• Since 1996, DAPP Malawi has been actively improving livelihoods and communities in need across Malawi through its social development projects.

  • DAPP is implementing 16 projects within education, health, agriculture and community development in 24 districts that span across the country's three regions

Case Story: Fedson Selewin

Fedson Selewin is a 33 year old business man based in Lilongwe where he is currently plying his steel furniture manufacturing business in Mchesi area in Lilongwe city. He was trained at DAPP Mikolongwe Vocational School in Welding and Fabrication between the years 2009 and 2010.
“When I joined the coursee I had only acquired my Malawi School Certificate of Education certificate in Mulanje district, my home district. I was among beneficiaries from Mulanje who were identified by an organisation known as ECPP to be supported with scholarships for training in vocation skills at DAPP Mikolongwe and at this time I had no idea what welding and fabrication involved, he said.

Fedson Selewin

Fedson Selewin

Selewin  Maize Mills

Selewin Maize Mills

At DAPP Mikolongwe, welding and fabrication students are taught how to manufacture steel products like window and door frames according to different designs as demanded by customers.
Following his training from Mikolongwe, Selewin said he went back to Mulanje where he did attachments around Tea estates in the district but he later moved to Lilongwe to work at a company that manufactures maize mills. He worked with the company for about two years and later joined Steel Base Furniture company where he worked for 4 years.

“Through the experience gained in these two companies I started doing part time jobs like producing door and window frames while I was still working with Steel Base until 2016 when I decided to quit the job and start my own business, in 2017 I did hit the road with the business. My focus has been to produce steel furniture whereby steel materials are combined with wood or other materials to produce furniture that ranges from classroom desks, office desks, and beds for hospitals, schools or home use. In addition we have now started producing milling machines to have a range of products and I also have another workshop in Area 49 where we produce windows and door frames for customers who need these products,” explained Selewin.
Fed Steel and Engineering, is an established businesses that currently employs up 9 people on full time basis.

“The company has 9 people employed on full time basis but sometimes we outsource labour on temporary basis,” he said.
Selewin indicated that the business is growing and they are able to supply products to big organisations like the European Union and Plan International who buy steel furniture for schools among other. On average, Fed Steel and Engineering makes a profit of 4 million Malawi kwacha monthly.

At a personal level he said he has managed to buy 3 plots of land and built a house, and established a farm where he is reading pigs and chickens.
Selewin works with youth who have also benefitted through hid skills and coaching in the workshops. He said he would like to see his fellow youth soar in the technical and vocational skills trade.

He said more than 20 people from his home district, in Mulanje, have learnt about welding and fabrication through his company and that in the next 3 years he wish to have worked with at least 50 youth who can as well become independent. With his business registered and contributing to the economy through taxation and as a registers business they are recognized and able to work with companies, institution and organisations.
Mikolongwe Vocational school was established in 1997 to equip youth with technical, vocational and entrepreneurial skills for them to be able to secure an employment or establish a small scale business. The school has to date trained more than 10,600 youth.

 

Case Story – John Banda

John Banda (not real name) is a business man who runs a hair dressing saloon at Msundwe Trading centre in Lilongwe district. He said has a successful saloon business as he is able to get customers on a daily basis in his shop.
“Some days are busier than others as the number of people that come to get their hairs done is never constant while some days we have blackouts,” he explained.
However, with the coming of Covid-19 pandemic, small or medium businesses have been affected and John’s saloon is not an exception. He said the number of people coming to get their hair done has gone down but they are still operating.

The bucket is strategically placed where people around the salon can use

The bucket is strategically placed where people around the salon can use

Banda bought a wooden stand for the bucket and ensures that soap is available for washing hands

Banda bought a wooden stand for the bucket and ensures that soap is available for washing hands


In response to the pandemic, in order to reduce the spread and chances of contracting the coronavirus, DAPP Malawi through Humana People to People Spain received funds from a Swiss charitable foundation to carry out an intervention that responds to Covid-19. These funds were used to procure handwashing buckets, tablets of soap and produce posters and carrying information on Covid-19 prevention.
The activities were carried out in DAPP Child Aid Dedza Project and 15 other districts of Blantyre, Neno, Mangochi, Chikwawa, Nsanje, Lilongwe, Kasungu, Ntchisi, Dowa, Machinga, Mangochi, Ntcheu, Zomba, Mulanje and Chiradzulu targeting to reach over 10,000 people.
John was among the beneficiaries who received a bucket for handwashing, tablets of soap and posters. He prepared a stand for the hand washing facility which is strategically placed outside his shop and is accessible to his customers, people operating their businesses around his saloon and passers-by.
According to Banda, over 50 people wash their hands using the sanitary facility on a daily basis and the facility has improved the hygiene behaviour since are becoming aware of Covid-19 with posters also available at the saloon.
However, he said their main challenge is enforcing the use of facemasks since some customers say they cannot afford to buy facemasks.
To reach out to as many people through the intervention 300 buckets for handwashing were distributed and placed in strategic points like market entrances, maize mills, bicycle taxis ranks and hair saloons among others.

