Easing mobility with farming
Isaac Chirwa, 41, pastor of Baptist church in Malawi did not have even a push-bike for easy mobility when conducting church activities.
The pastor had to use public transport or indeed wait for the church to arrange one for him and his family.
“I did not have any transport facility to enable me carry out church assignments easily. The church was burdened to organise one for me. Alternatively, my family and I had to use public transport,” says Chirwa.
But when Chirwa attended the Biblical Empowered World View (BEWV) training that World Vision organized for Kachere Pastors Fraternal members in 2022, his mind simmered with ideas on how he could solve his mobility challenges.
“When World Vision took us to a five-day training, I began challenging my mind on the possible ways I could use to ease up my mobility challenges,” explains Chirwa.
Determined to change his household, Chirwa with the support of his wife, 30 year old Lucy Banda engaged in serious rice and pig farming.
“After the training, I told my wife that we needed to engage an extra gear in our farming ventures. So I bought two pigs and scaled up rice farming towards the end of 2022 after the training,” he says.
By 2023, Isaac and Lucy had bumper rice yields and over 20 pigs. Increased proceeds from pig and rice farming have enabled the family purchase a motorbike for Mk 750,000($441) as well as furnish their dwelling house with a cement floor and currently on fitting it with electric cables in a bid to have it connected to electricity.
“After the training, Lucy and I intensified our farming. We scaled up our rice farming. By mid-year of 2023, we had over MK 2,000,000 ($1,176) from rice sales and over Mk 650, 000 ($382) from pig sales respectively. I used some of the money to buy a motorbike for Mk 750,000($441) to ease up mobility challenges, part of it to furnish my house and reinvested some of it in rice farming,” adds Chirwa.
Lucy currently is happy that her household has made a financial breakthrough as she and her husband are now able to support their children with basic needs.
“Currently our livelihood has greatly improved as we are even able to support our four children with basic school needs. We are even able to inspire our church members to do better and promote the word of God with our blessings,” says Lucy.
13-year-old Judith is the family’s firstborn child. She is currently in grade seven. Judith says she previously did not receive enough support from her parents due to financial challenges. Today she is proud that her parents can provide her with enough support to be in school.
“When I was in grade five, life was tougher at school as my parents could not even afford note books and pens for me. But now, after my father went to the World Vision training, he brought in ideas that have changed our home, and I now eat well, dress well and go to school with joy,” explains the aspiring teacher.