With the help of several staff members (thank you Betty and Elaton) and five grueling, miserable days of fighting, Henry's package is finally in my hands. The incident is so corrupted and convoluted that I care not to bring it up anymore. However, I am so very thankful for Betty and Elaton, for many reasons, especially getting the package. For all future packages that may be sent from the bright place known as America, please, please, mark the value of the box as equal to or less than $100.
And thank you to Henry, Erin and my family for the awesome package. Mostly Henry. I could not ask for a more wonderful set of gifts.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Thursday, March 31, 2011
POW-WOW!
Wellesley's PCPP grant is up online, it is for an awesome project building a women's center in her village Kawaza. The center will strive for both women's empowerment and protection of the local forests. Anyone that can help, please see the following Peace Corps page and donate. Thanks.
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=614-227
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=614-227
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Charcoal Drawn Skies
Strange dreams woke me at 4 am this morning. I found myself recovering from another world in the corner bed of Dorm 1. It was still dark out, the streets were quiet and the halls of Mufasas breathed a silent breeze after another late night. A Japanese tourist and Wellesley were snoring lightly. I got up discreetly, grabbing my toothbrush, toothpaste and iPod, trying not to wake anyone else. The hallways were pitch black, faint rays of light filtered from the bathrooms. A large rat scurried from the kitchen cross the hallway into the bathroom, returning to its cardboard shelter in the middle stall. I took my time brushing my teeth and spent over a half hour just standing under the warm waterfall shower. My muscles melted in the hot water, my bones were warming and a sense of morning peace grew over me. Pulling on a shirt and a pair of jeans, I grabbed my bag, plugged my ears to Vampire Weekend and walked into the dawn lit street.
It was chilly outside, the sort of chill that in Malawi translates into a scorching afternoon. A couple of mini-buses drove by on their morning routes, but the streets were empty. There was not a sound otherwise. Not a spray of dust, clouds of exhaust nor aggressive street vendors. You spend so much time looking down in Lilongwe, or in any city for that matter, that you forget all else. This seems translate into all aspects of city life, a stressful faith in the microscopic in front of you, everyone under a lens. Surviving this bustle, battling traffic and life with the same aggression and coming out the other end appearing unscathed is a cause for admiration. In that same sense, time also becomes microscopic and hours become minutes, minutes become seconds. But while the cosmopolitan citizens slumber a recovery from another long night of fulfilling social obligations in pursuit of once innocent dreams, the city breathes. Its roads cool, the trees gently shed a day’s pollution into the winds and the birds reclaim their branches.
Turning the corner, passing under the trees rooted in cement circles, light filtered over the streets. The skies brightened as I made my way up the steps and a formation of birds flying overhead caught my eye. I looked up and was instead caught by a beautiful sunrise. The clouds were drawn on to the grand sky with a colored charcoal, glowing a light gold and some still pink. There was a wide diversity of clouds all drawn with the granular strokes of charcoal on paper with smudges of grays and blues. Signs of an artist’s hand were evident everywhere. The sun was hidden behind a large blue PTC and Standard Bank, but once passed the entire sky opened up. By the time I reached the barren tree in the parking lot of the new mall, the view was mesmerizing. I slowed my pace, a taboo in any city, and let the morning Lilongwe soak into my skin. My general loathing for this city seemed to have temporarily vanished and I felt transported to another time when Lilongwe was a much different place. A time before large shopping centers, before roads, going back, back in time to fields of villages and animals. Forests of trees covered the land and the names of chiefs were reserved for villages and not two-story buildings. A quiet time.
It was such a brief moment, as if in a flash of dawn light everything vanished. A brief, microscopic moment in this city, which could be lifetime anywhere else.
Transient places in a transient place, I leave for Dedza tomorrow. The new group arrived last month and their PST is underway. I am assigned to Week 3 and will be teaching village economics and small-business development to the trainees. I’m looking forward to returning to Dedza and enjoying the comforts of home stay for a week. Having a host family, three square meals a day (and a packed snack for class), hot water baths and the beautiful serenity of a Dedza village. I will return on Thursday for a VAC meeting and hopefully return to the Mwazisi by the end of the month.
