Project Updates - Part IV

Kamp Kwacha
Frodo, Sparkly Eyes and I are planning to conduct a business training camp for 25 Form 3 and Form 4 students in August. For the past two months we have been planning the curriculum, designing the schedule, and securing financing for the camp. Though we originally planned to fund from PCPP, we decided to fund instead from VAST. Our camp, which we have endearingly named Kamp Kwacha, does have a major focus on HIV/AIDS prevention and targets a very crucial age group. Income generation and self-sufficiency are important areas to develop among these students, especially girls. I have just finished writing the grant and putting together the budget for George. The camp will be five days hosted at the Jonah Mission in Senga Bay. I haven’t seen the location myself, but Frodo said it’s a beautiful lakeshore location and has all the facilities we need to host classes and guest speakers. He also said the staff is wonderful and very friendly. We have a preliminary list of ten volunteers with business backgrounds to serve as counselors. The students will be invited from all over Malawi and they will face a screening process that tests competency in English as well as entrepreneurial spirit. We chose to target this age group because they are in process of preparing for life post-secondary school. Very few will go on to university and most will end up with some menial job or farming. Small-business can be the key to living a better life and all they need are the skills to run a business. Many organizations do superficial business skills training in Malawi, including Peace Corps. However, our goal with this camp is to take it a step further and teach more advanced concepts. Over the course of five days we hope to instill a solid business understanding and inject some national pride and creativity in the students. Tall order but we are confident. First and foremost, cross our fingers and pray the funding gets approved.

50th Anniversary
Peace Corps turns 50 this year, in September to be exact. The Malawi office, along with the U.S. Embassy is planning a list of celebratory activities for this year. A committee was formed tasked with undertaking this mammoth project which includes things from a party, to t-shirts, pins, documentaries, and a coffee table book. I am on this committee and was charged with the video portion of the project. Starting with March 1st, the first video deadline and when JFK spoke at Michigan, I have to complete short videos about PCVs in Malawi and their work. The collection email was sent out last week and we wait for submissions of video, music, and pictures. Of course, the problem is I’m in my village, the content is in Lilongwe and I have no means to edit. Luckily, Lois brought her Mac loaded with all the necessary software, so I will have to journey to Lilongwe each month to edit videos and have them ready for the Embassy. This could be a fun project, I haven’t edited in so long, but I worry of the travel and time constraint away from site. I hope it does not affect other project work.

VAC - Freasurer
Last September I was elected to VAC. Last month VAC made the move to combine the Treasurer and Fundraiser positions on the Executive Committee. This was mainly because the transit houses were closed and the VAC lost its funding source along with the ability to control its own funding account. With a heavily reduced income source, now primarily t-shirt sales, there was no need for two positions. Both the current Treasurer and Fundraiser were due to COS in the next few months and elections were held for the combined position. I was elected to this position that we have jokingly titled Freasurer. The position’s responsibilities include managing VAC funds, bookkeeping and maintaining records, and overseeing t-shirt production and sales. T-shirt sales were a default fundraising scheme once the transit houses closed. The interesting part of the position will be overhauling fundraising activities and devising clever alternatives to raise money. Fortunately it is the 50th Anniversary and this provides an ample source of merchandise and much bigger market that extends to the U.S. The main purpose of VAC funds is to sponsor volunteer projects in Malawi and pay for PCV events.