 

Passionate for her Learners - Temwa

Temwa Chilenga is a teacher at Chambu Primary school in Dzedza education zone in Lilongwe rural district who was trained at DAPP Dowa Teacher Training College in Dowa district.
She joined the teaching profession in 2015. Since taking her career path she has been actively involved not only in teaching but in community engagements while targeting school going children.
“I am a teacher at Chambu school and during my teaching career, I identified 53 learners from and around Ndodani village in Traditional Authority (T/A) Chitukula who dropped out from school due to lack or learning resources and money to pay as school development funds contributions” said Temwa.
Following the closure of schools by the Malawi government due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Temwa took an initiative to follow up on the learners she helped return and remain in school.

A classroom set up under a tree shelter

A classroom set up under a tree shelter

Temwa teaching

Temwa teaching


“I took it to myself that I need to keep these learners busy while they stayed home. Usually they go around in the township collecting plastic bottles or whatever they can lay their hands on to resale and make money,” she explained.
In order to keep the learners busy, Temwa decided to engage them in school work through delivering lessons to the learners three times in a week, then using the other two days for assessment and marking their work.
“What I have been doing is preparing lessons and tasks which I go around pasting in walls around the village for the learners to come and copy the work then I collect their work the following days to mark. I have seen this to be effective and eventually more children from the area started showing interest to join the sessions. You would notice there are five of us supporting these children now, two of them are my sisters who are in secondary school while the two others are my fellow teachers from the school,” she added.
Temwa started her initiative for the 53 learners which she took under her care. Fast forward with other learners showing interest in the learning exercise, there are over 170 children that have been coming to joinr the lessons.
“I never expected that there would be so many children flocking to this place for the lessons, that is why I asked my fellow teachers and my sisters to come in and lend a hand. So basically what we are now doing is to have short learning sessions under the trees for shelter” she said.
Temwa and her colleagues prepare lessons which are presented on flipchart papers and pasted around the village for the learners.
She says it is her desire to keep the children busy while schools have closed other than idling.

Case Story: Elizabeth Makhaya

Elizabeth Makhaya is one of the students undergoing the training at Chilangoma Teacher Training College.
I have been affected by the closure of the education institution following the Covid-19 pandemic. When the schools closed I was in my teaching practice semester at Nasonjo primary school for 3 months where I was teaching in standard 5 with an enrollment of 72 learners.

Elizabeth washing hands

Elizabeth washing hands

Elizabeth working on school tasks

Elizabeth working on school tasks


Nonetheless, the closure of schools did not stop me from continued learning. I have been revising and solving tasks from our previous term at the college from the School Experience Journal. Back in school we were trained to be drivers in our education that is why I am still able to solve these tasks without a lecturer’s supervision.
Apart from working on my academic work, I have also taken the role of sensitizing the people around my village of the risks that the coronavirus poses and also the preventive measures.
Door to door sensitizations and through regular interaction, I have been encouraging the people around me wash hands frequently, observe social distance and whenever possible to at stay home while I practice the same.
It is obvious that in our community there are some people that do not believe that Coronavirus is real.

Case Stories: Chifundo Milonda

Based in Area 24 in Lilongwe district, Chifundo Milonda has been a dedicated DAPP Clothes and Shoes Lilongwe store customer for the past 2 years.

“I like doing my shopping here as the customer service is great. When you are welcomed and helped appropriately, the chances of back are very high” she exclaimed with a smile

Found a bag she likes article

Chifundo goes on to mention that her favorite day to shop is on Mondays as it is the day that new stock comes in. “ I usually come to do my shopping twice a month and I make sure that it’s on Mondays. I must also commend DAPP on the quality of clothes sold in the store. It is really good quality and affordable” she said

Because everything is in one place, Chifundo lamented on how convenient that is for her “I sometimes come with my children and friends here and I find it’s convenient because you can get everything one needs here” said Chifundo.

Her favorite things to get are shoes and bed sheets “I am fond of these two things. Though sometimes I can’t find my size which is an 8. I would plead with DAPP to please stock up on big shoe sizes for people like me” she said

DAPP Malawi has been implementing the Second Hand Clothes & Shoes Project for 25 years and it contributes to the various developmental projects being implemented by DAPP Malawi in Agriculture, Health, Community Development and Education

 

 

 

Members of Humana People to People

hpp logowww.humana.org

Contact DAPP Malawi

DAPP Malawi
Plot No. CC 1086, Maselema, Limbe
Blantyre District, Malawi

Cell: +265885834277

Comment or queries on the website: