Project title Mlolo Area Development ProgrammeTargetedgroup Childrenandothervulnerablegroups
Targetedbeneficiaries 4,600households,23,000individuals
Implementingagency WorldVisionMalawi
Contactdetails MloloADP,P.O.Box2050,Blantyre.E-mail:[email protected]:01750539.Fax:01752580
Partners GovernmentofMalawi
Districtscovered Nsanje
Donororlender WorldVisionCanada
Fundingtype Grant
Totalcost US$369,165
Disbursedtodate US$332,370
Dataentrydate 16March2007
Projectapproved 1October1999
Startdate 1October1999
Completiondate 30September2010
Objectives Components Plannedprojectoutputs IndicatorsImprovedqualityoflifeforthe23,000peopleofMlolobyFY2010.
• Fishfarming• Growingofdrought-
tolerantcropslikemilletandsorghum
• AwarenesscampaignsonHIV/AIDS,educa-tionandsponsorship
• Provisionofschoolsupplies
• Provisionofmedi-calaidtoCIP
• Provisionofbasicsneces-sitieslikehouses,clothesandfoodtoneedyCIP
• Women’sempowerment• Home-manage-
mentactivities• Clothdying• Bakeryprogramme.
• Maternalandchildhealthandgeneralcom-munityhealthcareactivitiesstrengthened
• Communityawarenessontheimpor-tanceofprimaryeducationincreased
• Primaryschooleducationqualityac-tivitiesenhancedandsupplyoflearn-ingmaterialsandfacilitiesincreased
• Qualityofeducationfor400adultsimproved
• Productionservicesinconventionallivestockandbeesstrengthened
• Extensionservicesinlivestockproductionstrengthened
• Agriculturalproductionforover3,000farmersinMloloenhanced
• Forestationprogrammesforover1,000farmingfamiliesputinplaceandsupported
• SupportactivitiesoffoodsecuritymanagersandADPagriculturestaff
• ADPagriculturestaff’sstationeryandfieldattireneedstobeaddressed
• Participationofbothmenandwomeninhome-managementactivitiesstrengthened
• Monitoringandevaluationofprojectactivitiesenhanced
• Knowledgeonassessingpeo-ple’sneedsincreased
• Understandingofprojectmanagementandinvolvementofstaffandcommunityleadersindecisionmakingenhanced
• Sponsorshipsystemmanaged• Improvedsponsorship-man-
agementpractices• Monitoringandevaluationpro-
grammeimplemented• Increasedandquickresponsetodis-
astermitigationmeasurestoover1,000peopleinMlolobyFY2003
• CommunityawarenessinitiativesonHIV/AIDSstrengthened.
• %increaseinliteracylevelingirls,boysandadults
• Increasednetenrolmentrateforprimaryschool
• Increasedprimaryschoolpassrateandsecondaryschoolselectionrate
• Reduceddropoutrateinprimaryschools
• %ofhouseholdswithfoodthroughouttheyear
• %reductioninmalnutri-tionlevelsinimpactareas
• %increaseinlevelofassetcreation
• %increaseinfoodcropproduction
• Numberofimprovedlive-stockbreedsproduced
• %ofhouseholdsadoptingimprovedcropvarieties
• Numberoffarmersprac-tisingimprovedlivestockhusbandrytechniques
• %ofhouseholdswithin-creaseddailymealfrequency
• Numberoffarmerstrainedinfishfarmingtechnologies
• Numberofchildrenwithimprovedwell-being
• Zeroover-duemail• Increasedlevelofunder-
standingofmajorstakehold-ersofsponsorshipissues
• ImprovedrelationshipsamongCIP,communitiesandsponsors
• Reducedsponsorqueries• ReducedCIPdrops• 95%ofspecialmailprocessed
bycut-offdateandthere-maining5%processedwithintwoweeksaftercut-off.
Part 1: Situation Analysis
27
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Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success Stories from Malawi
2828
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29
Part 1: Situation Analysis
Chinsinga, B. 2007. The Social Protection Policy in Malawi: Processes, Politics and Challenges. FutureAgricultures.
Conway,T.&Norton,A.2002.Nets, Ropes, ladders and Trampolines: The Place of Social Protection within Current Debates on Poverty Reduction.DevelopmentPolicyReview,2002,20(5):533-540.
Devereux,S.2002.Social Protection for the Poor: Les-sons from Recent International Experience.IDSWorkingPaper142.SussexBrighton,UnitedKingdom.
Devereux,S.,Baulch,B.,Macauslan,I.,Phiri,A.&Sabates-Wheeler,R.2006.Vulnerability and Social Pro-tection in Malawi. IDSDiscussionPaper387.SussexBrighton,UnitedKingdom.
FAOGovernmentCooperativeProgramme:ProjectoftheGovernmentsofLesothoandMalawi.ProjectDocument,ProtectingandImprovingFoodandNu-tritionSecurityforOrphansandHIV/AIDSAffectedChildren(Phase1:LesothoandMalawi).
GovernmentofMalawi.2003.National Policy on Or-phans and other vulnerable Children.Lilongwe.
Government of Malawi. 2003. National HIV/AIDS Policy: a Call for Renewed Action.Lilongwe.
GovernmentofMalawi(2005).National Plan of Action for Orphans and other Vulnerable Children, 2005-2009.Lilongwe.
GovernmentofMalawi.2005.TheNationalHIV/AIDS Action Framework, 2005-2009.Lilongwe.
GovernmentofMalawi.2006.National Policy on Early Childhood Development.Lilongwe.
GovernmentofMalawi.2008.Foster Family Guide-lines.Lilongwe.
GovernmentofMalawi.November2008Draft.SocialSupportPolicy.Lilongwe.
Norton,A.,Conway,T.,&Foster,M.2001.Social Pro-tection Concepts and Approaches: Implications for Policy and Practice in International Development.ODIWork-ingPaper143.London,UnitedKingdom.
RHVP.2007.Social Transfers: A Series of Policy Briefs for National Stakeholders.Johannesburg,SouthAfrica.
Bibliography
© U
NIC
EF/
NY
HQ
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-047
4/G
ubb
Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success Stories from Malawi
3030
© UNICEF/NYHQ2002-0511/Vitale
31
Part 2: An Observatory of Best Practices
Part 2: An Observatory of Best Practices
Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success Stories from Malawi
32
Thelivelihoodsperspectiveofsocialprotection
Alivelihoodisameansandcapabilityofearningaliving.Inordertoliveadecentlife,peopleneed
food,incomeandsomeassets.Poorpeoplefindithardtomeettheneedsoftheirdailylives,sometimesbe-causetheylackthemeansorlackcapabilityofdoingso.Thissometimesleadstodeprivationand/ordestitution.Inordertorescuepeoplefromorpreventthemfromdeprivationanddestitution,publicandprivateinstitu-tionsimplementsocialprotectioninterventions.Socialprotectionisbroadlydefinedas“allpublicandprivateinitiativesthatprovideincomeorconsumptiontrans-ferstothepoor,protectthevulnerableagainstliveli-hoodrisks,andenhancethesocialstatusandrightsofthemarginalized;withtheobjectivesofreducingtheeconomicandsocialvulnerabilityofpoor,vulnerableandmarginalisedgroups”(Norton,A.,et al, 2001).Aninitiativethereforequalifiestobealivelihood-basedsocialprotectioninterventionifitprovidesthemeansofbringingthemostvulnerablegroupsintothedevel-opmentprocessthroughprotection,preventionandpromotiontoensuretheirimmediateandfuturelive-lihoods.Livelihood-basedsocialsupportfororphansandvulnerablechildren(OVC)shouldinstituteandimplementinterventionstoreducevulnerabilityoftheOVCandtheirhouseholdsthrough:• Strengtheningproduction,especiallyinsmall-scale
agriculturesuchas:» Improved means and access to productive re-
sources–land,labour,farminputs;» Fasterreturnsandeasier-to-managelivestock–
poultry,goats,rabbits;» Small-scaleirrigationforimprovednutritionand
incomes;and» Diversified, sustainable and drought resilient
farmingsystems.• Enhancingmarketingopportunities,especiallyin
foodandagriculture.• Enhancingoff-farmemploymentopportunities.• Buildinginfrastructureandassets.• Improvingbasicservicessuchashealthandeduca-
tion,includingthoseaimedatreducingHIVandAIDS,tuberculosisandmalaria.
• Reducingsocialmarginalizationandexclusion.• Strengtheninggovernanceinstitutionsandpolicy
processes.
Objectivesofthestudy
Thereiscompellingevidencethattheimplemen-tationofthecountry’sNationalPlanofAction
forOVC(2006–2009)hasledtosignificantimprove-mentsinfundingandsocialsupportinterventionsfor OVC. However, the focus has largely been oneducationandchildprotectionwithoutadequatelyaddressing the livelihoodneedsofOVCandtheirhouseholds.
Thisstudywasthereforeinitiatedtoreviewandassess innovativeagricultural and livelihoodpro-grammesfromtheperspectiveoftheemergingsocialsupportagendaforOVC,andinthecontextofHIVandAIDS,withtheaimofdocumentinglessonsforreplicationandscalingup.
Specificobjectivesofthestudyweretoidentify,analyseanddocument:• Factors(social,economical,institutional)thathave
ledtothesuccessoftheinterventions;• Potential sustainabilityof activities and/orout-
comesofsuchinterventions;• Elementsof theproject thatcouldbereplicated
andscaledup;• Costofscalingupsuchinterventionsatdistrict,
regionorcountrylevel;• Keyconsiderationsthatshouldbemadeinorderto
effectivelyscaleupsuchinterventions;and• Potentialbenefitswhichmayberealizedbyother
communitiesandbereplicated.
Identificationandchoiceofbestpractices
Selectionofcasestudiesasbestpracticesforlive-lihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVCinvolved
threekeysteps:
1. Project mapping.Adatabaseofagricultureandlive-lihoodinterventionsthathavebeenimplementedinthecountryoverthelastcoupleofyearswasreviewedtoidentifyprojectswithOVCasoneoftheirmaintargets.Usingasetofcriteria,thesewereshortlistedandpresentedtothestakeholdersforfurtherreview.Thecriteriaforpreliminaryselectionwere:• DirectlytargetOVCand/ortheirhouseholds;• Implementedforthreeyearsormoreinorderto
givemeaningfullessons;
The Context of the Study
33
Part 2: An Observatory of Best Practices
• Demonstratestrongcommunityparticipationandownership;and
• Costforimplementationshouldbereasonable.
2. Selection by district.Itwasnoticedthattheprojectscontainedinthedatabase,fromwhichthefirstshortlistofinterventionswasdrawn,weremostlyformalprojectsimplementedbyINGOs(internationalnon-governmentalorganizations),governmentandmulti-lateralorganizations,andexcludedthoseinitiatedbycommunities.Therefore,itwasfeltnecessarytoaskdistrictsocialwelfareofficers(DSWOs)fromselecteddistrictstoidentifythemostsuccessfullivelihood-basedsocialprotectioninterventionintheirdistrictthattargetedOVC.Theseprojectsweretobecho-senregardlessofwhethertheywereimplementedbyaninternationalNGO,a localNGO,thepublicorcommunity.Thedistrictswerechosentakingintoconsiderationgeographicrepresentationandfarm-ingsystems.Sevendistrictswerechosenasfollows:• Karonga–northernlakeshoredistrict, relatively
dry.
• Mchinji – centralwestdistrict, fertileplain en-dowedwithfavourableconditionsforagriculture.
• Nkhotakota–centraleast lakeshoredistrictwithgoodrainfallforagriculture.
• Ntcheu– central southdistrictwithmixtureofhills,escarpmentsandvalleys.
• Ntchisi–centralhighlanddistrict,verydiversifiedfarmingsystems.
• Mangochi–easternlakeshorefishingandtouristresortdistrict.
• Chikwawa–LowerShireRiverValley,droughtandflood-pronedistrict.
• Otherprojectsthatwerereviewed:JuniorFarmerField andLife Schools (JFFLS);MillenniumVil-lageProject(Zomba)andthecashtransferscheme(Mchinji).
3. Preliminary site visits. After DSWOs or othersidentifiedtheprogrammes/projects, thesiteswereinitiallyvisitedtocollectbasicdata.Atotaloftenprogrammes/projectswerereviewed.Datacollectedfromthesepreliminaryvisitswascompiled,processed
District Title Status Method RemarksKaronga TawongaCommunity-
basedOrganizationCommunityinitiated&managed
Sitevisit Selected
Nkhotakota ChipeleraOrphanCare&AIDSSupportOrganization
Communityinitiated&managed
Sitevisit Selectedfordetailedstudy,butnotforfinalanalysis*
Ntcheu ChitunguCommunity-basedOrganization
Communityinitiated&managed
Sitevisit Selected
Chikwawa GoodNewsChildren’sHome
Communityinitiated&managed
Selected
Mchinji ChimtekaChildren’sSupportOrganization
Communityinitiated&managed
Sitevisit Selectedfordetailedstudy,butnotforfinalanalysis*
Mchinji MchinjiSocialCashTransferScheme
Governmentinitiated&funded
Secondarydata StudiedwithinChimtekacivilsocietyorganization
Zomba ZombaMillenniumVillageProject
Multilateralorganizationimplemented/funded
Secondarydata Usedaslessonsforthestudy
Ntchisi KansongaAccumulatingSavings&CreditAssociation
Communityinitiated&managed
Sitevisit Notselected
Mangochi MangochiMitigationofChildLabourProject
LocalNGOimplemented Secondarydata Notselected
JuniorFarmerFieldandLifeSchools
Multilateralorganizationimplemented/funded
Secondarydata Recommendedassupportinginitiative
*AlthoughtheNkhotakotaandMchinjiprojectswereselectedfordetailedstudy,theywerenotselectedforbestpracticeanalysisbecausetheyfellshortofsomekeysuccessfactors.
Livelihood-based Social Protection for OVC: Success Stories from Malawi
34
andpresentedtoacoregroupofstakeholders.Basedontherecommendationsfromthefieldreport,threeprojectswereselectedfordetailedstudy.Thetableshowstheprogrammes/projectsthatwerereviewedandselected.
Thethreeselectedsiteswereimpressivebecause,contrarytothecommonbeliefthattheruralpoorarepassiverecipientsofdevelopmentassistance,theystooduptothechallengeandinitiatedandimple-mentedinterventionsthatcouldbetrulydescribedashome-grownand sustainable.With experiencespanningfrombetweenfiveand13years,strivingontheirownwithminimalexternalassistance,theyhaveprogressivelyincreasedlivelihoodsupporttoOVC.Fromassistancetoasfewas12OVCattheini-tiationoftheseinterventions,thenumbersgraduallyrosetomorethan100,andtheseareexpectedtoriseevenmoreinthecomingyears.Overtheyears,theCBOshavestayedfocusedontheirmaingoals,thatis, to improve the livelihoodsof theOVC,and toassisttheneedyhouseholdswithbasiccareandsup-port.Theirplansforthefutureareevenmorerobustandmorefocusedonself-reliance,whichisaclearmanifestationofdevelopmentmaturity.Withsuchprogressandsuccess, itwouldbehardtochallengethesustainabilityoftheseefforts.TheseareindeedsuccessstoriesfromMalawi.
Approachandmethodsofdatacollection
Inallthreeselectedsites,theapproachwasthatofan‘observatory’,tryingtoseethingsastheyare
fromanobserver’spointofview.Thefollowingbasictoolswereusedtocaptureandrecordfielddata:
1. ‘Tracing the journey of progress’ approach.Inmixedgroups of between five and six, the implement-ingcommunitymemberswereaskedtotracetheirprogressfromtheirstarttothepresent,andprojectintothefuture.Eachgroupdiscussedandpresenteddetailsof:• Theirmotivationtostarttheproject;• Theobjectivesandtargetgroups;• Theprocesses,activitiesandservicesatallmajor
stagesoftheintervention;• The OVC situation at every major phase of the
project, such as potential and actual number
assisted,benefitsaccruedandchangesnoticedasaresultoftheintervention;
• Majorchallengesmetandhowtheyweredealtwithorcircumvented;and
• Drivingforcebehindthesuccess.
Eachsub-groupthenpresentedtheirdiscussionre-porttotheplenaryforopendiscussionandsugges-tionsforimprovementaswellascollationofideas.InChikwawa,agroupof17(12boysandfivegirls)whograduatedfromtheGoodNewsChildren’sHomewereinvitedtoparticipateinthediscussions.Theyformed three mixed sub-groups and discussed aslightlydifferentsetofquestionswhichfocusedontheirlifebefore,duringandaftertheirexperienceatthechildren’shome.TheywerealsoaskedtosuggestimprovementstothecentreinorderforittomoreeffectivelyassistOVC.
2. Focus group discussions.Thesewereheldwithcom-munityleaderstoobtaindetailsregardingcostsandotherinformationthatwouldotherwisenotbecap-turedbythefirsttool.
3. ‘Life story’ approach. Individual interviewswereconductedwithOVCandOVChouseholdheads.
4. Discussions. These were held with governmentagentsdirectlyinvolvedintheproject,particularlyDSWOsandtheirstaff.
5. Site tours of physical structures, livestock and crops. Thesewereconductedtowitnessandcapturesomeachievements.
35
Part 2: An Observatory of Best Practices
Eachofthethreeprojectsstartedonasmallscaleandprogressivelyexpandedinsizeandscope.IttooktheeffortsandpassionofafewcommunitymemberstoovercomethenegativeimpactofAIDS,particularlyamongOVC,andattracttheattentionofandmobi-lizecommunitiestotakepositiveaction.Althoughcircumstancesvariedbetweentheprojects,theout-comesweresimilar–eachcommunitylistenedandparticipatedinthechangesthattookplace.
Betweenthetimethattheprojectswereinitiatedtotheperiodofthestudy(June2009),projectssome-timesfaltered.However,itisclearfromtheirstoriesthatparticipantsnevergaveup.Thispartofthestudywasthereforeparticularlyintendedtolearnabout:• Thesuccessesof theprojectsandhowsuccesses
cameabout;• Thechallengesthatweremetandhowtheywere
dealtwith;• Thefactorswhichmotivatedprojectparticipantsto
moveonwhenotherswouldhavegivenup;• Whatprojectparticipantslearntfromtheirexperi-
ences;and• Whatplansprojectparticipantshaveforthefuture.
InPart3,theimplicationsoftheseissueshavebeenanalysedtoinformpossiblescalingupofinterven-tions.Detailedbelowistheobservatoryofthethreecasestudies.
How the Projects Were Initiated and Implemented
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Chitungucommunity-basedorganization,Ntcheu
Location of the siteThisCBOisinGroupVillageMastemale,TraditionalAuthorityKwataine,Ntcheudistrict.TheCBOislo-catedlessthanthreekilometresfromNtcheutown.TheareaisonthehillslopesoftheKirkRangeMoun-tains.It isgenerallyendowedwithgoodrainsandgoodsoilsforfarming.Sinceitislocatedontheout-skirtsofatown,thesitehasmuchbetteropportuni-tiesforoff-farmeconomicchoicesandmarketingofagriculturalcommoditiesthanmostruralareas inthecountry.
