Mwandama Millennium Village Cluster

What Is A Millennium Village?

Millennium Promise believes that the key to ending extreme poverty is a comprehensive, community-led, sustainable approach that addresses all the root causes of poverty simultaneously, including food, water, health, basic education, and infrastructure. Find out more about the Millennium Village Project.

Where is it?

The Mwandama village cluster is located in the Southern Region of Malawi’s Zomba District, which is located close to the eastern part of the Upper Shire River. The area is 24 km from the Southern city of Zomba, between 900 – 1200 m above sea level. The cluster includes the villages of Mwandama, Chilumpha, Ciunda, Kamalo, Kutambala, Mlumbe and Potan.

What is their agriculture like?

• Smallholder crops: maize, pulses, groundnuts, cassava, pigeon peas, sweet potatoes.
• The average land holding size per farming family is 0.55 hectares, which is insufficient to produce enough food for a farming family of 5 – 6 members.
• Main soils are Alfisols (Ferric Luvisols), originally fertile but currently grossly depleted of nitrogen.
• Rainfall is becoming increasingly erratic as the proven consequence of global warming in Southern Africa, the only region in the world where higher temperatures are accompanied by decreasing rainfall.

How easy is it to get around and to go to markets?

• The village is about 7 km from the main road, which is a dirt road but motorable.
• Villagers rarely have access to vehicles.

How about the education system?

• Children walk 7 km each way to attend schools that have no furniture and few basic supplies.

What is their infrastructure like?

• Connections and Telephones: There are no phones in Mwandama (although mobiles work there).
• Energy: There is no electricity, causing villagers to scrounge for firewood from nearby estates.
• Water: There is no source of clean water. It is undrinkable without boiling and comes from a muddy, unprotected spring.

How is the health situation in the villages?

• There is no healthcare facility in Mwandama Village and the nearest clinic is a 7 km walk from the village.
• Close to 90% of the people in the Mwandama area live on less than $1/day.
• 40% of the children less than 5 years are under weight and malnourished.
• Recurrent famines are common.
• Stomach ailments occur frequently due to contaminated water sources.

What are the main challenges?

• Traditional storage granaries in the area are very susceptible to weevils and rodents, resulting in a loss of up to 23% of harvest yields.
• Farmers typically allow maize to dry in the field, where the drying process is prolonged and exposes the maize to moisture. This leads to rotting and can cause the maize to accumulate aflatoxin, which is dangerous for human consumption.
• The lack of infrastructure in the village area is linked to many problems.
• The repeated famines of the area caused by extreme poverty, land degradation and droughts have undermined many development efforts.
• The multiplicity of actors will require careful coordination and constant communication both locally and at the district level.

What's happened so far?

As of Summer of 2006, Millenium Promise gives us these updates:

• Farmers have been trained on post harvest technologies, including the construction of drying cribs and storage granaries. The drying crib is a new technology which facilitates the drying of maize, allowing it to be well aerated and prevents rotting. The next planting season will be in October and November.
• A health coordinator has been hired and is now in place. Remaining staff members are in the process of being hired.
• A census has been completed and the data will be used for various surveys going forward.

Source: Millenium Promise