The project is about improving the nutritional status of 200 vulnerable children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS aged between 0 to 5 years old by promoting and supporting kitchen gardening using indigenous vegetables and fruits and also pig rearing in 50 poor resource households in Malawi. These indigenous crops are more nutritious and withstand adverse weather conditions and the pigs grow and multiply faster. The project will take place in Thandazga community in Mzuzu, northern Malawi.
Severe acute under nutrition among under 5 children is still a major challenge in Thandazga according to the records from Nkhorongo health centre in the area which contributes to poor development of children. Ignorance of diet diversification skills, lack of resources and also lack of low cost farming techniques contributes to seriousness of the problem. The households experience low crop production yearly and also fail to meet the cost of food, education and health care of their families.
The project will train the beneficiary households on how to establish and operate kitchen gardens, pig rearing and how to make compost manure. 50 kitchen gardening kits containing assorted seeds, banana suckers, medicinal and pest control plants and 50 piglets will be procured and distributed to 50 households that host the vulnerable children in the area. Surplus harvest will be sold and Village Savings and Loans (VSL) will be initiated to boost the economic status of the households.
This project will enable more than 200 vulnerable children from the poor resource households boost their nutritional status since they will diversify their diets through resources from the garden. This will also improve their health and well being. The beneficiary households will be able to expand their gardens after harvest as the crops produce seeds, bananas produce suckers and pigs produce more piglets. Some of these will be collected and be shared to the next households in the community.