Establishment of the community-based organization (1997-2002)TheCBOwasinitiatedbyafewcommunitymem-berswhofeltconcernedaboutincreaseddestitutionamongOVCandpeoplesufferingfromAIDS-relatedillnesses.In1997,20communitymembersrespondedtothecallandformedtwoseparategroups:ahome-basedcaregroup (focusedoncareandsupportofchronically illpeople),andanorphancaregroup(dedicatedtotheplightofOVC).Thehome-basedcaregroupmostlycomprisedwomen,whiletheor-phancaregroupwasmostlymale.
In2002,thetwogroupswroteseparatepropos-alstotheMalawiAssociationofNetworksofAIDSSupportOrganizations(MANASO).Themen’sgroupproposalwasforaminibuswhilethewomen’sgroupaskedforamaizemill.Themaizemillproposalwassuccessfulwhilethatfortheminibusfailed.Thisap-parentlyaffectedmembershipofmentotheorphancaregroup,aswellastheirparticipationinOVCac-tivities.Ontheotherhand,womenbecamemorede-terminedtoforgeahead,althoughtheyhadnotyetreceivedthemaizemillatthisstage.
Itwasalsoin2002thatthetwogroupsmergedtoformtheChitunguCommunity-basedOrganiza-tionsothattheissuesofpeoplelivingwithHIV,thechronicallyill,OVC,theelderlyandtheyouthcouldbedealtwithholistically.TheCBOwasalsoofficiallyrecognizedbyregisteringwiththeChitungudistrictsocialwelfareoffice,anditcurrentlycoversninevil-lageswithinthejurisdictionofGroupVillageHead-manMastemale.©
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The focus of the CBO during this phase wasdistributionoffood,clothingandmoneytoassistOVCandAIDS-affectedhouseholds.Membersrecallthisperiodasbeingoneofhavingtostruggle.Theystruggledtoconvincepeopletojointhem,andwhentheyjoinedtheydidnotstaylongbeforequitting.Mostleftbecausetheycouldnotcontinuetovolun-teer.Theyestimatethatoutofabout40membersin1999,only15continuedvolunteeringin2002.Theyalsostruggledtoincreaseresourcesfortheirtargetgroups.Activitiesatthattimeincludeddoingpiecework(ganyu),collectingdoor-to-doorcontributions,raisingfundsfromtheBigWalk,andsupportfromwell-wishers.Theseactivitiesraisedlimitedresourceswhichcouldassistonly50ofthe130targetedOVC.
Development of the community-based organization (2003-2007)AccordingtotheleadersoftheCBO,theperiodbe-tween2003and2007waswhenthegroupbecamemoreorganized.Therewasrecognitionofthegroup’seffortsbothwithinandoutsidethecommunity,andfastgrowthoftheCBOwithincreasedmembershipandmoreexternalassistance.Whileitwasaperiodofincreasedsuccess,therewerealsochallengesandfrustrations,andinsomecasesfailures.Despitesuchproblems,membersweredeterminedtomoveon,andtheydecidedtoexpandsourcesoffoodandincomefortheOVC.Activitiesduringthisphaseincluded:•Communal maize cultivation. Thiswasinitiatedto
reducedependenceoncommunitycontributionsoffood.Onewomancommentedduringtheple-narypresentation:“Somepeopleweremakingruderemarkswhenwewentroundaskingforcontribu-tions.Afterall, foodraisedthroughthismethodwasnotenoughtofeedthelargenumberofOVCandOVChouseholds.Wethereforedecidedtohavecommunalgardenswherewecouldproduceourownfood.”
•Maize mill project. In2003,MANASOprovidedma-terialsupportworthK59,100fortheconstructionofthemaizemillwhichhadbeenpledgedtothegroup.Thegroupmouldedandburntbricks,andhauledsandandquarrystonesfortheproject.
•Dairy production project. In2006,theCBOreceivedfundingfromMASAF(MalawiSocialActionFund)fortheconstructionofadairycattlekholaworth
K1,227,114.TheyreceivedanadditionalamountofK791,000forthepurchaseoffivedairycows.Theyboughtthematerialsandconstructedthestructure,andalsotravelledtoBvumbweinThyolo(about180kilometressouth)tobuythecows.
•Other activities. Between2003and2006,withthehelpofSaveOrphansMinistries,theCBOassistedOVCwitheducationalmaterialsworthK89,000.In2004,theNationalAIDSCommission,throughanumbrellaorganization(WorldVisionInternational)providedfundsofK849,015forvariousactivitieswhich included training sessions for CBO com-mittees,educationmaterialsforOVC,tenbicycles,threeambulancebicycles, andhome-basedcarekits.TheNetworkofOrganizations forOrphansandVulnerableChildrenalsoassistedtheCBOwithvarioustrainingsessionsfortheircommittees.
Maturity phase of the community-based organization (2008-2009)Havingstruggled throughthe initial stagesofde-velopment,thegroupwentontogrowinmaturityandscopeofservices.Duringthisperiod,thefocuswasonsustainablestrategiesforassistingtheOVCandOVChouseholds.ChitunguCBOimplementedanumberoflivelihood-relatedactivitiesthatincludedthefollowing:•Expansion of the maize production project. TheCBO
managedtopurchasefarminputsforcultivatingtencommunalgardens(oneineachvillageandoneforthecentre)withfundingsecuredfromOrphanSupportAfrica(OSA).TheyalsoreceivedfundingfromtheNationalAIDSCommissionandboughtfarm inputs forOVChouseholds to cultivate intheirindividualgardens.
•Backyard gardening. Africare, under the I-Lifeproject,trainedselectedmembersoftheCBOonbackyardgardening.TheseinturntrainedsomeOVChouseholdswhoimplementedtheseskillsintheirindividualbackyardsordimba(wetlandgar-dens).Thereforetheskillscascadedtomanypeo-ple,particularlyOVChouseholdsinthearea.
•Pig production. OSA also assisted the CBO withfundsfortheconstructionofninepigpens(oneineachvillage)andforpurchasing27pigs(threeineachvillage:onemaleandtwofemale).Theinten-tionwastoincreasethestocksothatsomecould
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begiventoindividualOVChouseholds.•Dairy production. Ashighlightedabove,fundingfor
thedairycattleprojectwassecuredfromMASAF.Unfortunately,poormanagementresultedinthecows losingweightandfallingsick.Cowscouldalsonotconceivewhenservicedusingartificialinsemination,sotheyweresoldandsomeofthemoneyrealizedwasusedtopurchase20goatsfortheOVCpass-onscheme.
•Goat pass-on scheme. Whenthedairycowprojectfailed,thecowsweresoldandsomemoneyusedtobuy20goatswhichweregivento20OVC(onegoateach).Ofthese,16survivedandhavesofarproduced17kids(includingasetoftwins).Atthetimeofthestudy,16ofthe17kidswerealreadyearmarked for second generation pass-on to 16moreOVChouseholds.
•Maize mill project. Theprojecthadsomechallengesandthoughitwasin2003thatthemaizemillwasapproved, itwasnotuntil June2009that itwasfinallyinthehandsofthecommunity.Theinstal-lationwasalmostcompleteandthemaizemillwasexpected to startoperating late in JuneorearlyJuly2009.
•Village savings and loans associations. Africare,throughtheI-Lifeproject,introducedvillagesav-ings and loans associations (VSL) as one of thesustainable livelihood strategies for householdscaringforOVCandotherultra-poorpeopleinthearea.Afterundergoingtraining,theCBOformedaVSLsub-committeewhichformedafurtherthreegroups. Total membership in the three groupswas33 in2008;a furthergroupof11membershadrecentlybeenformedin2009.ParticipatinghouseholdsboughtsharesatK100each.Themoneyborrowedatnominalinterestrateshelpedthemtomeettheirbasicnecessitiessuchaspurchasingfarminputs,schooluniformsforschool-goingchildren,householdfood,paymentofschoolfeesfortheirchildren,etc.
The benefits of the initiativeChitunguCBOstartedsmall,assisting50outof130OVCin2002,andgraduallyincreaseditsassistancetonearlyallthe565OVCintheninevillageswithinthejurisdictionofGroupVillageHeadmanMaste-male.Thisprogresscanbedescribedassuperb.The
benefitstoOVCwereinvariousformsandamounts.Someoftheseare:• Improved food and nutrition security. Nearlyall565
OVCandtheirhouseholdswereassistedbytheCBOwithsomefood.ThoseattendingCBCCs(commu-nity-basedchildcarecentres)benefitedfromthefeedingprogrammemanagedby theCBO.FoodfortheCBCCfeedingprogrammewascultivatedincommunalvillagegardens,andotherfoodwascollected through door-to-door contributions.SomeOVChouseholdsindireneedbenefitedfromdirectfoodassistancefromthecommunalvillagegardens.OtherOVChouseholdsreceivedassistancetoproducetheirownmaizethroughbeinggivenfertilizersandseedsbytheCBO.Atotalof130OVChouseholdsbenefitedfrombeingtrainedinback-yardgardeningwhichenabledthemtocultivatetheirownvegetablesforconsumption.
•Provision of school fees and education materials. SomeOVCattendingsecondaryschoolwereassistedwithschoolfees,whileOVCattendingprimaryschoolweregivenschooluniforms,exercisebooksandwritingmaterials.This improvedenrolmentandattendanceofOVCinschools.
• Accumulation of assets.Throughthegoatpass-onscheme,20OVChadreceivedagoateachalthoughonly16goatssurvived.Oneowner’sgoatproducedtwinssohehasbeenabletopassononegoatandis leftwithastockoftwoafterayear.Afurther16OVChavesincebenefitedfromsecond-genera-tionstock.Asthegoatsmultiply,thebeneficiaryhouseholdswillbeabletoaccumulateassetswhichcouldeasilybeconvertedintocashduringperiodsofgreatestneed.
• Increased income-earning opportunities. OVChouse-holdsthataremembersoftheVSLassociationsin-creasedincome-earningopportunitiesthroughpettytradingusingmoneyborrowedfromtheVSLgroupaccount.Awidowedwomanreportedusingherloantobuymaize,beansandothercropproduceforre-saleathigherprices,earningagrossprofitofaboutK2,000persale.Lastyearshemanagedtopayschoolfees and pocket money to her secondary schoolchild,inadditiontomeetingherhousehold’sbasicnecessities.SomepeoplereportedborrowingmoneyfromtheVSLtobuyfertilizerwhichboostedtheircropproductiontremendously.
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Resources committed to the interventionsTheCBOwasinitiatedandmanagedbythecommu-nity,andthereforeitishardtoquantifytheresourcesthathavesofarbeencommittedtowardstheinitia-tive.Someoftheresourceswhichcouldbequantifiedincludethefollowing:•Construction of structures. Community members
providedbricks,sand,waterandlabourwhilefund-ingagentsprovidedironsheets,cement,planks/poles,nailsandtransportationformaterials.
•Purchase of capital equipment and stock. Fundingagents provided money for the purchase of themaizemill and livestock,while thecommunityprovidedlabourtotransportthemtothesite.
•Crop production. The funding agents providedmoneytobuyfarminputs(seedsandfertilizers)forCBOcommunalgardensaswellasOVChouse-holds,whilethecommunityprovidedlabourforproducingthecropsandinsomecasescontributedfarminputsforcommunalaswellasOVChouse-holdgardens.
•Livestock production. Fundingagentsprovidedmon-eyforthepurchaseoflivestock(cattle,pigs,goats),whilethecommunityprovidedlabourandtimeforlivestockmanagement.
•Community-based childcare centres. CBOcommunityvolunteersprovidedlabourtocareforthechildrenattendingCBCCs.
•Education support for OVC: FundingagentsandtheCBOmembersprovidededucationalmaterialstosupportOVC’seducation.
Challenges faced1. Maize mill project. TheproposalforamaizemillwasapprovedandMANASOpledgedtosupporttheprojectin2003.ItgaveK59,100towardsthecostofthebuilding,butaskedthecommunitytoprovidetheelectricityconnection.Unfortunately,thecostofinstallingapowertransformerwasfarmorethanthecommunitycouldafford.Inordertodealwiththeproblem,OSAwasapproached;theyprovidedfund-ing,andthesumofK678,000waspaidtoESCOM(ElectricitySupplyCorporationofMalawi).However,themillwasunavailableforcollectionanditwasnotuntiltwoyears later(June2009)thatthemillwasfinallycollected.Evenafteritwascollected, itwasdiscoveredthatsomepartssuchasthepulleyand
starterweremissing.Thecommunityreportedthatalthoughtheywerefrustratedbythesesetbacks,theyweredeterminedtoworktowardsthefuturesuccessoftheproject.
2. Dairy project. In2006,theCBOsubmittedapro-posaltoMASAFthroughthedistrictassembly(DA)requestingforamaizesheller/de-huller(tocomple-mentthemaizemillpledgedbyMANASO).Howeverinsteadofasheller,theyreceivedmoneyforadairyproject.Theywentaheadwiththedairyprojectbutwereunabletoeffectivelymanagethecows.Whenthecowswereonheattheywereservedbyanarti-ficial inseminationtechnician,buttheycouldnotconceive.Thissetback,coupledwiththe fact thatsomecowshadalreadylostweightandweregettingsick,forcedthemtoselloffthecows.
Driving force behind its successTwelveyearsinoperationisasubstantialperiodoftime.Thegrouphadsomechallengesthatcouldhavediscouraged them,but they stood firmandmadeprogress.Thislevelofresilienceisrareindevelop-mentprojects.Itisthereforeimportanttolearnthesecretbehindthesuccessofthiscommunity.Fromdiscussionsitwasapparentthattheywereabletoat-tributetheirresilienceandsuccesstothefollowingkeyfactors:•Support from the village heads. Thegroupvillage
headmanandhisvillageheadmenarepartoftheCBOtotheextentthatallmajordecisionsunder-takenbytheCBOaremadewiththeconsentofthetraditionalleaders.Theyprovidelandforcultiva-tionandallconstruction.Eachvillage,ledbythevillageheadman,alsocontributesfoodandcashtoassistchildrenintheCBCCs.TheCBOcommit-teethereforeonlyactsasafacilitatingunitwhilemostoftheimplementationisdonebythevillagersthemselves.
•Strong sense of purpose. MembersofthisCBOworkasvolunteers.Theyaremotivatedbyastrongpas-siontohelptheirownrelativesandchildreninneed.Women, inparticular,weresingledoutashavingastrongdesiretoassistchildrenbecausetheyknowthattomorrowtheirownchildrencouldbeorphanedand theywouldneed thecommu-nity’shelp.
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•Sense of achievement and ownership. Althoughthemaize mill project took years to establish, thecommunitybelieveditwouldeventuallybeahugesuccessforthevillage.Thewomenremarked:“Wereallyneededthemaizemillandwekeptonwait-ingknowingthatonedaywewillhaveourmaizemill.”Thesenseofachievementwasalsostrongwhensomeoftheirproposalswereapprovedandfundingreceived.Duringthis longprocesstherewascommunityownershipsothatevenintimesoftrouble,peopleknewtheyneededtosolvetheproblemsforthemselves.
•Strong CBO leadership. Atthetimeofthestudy,theCBOwasdominatedbywomenandthechairper-sonwasalsoawoman.Shehadforesightandcom-manded respect from the group, even from themalefolk.Shealsohadthestrongsupportofthegroupvillageheadmanandothercommitteemem-berswhoremainedfocusedontheirgoals.
Lessons learntThe community highlighted a number of lessonswhichtheyhadlearntfromtheirtwelve-yearexpe-rienceoperatingasaCBO.Thefollowingaresomeoftheselessonsthattheywouldlikeotherstolearnfrom:• Itispossibletoachievemorewhenyouworkasa
team;• Donotoverdependonexternalassistance–help
sometimes comes late or not according to yourneedsorrequirements;and
• Whenyouworkwithandthroughvillagehead-men,thecommunityfeelscommittedtowork.
Future plansTheCBOislookingtothefutureanddoesnotwanttowaverinitspurpose.Theyaredeterminedtoen-surethat livelihoodsofOVCandothervulnerablepeopleintheareaimprove.Someoftheseplansare:• Rest house project.Withtheforesighttorealisethat
thespiritofvolunteerismmayonedaywane,theCBO plans to raise money and construct a resthouseatNtcheutownwhereCBOvolunteerswillworkaspart-timehousekeepers.Theywouldalsoearnawagewhichwouldmotivatethemtocon-tinueworkingasCBOvolunteers.
• Houses-for-rent project.Inordertosustainincometo
supportOVC,theCBOplanstoconstructhousesforrentinNtcheutownasanincome-generatingactivityfortheirOVCprojects.
• CBCC construction project.TheCBOintendstoestab-lishCBCCstructuresineachoftheninevillages.
Suggestions for improvementChitungu CBO could follow the experience ofChimtekaChildren’sSupportOrganizationinMchin-ji,which loanedout farm inputs tovolunteers toproducetheirowncrops.ThevolunteersrepaidanagreedquantitytotheCBO,partofwhichwasusedtofeedchildrenintheCBCCsandthesurplussoldtoraiseincomefortheCBCCsandtheCBO.Thisplanmightalsomotivatepeopletovolunteertheirtimeandresources.
TheCBOcouldalsoconsider introducingskillstrainingforteenageOVC.Skillstrainingwouldin-cludecrafts(bricklaying,carpentry,tailoring,tin-smith,etc.)andagriculture(JFFLS)whichwouldbevaluable,asnotallthechildrenintheareamayat-tainhigherformaleducationqualifications.
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GoodNewsChildren’sHome,Chikwawa
Location of the siteGoodNewsChildren’sHomeislocatedinTraditionalAuthorityNgowe,Chikwawadistrict,whichistheresponsibilityofGroupVillageHeadmanMwafunga.Its locationisalongthemainroadbetweenChik-wawa and Nsanje, about 70 kilometres south ofChikwawatownonthesouthernborderwithNsanjedistrict.Thecentrehasacatchmentof fivegroupvillageheadmenwith36villages,all inTradition-alAuthorityNgowe.Theareaislowlying,anditischaracterizedbyhotandgenerallydryconditionswithveryerratic rainyseasonswhichcause inter-mittentdroughtsorfloods.Asaresult,chronicfoodshortageissomethingthatpeoplehavecometolivewith.Mostpeopledependoncottonfortheirliveli-hoods.Sorghumandmaizearethestaples,butduetochronicannualdroughtsor floods thathit thearea,themajorityofpeopledependonwater-lilies,or nyikaas it is locallyknown,awildtuberthatisuprootedfromthebedsofcrocodile-infestedriversconnectedtotheShireRiver.AfewfortunatepeoplecultivatethefertilemarshesalongtheShireRiverduringwinterwhichbringsthemmorefoodthanrain-fedcropping.Thelocationistypicallyruralwithveryfewoff-farmeconomicopportunities,andthisexacerbatespovertyandvulnerability.
