{"id":15241,"date":"2022-11-04T12:50:57","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T12:50:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/?p=15241"},"modified":"2022-11-04T12:51:01","modified_gmt":"2022-11-04T12:51:01","slug":"powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/","title":{"rendered":"Powering towards a brighter future in Malawi"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The introduction of solar-powered water systems in village communities across Malawi not only helped protect lives during the COVID-19 pandemic but also transformed the quality of life of those using them.

More than 200,000 people now have access to 18 systems we have installed with UNICEF funding. Among them is 46-year-old Lufina, from Chilobwev village in Lilongwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was hard,\u201d she said, regarding life before the water system. \u201cWe used to get water from the community clinic\u2019s borehole, which was salty, muddy and unpleasant. So in a quest to find clean and safe water we would walk mile-long distances, where so much time would be wasted just for water every day.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFortunately, our village never registered a COVID-19 case. By the time our neighbouring village had registered a case, we already had the water system with nine taps and training sessions on good hygiene practices were already in progress. I am therefore certain that early preparations and prevention were key and saved us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the installation of the water system, the community clinic\u2019s salty borehole presented an additional health hazard for hundreds of patients who presented with chronic illnesses requiring limited salt intake, such as high blood pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Community clinic nurse, Stella Manda, says the solar-powered water system has supported patients with chronic illnesses.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Stella Manda, Chilobwe\u2019s Health Centre nurse, said before the water systems were installed these patients who needed water to take life-saving medication often faced delays in doing so because of the salt levels in the clinic\u2019s water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOver 500 patients a month, especially those with chronic illnesses like high blood pressure who require instant medication, would be sent back or have to wait for someone to bring them safe water,\u201d Stella said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is because\u00a0such diseases require low or zero intake of salt. We could not compromise that. It was life threatening. Unfortunately, we had no choice but to request either bottled water or just unsalted water.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There have been economic benefits from the water system\u2019s introduction, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To support future maintenance costs of the water systems, we have supported  communities like Lufina\u2019s and Stella\u2019s to establish village savings and loans associations, known locally as \u2018Bank M\u2019nkhonde\u2019. These associations  have had a transformative effect on the whole community, particularly female entrepreneurs who often find it difficult to access the same credit and financial support as men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Selina owns a cloth business and has used a small loan through the village loans and savings association to increase her business income.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Cloth entrepreneur and mother-of-four Selina, 38, was able to invest a small loan into her business, increasing and reinvesting the profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have now bought iron sheets, which I intend to use to roof my house next year,\u201d she said. \u201cI also opened a small tomato garden in my compound and I tap water from the system to the garden. I no longer have to buy tomatoes for my cooking. I am happy.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through our partner organisation, United Purpose, we are one of Malawi\u2019s largest NGOs, working in partnership with local government and communities, including to develop strategic district-wide WASH plans and help map tens of thousands of water points to support evidence-based decision making.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Solar-powered water systems across Malawi helped protect lives during the pandemic and also improved the quality of life for many too.<\/p>\n Read More<\/a>","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":15242,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[677,637,874],"tags":[1009],"yoast_head":"\nPowering towards a brighter future in Malawi - Self Help Africa UK<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Solar-powered water systems across Malawi helped protect lives during the pandemic and also improved the quality of life for many too.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Powering towards a brighter future in Malawi\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Solar-powered water systems across Malawi helped protect lives during the pandemic and also improved the quality of life for many too.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Self Help Africa UK\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SelfHelpAfrica\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-11-04T12:50:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-11-04T12:51:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/DSC_0031-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Self Help Africa\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@comms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@selfhelpafrica\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Self Help Africa\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Self Help Africa\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/#\/schema\/person\/ef27df5dc9e961797418d7a8bf315404\"},\"headline\":\"Powering towards a brighter future in Malawi\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-11-04T12:50:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-11-04T12:51:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\"},\"wordCount\":545,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/DSC_0031-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"solar power\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Malawi\",\"News\",\"Technology\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/selfhelpafrica.org\/uk\/powering-towards-a-brighter-future-in-malawi\/\",\"name\":\"Powering towards a brighter future in Malawi - 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