Establishment of the Good News Children’s Home (1998-2002)The story behind the establishment of the GoodNewsChildren’sHomeisslightlydifferenttothatof theother sites.Around1998/99 an increasingnumber of hungry children, most of them OVC,wentalmostdailytoa localchurchpastor’shousetohavelunch.Churchmembersnoticedandgrewconcerned;theymetwithcommunityleaderstofindsustainablesolutionstohelpthechildren.In1999the pastor, Mr Stephen Zulu, together with somechurchmembersandcommunitymembers inthesurroundingvillages,agreedtobuildacommunalhomefortheOVC.GroupVillageHeadmanMwafun-gadonatedhisownpieceof landfortheconstruc-tionofthebuildings.BecausethiswasgoodnewstotheOVCinthecommunity,theplacewasnamed‘GoodNewsChildren’sHome’.©
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Although it is a faith-based institution, GoodNewsChildren’sHometakesinchildrenregardlessoftheirreligion.Thecommunityalsoagreedtore-cruitonlydoubleorsingleOVCwhoweredestitute,andonlyoneOVCperhouseholdsothatmorehouse-holdscouldbenefitfromtheservice.Thecentrewasadvisedbythedistrictsocialwelfareofficethatoncethechildrenreachtheageof18years,theymustbegraduatedfromthecentre.
MembersoftheGoodNewsChildren’sHomees-timatethatittooknearlyfouryearstofullyestablishthecentre.IncontrasttotheChitunguCBOscenario,theideaofassistingtheOVCwasreadilytakenupbycommunityleadersandmembersfromalltheaf-fectedvillages.Mobilizationofresourcesthereforestartedwithinthesameyearthattheideawasintro-duced.Thousandsofbricksweremoulded,aplacetobuildtheOVChomeprovided,andsomecommunitymemberswithspecialskillsvolunteeredtheirservicesintheirareasofspecialization,e.g.bricklayingandcarpentry.
Becauseoftheenthusiasmofthecommunity,itwasnotdifficultforwell-wishersfromoutsidethecommunity (particularly fellowchurchmembers)tocontributetotheconstructionofthebuildings.However,mostofthemoneyneededforthepurchaseofconstructionmaterialswasraisedbymembersofthecommunitythroughvillagecontributionsandganyu.ItisevenonrecordthatGroupVillageHead-manMwafungamadeapersonalcontributionoftenironsheetstowardstheconstruction.
Bytheendof2002,atwo-roomhostelblockwithanofficeandstoreroomwascompleted.It isheart-warmingtohearthatevenatthisearlystageoftheprocess,peoplefromsurroundingvillageswerewill-ingtocontributetime,energyandresourcestowardstheproject.
ThecentrerecruiteditsfirstOVCin1999.Duetosomeconstraints,only12OVCoutofatargetnumberof1,800wererecruitedandenrolledforresidentialcareandsupportatthecentre.Agroupofwomenvolunteeredtogofromhouseholdtohouseholdask-ingforcontributionsofmaize,beansandmoneyfortheOVC.Thiscontinuedforthenextthreeyearsorso.Atthisstage,thecentrewasoperatingwithoutbe-ingregisteredwiththedistrictsocialwelfareoffice;itwasonlyregisteredin2001.
Growth of the centre (2003-2007)For the Good News Children’s Home, the periodbetween2003and2007wascharacterizedbyrapidgrowththroughtheconstructionofmorestructuresandincreasedenrolmentofOVCatthecentre.ThenumberofOVCaccommodatedat thecentre rosefrom12 to107.Livelihoods-relatedactivitiesdur-ingthisphaseweredirectlyrelatedtothecareandsupportofthechildrenresidentatthecentre.Theseactivitiesincluded:• Maize production.Theinstitutiondecidedtostart
producingitsownfoodtofeedthechildrenasaconsequenceofnegativeremarksfromsomemem-bers of the community when volunteers wentdoor-to-dooraskingforcontributions.Communityvolunteers,withsomehelpfrompeopleinotherparticipatingvillages,cultivatedaboutthreehec-taresoffarmland.Duetoerraticrains,therain-fedmaizewassupplementedbyawintercropofmaizegrowninrentedfieldsintherichalluvialmarshesoftheShireRiver.In2003/04,atotalof107bagsof50kilogrammeseachwereproducedbythecentre.
•Bean production. Theyalsogrewbeansinthemarsh-eswhichwerefedtotheOVC.
•Cotton production. Cottonwasanothercropthatwasgrowntosupplementincomeforbuyingne-cessitiestoassisttheOVC.
•Poultry production. Duringthisperiod,theinstitu-tionbought100layerchickens;92survivedandatpeakwereabletoproduceover80eggsaday.SomeeggswerefedtoOVCatthecentrewhileoth-ersweresoldlocally.Unfortunately,duetothein-creasedcostoffeed,theprojectwasdiscontinuedandthechickenssoldoff.Themoneyraisedwasused topurchaseBlackAustralop (Mikolongwe)chickens.
•Rabbit production. Rabbits were chosen for theirrapidmultiplication.Thecentrebought12rabbits,butaftersomemonthstheydidnotreproduce.Therabbitswerethenslaughteredandthemeatfedtothechildrenatthecentre.
•Vegetable production. Thecentrestartedproducingvegetablestofeedthechildrenandforsaletothepublic.Atthepeakofproduction,theywereabletorealizesalesofasmuchasK1,000perday.Ini-tially,productionwasquitelow,until2007whena passer-by from Zambia stopped at the centre.
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Astoundedbytheirachievement,heofferedthemafreeone-daytrainingsessiononhowtoproducevegetablesorganicallyusingthetrenchmethod.Sincethen,theproductionhasmorethanquadru-pledthroughusingorganicfertilizers.
•Goat production. Thecentrestartedkeepingitsowngoatsin2003tofeedtheresidentchildren.Atthetimeofthestudy,ithadastockof16.In2008,thecentredonated27goatsasstart-uppackagestotheboysandgirlswhohadgraduatedfromthecentre.
•Maize milling. In2005,thecentrewroteaproposalto MASAF and were granted K1,666,664 for theconstructionofamaizemillbuildingandforthepurchaseandinstallationofamaizemill.Thecom-munityinitiallyintendedtobuyadiesel-propelledmaizemill;itsubsequentlydecidedonanelectric-propelledmillontheadviceofthewomen.Unfor-tunately,thecentredidnotknowatthetimetheywouldneedatransformertoconnecttheelectric-ity,andthisprovedtooexpensive (K3,000,000)forthem.Theprojectwasmoreorlessabandonedduringthisphase.
•Skills training. Teenageboysandgirlsatthecentrewereregularlytrainedinvegetableproductionandvocationalskills(tailoringandcarpentry).Awell-wisherdonatedasewingmachineandacarpentrytoolkitwhichwerebeingusedfortraining.
Livelihood-based outreach activities for assistingOVC households during this period included thefollowing:•Goat pass-on scheme for OVC households. Withfund-
ingfromtheNationalAIDSCommission,30goatswere bought and given to 30 OVC households.However,duetochronicfamineinthearea,nearly20householdssoldofftheirstockinordertoraisemoneytobuymaize.OnlyoneOVChouseholdisonrecordashavingkeptitsgoatwhichhassincemultipliedtosix.
•Provision of food items and clothing. Throughdona-tionsfromwell-wishers,thecentredistributedfooditemsandclothingtoOVChouseholdsintheareaaspartofitsoutreachactivities.
Otheractivitiesduringthisperiodincluded:•Water and sanitation. The construction of three
shallowwellsandtheinstallationofhandpumps
valuedat aboutK40,000was carriedoutby thecommunity.
•Construction of centre buildings. Thecentrecomplet-edconstructionofsomebuildings(multi-purposehall,sickbay,oldkitchen,hostelandofficeblock).
•Construction of houses for OVC households. Thecen-trereceivedfundingfromwell-wishersandmodernhousesfortwoOVChouseholds,headedbyelderlypeople.werebuilt.
•Care and support. The centre routinely providedmedical,socialandspiritualcaretochildrenresi-dentatthecentre.
•Environmental protection. In2005/6,theroofofthehostelblockwasblownoffbythewind.Thecentredecidedtoplanttreesasawindshield,aswellasforshade,etc.Thetreeshavesincegrownandtherehasbeennorepeatofthe2005/6problem.
Maturity phase of the centre (2008-2009)During2008and2009(atthetimeofthestudy),theGoodNewsChildren’sHomereportedexpansionofsustainableactivities.ThecentrealsoregisteredanincreaseinactivitiesandthenumberofOVCwhoreached18yearsandhadtoleaveandre-integrateintotheirhouseholds.In2008,27boysandgirlswhohadreached18yearsgraduatedfromthecentreandrejoinedtheirfamiliesintheirrespectivehomes.
Duringthisphase,thecentrebecamelessdepend-entonoutsidehelpandtriedasmuchaspossibletogeneratefundsontheirown,withoutsidersonlysup-plementingtheirefforts.Inmostinstances,activitiesduringthisphaseweresimilartothosedoneintheestablishmentphase.Thereweresomeexpansionsorintroductionsofnewprojects,andtheimplementersbecamemoreproactive,productiveandinnovativeintheirapproaches.Theseachievementsdemonstratethecentre’smaturityinapproachandpurpose.Someofthelivelihood-basedactivitiesdoneduringthisphaseincludedthefollowing:• Maize production. Thecentrecontinuedproducing
rain-fedandwintermaizetofeedthechildrenresi-dentatthecentre.Maizeproductionduringthispe-rioddecreasedfrom60bagsof50kilogrammeseach(2007/08)to21bags(2008/09)duetoseveredrought.
•Vegetable production. Thecentrecontinuedtopro-ducevegetablesalthoughtherewassomedropinproductionin2009duetowaterproblems.
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•Maize mill project. Thesiteforthemaizemillwasshiftedtoanewsitewhichalreadyhadapublictransformernearlytenkilometres fromthecen-tre. The community built another structure atthissiteandallinstallationswerecomplete.Mostoftheconstructionmaterialsforthenewmaize-mill building were collected from within thecommunity.
•Goat breeding. 27goatsweregivenasa‘starter-pack’toeachofthe27boysandgirlswhograduatedfromthecentre.
Otheractivitiesincludedthefollowing:•Care and support. Thecentrecontinuedtoroutinely
providemedical,socialandspiritualcaretotheresidentchildren.
• Installation of solar-lighting system. Throughfundingfromwell-wishersanditsownfunding,thecentreprovidedasolar-poweredlightingsystemtoallitsmainbuildings.
•Construction of houses for OVC households. ThecentreacquiredmorefundingforconstructionofhousesfortheelderlypoorwhowerelookingafterOVC.Threehouseswerebuiltduringthisphase.
•Construction of centre buildings. Anewandmoremodernkitchenwasbuiltforthecentre.
•Water and sanitation. Awell-wisherdonatedabore-holeandasolar-waterpumpingsystemvaluedataboutK1,500,000.Acommercialcompanydrilledtheboreholeandinstalledthesolar-pumpingsys-temandwaterpiping.Thecentrealsoconstructed
modernpitlatrinesforthehomewhichimprovedsanitation.
The benefits of the initiativeAbout18boysandgirlswhograduatedfromthecen-trewereinvitedtothediscussions.Theyworkedinthreeseparategroupsandreportedtheirviewsdur-ingaflip-chartpresentationtotheplenaryofvil-lageheads,centremanagementcommitteeandsomeOVChouseholdheads.Thefollowingisasummaryofbackgroundinformationandtheviewsofthe17boysandgirls:
Familybackgroundinformationofthecentre’sgraduateswhoparticipatedinthediscussions
Numberoffemalegraduates(respondents) 5
Numberofmalegraduates(respondents) 12
Numberofdoubleorphans 6
Numberofsingleorphans 11
Averagenumberofsiblingsperhousehold 4
Averageperiodatthecentre(years) 4
The situation before joining Good News Children’s HomeOneoftheboysablysummarizedthesituationonbehalfofhisgroup(seebelow).Hesaidchildrenarechosentobetakentothecentrebecausetheyareliv-inginabjectpovertyduetothelossofoneorbothparents.Suchchildrenfaceableakfutureandareprobablywrittenoffbysociety.
TheGoodNewsChildren’sHomedairyhouse GuineafowlsattheGoodNewsChildren’sHome
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Changes experienced while at the Good News Children’s HomeAllthreegroupsagreedthattheir liveschangedasaresultof joiningthecentre.Someofthenotablechangesexperiencedincluded:• Improved food and nutrition. Thechangefromeating
onceadaytothreetimesadaywasoverwhelmingforthechildrenatGoodNewsChildren’sHome.They felt that their nutritional status changedenormously.
•Acquisition of skills. Aspartoftheirlifeatthecen-tre,thechildrenlearntsomebasicskillsinvegeta-bleproduction,sanitation,carpentryandtailoring,andthemanagementofpoultryandothersmalllivestock.Someofthegirlswhograduatedfromthecentreindicatedthattheyhadstartedproduc-ingandsellingvegetablestomeettheirlivelihoodneeds.Someindicatedtheywerecaringforgoatstheyhadreceivedonleavingthecentreandhopedtheirstockswouldimprovetheirfuturelivelihoods.
• Improved health. The graduates cited improvedhealthasoneofthemajorchangestheyexperi-encedintheir livesasaresultofbeingenrolledattheGoodNewsChildren’sHome.Onemovingstorywasaboutasix-month-oldbabyboywhohadbeentakenintothecentreafterhismotherdied.Atthetimeofthevisit,theboywassevenyearsoldandattendingschool.Itwasalsosignificantthatsincethecentre’sopeningin1999,therehadbeennodeathofachild.Thisisaremarkablerecordcon-sideringthatmostchildrencomingtothecentre
areemaciatedandundernourished.• Improved spiritual and social life. Theboysandgirls
whoparticipatedinthediscussionsdescribedhowtheroutinespiritualandpsycho-socialcounsellingreceivedatthecentrehadchangedtheirspiritualandsocial livesdrastically.Socially,theiresteemhadimproved–theyhadlearnttotrustthemselvesandrespectothers.Theirknowledgeofgenderandhumanrightsalso improved,ashadtheirworldview.
•Reduced poverty. Asdescribedbelow,theboysandgirlsfeltthattheirsituationwithregardtobeingpoorhadchangedandthattheywerenowconsid-eredtobepeoplewhohadmorevaluethanbefore.Atthecentre,theyhadagoodplacetosleep,goodclothesandshoes,moneyfortoiletriesandlaundry,andothernecessities.
• Improved education. Thecentre isusedasaplaceforthechildrentolive,buttheyattenddifferentneighbouringprimaryandcommunitysecondarydayschools.Thecentrepayssecondaryschoolfeesandbuysschooluniformsandothernecessitiesforbothprimaryschoolandsecondaryschoolgoingchildren.Aboutsevenofthegraduateswhopartici-patedinthediscussionsreportedhavingpassedtheMalawiSchoolCertificateexaminationswithverygoodgrades.Twoscored25and29aggregatepointsrespectivelyandhadsatforuniversityentranceex-aminations.Theyattributedtheirachievementstothegoodeducationalenvironmentofthecentreandalsototheeducationalmaterialstheyreceived.
Childrenlearningskillsinvegetableproductionatthecentre
Modernmethodsoffarmingtaughttochildrenatthecentre
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Resources committed towards the interventionsTheGoodNewsChildren’sHomeisacommunity-initiatedandmanagedinterventiondependentonlocalresources.Althoughvariouskindsofsupportaregivenbyexternalsources,thecentremainlydependson itself.Someof theresourcescommittedwhichcouldbequantifiedare:•Construction of structures. Community members
providedmostofthematerials(bricks,sand,ce-ment,planksandwater)includinglabourforbuild-ingandcarpentrywork.Otherpeoplesupportedthecentrewithadditional ironsheetsandsomebags of cement for the hostel and office block.
MASAF provided funds to pay for iron sheets,planks,cement,etc.tobuildthemaizemillwhilethecommunityprovidedbricks,sand,waterandla-bourforbricklayingandcarpentryworkandhaul-ingbricks,sandquarrychipsandothermaterials.
•Purchase of capital equipment and stock. Fundingagents provided money for the purchase of themaizemill and livestock,while thecommunityconstructedthehousingstructuresandwerere-sponsibleforthemanagementofthestock.
•Crop production. Thefundingagentsprovidedmon-eytobuyfarminputs(seedsandfertilizers)whilethecommunitycultivatedthefields.Insomecases,
Life at Good News Children’s Home: Story by one of the 2007 graduates
BeforeIcametothecentre,Iwaslivinginabjectpoverty.Ilostbothparentssomeyearsagoandmygrandmothertookcareofmeandthreeofmysiblings.Becauseofthepovertyinthehouseholdshecouldn’taffordamatforustosleepon.Insteadwesleptonanoldsack.Ihadonepairofshorttrou-serswhichwassowornoutthatitexposedmybuttocks.TwomealsinadayisaluxuryIneverknew.Weateonceadayandduringmostdaysnotevenamealatall.Water-lilieswereourmainmeal.
MyarrivalatGoodNewsChildren’sHomechangedmywholelife.FirstIwasfilledwithexcite-mentanddisbeliefwhenIwastoldtochooseabedtosleepon.Iaskedmyself,“Isitreallymethatwillsleeponthisbed?Isthisnotjustadream?”IfeltsoexcitedthatIwasinadilemmawhethertochoosetheupperorlowerdeckbed.Asforthemealsatthecentre,Iwoulddescribethemassimplysuperb.Eatingthreetimesinadaywasinitiallyreallystrangetome,butIcametorealizethatthat’showlifeoughttobe.So,hereIwasenjoyingtheabundanceofthefood,enjoyingagoodenvironmentforeducation,goodsocial,spiritualandhealthcare,goodaccommodationandgoodmeals.ButwhenIthoughtofmysiblingswhowerestillathomewithouroldgrandmother,strugglingwithlife,itwashardtoimaginehowtheyweremanaging.IcametorealizethatIwasoneoftheluckyfew.
Whenwereachedtheageof18years,Iandmycolleaguesweretoldthatwecouldnolongerbekeptatthecentre.Ifoundithardtoaccept,butIknewIhadtoleaveinordertogiveachancetoothers.
Onthedayofmyarrivalathome,IwasscaredthatIwasgoingtobereceivedwiththeusualinsultsthatusedto‘rain’onmebeforeIlefttojoinGoodNewsChildren’sHome.Tomysurprise,Iwasreceivedlikeaking.AsIarrived,pullingbehindmeasuitcase,thepeopleofthevillageflockedtomeandwelcomedmewithjubilation.However,thehoneymoonwassoonoverasIhadtofacethereali-tiesofharshlifeagain–wakingupearlytogoandfarm,nothreemeals,nosoap,etc.Thedifference,though,wasthatthistimeIhadgrownmoreinphysicalaswellasspiritualstrength.Mydetermina-tionwastocompletemySchoolCertificateandprobablygotouniversityorfindajobthatcouldhelpmefindmoneytoassistmyfamily.Iindeedpassedmyexaminationslastyear–fortunatelytheexaminationfeeswerealreadypaidforbythecentrebeforeIleft.IpassedsowellthatIwasgivenaplaceataprivatecollegeinBlantyre.UnfortunatelyIamunabletoraisecollegefees.Allinall,Icher-ishmylifeatGoodNewsChildren’sHome.Tomethisishomeindeed!
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thecommunitycontributedmoneytorentgardensforwintercroppingandprovidedfarminputsfromtheirownresources.
•Construction of houses for some OVC households. TheGoodNewsChildren’sHomereceivedfundingforthisactivity,butthecommunityprovidedbricks,sandandlabourfortheirconstruction.
•Education support for OVC. Mostofthemoneyforeducationalsupportforthechildrenwasraisedbythecommunityitself,withafewexceptions.
Challenges facedInappropriate technology. After the proposal for themaizemillwasapprovedandmoneyreceivedfromMASAF,thewomendecidedtheywouldpreferanelec-tricmill toadiesel-propelledmaizeone.Withtheknowledgethatpatronageofadieselmillwouldbepoor,theplanwaschanged:anelectricmotorwasboughtandthebuildingwired.Aftertheseprepara-tionswerecompleted,ESCOMquotedK3,000,000forthepowertransformerwhichwasnecessarytooperatetheelectricmill.
Thiswasaserioussetbacksincethecommunityhadinsufficientfunds.WhentheyapproachedMA-SAFforadditionalfundsthroughtheDA,theywereunsuccessful, and the project stalled. After threeyears,anewplantoconstructanotherbuildingatacentrewithapublictransformerwasimplement-ed.Thisworkwascompletedin2008atthesiteofthetransformer,tenkilometresfromthecentre.ThemaizemillstartedoperatinginApril2009,buttheoriginalbuildingat thecentrewasonlyusedasaskillstrainingcentre.Thecommunitylearnedahardlesson:considerallrelevantfactorswhendevelopingaproposal.Theyalsofeelsomeofthemistakescouldhavebeenavoidediftheyhadadequatelyinvolvedthewomenwhoarethemainusersofthemaizemillserv-ice.Theyalsobelievetheyshouldhavefoundoutinmoredetailwhatwasrequiredtoinstallamaizemill.
Inadequate expertise. Thecentreisinadryareawherewateravailabilityisgenerallyaproblem.Withtheincreasednumberofchildren(morethan100)itbe-cameurgenttohaveamorereliablesourceofwateratthecentre.Thecommitteedecidedtohiresomeonetodigashallowwell,andtheyboughtandinstalledahandpump.Unfortunately,duringtherainyseason,
thewellcollapsedanditcouldnolongerbeused.Usingtheirnewlyacquiredskills, theydecided
todiganewoneontheirown:theysucceededandinstalledthehandpump.Theyalsodugasecondwellclosetothevegetablegardentouseforwateringthevegetables.Animprovementplanwasmadetopumpwaterintoanundergroundtankandbringittoanelevatedtankusingatreadlepump,andthentakethewaterdownbygravity.Whenallthepreparationsweremade,theydiscovereditwasimpossibletoliftthewaterfromtheundergroundtankusingatreadlepump.Itwassuggestedthatwatercouldberaisedtotheelevatedtankbyhand.Severalpeoplelinedupandmanagedtofillthetankbutwhentheywateredthefield,thewatergushedoutuncontrollablyandflooded the fieldsand sweptaway theplants.Ex-haustedandfrustrated,theyabandonedtheprojectandtheyresortedtowateringusingbuckets.
Awell-wisher,onlearningaboutthecentre,of-feredtoassistwithasolar-pumpingsystem.Heen-gagedacommercialdrillertodrillaborehole,fittedasolarpumpandinstalledthewatertank.Thewholecentreenjoyedtapwater,butonlyforabriefperiod,asthepumpbrokedownhardlyayearlater.
Thecommunitywasnotinvolvedinanyoftheinstallationprocessesandthereforecouldnotfigureoutwhattofixandhowtofixit.Thecentrefeltthatbysharingtheirstories,othercommunitiesmightlearnfromtheirmistakes.Theypointedoutafewimportantlessonstheyhadlearntfromtheirexperi-ences.Fromtheshallow-wellproject inwhichthecommitteeparticipatedinthedigging,theylearnthowtoinstallthepumpandusethesameprocessonasecondwell.Theyalsodevelopedconfidenceandwereabletosustaintheservicewithoutdependingonsupportfromexternalsources.However, inthecaseofthesolar-pumpproject, inwhichthecom-mitteewasapassiverecipient,theybecamehelplesslydependentontheserviceprovider.Thecommitteealsolearnedtoseektechnicaladviceonsomeoftheactivitiessuchaswaterpumpinginordertoavoidcostlymistakes.
Thecentrehadinadequatetechnicalknowledgeinrabbitrearing.Thetwelverabbitsboughtbythecentrewereslaughteredandconsumedaftertheyap-pearedunabletoreproduce.Atthetime,somebodysuggestedthat therabbitswereold,but they later
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learntthatthehousingstructurewasinappropriateforrabbitstoreproduce:therabbitshadbeenkeptinacement-floorbuilding,butrabbitsdigholeswheretheybearandkeeptheiryoungones.Fromthisex-perience,theyalsolearnttheimportanceofseekingtechnicaladvice.
Marketing constraints. Whilethepoultryprojectwasasuccessintermsofsurvivalrateandeggproduction,itcouldnotbesustainedbecauseitwasnotpossibletosell locallythedailycollectionof60to70eggs,andthereweretoofewtomakeitworthwhiletode-liverandsellthemelsewhere.Asaresult,thecostoffeedcouldnotbemet.Thesolutionwastoselloffthechickensandbuysemi-commercialoneswhichwouldrequirelessintensivemanagement.
Scepticism about the motive of the centre. Althoughthe children’s home is community initiated andmanaged,thereweretimesduringitsestablishmentwhensomemembersofthecommunitywerescep-ticalabout therealmotivesof thecentre. Itmustbeunderstoodthatduetochronicfoodinsecurityandpoverty in the area, child trafficking is ram-pant.Consequently,anyinstitutionsdealingwithchildrenareseriouslyquestionedbythecommunity.Theseconcernswereminimizedbyregularlyinvit-inghouseholdstothecentreforget-togethersandmeetings,andbyreleasingthechildrenduringsomedaysoftheirstaytoattendimportantfamilysocialfunctionsintheirownhomes.
No material incentives for volunteers. The centre ex-pressedconcernthatwhilevolunteershavefaithful-lycaredforthechildren(evencontributingcashofK1,000permonth),theydosoattheexpenseoftheirownhouseholdsandfamilies.Inordertosustaintheirmotivation,thecommitteehasplannedsomefund-raisingprojects,theproceedsofwhichwillbeexclu-sivelyusedtocompensatevolunteersfortheirtime.
Lack of transport. Thecentrelackstransporttotakechildren to clinics or hospital, particularly whentheyfallsickatnight.Avolunteerhastowalklongdistanceswithanillchildonhis/herbacktoseekmedicalattention.Thecentrehadnotyetworkedoutasolutiontothisproblem.
Main driving force behind its successTheideaforthechildren’shomewasoriginallycon-ceivedin1998andithasoperatedforovertenyears.Duringthisperiod,thecentrehasmetmanymorechallengesthanthosehighlightedabove,andyetsur-vivedandprogressedwithdetermination.Behinditssuccessareanumberofkeyfactors,whichincludethefollowing:•Support from traditional leaders. Thegroupvillage
headmenandalltheirvillageheadmenwereintheforefrontandhavecontinuedtheirsupportoverthetenorsoyears.Theyprovidedlandforallcon-structionsandfarming.Theycontributedfinancialandotherresources,andsupportedthecentreinallitsvariousneeds.
•Strong sense of purpose. Fromthebeginning,thein-stitutionwasbuiltwithastrongsenseofpurposeandpassion – tohelp theOVC.Backedby spir-itualbelief, thecentrehasremainedfocusedonsavinglivesandbuildingafutureforchildrenindireneed.
•Sense of achievement and ownership. Thecentreco-ordinatorhighlightedhowseveralvisitorstothecentreacknowledgethegoodworkthat isbeingdone:theircommentshaveencouragedeveryoneatthecentretoworkharderandimprovetheiref-forts.Afterhavingbeenawardedafewgrants,thecentrecoordinatorbelievedtheywerenolongerafraid toknockon thedoorofanygovernmentofficeattheDA,orindeedatanyofficetheyfeltcouldhelp them.They seeexternal institutionsandindividualsaspartners,butalsothatthewholeprocessshouldbedrivenandmanagedbythecom-munityitself.
•Strong leadership. Thecentrehasaboardofdirec-tors,acentrecoordinatorandvolunteers.Theco-ordinatoriswellqualifiedandseemstoadequatelyusetheestablishedstructuresformajordecisions.
•Spiritual values. ThecentreisbuiltaroundChristianvalues.Inwhatevertheydo,theystartwithprayers.
Lessons learntThe community highlighted a number of lessonswhichtheyhadlearntfromtheirtwelveyearsex-perienceoperatingasaresidentialchildren’shome.Thefollowingaresomeoftheselessonswhichtheywouldlikeotherstolearnfrom:
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• Involveothersandlearnfromthem,butnotde-pendonthem;
• Seekadviceandconsultwidely(internallyandex-ternally)beforemakingcostlymistakes;and
• Whenyouencounteraproblem,endure,prayaboutitandseekalternativesolutions.
Future plansThemanagementandstaffofGoodNewsChildren’sHomehadforesightandmadeplanstodevelopandgrow.Someoftheplansare:•Bakery project. Thiswillbeanincome-generating
activity,therevenuesofwhichwillbeexclusivelyusedtocompensatevolunteersfortheirtime.
•Rural polytechnic. Thecentreplanstoestablisharuralpolytechnicsothatchildrenwhograduatecanbeengagedinskillstrainingtoimprovetheirlivelihoods.
• Installation of mains electricity. ThecentrestillhadplansforthemaizemillprojectatthecentrebuthadtofindawayofbringingESCOMpowertothecentre.
•Entertainment for the centre’s children. ThecentreplanstoacquireatelevisionsetandDVDplayerforthechildren’sentertainment.
•Mechanisation of farming. Thecommunitycurrentlycultivatesthecentre’sfarmbutonlyasmallpieceof landiscultivated.Theplanistoincreasethislandandusemechanicalequipment to increaseproduction.
•Building maintenance: Sinceconstruction,nomajormaintenanceofthebuildingshasbeenundertaken.Thereareplanstocarryoutmaintenanceworkonallthemainbuildings.
Suggestions for improvementGoodNewsChildren’sHomecouldfollowtheexam-pleofChimtekaChildren’sSupportOrganizationinMchinji,whichloansoutfarminputstovolunteerswhoproducetheirowncropsandrepaytheinstitu-tionanagreedquantity,partofwhichisthenusedtofeedthecentre’schildren;thesurplusissoldtoraiseincomeforthecentre.Thissystemcouldalsomoti-vatepeopletovolunteertheir timeandresources.Thecentrecouldalsotrytointegratevillagesavingsandloansclubsinordertosupplementincome-gen-eratingactivity. ©
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TawongaCBO,Karonga
Location of the siteTawonga CBO is located in Traditional AuthorityMwilang’ombewhichistheresponsibilityofGroupVillageHeadmanMwakashunguti.TheCBOis inaremoteareacalledThawilo,whichis60kilometressouth of Karonga town on the outskirts of NyikaGameReserve.Theareaischaracterizedbyundulat-ingterrainwithsandysoils.Therainfall iserratic,usuallycausingdroughts.AlthoughKarongadistrictiswellknownforgrowingriceandcotton,thispar-ticularareamostlydependsonmaizeandsometo-bacco.Theregionbecomesunreachablebycarduringtherainyseason.
Establishment of the community-based organization (2001-2005)Until2004,TawongaCBOwaspartofChimwemweCBO.ChimwemweCBOstartedin2001,andby2004itcovered27villages.ItsoperationsbecametoolargeforoneCBOtoeffectivelymanage.Frequentcon-flictseruptedamongvillageheads,andfewerandfewerOVCcametobenefitfromtheCBO.ThereforeChimwemweCBOwasadvisedtoletgosomeofthevillagesitwasresponsiblefor,hencetheestablish-mentofTawongaCBO.TawongaregisteredasaCBOin2004.
TheaimofTawongaCBOwastoreducetheim-pactofHIV-relatedproblemsamongincreasingnum-bersofOVCandpeoplesufferingfromAIDS-relatedchronicillnesses.ItcoverstenvillagesunderGroupVillageHeadmanMwakashunguti.Atits inception,theCBOregistered185orphans(75maleand110female) inthetenvillages.Livelihoodactivitiesatthetimeofestablishmentincluded:• Productionofsoybeansforfeedingchildreninthe
CBCCswhichtheCBOhadestablishedineachofthetenvillages;
• AssistancetoOVChouseholdswithinputstogrowvegetables,tomatoesandmaizeforfoodandin-come;and
• Food assistance in the form of flour to needyhouseholdsoforphans,thechronicallyillandtheelderly.
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throughexternalsupport, theCBOraisedmostofthemthroughganyu,cultivationofcommunalgar-dens,door-to-doorcontributionsoffooditems,anddirectcontributionsoffooditemsbythevolunteermembers.Theyalsoprovidedbricks,sandandlabourforconstructionofCBCCs.Itissignificantthatvil-lagemembersparticipatedinCBOactivities(cultiva-tionofcommunalgardens,constructionofCBCCs,etc).
Development of the community-based organization (2006-2007)Uponadvicefromthedistrictsocialwelfareoffice,theselectionoforphansonlywasredefinedtoin-cludeothervulnerablechildren.ThenumberofOVCregisteredduringthisperiodthereforeincreasedto402fromthetenvillages.
During theperiod2006–2007,manyactivitieswerecarriedoutandmoreOVChouseholdswereas-sisted.TheCBOalsoreceivedfundingfromMASAF,whichhelpedtoincreasereachtoOVCwithmorelivelihoodinterventions.Livelihoodinterventionsimplementedduringthisperiodincluded:•Pig production. TheCBOwroteaproposaltoMASAF
andwasgrantedK1,027,000fortheconstructionofapigpenandthepurchasingofpigs.Theyboughtsixpigswhich,during thisperiod,produced15piglets.The15pigletswereissuedto15OVCwhowereeachexpectedtopassononeoffspringpiglettoanotherOVCinthefuture.
•Goat production. TwohundredgoatswereissuedtoOVCandvulnerablehouseholdsinallthevillages.Each recipientwasexpected topassononeoff-springtothenextOVC.
Other relevant activities•Construction of CBCCs for OVC and other children in
all ten villages.•Construction of a nursery school.•Capacity building: Varioustrainingandskillsbuild-
ingactivities, includingCBOmanagement,VSLmanagement, leadership,financialmanagement,aChildren’sCorner,HIVandAIDStraining,homebasedcare,etc.
•Provision of educational materials: TheCBOboughtschooluniformsfor40pupils,aswellasrecrea-tionalmaterialsandnurseryschoolkitsforCBCCs.
Maturity of the community-based organization (2008-2009)ThefouryearsofoperationasanindependentCBOfrom 2004 to 2007 gave Tawonga CBO enoughknowledgeandexperiencesothatitsactivitiesandservicesdemonstratedmorematurityandindepend-ence.Someofthesuccessstoriesduringthisperiodinclude:•Poultry production. Thirty-threeOVChouseholds
weregiven66guinea fowl (twoeach) inapass-onscheme.Whentheguineafowlstartedlayingeggs,therecipientOVCpassedonteneggstothenextOVC.
•Fruit production. Sixty-sevenOVChouseholdswereeachissuedwithfivegraftedfruittrees.Thisini-tiativewasmeanttoimprovehouseholdnutrition.
•Communal maize gardens. EachofthetenvillagessetasideanareaforavillagegardentoassistOVCand their households. During this period, theygrewmostlymaizetofeedchildrenintheCBCCs.
•Groundnut production. OVCandvulnerablehouse-holdsweregivenseedtoproducegroundnutsforfoodandincome.
•Maize seed and fertilizers. OVChouseholdswerealsogivenseedandfertilizerstoproducemaizeforcon-sumptionandsale.
• Introduction of village savings and loans associations. This initiativewasfirst introducedbyWorldVi-sion International. TheCBO formedaVSL sub-committeecomprisingmostlyhouseholdscaringforOVC.Atthetimeofthestudy,therewerethreefunctionalgroupswithatotalmembershipof75(25pergroup).Attheendof2008,thethreegroupshadsavedK536,039whichtheysharedandboughtfarminputsandotherhouseholdnecessities.
•School fees and uniforms. WithfundingfromWorldVision International, the CBO paid secondaryschoolfeesfor12needystudents.Fromitsresourc-es,theCBOboughtschooluniformsfor42needyprimaryschoolpupils.
Duringthisperiod,thefollowingchangeswereno-ticedamongOVCandtheirhouseholds:• MoreOVCwereenrolledinschoolsandregularly
attendedclasses;• Foodandnutrition security improvedowing to
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throughtheVSLclubswhichwasusedtobuyfoodand farm inputs, and improvedmeal frequencythroughtheCBCCfeedingprogramme;
• ThroughtheChildren’sCornerprogramme, thesociallifeofOVCimproved;
• OpennessindealingwithissuessurroundingHIVandAIDS;and
• Livestocknumbersinthearea,particularlyamongOVChouseholds,increased.
The benefits of the initiatives• Increased education opportunity. More OVC, who
wouldotherwisehavedroppedoutofschoolduetolackoffeesorothernecessities,weregiventheopportunitytocontinuewithorcompleteschool.
• Improved food and nutrition security. Through in-creased access to farm inputs, food productionamongOVChouseholdshadimprovedandOVClivelihoodshad improved.Directaccess to foodthroughCBCCfeedingprogrammes,aswellasdo-nationsoffoodtoneedyhouseholds,helpedin-creasethefoodandnutritionsituationforOVC.
•Accumulation of assets. Throughinterventionssuchas thegoat,pigandguinea fowl schemes, someOVChopedforincreasedincomeopportunitiesinthefuture.Althoughthefruit-treeinterventionwillyieldlong-termresults,thetreeswillneverthelessbeanimportantassettothefuturelivelihoodsofOVC.
• Improved self-esteem. Throughintensivesensitiza-tionaboutchildrights,psycho-socialsupport,andissuesofgenderandHIVandAIDS,theesteemoftheOVChadimproved.
Resources committed to the interventions•Pig production project. K1,027,000 of the MASAF
grantwasused topurchase sixpigs andon theconstructionofthepigpen.Thecommunitycon-tributedbricks,sand,quarrychips,waterandla-bour.OVChouseholdswhichhadbenefitedfromthedonationofpigletsconstructedtheirownpigpenswithsupportfromtheCBO.
•Guinea fowl production project. K100,000oftheNACgrantwasspentontheconstructionofahousingstructureforguineafowl,andasmalleramountonpurchasing25guineafowl.Thecommunitypro-videdlabour,bricks,sandandotherlocalmaterials.
•Construction of CBCCs. ThecommunityraiseditsownresourcestoconstructtenCBCCsinthevil-lages (estimatedatK75,000each)andanurseryschool. Materials used included bricks, cement,ironsheets,sandandpoles.
•Goat production project. Householdsthatbenefitedfromthegoatschemeconstructedtheirowngoatkholas.Theseareusuallysimplestructuresmadeofpoles.
Motivators for successThe Karonga district social welfare officer statedthat Tawonga CBO was doing much better thanChimwemweCBO.ThefollowingfactorscouldbebehindthesuccessofTawongaCBO:•Strong leadership. TheCBO’schairpersonisayoung
manwithpassionanddrivetomobilizethecom-munity.Hehasthestrongsupportofthegroupvil-lageheadmanandthevillageheadmen.Inthepast,heeventriedtostepdownfromthechairmanshipposition,butthetraditional leadersobjected.Hewasfinedagoatfortryingtosabotageasuccessfulvillageproject,andhewithdrewhisresignation.
• Decentralized structure of CBO management. EachvillagehasbeenempoweredtoreplicateCBOac-tivitiesintheirownvillage,withonlysomeactivi-tiesbeingdonecentrally.ThishascreatedpositivecompetitionamongvillagesandensuredthateachvillagedirectlybenefitsfromCBOactivities.
•Spirit of volunteerism. Volunteerismandworkingtogether seemtobeembedded in thesocial lifeofpeopleofthearea.ThespiritofvolunteerismmayalsobestrongbecausetheCBOhasoperatedonitsownforonlyfouryearsandthepeoplehavealreadywitnessedsomuchchange.
•Cooperation with village headmen. AllmajorCBOactivitiesaredonewithorthroughthegroupvil-lageheadmanandvillageheadmen,whichhasen-couragedvillagerstoparticipateinCBOcommunalactivities.
•Strong sense of purpose. Therewasastrongdesiretoaddresstheproblemoforphanhoodanddestitutionamongchildreninthearea.
Challenges faced • Inadequate CBCC and nursery school teachers. With
increasedenrolmentofchildren,itwasbecoming
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moredifficultforthefewteacherstocopewiththeworkload.
•Lack of CBO management skills. Mostofthecom-mitteemembershadnotundergonetrainingonCBOmanagementandasaresultsomeoftheissueswerebeinginadequatelydealtwiththroughtrialanderror.
Lessons learntThemembersoftheCBOfelttheyhadlearntmanylessonsfromtheexperience,whichincluded:• Whenyoushowcommitmenttohelpyourself,oth-
erswillbewillingtoassist;and• Whentheprocessistransparentandtheparticipat-
ingvillagesunderstandthebenefitsoftheproject,they are willing to commit their resources andtime.
Future plans•Maize mill. The village savings and loans clubs
plantobuyamaizemillat theendof2009us-ingthisyear’ssavings.SincetheysavedmorethanK500,000inthepreviousyear,thisgoal is likelytobeachieved.
•Expand OVC services. TheCBOplanstogrowto-baccointhe2009/10seasoninordertoexpandservicesrenderedtoOVC.
• Increase feeds for the pigs. Currently,theCBObuysmaizebranfromthecommunitytofeedthepigs.Thefutureplanistoletvillagescontributepigfeedsincethehouseholdsinthesevillagesbenefitfromtheproducts.
•Vocational skills centre. Thereisalreadyaskillsvo-cationalcentreabouttenkilometresfromtheareawhichwasbuiltbya localNGO,Lusubilo.NowthereareplanstoestablishasimilarcentreintheKarongaareawhereyoungboysandgirlscanlearnvariousskills.
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Summary of Key Issues
Livelihoodactivitiesimplemented
Inallthreecasestudies,OVCandtheirhouseholdsweredirectlyorindirectlyassistedthroughimple-
mentationofactivitiesthatenhancedfoodandnu-tritionsecurity,improvedOVCeducation,increasedincomeandincome-earningopportunities,andhelpedwiththebasicnecessitiesoflife(clothing,accommoda-tion,healthcare).Activitiesimplementedincluded:• Cultivationoffoodandcashcropssuchasmaize,
soybeans,vegetables,cottonandbeans;• Rearingof livestock suchas goats, guinea fowl,
pigs,rabbits,chickensanddairycattle;and• Income-generating activities such as maize
mill,ganyu, savings and loans anda ‘BigWalk’fundraiser.
Theyprovidededucationsupportthrough:• ConstructionofCBCCs;• Provisionofschoolfees,uniformseducationalma-
terials;and• Constructionofanurseryschool.
Theyalsoprovidedhealthcareandpsycho-socialsupportthrough:• Provisionofbasicdrugs and taking children to
hospital;and• Trainingandcounselling.
Benefitsofinitiatives
1.GeneralimprovementinthelivesofOVCandthoseoftheirhouseholdsChildren,whoseliveshavebeenwithouthope,nowhaveabrighterfutureandareacceptedasvaluablemembersofsociety.Decentaccommodation,healthymeals, adequate clothing, achievement at school,andsomeassetsfortheirfuturewealth–thesearemorethanOVCcouldhavehopedfor.Elderlygrand-motherslivingindilapidatedhouseswerehousedindecentiron-sheetroofedhousesoftheirownattheGoodNewsChildren’sHome:theirlifehadcertainlychangedforthebetter.
2.ImprovedfoodandnutritionsecurityThecommunityproduced food to feedOVCand/ortheirhouseholds.InthecaseoftheGoodNews©
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Children’sHome,childrenwerefedonadailybasis,evenwhenmosthouseholdsinthecommunityfacedcriticalfoodshortages.Itwasreportedthatthering-ingofmealbellswasstoppedbecausetheyattractedmanynon-residentchildrenfromsurroundingvillag-eswhowouldgate-crashandtakepartinmealtimes.OVChouseholdswhobenefitedfromtheinitiativesreportedimprovedmealfrequencyandreducedperi-odsofhunger.Itwasalsoreportedthatmorechildrenattendedschoolwhowouldotherwisehavedroppedoutduetohunger.
3.ImprovededucationIncreasedenrolmentofOVCinschoolsandconsist-entattendanceofclasseswasattributedtothein-terventionsthatthecommunitymadethroughtheinitiativesoutlinedabove.TheformerresidentsofGoodNewsChildren’sHomeweretestimonytothis:theytalkedabouttheirhighscoresatMalawiSchoolCertificateofEducationlevel.
4.LiveshavebeensavedOVChaveahigherchanceofcontractingdiseasesanddyingduetoinadequatecare.ThroughtheCBCCfeedingprogrammes,itwasreportedthatthehealthof thechildrenhad improved,and someachieve-mentsinthesecasestudieshavebeenoutstanding.Forexample,therehasbeennochilddeathforthepasttenyearsatGoodNewsChildren’sHomewhichsometimeshousesmorethan100children.
5.AssetbuildingMostOVCandtheirhouseholdsbenefitedfromgoats,pigsandguineafowl.Thesearelikelytocontinuetohelpthemmeetpartoftheirlivelihoodneedsinthefuture.
Thedrivingforceforsuccess
Strength of purposeThepassion tohelp thehelpless,needyOVCandtheirhouseholdsseemstobethemaindrivingforcebehindmostofthesuccessinthethreecommunityinitiatives.InthewordsofoneNtcheuwoman:“Wejustfeelcommittedtoassistthesechildrensothatthey can leadabetter life.After all, theyareourchildren.”
Ownership and responsibilityTheseprojectswereinitiated,managedandownedbythecommunity.Forexample,theGoodHopeChil-dren’sHomecommunityhadthefollowingtosaywithregardtothetwoboreholesthattheydugandinstalledandtheonethatwasdugandinstalledbyabenefactor:“Whenanyofourtwoboreholesbreaksdown,itdoesn’ttakeadaywithoutbeingfixedbe-causewedugthewellandfixedthepumpourselves.Weknowhowtodoitandwedoitourselves.Theboreholewhichwasfittedwiththesolarpumpwasdugandthesystem(includingthetowerforthewatertank,piping)installedforus.Sinceitbrokedown,wehavebeenunabletodoanythingaboutitbecausewedon’tknowwheretostartfrom.”(FocusGroupDiscussion,Chikwawa).
Similarly, inNtcheu(ChitunguCBO)thecom-munitysawthatwhensomeprojectsweredecentral-izedtovillages,andlaterindividualOVChouseholds,therewasmorecommitmentfromtheparticipatingvillages. As a result, each of the nine participat-ingvillages cultivated itsownvillagegardenandconstructeditsownpigpentoassistOVCintheirvillage,withtheCBOcommitteeonlymonitoringimplementation.
Inthesameway,Similarly,theTawongaCBOap-proachtodecentralizingCBCCsandpigandguineafowlproductiontothevillages,andlatertoindivid-ualOVChouseholds,yieldedbetterresults.
Spiritual/social bondingFromitsfoundation,spirituallifehasbeenthecor-nerstone of the Good News Children’s Home inChikwawadistrict.Beforemembersstarttheirdailychores,theymeetandsharethewordofGod.Evenchildrenatthecentreprayandreceivespiritualcoun-sellingacoupleoftimesaday.Inallthreecasestud-ies, therewere indicationsofastrongsocialbondamongthemembers.AskedwhytheyvolunteeredtoassisttheOVCortheirhouseholdswithoutexpectingtobepaid,thewomeninmostofthesesitessaidthefollowingabouttheircommitment:“IknowthatonedaywhenIdie,someonewillhavetotakecareofmychildren.Sowhyshouldn’tIdoitforotherswhileIamalive?”Theyalsothoughtthat,socially,womenhadstrongeremotionalfeelingsabouttheplightofchildrenthanmen.
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Leadership and OrganizationLeadership,bothonthepartofthosewhowereman-agingtheinitiativesonaday-to-daybasisandtra-ditional leadership,wasatthecentreofsuccess inimplementingtheseprojects.
Challengesandfailuresencountered
Implementation of these projects was certainlychallenging.Attimes,communitiesfacedtough
hurdlesandevenfailures.However,whentheyfeltdiscouraged,theygatheredstrengthtofacethechal-lengesandmoveon.Whilesomeofthehurdlestheyfacedwereinternal,otherswereexternal,andsomewerebeyondtheircontrol.Thefollowingsummarizesthesechallenges:
1.InstitutionalfactorsDelays in the release of support promised to theCBO,suchasfundsfromMANASOforthemaizemillprojectinNtcheu,mayhaveaffectedthemoraleofthecommunitymembers.WhilethisparticularcasecannotbegeneralizedtoMANASOasaninstitution,anemployeeofMANASOshouldtakeresponsibilityfortheunreasonabledifficultiestheCBOhadtoen-duretogetthemaizemill.Similarly,thecaseofChi-tunguCBObeinggivenadairycowprojectinsteadoftheirrequestedmaizede-huller impliesthatanofficial,whowassupposedtobeprovidingaservicetotheinstitution,perhapsignoredthecommunity’sneedsandrequirements,ordidnotexplainingoodtimewhyanalternativedecisionhadbeentaken.Asa result, theCBOwasnot ready for thecowsandthereforefacedthechallengesoffeedingandmanag-ingtheanimals.
2.TechnologicalfactorsTechnology isoneof thekeys to success,butun-fortunately italsocomeswithitsownchallenges.TheGoodNewsChildren’sHomemaizemillprojectwasonesuchtechnologythatbroughtwithitvari-ouschallenges.Firstly, thewrongtechnologywasproposedand funded (adiesel insteadofelectric-propelledengine),andsecondlytheexorbitantcostoftherelatedtechnology(K3,000,000foratrans-former)meantthecommunitycouldnotaffordit.Solar-pumpingtechnologyalsoputthecentreina
hopelesssituationwhenthepumpbrokedown.Solarpumpingisknowntobemoresustainableandappro-priatetoaruralenvironment,butitrequirestrainedpeopletofixit.Technologyalsoletdownthedairycowproject inChitunguCBOinNtcheuwhenthecowswereunabletoconceiveafterbeingartificiallyinseminated.Suchchallengescanmakeimplement-ingcommunitiesfeeldesperate.
3.Socio-cultural(scepticism,insinuationandridicule)Asinmostdevelopmentprojects, thetendencyofsomemembersof thecommunitywanting todis-credit a successful initiative was common acrossthethreecasestudies.Volunteersconstantlyfacedridicule,negativeremarks,unpleasantinsinuationsandevenscepticismfortheirmotives,buttheywereneverdeterredfromachievingtheirgoals.
4.InadequateresourcesIn the three case studies, the communities wereunable to adequately reach all the intended OVChouseholds in theirareas,mainlydue to resourceconstraints.
Lessonslearntfromtheexperiences
Participantslearntagreatdealfromtheirexperi-ences,andinparticulartwothings:
•Ownership and responsibility. Whentheytookown-ershipandresponsibilityforaproject,andevenenduredpersonalsacrificeforaninitiative,otherswerewillingtoassist.
•Transparency and accountability. Whenleadershippractisedtransparencyandaccountability,mem-bersof the community feltmore confident andcommittedtodevotetheirtimeandresources.
Suggestionsforimprovement
Thesuggestionsbelowaremadewiththeunder-standingthattheachievementscitedinthecase
studieswereprobablythebestthatcouldhavebeenmadewithintheconstraintsofresourcesandexper-tise.Itisalsoacknowledgedthatsomeofthesesug-gestionsmaybetransferredtoothercommunities,dependingonexistingsituations.
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1.IntegrationofvillagesavingsandloansclubswithinCBOsTawonga CBO managed to effectively integrateVSLclubswithintheCBOset-uptotheextentthatthetargetedOVChouseholdswithlabourcapacityseemedtoreducedependencyontheCBOforincomeormaterialsupport.Suchintegrationwaslesspromi-nentinChitunguCBO.IntensificationofVSLclubsamongOVChouseholdsandvolunteersinalltheseCBOsisthereforesuggested.Wherepossible,theso-cialcashtransferschemeimplementedinMchinjiandotherdistrictscouldbelinkedtoCBOandVSLinitiatives.
2.SkillsbuildingforteenageOVCSkills building for OVC was identified by all theprojectsunderreviewasbeingvitalforfuturelive-lihoodsdevelopmentof theOVC.However, skillsbuildingwasnotbeinggivenpriorityeitherbecauseofresourcelimitationsorlackofexpertiseandknowl-edge. Institutions like the Good News Children’sHomeoffermuchbetteropportunitiesforchildrentoattendskills-buildingsessionsduringafternoonsafternormalschooland/orweekendsoff.SuchskillscouldbeinagriculturethroughamodifiedformofJFFLSinwhichchildrencouldlearnaboutcropandlivestockproduction,orcraftskillssuchascarpentry,brickworkandtailoring.Thiswouldenhancetheirlivelihoodopportunitiesoncetheyhavegraduatedfromcentres.Similarly,CBOscouldalsouseCBCCstructurestoteachteenageOVCsuchskills.
3.AssistancetovolunteersthatcareforOVCMostof thework in the threeprojectswasbeingdonebyvolunteers. Itseemsthatthesevolunteersoffertheirservicesatenormouscosttothemselves;forexample,theyriskfoodinsecurityintheirownhomesorexperiencemarriageproblems.Currently,theyvolunteerbecausetheyfeelmorally,spirituallyorsociallyobliged,buttheymightnotbesowill-inginthefuture.Resourcespermitting,theprojectscouldannuallyloanvolunteerssomefarminputstoproducetheirownmaize,beansorsoybeans.Vol-unteerscouldthenrepaytheinstitutionsanagreedamountorcontributetothecentre’sfoodbank.Suchaprogrammewouldbenefitbothvolunteersandcen-tres,sincefoodsecurityandself-sufficiencywouldbe
ensured.ThisisonlyonepossiblewayofmotivatingthevolunteersaswellasincreasingfoodandincomesforOVCcareandsupport.
4.CooperatingwithallgovernmentextensionagentsApartfromsocialwelfareofficers,linkagewithothercommunity-basedgovernmentextensionagentswasunclear.Itmustbeemphasizedthatgovernmentex-tensionagentsareimportanttoprovidingtechnicalandpolicyadvice.Therearevariousreasonsfortheweak relationshipbetweengovernmentextensionagentsandtheCBOsorchildcarecentres,but it issuggestedthatstrongrelationshipsbeestablishedinordertoavoidcostlymistakesinthefuture.Althoughitistheresponsibilityofcommunitiestolinkupandseekadviceandservicesfromvariousgovernmentagents, it isalsotheresponsibilityof the latter tocultivateinterestbyvisitingsuchinitiativesandpro-vidingnecessaryadvice.
5.Respondingtothecommunity’sneedsThecaseinwhichChitunguCBOrequestedamaizeshellerandinsteadwasgivenfivedairycowswhichtheyeventuallyfailedtomanageisaclassiccaseofdisregardingpeople’sneeds.AsGroupVillageHead-manMasitimalesaid:“Ifyoubringsomething,wewillneversayno”,butifacommunity’sneedsarenot addressed, they will feel neither committednorresponsibleforaproject inthelongterm.TheChitunguCBOcaseisperhapsanisolatedone,butnonethelessitservesasanimportantlessonforserv-iceproviders,whoneedtolistenandrespondtotheneedsofcommunities.Ifacommunity’sneedscan-notbemet,membersshouldbeinformedandalter-nativessuggestedanddiscussed.
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Introduction
Theproblemoforphansandvulnerablechildrenisadauntingchallengetodevelopmentandre-
quires concerted efforts. It is recognized that thesocialandeconomicchallengesthatOVCface,andtheimplicationsofthesechallengesfordevelopment,varyacrosscontextsandover time.Basedonthisunderstanding,thesocialsupportresponsesshouldbetailoredtolocallyrelevantpriorities,preferablyidentifiedbytheaffectedcommunitiesratherthanoutsiders.
SincetheemergenceofAIDS,localcommunitieshaverespondedtotheproblemsofOVCinvariousways.ThereisnodoubtthatsomeoftheresponseshavebeenveryeffectiveinmitigatingthenegativeimpactsandimprovingthelivelihoodsoftheOVCandtheirhouseholds.However,thesesmallscaleor‘boutique’-typeinterventions,coupledwithlittleornoinformationdocumentedorsharedaboutthem,meanstheyhaveremainedsmallandtheirimpactatnationallevelhasbeenminimal.
To effect broader change, it is imperative forallkeyplayerstomakeaconcertedefforttocreateawarenessofthepositiveimpactsofsuchsuccessfulinterventions,withthehopeofscalingthemupatdistrict,nationalorregionallevels.Itisagainstthisbackgroundthat theUnitedNationsandPartners
Allianceon livelihood-based socialprotection forOVCdecidedtoundertakethisstudytodocumentsuccessstoriesoflivelihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVC.
Thisstudyhadfourkeycomponentsrelatedtolivelihood-basedsocialprotectionforOVC:• Analysisofthecountrysituation;• Observationofcasestudiesdocumentingsuccess
stories;• Analysisofthecasestudiesfortheirpotentialfor
scalingup;and• Fieldguideforinitiatingandimplementingcom-
munitydriveninterventions.
Thispartofthereportfocusesonthethirdaspect,i.e.analysisofthecasestudiesforscalingup.There-fore,thisreport:• Brieflyoutlinesthecontextofthecasestudies;• Analyses theperformanceof thecasestudies to
justifytheirinclusionassuccessstories;• Discussesthemodelsofchildcareusedinthecase
studies;• Analysesthepotentialforscalingup;• Identifieskeyissuesforimprovement;• Makesrecommendationsforscalingup;and• Discussesfeasibilityforscalingup.
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Fromtheoutset, ithastobeemphasizedthatincontrasttosomestudiesthathavereviewedbest
practicesimplementedasprojects(externallyinitiat-ed),thecasesselectedforthisstudywereallcommu-nityinitiatedandmanaged.Forthisreason,unlessotherwisespecified,theword‘project’inthisreporthasbeenusedinthecontextofcommunitydriveninitiativesandnotintheconventionalsenseofex-ternallyinitiatedandledruraldevelopmentprojects.
Identificationofthecasestudiesandmethodologyfordatacollection
Identification and selection of micro-level ru-raldevelopmentinitiativesasbestpracticecases
willalwaysbeacontentiousissueduetoproblemsofavailabilityofinformationandsometimesduetodecisionsinfluencedbyvestedinterests.Whilethisstudymaynotbeimmunetothesekindsofhumanbiases,byusingdistrictsocialwelfareofficerswhoare the government officers mandated to overseeall issuesrelatedtoOVCindistricts,andthroughinvolvementofdifferentstakeholders intheselec-tionprocess,itishopedthatselectionbiaswasmini-mized.Itshouldalsobenotedthatalthoughthesearecalled‘bestpractices’or‘successstories’,itdoesnotinanywaysuggestthattheyarethebestinthecountry.Whatthissimplymeansisthatbasedonthesetcriteriaandwithintheresourcelimitationsofthestudy,theselectedprojectsofferedusefullessonsforinitiationandimplementationofasuccessfulprojectwithintheparametersoflivelihoodsupportforOVC.Onthesamenote,whileappreciatingthegrowingimportanceofperi-urbanOVCsituations,thestudydidnotpurposelysamplesuchsettingsandthereforethisshouldberecognizedasoneofthelimitationsofthestudy.
Basedon theseassertionsand facts, threecasestudieswereselectedfromaninitialshortlistoftenwhichwereidentifiedthroughdistrictsocialwelfareofficesinsevendistrictsacrossallthethreeregionsof the country. The three case studies (Chitungucommunity-basedorganizationinNtcheuDistrict,GoodNewsChildren’sHomeinChikwawadistrict,and Tawonga community-based organization inKarongadistrict)werefinallychosenforanalysisaf-tertworoundsofsitevisits.Duringthefinalvisit,
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participatoryruralappraisaltoolswereusedtoso-licitviewsoftheimplementingcommunities.Ateachsite,mixedgroupsofwomenandmen,andseparategroupsofdirectbeneficiaries(OVCorOVChouseholdheads)wereformed.Eachgrouprespondedtoasetofquestions.Smallgroupdiscussionswerefollowedbyplenarypresentationswheregroupscross-checkedeachotherandaddedorcorrectedsomefacts.Sinceinmostcaseseachof thesmallgroupsrespondedto thesamesetofquestions, itwaseasy toverifyconsistencyoffactsandhowwell informationwassharedamongthemembersofthecommunity.Fo-cusgroupdiscussionswithcommunityleaderswereconductedafterthegeneralgroupexercises.Selectedbeneficiariesnarratedtheirlifestoriesinone-on-onediscussionswiththeresearchers.
Characteristicsoftheselectedsites
Geographic locationEachofthethreeselectedsitesislocatedindifferentregionsofthecountry.TawongaCBOis locatedinthenorthernlakeshoredistrictofKaronga,whichischaracterizedbyshortrainfallseasonsandpersistentdryspells.Thesiteisinaruralsettingwithminimaloff-farmeconomicopportunities.
ChitunguCBOislocatedinthecentralhighlanddistrictofNtcheuwhich ischaracterizedbygoodrainfallandrelativelyfertilesoils.Thesiteiscloseto
thetownofNtcheuandofferssomeopportunitiesforoff-farmemployment.
GoodNewsChildren’sHome(GNCH)is inthesouthernendofthecountryinthelowerShireRiverValley.The location ishotanddrywithconstantdroughtsandfloods,andisinatypicalruralsettingwhereoff-farmeconomicincentivesareminimal.
Objectives and target clienteleTheseprojectswereinitiatedwiththecommonaimofminimizingorphanhoodandtheproblemsfacedbyOVCintheircommunities.Insomeprojectsothervulnerablegroupssuchastheelderly,peoplelivingwithHIV,chronicallyillpeopleanddisabledpeoplewerealsotargetedwithspecific interventions.Forthepurposesofthisstudy,thefocuswasonOVCandOVChouseholds.
Period of existenceEachofthethreeCBOsstudiedhasbeeninexistenceforbetweeneightand12years.Duringtheseyears,theinitiativeshaveallprogressivelygrownbothinthenumberofOVCassistedandinthenumberofinterventionsimplemented.
Atthetimeofthestudy,TawongaCBOwascov-eringtenvillagesunderonegroupvillageheadman(GVH);ChitunguCBOwasoperatinginninevillagesunderoneGVH;andGNCHhadacatchmentof36villagesinfiveGVH.In2008/09,thetotalnumbers
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ofOVCinthecatchmentareasofTawonga,Chitun-guandGNCHwereestimatedat402,525and2,000respectively.
StrategiesThethreecasestudieshaveagreatdealincommon.Firstly,theywereallbornoutoftheneedtosolvetheproblemsthataffectedmanyhouseholdsintheircommunities,i.e.AIDS-relatedillnessesanddeaths,and increasednumbersofdestitutechildren,par-ticularlyorphans.Secondly,theywereinitiatedbyafewmembersoftheircommunitieswhopromotedtheideaandmobilizedothermemberstojointhem.Thirdly,therespectivecommunitiesownedandman-agedboththeprocessesandtheoutcomes.However,therewereslightdifferences intheapproach.TheapproachofChitunguandTawongaCBOswasthatofprovidingassistancetohouseholdswhiletherestoftheprocessofcareandsupporttoOVCorthechroni-callyillremainedtheresponsibilityoftherespectivehouseholds.Intheprocessofscalinguptheirinter-ventions,bothCBOsaddedthedaychildcareandvillagesavingsandloans(VSL)components.Ontheotherhand,GNCHusedtheresidentialchildcareap-proachwheretheyprovidedallthecareandsupportthechildrenneededawayfromtheirhouseholds.Thetwodifferentapproachescanbeattributedtothedif-feringobjectivesoftheprojects.
Inthelightofthesecasestudies,itcanthereforebe concluded that for a community initiated andmanagedgrouptostaytogetherforalongperiodoftime,itneedsthefollowing:• Thereshouldbepeopleinthecommunitywhofeel
passionateabout theplightof theOVCand theneedtodosomethingabouttheproblem.
• Thesecommunityinitiatorsshouldsensitizeandmobilize others so that the problem is felt andownedbythewidercommunity.
While these are fundamental to all community-drivendevelopmentinitiatives,theobservationinthisparticularcasewasoutstanding,consideringthatwiththeemergenceofHIVandAIDStherehasbeenaproliferationofexternallyinitiatedinterventions,someofwhichhavediminishedcommunities’de-siretoseeklocalsolutionstoHIVandAIDS-relatedproblems. ©
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Thispartoftheanalysisreviewstheperformanceofthethreecasestudiesinordertoauthenticate
theircredibilityassuccessfulmodelsof livelihoodsupportforOVC.Theanalysisthereforetriestotackletwobasicquestions:“Whyshouldthesebecalledsuc-cessstories?”and“Whatfactorsqualifythemtobebestpractices?”Inthisregard,threefactors–sustain-ability,effectivenessandefficiency–deemedcriticalforthesuccessofanycommunitydriveninterven-tion,wereconsideredintheanalysis.
Sustainability
Indevelopmentwork,sustainabilityof interven-tionsismostdesiredasawayofensuringlong-
lastingandconsistentimprovementinpeople’slives.Bydefinition,astudyofsustainabilityseekstodeter-minetheextenttowhichtheresultsofaninterven-tionhavehadorarelikelytohavelastingeffectsafterthetimeoftheinitialintervention.Thisdefinitionismainlyfromtheperspectiveofanexternallyiniti-atedintervention.Inthecaseofcommunity-initiatedandmanagedinterventionslikethecasestudiesun-derreview,sustainability isdeterminedbytheex-tenttowhichthecommunity-initiatedprojectwasabletoyieldconsistentresultsoveralongperiodoftime.Withinthiscontext,theanalysisinthisstudyconsideredanumberofaspectsfromboththeinputandoutputsides.
The input side (sustainability of activities and processes)
ProgressiveexpansionofactivitiesandcoverageAllthethreecasestudyprojectsoperatedandprovid-edservicestoOVCforeightyearsormore.TawongaCBOfunctionedaspartofChimwemweCBOfrombetween2001and2004,andhasstoodonitsownsincethen.GNCHwasinitiatedin1998andrecruit-edtwelvechildrenforresidentialcareandsupportin1999,gradually increasingthenumbersuntil itreached107childrenin2008.Chitungustartedin1997andhasprogressivelyexpandeditsservicestoOVCeversince.
AllthreeprojectsgrewfromengaginginasmallnumberofactivitiesandprovidingservicestoafewOVCandOVChouseholds.Theygraduallyexpanded
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therangeofactivitiesandservices,reachingouttoalargenumberofOVCandOVChouseholds.
GNCHinChikwawadistrictstartedwithpersonalcontributionsofmoney,foodandlabourtoconstructthechildren’shomeandinitiallyprovideresidentialcare and support to12children.Thecentregrewthroughengagementinawiderangeof livelihoodactivitiesthathelpedthemtoraiseincomeandcol-lectfoodforresidentialcareofaround100childrenin2008/9.Activitiesexpandedfromprovidingas-sistancethroughfoodcontributionsandganyu(piecework)duringtheestablishmentphaseofthecentre,tothecurrentsituationinwhichitproducesitsownmaizeandvegetablesandsomemeatproductstofeedthechildren.Thecentrealsomanagedtodiversifyitsincome-earningopportunitiestoincludeamaizemill:thiswillensuresufficientgenerationofmoneytobuyfarminputsandmeetthebasicneedsofthecentre.GNCHeventuallymanagedtobuildperma-nent structures for the residence of the children,whichwilllikelytakethemsomeyearsintothefu-turewithoutmajorre-investment.
TawongaCBOinKarongadistrictalsorecordedgrowthintermsofactivitiesforassistingOVC.Atthetimeofestablishment,Tawongadependedonraisingmoneythroughganyuandcontributionsofmoneyandfoodfromthecommitteemembersandthecommu-nityinordertoassistOVCandOVChouseholds.Ithassincegrownandenhancedtheabilityofsometargethouseholdstobeself-sufficientinfoodandincome.Throughprovisionoffarminputs,guineafowl,goatsandpigs,theprojecthasenhancedlivelihoodoppor-tunitiesforthebeneficiaryhouseholds.ItsgrowthhasalsobeenrecordedintheexpansionprogrammeoftheVSLschemewherebeneficiaryhouseholdshaverecordedsuccessinsavingandaccumulatingincomesfortheirhouseholds’day-to-dayneeds.
ChitunguCBOhasasimilarstory.Whenitwases-tablishedin1997,itcouldonlyprovidesomehelpto50OVCwithmoneyraised(aboutK3,800)throughafund-raisingwalkknownasthe‘BigWalk’,andganyu(aboutK500).By2009theywereabletoreachoutto561OVCwithdifferentkindsofsupport.Atthetimeofthestudy,theCBOhadjustreceivedagrantof27pigsfromOrphanSupportAfrica,threeforeachoftheninevillagepiggeriesmeantforbreedingpur-posesanddistributiontoOVCinapass-onschemein
therespectivevillages.In2007,20OVChouseholdseachreceivedagoat.Althoughfourofthe20goatsdied,the16thatsurvivedhadallreproducedinthefirsthalfof2009,giving17kidsintotal.Sofar,16moreOVCareexpectedtobenefitfromtheschemethroughsecond-generationoffspring.TheCBOalsocompletedinstallationofamaizemillwhich,ifwellmanaged,willreducedependenceonoutsidehelpinfundingcommunity-basedchildcarecentres(CBCC)activitiesandserviceprovisiontoOVChouseholds.
Overall, this is an incredible recordof successconsideringthatmostdevelopmentinitiativesrarelyexist beyond five years after initial intervention.Therefore,thethreecasestudiescould,intermsoftheirperiodsofoperation,besaidtohavesurpassedexpectation.
The output side (sustainability of outcomes and benefits)
PredictableaccesstofoodandnutritionbyOVCthroughouttheyearThechildrenofGNCHreportedhavingtastyandnu-tritiousmealsthreetimesadayduringtheirstayatthecentre.Thismealschedulecontinuedevendur-ingleanperiodsoftheyearandintheyearsofacutefoodshortageinthearea. IntheCBCCs,childrenreceivedmealseverydayirrespectiveofthetimeoftheyear.Throughsuchinterventions,childrenwereencouragedtostayinthechildcarecentresbecausetheyknewtheywouldeatsomethingorevenbetterfoodthantheywouldnormallyeatathome.
PredictableaccesstoeducationforOVCThroughsupporttheyreceivedfromtheprojects,theeducationofsomeOVChadimproved.Thoseinresi-dentialcarecentre(GNCH)wereassurededucationsupportaslongastheywereinthecentre.ThroughtheCBOs,someOVCreceivededucationsupportintheformofschoolandexaminationfeegrants.
SustainablemeansofearningincomesforOVCandOVChouseholdsSome beneficiaries acquired capacity to fend forthemselves.Thefollowinghighlightsomeofsuchopportunitiesthatwereprovidedthroughthethreeprojects:
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• InTawongaCBO,in2008,75OVChouseholdspar-ticipatinginaVSLschememanagedtosaveandshareK536,039,andin2009theywereplanningtobuyandinstallamaizemillinthevillage.
• OVC and OVC households that received guineafowl(TawongaCBO)hadthepotentialtoraisenotless thantenguineafowlayear.Fromeggsalesalone,theywouldbecapableofearninganesti-matedamountofK100,000peryearfromabout2,000eggs,consideringthateachhenlaysbetween250and300eggsperyear.Guineafowleggsareusuallysoldatahigherprice(betweenK50andK60each)thanchickeneggs(betweenaboutK25andK30each).
• SomeoftheOVCwhograduatedfromGNCHbe-tween2006and2008were implementing skillshadlearntduringtheirstayatthecentre,andweregrowingandsellingvegetablestoraisemoneytomeettheirlivelihoodneeds.
Factors that contributed to the sustainability of activities and services
AbilitytodealwithconflictsandchallengesDuring thesemanyyearsofexistenceandservicedelivery, members of these community-managedprojectsacquiredvitalexperience throughresolv-inginternalconflictsanddealingwithchallengestheyfaced;butmoreimportantwastheirresiliencetochallengingcircumstances.Ifitwerenotfortheircoherenceandresilience,thechallengeshighlightedbelowcouldeasilyhavedestroyedtheirzeal,andaf-fectedprogress.
Maize mill project ThemaizemillprojectforChitunguCBOwasbothachallengeandasuccess.Itwasachallengebecausetheprojecttooksixyearsbetweeninceptionandim-plementation.In2003,theybidforandreceivedagrantforamaizemillfromMANASO.TheyreceivedaninitialsumofK59,100fortheconstructionofthemaizemillhouse.Uponcompletionofthebuilding,MANASOaskedtheCBOtoinstallelectricitybeforethemaizemillcouldbesupplied.Itturnedoutthatelectricity installationwastoocostlyforthecom-munity.Theprojectwastemporarilysuspendedun-tilOrphanSupportAfrica(OSA)wasapproachedfor
support.OSAprovidedmorethanK600,000forthepowertransformer,aswellasotherfundsforwiring.However,whenthisworkwascompletein2007,MA-NASOwasunabletosupplythemaizemill. IttooktheinsistenceoftheCBOcommitteeduringseveralfollow-uptripstoMANASOheadofficeinBlantyre(sometimesaccompaniedbyofficersfromthedistrictsocialwelfareoffice),forthemaizemilltobedeliv-ered.Eventhen,somevitalpartssuchasthestarterandbeltsweremissingfromthemaizemill,sothecommunityhadtouseotherfundstopurchasethemissingparts.Ifithadnotbeenfortheirinsistenceanddecisiontoseekalternativefunding,theprojectcouldhavefailed.Accordingtothecommunity,theyfeltfrustratedaboutthewayMANASOhandledtheproject,yetwerealsodeterminedtohavethemillinstalledandrunningbecausetheybelieveditwastheirssinceMANASOhadformallycommitteditselftoprovidingitinthefirstplace.
Similarly,themaizemillprojectforGNCH’swasbothachallengeanda success.Thechallenge forGNCH’smaizemillwasslightlydifferenttothatofChitunguCBOthough.In2005,theysubmittedaproposaltoChitunguCBOMASAFforamaizemillpropelledbyadieselengineandreceivedK1,666,664.However,when fundingcameandthemillhousewasbuilt,thewomenobjectedtotheideaofadie-selenginemaizemillbecausetheybelieveditmadethe flour smell smoky.Analternativeplanwas toinstallanelectricmotormaizemill.Whenevery-thingwaspurchasedandwiringcompleted,ESCOM(ElectricitySupplyCorporationofMalawi)demandedK3,000,000forthepowertransformerwhichthecen-trehadnotincludedintheirproposal.MASAFwasunabletoprovideadditionalfundsandtheprojectstalledforthreeyearswhiletheCBOdecidedhowtogetaroundtheproblem.Itwasonlyin2008thattheydecidedtobuildanotherstructureatalocationwheretherewasanexistingtransformer,tenkilome-tresawayfromthecentre.Workwascompletedandthemaizemill startedoperating inJanuary2009.Whenothergroupsmighthavegivenup,thisCBOmanagedtofindasolution.
Dairy cow project In 2006, Chitungu CBO submitted a proposal toMASAFforamaizede-hullerorsheller;insteadthey
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receivedfundingforfivedairycows.Housingstruc-tureswerebuiltandthecowswerebought.Sincetheydidnothaveanexoticbulltomatewiththecows,theyengagedanartificialinseminationtechniciantoservicethecows.Unfortunately,theartificialinsemi-nationwasunsuccessfulevenafterseveralattempts.This,coupledwith the fact that theCBOwasnotreadyforthecowsintermsoffeedingandgeneralmanagement, ledtotheCBOrequestingtosellthecows.Moneyrealizedwasusedtobuygoatswhichweregivento20OVC.TheCBOobviouslyshowedsignsoffrustrationatbeinginadequatelysupportedtechnicallyandatnothavingtheir initialrequestgranted,yetwhenthecowprojectfailedtheyfoundameaningfulalternative.
Theseareonlysomeoftheissuesthatdemonstratetheresilienceoftheprojectsandmembers’abilitytosolveorcircumventmajorchallenges.Thespiritofresilienceandthecouragetofacechallengesandseekalternativesolutionshascontributedtothelongsurvivaloftheprojects.Significantly,theseprojectsalldemonstratedsignsofprogressfarintothefuture.
DevelopmentofinternalcapacityformanagementofprojectsandactivitiesCapacityto technically, financiallyandadministra-tivelymanageprojectsandtheiractivitiesiscrucialfortheirsurvival.Enhancedcapacityofcommuni-tiestomanagetheirprojects isafair indicationofsustainability.Thethreeprojectsdemonstratedinter-nalcapacitytocarryoutandsustainsomeactivitiesontheirownwithoutmuchdependenceonoutsidehelp.Thefollowingaresomeoftheachievementsthatwerenotedasevidenceofthiscapacity:
1. Technical capacity•Pig production. Exoticpigsareusuallyaproblem
tomanage,particularlyamongsmallholderfarm-ers,butTawongaCBOmanageditspigproductionproject sowell that from four sowsobtained in2007,theydistributed15pigletstoOVCin2008,andwereexpectingtodistributemorein2009.
•Vegetable production. GNCHsuccessfullymanagedtoincorporatemodernmethodsofvegetablegar-dening such as the trench method (which usesorganicmanure)andthesackmethod(plantingvegetablesinsackswhichcaneasilybetransported
orplantedinabackyardinlimitedspace).Withtheseskills,theywereabletoproducemorethanenoughvegetablestofeedthechildrenandforsalelocally.Itwasencouragingtonotethatincreasingnumbersofpeoplewerecomingtothecentretolearnaboutthenewtechnology.Thetechnologywasalsotaughttotheboysandgirlsatthecentre.
•Construction. Inall thethreeprojects,structureswerebuiltusinglocalartisans.Thisnotonlymadeconstructioncheaperbutalsoincreasedopportu-nityforlocalsolutionstolocalproblems.Thecon-structionprojectsincludedbricklaying,carpentry,shallow-wellconstructionandwiringofbuildings.
2. Financial capacity•Sourcing funds for projects. Inallthethreecasestud-
ies,thecommunitiesdemonstratedskillsandex-perienceindevelopingandsellingproposalsfortheirdevelopmentinterventions.Asaresult,do-norswerewilling to fundsomeof theactivitiestocomplementthecommunities’efforts.Allthreeprojects receivedgrants from somegovernmentprogrammessuchasMASAFandNAC.Inaddition,ChitunguCBOsecuredfundingfromOSA,Africare(I-Lifeprogramme)andMANASO.TawongaCBOreceived additional support from World Vision,whileGNCHreceivedadditionalgrantsfromwell-wishersforaborehole,installationofasolar-waterpumpingsystemandasolarlightingsystem.
•Financial accountability. Thefactthattheseprojectsreceivedfundsanumberoftimesfromdifferentdonorsisafairindicationthatcommunitieswereable to account for money they received. In allthreecases,communitiescouldprovideevidenceofhowdonormoneywasspentandmanaged.Theseskillsmightalsohavehelpedtosustaintheper-formanceoftheprojects.
3. Administrative capacity GNCH has an established structure comprising aboardofdirectors(representedbythetraditionalau-thorityofthearea,allthegroupvillageheadmen,thefoundingmemberofthecentre,andrepresenta-tivesofvillageheadmen,OVChouseholdsandthecentrecoordinator).Thecentrecoordinatorissup-portedbyastorespersonandvolunteers.Thiskindofstructureensuresaccountabilityandtransparency
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whichareimportantingredientsforsustainability.ThetwoCBOs(TawongaandChitungu)havestand-ardstructures,assuggestedbytheMinistryofWom-enandChildDevelopment intheirguidelines fortheestablishmentandmanagementofaCBO.Moreimportantly,thetwoCBOshavedecentralisedpartoftheresponsibilitytoindividualvillagesthroughvillagecommittees.Allthreeprojectswereformallyregisteredwiththeirrespectivedistrictsocialwelfareofficeswhichmakesiteasierforthedistrictassemblytoprovideadviceandsupportandtointervenewheretheyseeaproblem.
Self-dependenceOnereasonwhymostruraldevelopmentprojectsfailtosustainthemselvesbeyonddonorinterventionistheirunwillingnesstouseinternalsupportasameansfor self-reliance in the long term. However, whatmakesthesethreecasestudiesuniqueisthattheydependedlessonoutsidehelpandmoreontheirownresources.Theyusedmorelocalresourcesandonlyre-ceivedexternalassistancetosupplementtheireffort.
ThepeopleinvolvedinGNCHprovedtheirde-terminationbyusingtheirownmoneytoconstructapermanentbuilding(brick-walled,cementedfloorandiron-sheetroofing)comprisingtwodormitoryrooms(boysandgirls),amulti-purposehallandanoffice/storeroom.Theyalsoconstructedakitchenandsickbay(forisolationofsickchildrenwhoresideoncampus)withoutanymajorsupportfromoutside.Theyusedthecommunity’sresourcestoprovidepo-tablewatertothecentrethroughthreeshallowwellswhichweredugandhadwaterpumpsinstalled.Theyalsocontributedmoneytobuyfarminputsandla-bourtocultivatethecentre’sgardens.Thisachieve-mentis incredibleconsideringthatthispartofthecountry is perpetually affected by droughts andfloods,andpovertyisrampant.
Similarly, intwooftheCBOs,peopleprovidedlabourforcultivationofcommunalgardensandfortheconstructionofCBCCsandotherstructures.
Thecommunitymembers,inmostcases,contrib-utedmoneytobuyfarminputsforthecommunalgardens.Inallthreecases,outsiderswerewillingtocontribute towards theactivitiesafter seeinghowmuchhadalreadybeendonebythecommunitiesontheirown.
StrategiesforsustainabilityThethreeprojects implementedstrategiesthaten-hancedthesustainabilityofinterventions. Someofthestrategiesdeployedwereeffectiveinbuildingsus-tainablegrowthoftheprojectsaswellasprogressivecareandsupportfortheOVCandtheirhouseholds.Someofthestrategiesforsustainabilitywere:•Food self-reliance. Projectsprogressedfromreliance
ondonationsanddoor-to-doorcontributions toproductionoftheirownfoodtofeedOVC.Thisre-duceddependencyanduncertainty,andenhancedself-relianceandsustainabilityinprovidingfoodassistancetoOVCandOVChouseholds.Theyhadbeenforcedtochangetheirstrategiesbecauseoftheridiculetheyhadsufferedatthehandsofsomecommunitymemberswhentheywentdoor-to-doorbeggingfordonationsoffoodorcash.Donationsalsotendedtobeerraticsincetheydependedongeneralavailabilityoffoodinthecommunity.
•Decentralised management. TwoCBOs (ChitunguandTawonga)were in theprocessofdecentral-izing activities to village level by progressivelyincreasingthenumberofvillageandbeneficiaryOVCand/orhouseholdinterventionsandreduc-ingcommunalinterventions.Atestablishment,theCBOshadonecommunalgarden,butthey laterdecidedtohavevillagecommunalgardensinad-ditiontosupportingindividualOVChouseholdswithfarminputstoproduceontheirown.Simi-larly, individualpiggeriesweresetupineachofthenineparticipatingvillagesofChitunguCBO,andindividualOVCorOVChouseholds ineachparticipating village of Tawonga CBO managedtheirownpiggeries.Thisreducedworkloadsandbroughtthedecision-makingprocessclosertothetargetclientele.
•Education and training support. Byinstitutingandsupportingeducationandtrainingdevelopment,theprojects increased future livelihood-earningopportunitiesandself-relianceofOVC.Withsup-portandbettereducationandlearningenviron-mentsprovidedthroughprojects,somechildrenobtainedverygoodschoolcertificategradeswhichincreasedtheirchanceofenrolmentintotertiaryeducationinstitutions.Otherslearntsomeskills,suchasvegetableproduction,whichwerealreadyhelpingthemintheirday-to-daylives.
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•Asset protection and building. Thelivestockpass-onschemes(goats,pigsandguineafowl)anddirectdonationtotheOVCisalivelihoodstrategythatwillboosttheOVC’sassetsandimprovetheirstatusintheircommunities.
•Environmental protection. Treeswereplantedtopro-tectbuildingsagainststrongwinds,andGNCHwasalsoabletocontributetothelong-termprotectionoftheenvironmentandtheprovisionofwoodre-sourcesforcurrentandfutureuse.
• Investment in long-term projects for earning income. AdurablemeansofearningincomethroughmaizemillprojectsandVSLschemesmightinfuturere-ducetheneedforoutsidefinancialassistancetoprovidecareandsupporttoOVC.
Overall, thesurvival,growthandsustainabilityoftheprojectsandinterventionsweregreatlyenhancedthroughtheimplementationofsuchsustainabilityenhancingstrategies.
SenseofownershipAnotherimportantelementofsustainabilityiscom-munityownershipoftheprocessandoutcomes.Mostdevelopmentprojectsfailbecauseofthebeneficiarycommunities’inabilitytoowntheirprocessand/oroutcomes.
Thestrengthofthesethreeprojectsinthisregardisthattheywereinitiated,managedandownedbytheirrespectivecommunities.
The strong sense of ownership was not onlydemonstratedthroughtheirwords,suchas“Wedidthis...wetriedthis...wesoughthelpfrom...”,butalsothroughhardevidenceoftheircommitmenttowhattheyweredoing.Thevillagecommunitiesconcernedcontributedmoney,foodandlabour–notbecauseoffearofcoercionorinanticipationofsomereward,butbecausetheyfelt thattheywerehelpingtheirownchildrenandrelatives.Theythoughtitwastheirresponsibilitytodosomethingabouttheproblemsinceitwastheircommunity’sproblem.
Insummary,thethreecasestudiesdemonstratedthatcommunityinitiatedandmanagedOVCliveli-hoodprojectshavepotentialforsustainabilityandgrowth,andthatforthistooccurthereisaneedto:• Developcapacityforresolvinginternalconflicts
andhavetheresiliencetostanduptochallenges;
• Developinternalcapacityforeffectivetechnical,fi-nancialandadministrativemanagementofprojectsandactivities;
• Developandimplementstrategiesthatenhancethespiritofself-relianceandsustainability;
• Devolvepowersandresponsibilitiestothelowestlevelpossible,suchasvillagecommittees;and
• OwntheprocessofprovidingcareandsupporttoOVCandtheoutcomeofimprovedlivelihoodsofOVCasanimportantissueofthevillageandnotindividualOVCperse.
Effectiveness
Effectivenessassessestheextenttowhichobjec-tivesorintentionswereachievedandintended
targetswere reached. In thiscase, it isnoted thatdemonstrableevidenceofchangesthattookplaceamongthetargetclientele is importantifthecasestudiesunderreviewaretoberecommendedforscal-ingup.Itshould,however,beacknowledgedthatat-tributionofsuchsuccessestoaparticularprojectorinterventionisusuallydifficult.
The followingare thehighlightsofbeneficiar-ies’sentimentsregardingsomeofthechangestheyexperiencedintheirlivesasaresultoftheprojectsunderreview:
Food and nutrition securityImprovedfoodsecuritywastheimmediateissuethatOVCandOVChouseholdshighlightedinallthesites.Forchildreninchildcarecentres(dayorresidential),foodwasprovidedonadailybasis,andthechildrenortheirguardianshadenoughreasontopraisetheeffortsoftheprojects.
Households that received farminputs reportedincreasedyieldsandproductionwhichledtomorefoodfortheirhouseholds.
Increasedproductionincommunalgardensalsomeant that the quantity per household and thenumberofbeneficiaryhouseholds increased.Theincreaseinmaizeproductionfromyeartoyearwasreported inall,exceptGNCHwhosecropproduc-tionfor2008/9waslowerthanin2007/8duetoaprolongeddrought.However,theyhadplansforex-pandingwintercroppingtocompensateforreducedrain-fedcropproduction.
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Increased income and income earning opportunitiesThe75OVChouseholdsparticipating inTawongaCBOvillagesavingsandloanschemereportedsavingmoremoneythanbefore,anddiversifyingincomesourcesthroughmoneyborrowedfromthevillagebank.
Withthemoney,somewereabletopaysecondaryschoolfeesfortheirchildren,andothersboughtfarminputs(fertilizersandseeds)whichhelpedincreaseproductionandthereforeincome.Someotherswereengagedinpettytrading,whichhelpedthemtoearnandsavemoremoney.Similarly,the33householdsthatweremembersofChitunguCBOvillagesavingsand loans scheme reported that with money bor-rowedfromthevillagebank, theyhaddiversifiedtheirincome-earningopportunitiesbyengaginginproducetrading,producingandsellingconfectioneryandothertradesratherthancompletelydependingon farming.Theyalso reportedusingmoneybor-rowedfromthevillagebanktoeducatetheirchildrenandinvestinfarming.
TawongaCBOhouseholdsthatreceivedguineafowlfromtheCBOwereearningadditionalincomebysellingguineafowleggswhich,atalmosttwicethevalueofachickenegg,earnedgoodincome.
Improved self-esteemThroughsupporttheyreceivedfromtheprojects,thechildrenwhopreviouslyhadnohopeforthefuturehadtheirself-imageimprovedandwereplanningtodomoreusefulthingsinlife.
Forexample,theChitunguCBOchairpersonres-cuedayoungorphangirlfromherruthlessgrand-motheraftersomecommunitymembersbroughtthegirl’splighttoherattention.Thegirl’sgrandmoth-erused to shutheroutandevenmakeher spendnightsoutdoorswithoutfood.TheCBOchairpersonrequestedthegrandmothertoletherlookafterthechild.Sheagreed,andsince2006thegirlhasbeenlivingintheCBOchairperson’shousehold.Whenaskedaboutherstory,thegirlwasverygratefultoherfosterparentsandsaidshewouldtryherbesttocom-pletehereducationandjointhenursingprofession.Whilethismayjustbeadream,thegirl’splansforthefutureserveasimportantindicatorsofimprovedself-confidence.
All27girlsandboyswhograduatedfromGNCHsaidtheyweretreatedlike‘kings’whentheyreturnedhomesincetheyhadacquiredabettereducationandworebetterclothesthanmostoftheirpeers.
Attainment of better educationSomeOVCwhoreceivededucationsupport(second-aryschoolfees)passedtheMalawiSchoolCertificateofEducationexams.Fiveofthe27boysandgirlswhograduatedfromGNCHscoredbetween25and36ag-gregatepoints.Thesequalifiedthemtositforpublicuniversityentranceexaminations.
ChitunguCBOassistedwiththesecondaryschoolfeesofthreeyouthswhowrotetheMalawiSchoolCertificateexams.Twohadpassedandwereawardedcertificates.Ofthese,onehadfoundemploymentandtheotherhadjoinedatechnicalcollege.Thethirdyouthwasalsoseekingemployment.
Similarly,someboysandgirlswhohadfinancialassistancewithsecondaryschoolfeesfromTawongaCBOpassedtheirMalawiSchoolCertificateswithgoodgrades.Someofthemhadenrolledataruraltradeschoolinthearea.
Increased assetsTawongaCBOgaveoutpigsto15OVChouseholds.With good management, each one of them hasthepotentialtoearn,conservatively,anincomeofK100,000inthefirstyearandmuchmoreinsubse-quentyears.Fortunately,themarketforpigsisabun-dantasthesehouseholdsareclosetotheKayelekeraUraniumMineworkers’campwherethedemandforpigsishigh.
Twenty-sevenboysandgirlswhograduatedfromGNCHwereeachgivenagoat.Iftheyresistsellingthesegoatsprematurely,theycouldmultiplytobe-tweeneightandtengoatswithinthenexttwoyearswhichwouldhavevalueofbetweenK40,000andK50,000atcurrentmarketprices.The16OVChouse-holds that receivedgoats fromChitunguCBOarelikelytoreceivesimilarbenefits.
Attainment of skills for earning livelihoodsGraduatesofGNCHacquiredskillsinmodernmeth-odsofvegetableproduction.Somelearntcarpentrywhileothersweretaughttailoring.Theseskillsmighthelpthemtoearnbetterlivingsinthefuture.
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Table1.Someofthelivelihoodactivitiesimplementedbythethreecasestudyprojects
Intervention GNCH Tawonga ChitunguTotalnumberofOVCinthearea 1800 402 561
Livelihoodsinterventions
Numberofpigs 0 6 27
NumberofOVCthatreceivedpigs 0 15 0
Numberofgoatsraisedcommunally 26 0 20
NumberofOVCthatreceivedgoats 27 0 20
Numberofrabbits 12 0 0
Numberofchickens 100 0 0
Numberofguineafowlraisedcommunally 0 25 0
NumberofOVCthatreceivedguineafowl 0 75 0
Maize(50kgbags)producedin2008/9 162 100 81
Vegetables(kg)producedin2008/9 0 0 80
Beans(kg) ? ? ?
Soybeans(kg) ? ? ?
Householdsthatreceivedfarminputs(2008/9) 0 40 ?
GeneralOVCcareandsupport
OVCreceivedfoodregularly(2008/9) 107 185 50
OVCreceivededucation/scholasticsupport(2008/9) 107 185 50
OVCreceivedclothes,blankets,shoes,etc.(2008/9) 107 167 261
OVCaccommodatedbytheproject(2007/8) 107 0 0
Householdsassistedwithmodernhouses(2007-8) 7 0 0
Members of VSL schemes generally acknowl-edgedthattheirknowledgeofvillagebankinglearntthroughtheCBOwasvitalandwouldimprovetheirlives.Asaresultofthiseffort,somewereplanningtobuyamaizemillandinstallitinthevillage.
Lives savedSinceGNCHenrolleditsfirstchildrenin1999,nodeathsofchildrenhadoccurred.Thisisanextraor-dinaryrecordconsideringthatthecentreadmitschil-drenwhoareusuallymalnourished,andsometimesevenveryyoung.Forexample,severalyearsagoasix-month-oldbabywastakentothecentrefollow-ingthedeathofhismother.Atthetimeofthestudy,theorphanedboywassevenyearsold,healthyandgoingtoschool.
Better accommodationChildrenenrolledatGNCHreceivegoodaccommoda-tionandmealswhichhaveimprovedtheirlivelihood
situation.Similarly,byassistingwithbuildingma-terials forhouses forsevenelderlypeople lookingafterOVC,thecentrehasenhancedthelivelihoodsituationsofthehouseholdsconcerned.
Onthebasisofeffectiveness,itcanbesaidthatthethreecasestudiessucceededindealingwiththefundamentalissuesimpactingonOVC’slivelihoodsandthereforesetagoodexampleforothers.
Efficiency
Inthisstudyreport,efficiencyhasbeenconsideredmostlyfromthecosteffectivenessperspectiveand
notcostbenefitanalysis.Acosteffectivenessanalysisattemptstoestablishtherelationshipbetweenthecostofprovidingtheservice(inputside)andtheben-efitsaccrued(outputsandoutcomes).
Table1highlightssomeoftheoutputsrealizedfrom interventions implemented by the projects.It specifies quantitative benefits or numbers of
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OVC or OVC households that benefited from theintervention.
ThefiguresdemonstratecommitmentofprojectstothereductionofproblemsfacedbyOVCbyassist-ingthemandtheirhouseholdswithbasiclivelihoodsupport.Itshouldbenotedthatthestudywasunabletoquantifyallthesupporttheprojectsprovidedtotheir targetclienteleover theyearsdue to lackofinformation;itmanagedtodocumentonlythekeyones.Itwasalsodifficulttoqualifythesupportre-ceivedbytheclientele(OVCandtheirhouseholds)duetothesporadicnatureofthesupport;butinthecaseofGNCH,wherefoodsupportwasgivendailyandsomeinformationwasavailable,anattemptwasmadetocomputetheannualcostoffeedingachildresident at the centre, asdetailed inTable2.ThecomputationisbasedonarationofnsimaandthefollowingcombinationsoffoodasstipulatedintheGNCHweeklymenu:• Meatthreetimesaweek• Vegetablessixtimesaweek• Beans/peasthreetimesaweek• Fishtwiceaweek
WhenGNCHhad107residentchildren, thecom-munityspentanestimatedK3,420,148perannumonfeedingthechildren.Thisisasubstantialfigure,andifcommunitymembershadbeenaskedtomakecashcontributionstheywouldprobablynothaveman-aged.However,sincetheyproducedmostofthefooditemsontheirown,theactualcashcontributionwasminimal.Consideringthebenefitstothechildren,thesumofUS$228.31(K31,964)perchildperyearorUS$19perchildpermonthisreasonable.Fixedassets
suchasbuildings,waterandsanitationfacilitieshavebeenomittedfromthecomputationduetothediffi-cultyofdistributingthecostovertimeagainstwide-rangingnumbersofbeneficiarychildren.
Fromthisanalysis,theonlycriticismregardingtheefficiencyofthethreecasestudiesisthatsincemostofthecareandsupportwasprovidedbythecommunity, iteliminatedtheadministrativecostsusuallyassociatedwithimplementationofprojects.Localsourcingofmostofthefoodandothermateri-alsmightalsohavereducedtransportcostsinvolvedwiththeprovisionofcareandsupporttoOVC.
Table2.TheannualcostoffeedingachildatGNCH
Fooditem Qty/child/yr Unitcost Cost/child/yr
Maize 112kg K40/kg K4,480
Vegetables 29.2kg K70/kg K2,044
Meat 29.2kg K500/kg K14,600
Beans 29.2kg K200/kg K5,840
Others(sugar,salt,tea,cookingoil,etc.) K5,000
Totalannualfoodcost K31,964(US$228.31)
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Discussionsinthesubsequentsectionsarebasedonthemodelsofchildcarethatwereusedin
thecasestudiesunderreview.Thecasestudiesiden-tifythreemodelsofchildcare.Forthepurposesofthisstudyreport,thesearenamedanddescribedasfollows:
Communityassistedhouseholdchildcare
Underthismodel,thecommunityprojectassistedhouseholdswithbasicnecessitiesasandwhen
needsarose,withintheavailableresources.Thecom-munityalsotriedtoenhancethehouseholds’op-portunitiesforself-reliance.TheOVCwerethereforedirectlyorindirectlyassistedthroughtheirrespec-tivehouseholds,andallthedecisionsandrespon-sibilities for care and support remained with thehouseholds.Thestudymakes itclearthatthisap-proachenablesthecommunityprojecttoreachouttoalargenumberofOVCwithinarelativelyshortperiodoftime.Therewaslimitedneedforextensivephysicalstructuressuchasbuildings,andthereforemoreresourceswerechannelledtothetargetgroups.However,thesupportofferedtoindividualOVCandhouseholdswassporadicandindeterminate.
TawongaandChitunguCBOswereformedaroundthecommunity-assistedhouseholdchildcare(CAHC)model.GNCHimplementedelementsofthismodel,althoughnotassystematicallyasdidtheothertwoCBOs.
Community-managedchildcare
Underthismodel, twotypesofchildcarewerepractised:
• Community-manageddaychildcare (CMDC) inthe formof community-basedchildcare centres(CBCC)–mainlyforchildrenunderfive.
• Community-managedresidentialchildcare(CMRC)intheformofchildren’shomesforchildrenupto18years.
WhiletheCMDCorCBCCapproachiswellestab-lishedandpractisedinmanycommunitiesacrossthecountry,CMRCisunique.Withinthecommunity-managedchildcare(CMC)model,theprojectspro-videdcareforchildrenatacentrallocation.Under
Models of Childcare Used in the Three Case Studies
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theCMDCmodel,childrenreceivedsomeformofeducationandweregivendaytimemeals,butresi-dential care remained the responsibility of theirhouseholds.InthecaseofCMRC,thechildrenwerebroughttothecentreandgivenallthecareandsup-porttheyneededwhichincludedaccommodation,meals,basicmedicinesorreferralstoclinics/hospi-tals,andeducational,socialandspiritualsupport.
TheCMCmodelprovidedconsistentandpredict-ablesupporttoOVC.Thecommunityfeltobligedtoprovideforthechildren,evenunderdifficultcircum-stances.Whenassistancewasprovidedcentrally,itensuredthatthechildrendirectlybenefitedfromtheassistanceanditminimizedhouseholddistributionbiasesasisusuallythecasewithCAHCmodels.Theresidentialmodelalsoensuredprovisionofotheras-pectsofcaresuchasimprovedaccommodationandeducationenvironment,regularmeals,andmedicalcare,whichmayallsometimesbeproblematicintheCAHCmodel.However,theCMCmodeltendedtobemorecostlyordifficulttoimplementduetothebuild-ingandvolunteerrequirementsnecessarytoprovidetheserviceonadailybasis.Inthecaseofresidentialchildcare,thereseemedtobelesscontactbetweenthechildrenandtheirhouseholdmembers,whichcouldinsomecasescauseproblemswithre-integrationwhenthechildrengraduatefromthecentre.Fortunately,inthisparticularcase,noproblemsofre-integrationwere
reportedbytheboysandgirlswhentheyreturnedtotheirhomesandvillages.
GNCHfallswithintheCMRCmodel,whileChi-tunguandTawongaCBOseachhadacomponentoftheCMDCorCBCCmodel.
Thediscussiononthethreemodelsofcommunitychildcareonlyattemptstohighlightsomeoftheis-sues:detailedanalysisoftheseissuesisbeyondthescopeofthisstudy.Forthisreason, it issufficienttostatethattheCAHCandtheCMDCmodelshavebeenwidelypromotedacrossthecountry,butnotusingthenomenclatureusedinthisreport.Accord-ingtothepolicyofgovernment, institutionalizedchildcare(informoforphanages)shouldbethelastresort.Inthecaseofthisstudy,CMRCwasincludedasabestpracticeinitiativeduetothecommunity’suniquecommitmenttoprovidingsuchaserviceattheirowncost.Ifinitiatedandcarefullyimplement-edbymanycommunities,CMRCmaybeanoptionthatcouldchangethelandscapeofOVCcare,andprobablyevenreducetherelatedproblemsofstreetchildren.Althoughitwouldbedifficulttocommentwithauthorityonconcernsaboutchildsafety,secu-rityandprotectionfromabuseasexpressedbysomeobservers,sincethestudydidnotincludethislevelofinvestigation,it isbelievedthatsuchissuesmaybeablyhandledbythecommunitiesastheyhavesofarbeenatGNCH.
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This reporthighlights that themost successfulinterventionshaveremainedsmallandatmicro
levelduetolackofdocumentationandsharingofles-sonsandexperiences.Bythesametoken,anumberoflivelihoodinterventionsforOVCimplementedacrossthecountryhavefailedtosurvivebeyondthreeyearsduetovariousreasons.
Thedocumentationandanalysisfromthisstudythereforeattemptstoprovidesomekeylessonsdrawnfrom the three case studies that couldbeused toimproveexistingcommunity-ledinterventions,orforsuccessfulinitiationandimplementationofnewlivelihoodsupportinterventionsforOVC.
Lessonsforscalingup
Scalingupisgenerallydescribedastheprocessofexpandingtheimpactofasuccessfuleffortbe-
yondasingleorlimitednumberofcommunitiestotheregional,nationalorevenmultinationallevel.Byextendingthebenefitsofaninitiativetomorepeo-ple,thechancesofmaximizingresourcesandinvest-mentmadeindevelopingtheapproachareincreased.Itmayalsoincreasesupportforpolicychangeandresourceallocation.
Intheprecedingsection,evidence for theout-standingperformanceofthethreecasestudieswasprovidedasargumentforreplicationbyothercom-munities.Thereareanumberoflessonsthatcouldbedrawnfromthisexperience.
Insummary,theanalysishassofardemonstratedthatifothercommunitiesneededtoinitiateandim-plementsustainableandeffectiveprojectsforsup-porting livelihoodsofOVC, the following factorswouldbecriticalandshouldbecarefullyconsidered:• Theneed todevelopcommitmentandskills for
solvinginternalconflictsandchallenges.• The need to develop internal capacity to man-
agetechnical,financialandadministrativeissueswhichwillenablethemtoeffectivelymobilizeandmanageinternalandexternalresources.
• Inculcationofaspiritofownershipandself-reli-ancewhichwillhelptosustainprovisionofsup-porttothetargetclienteleatreasonablecost.
• Theneedtoputinplacestrategiesforsustainableprovisionofservicesandbenefitstotargetclienteleand,ontheotherhand,tominimizestrategiesthat
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createdependencyonexternalassistance.• Theneedtoworkwithandthroughlocalleadership
inordertogarnersupportfromthecommunity.• Theneedfortechnicalsupportfromgovernment,
NGOanddonoragenciesinorderforCBOstoavoidcostlymistakes.
• Theneedforleadershiptobetransparentandac-countabletothemembersandthecommunityinordertogainconfidencelocallyandamongexter-nalsupportagencies.
Theseweresomeofthefactorsbehindthesustain-abilityofthethreeprojectsunderreview.Ifdiligentlyfollowedandimplemented,theguidingpointswillassisttheimplementingcommunitiestorealizethefollowingpotentialbenefitsthattheprojectsman-agedtoachieve:• PredictableaccesstofoodandnutritionbyOVC
throughouttheyear.• Predictable access to educational support and a
conduciveenvironmentforOVCtoimprovetheirlevelofeducation.
• Increasedincomeandincome-earningopportuni-tiesforOVCandOVChouseholds.
• IncreasedassetbaseforfuturelivelihoodneedsofOVC.
• OVC’sacquisitionofvitalskillsforsecuringfuturelivelihoodsandself-reliance.
• Asenseofachievementandmotivationbyimple-menterstosustaintheinitiatives.
Whattoscaleup
EffectivescalingupofasuccessfulpracticecanbedoneifNGOs,governmentagencies,communi-
ty-basedgroups,andbilateralandmultilateralagen-ciesareabletotakeuptherecommendedpractice.Thismaybeintheformofadaptationtofitvaryingprogrammecontextsorneeds.Rarelywillsuccessfulsmall-scaleinterventionsbereplicatedwithoutmodi-fication.Forthisreason,theanalysisinthisreportfocusedonelementsoftheseinterventionsthatcouldbetakentoscale.
SincetheCAHCandCMDCmodelsarealreadywidelypromoted inall thedistricts throughCBOstructuresandhaveusuallybeenundertakenasapackage,themainrecommendationistoscaleupthe
methodologyandthestrategiesdocumentedfromthecase studies.Thismightentail reviewingandrevisingtheguidelinesforinitiatingandmanagingCBOsinordertoincorporatelivelihoodaspects.FortheCMRCmodel, itspromotionasanalternativemodelofchildcarewhichcommunitiesthatfeeltheneedcouldundertakeisrecommended.Orientationofthecommunitiestothemodelsothatthoseshow-ingrealneedandinterestcouldbeassistedtoiniti-atetheirownisalsorecommended.Inallthethreemodels,implementationofspecificactivitieswillbedependentonneedandsituation.
Scaling up can be done in a number of ways:
Association:ExpandingprogrammesizeandcoveragethroughcommoneffortsandalliancesamonganetworkoforganizationssuchastheUNandPartnersAlliance.
Grafting:Addinganewprogrammetoanexistingprogramme.
Diffusion:Otherslearningfromtheapproachthroughaccesstomaterialsandcasestudiesandreplicatingtheapproach.
Planned expansion:Asteadyprocessofex-pandingthenumberofsitesforaparticularprogrammemodelonceithasbeenpilot-testedandrefined.
Explosion:Suddenimplementationofalarge-scaleprogrammeintervention,with-outanycultivationofpolicysupportorgradualorganizationaldevelopmentpriortoimplementation.
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Part 3: Potential for Scaling Up the Best Practices
Basedonthesecasestudies,thefollowingarekeyissuesforimprovement:
Integrated approach. ThetechnicalviewofOVCinter-vention,whichisalsoreflectedatcommunitylevel,ismorecompartmentalizedaccordingtotheareasofneedor interest(health,agriculture,education,etc.)andrarelyviewedfromtheperspectiveofanintegratedpackage.Forexample,CBCChousescouldhavebeeneffectivelyutilized for afternoon skillstraining forprimaryschoolageor teenageschooldropoutsratherthanonlybeingusedformorningkindergartensessions.Similarly,childrengraduatingfromGNCHcouldhavebeenengagedinaday-releaseskillstrainingprogrammeatthecentretoenhancetheir livelihoodopportunities,andtheproductsofthe trainingcouldhavebeenused for thecentre.Integrationofsuchprogrammeswouldnotonlyas-sistyouthsinacquiringvital livelihoodskills,butwouldalsobenefittheCBCCsorthechildren’shomesthroughskillstrainingby-productssuchasvegeta-bles, livestockproducts,basicfurnitureandschooluniformsthatwouldbegiventoorboughtbythecommunitiesforCBCC,OVCorHBCprogrammes.Similarly, if care and support were viewed morebroadly,thecommunitieswouldbeencouragedtointensifylocalproductionandtheprocessingofsoy-beans,fruitsandvegetables,livestockproductsandotheritemsforuseintheCBCC,OVC,HBCorschoolfeedingprogrammes.
Technical support. In the threecase studies, itwasobservedthatattimesimplementingcommunitiesmadecostlytechnicalmistakes:forexample,keep-ingrabbits inacement-flooredhousewhichmadeitdifficultfortherabbitstobreed;ornotinstallingtherighttechnologyforirrigationaswasthecaseatGNCH;orfailingtomanagedairyanimalsaswasthecasewithChitunguCBO.ThereareprobablymanymoresuchexamplesamongCBOsacrossthecountry.Althoughtechnicalerrorsare, tosomeextent, in-evitableandprobablygoodforinstitutionalgrowth,itraisesquestionsregardingtechnicalsupportthatvarioussectorsaresupposedtoprovideinsuchcom-munityinterventions.It isthereforeimportantforthedistrictassembliestoassesstechnicalsupportof-feredtocommunityinitiativesandurgetherelevant
technicaldepartmentstotakeaninterestandassistthecommunitieswherenecessary.
Role of NGOs, government and other agencies. CBOsorCMCinitiatives,NGOs,governmentandotheragen-cieshavean important role in facilitating serviceprovisiontoOVC.Inthesethreecasestudies,agen-ciesassistedbyfundingspecificinterventionswhileensuringthatthecommunitiesretainedownershipofboththeprocessofserviceprovisionandtheout-comes.Thiskindofrelationshipshouldbeenhancedinallcommunity-initiatedprojects.
Volunteerism. Itwasclearfromthestudythatthesuc-cessofCMCdependsonvolunteers’commitmenttoprovideresourcesandtime.Whilevolunteerismisthemainstrengthofsuccess,itmayalsobeitsweak-est link.Community initiativesoftenfailbecauseofvolunteer fatigue.Forexample, inmanyof theCBOsvisitedoutsidethisstudy,itwasnoticedthatCBCCsusuallyclosesessionsbetweenDecemberandJanuaryorFebruarybecauseofinadequatefoodandduetovolunteershavingtospendtimeintheirowngardens.Children,particularlyOVC,areindesper-ateneedoffoodsupport,whichmeanssuchclosurestendtodisadvantagethechildren.Forthisreason,in-kindmotivationofvolunteersmaybecrucialforsustainabilityofCBCCoranyotherOVCactivities.OneoftheCBOsinMchinjihasnotonlymanagedtomaintainthemotivationofvolunteersbutalsoenhancedfoodproductionfortheCBCCprogrammebygivingfarminputstovolunteerstoproducethecropandthenrepayanagreedamounttotheCBO.Anotherin-kindincentiveforvolunteersistoengagethevolunteersinincomegeneratingactivitiesand/orinvolvetheminVSL.
Key Issues for Improvement
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Recommendations
Thefollowingaresomespecificrecommendationsonscalinguplivelihood-basedsocialprotection
forOVC:
1. The Ministry of Gender, Children and Community Development, in collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development, should serious-ly consider strengthening the livelihoods component as the VSL National Plan of Action for OVC is being reviewed and once the social support policy has been approved and implementation programmes are being made, by among other things:
• Considering designing functional linkages be-tweenOVCinterventionsandagriculturalexten-sionservicesforefficientuseoftheinputsubsidyprogrammeinordertoincreasetheirself-relianceandsustainabilityofbenefits.
• Integrating relevant and market-oriented skillsbuildingmoresystematicallyintoOVCprogram-ming,especiallyforolderOVC.
2. NGOs, government and donor agencies supporting CBOs or any such community initiatives should pro-vide loan incentives (farm inputs or cash) to volunteers for production investment which could be repaid to the CBO in the form of food items or other materials for use in CBCC, OVC, HBC or school feeding programmes.
3. The Ministry of Gender, Children and Community De-velopment should develop a detailed plan of action and time scale for implementing lessons learnt from the study. For example:
• Developmentofalivelihood-basedsocialprotec-tionguide.
• Developmentofalivelihood-basedsocialprotec-tiontrainingmanual.
• Orientationtrainingfordistrictsocialwelfareof-ficersanddistricttrainingteams.
• Systematicreviewoftheexistinginterventionsinordertostrengththelivelihoodscomponent.
• Identif ication and training of communityinitiators/facilitators.
4. Communities and NGOs currently implementing or planning to initiate OVC livelihoods support pro-grammes should incorporate VSL schemes. Where feasible, incorporate the social cash transfer scheme
within the context of VSL to assist the OVC households that cannot afford to raise money for savings.
5. NGOs, government and donor agencies should enhance and continue to facilitate training, technical support and provision of resources to community initiated and managed childcare projects in order to support effec-tive management.
6. New and existing programmes should consider im-plementing OVC programmes as a holistic childcare package integrating protection (from deprivation and destitution), prevention (from sliding back into depri-vation and destitution) and promotion of livelihoods for self-reliance.
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Part 3: Potential for Scaling Up the Best Practices
Potentialpolicyandfinancialsupport
TheMalawiGovernmentfullyrecognizestheneedtoupliftthelivelihoodsofOVCthroughvarious
policies,strategiesandlegalinstruments.The2003NationalPolicyonOrphansandotherVulnerableChildren,theoverarchinggoalofwhichis“tofa-cilitate support for care,protection, anddevelop-mentofOVCinacoordinatedmannerinordertoprovidethemwithanenvironmentinwhichtheyrealizetheirfullrightsandpotentials”,atteststothiscommitment.TheNationalPlanofActionforOVC2005-2009hasimprovedfundingopportunitiesandenhancedresponsiveactionforOVCinterventionsbygovernmentanditspartners.TheplancommitstheGovernmentofMalawitotakingpracticalstepsthatwouldensurethattherightsofallOVCarefullymet.Onepracticalstepistoimplementstrategiesthatpro-tect,enhanceandsustainthelivelihoodsopportuni-tiesandcapabilitiesoftheOVC.ThisimpliesthatastheNationalPlanofActionisbeingreviewedandtheSocialSupportPolicyabouttobeapprovedforimplementation,strategiesforsustainablelivelihoodsforOVCshouldbeseriouslyconsideredandgivenpriority.Lessonsfromthestudyshowthatcommu-nitiescanonlydosomuchontheirown:withoutstrongsupportforagriculturalproduction,incomegenerationandeducationfromgovernmentandoth-eragencies,suchassistancetoOVCwillusuallybeindeterminateandunsustainable.
This,therefore,justifiestheneedtoconsiderop-portunitiesforscalinguplessonsfromcasestudieswithappealfor.
Technicalfeasibility
Technically,thescaling-upapproachrecommend-ed in this study is feasible considering that it
proposesusingexistingmechanismsandstructures.Districtsocialwelfareofficersarefullyconversantwiththeapproaches,andnearlyeverydistricthasastrongteamoftechnicalexpertsinareassuchasag-riculture,education,communityservicesandhealth.Anunderstandingandappreciationofthelessonsdrawnfromthestudyarevital.
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