It was chilly outside, the sort of chill that in Malawi translates into a scorching afternoon. A couple of mini-buses drove by on their morning routes, but the streets were empty. There was not a sound otherwise. Not a spray of dust, clouds of exhaust nor aggressive street vendors. You spend so much time looking down in Lilongwe, or in any city for that matter, that you forget all else. This seems translate into all aspects of city life, a stressful faith in the microscopic in front of you, everyone under a lens. Surviving this bustle, battling traffic and life with the same aggression and coming out the other end appearing unscathed is a cause for admiration. In that same sense, time also becomes microscopic and hours become minutes, minutes become seconds. But while the cosmopolitan citizens slumber a recovery from another long night of fulfilling social obligations in pursuit of once innocent dreams, the city breathes. Its roads cool, the trees gently shed a day’s pollution into the winds and the birds reclaim their branches.
Turning the corner, passing under the trees rooted in cement circles, light filtered over the streets. The skies brightened as I made my way up the steps and a formation of birds flying overhead caught my eye. I looked up and was instead caught by a beautiful sunrise. The clouds were drawn on to the grand sky with a colored charcoal, glowing a light gold and some still pink. There was a wide diversity of clouds all drawn with the granular strokes of charcoal on paper with smudges of grays and blues. Signs of an artist’s hand were evident everywhere. The sun was hidden behind a large blue PTC and Standard Bank, but once passed the entire sky opened up. By the time I reached the barren tree in the parking lot of the new mall, the view was mesmerizing. I slowed my pace, a taboo in any city, and let the morning Lilongwe soak into my skin. My general loathing for this city seemed to have temporarily vanished and I felt transported to another time when Lilongwe was a much different place. A time before large shopping centers, before roads, going back, back in time to fields of villages and animals. Forests of trees covered the land and the names of chiefs were reserved for villages and not two-story buildings. A quiet time.
It was such a brief moment, as if in a flash of dawn light everything vanished. A brief, microscopic moment in this city, which could be lifetime anywhere else.
Transient places in a transient place, I leave for Dedza tomorrow. The new group arrived last month and their PST is underway. I am assigned to Week 3 and will be teaching village economics and small-business development to the trainees. I’m looking forward to returning to Dedza and enjoying the comforts of home stay for a week. Having a host family, three square meals a day (and a packed snack for class), hot water baths and the beautiful serenity of a Dedza village. I will return on Thursday for a VAC meeting and hopefully return to the Mwazisi by the end of the month.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Remixes in the Waz
To begin commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Peace Corps, the U.S. Embassy requested that I put together a video for each month of this year of various volunteers in Malawi. So here is my first of a series of videos produced: Wellesley's Reforestation Remix.
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=195969923761290&oid=160841183603&comments
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=195969923761290&oid=160841183603&comments
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
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.
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.
Project Updates - Part III
Women’s Group
The Women’s Group has lost some momentum over the last two months. The main reasons being that I was away and all the women are busy tending to tobacco. They made over Mk. 3,000 from jam sales last year, a great figure for a business they just started. Also, the women planted the CG-7 groundnuts this year so that we would not have to buy more when we begin oil pressing again. Fortunately, TLC has promised us two more presses which will increase our production. With the EPA office almost completed we will be able to move all our supplies and have a central location for meetings. Over the next month I hope to make the stamps and labels for the jam bottles to begin expanding the market for selling. Wellesley designed a lovely logo that will serve as the group logo and be part of a large mural on the EPA’s northern wall. Otherwise, there are some other ideas we are floating about for businesses. The group has been successful but the lack of self-sufficiency worries me. They have funds, members and resources to continue but the problem is they are not generating enough money yet. We will keep pushing until the businesses are more established and perhaps we will reach a point where they are generating enough profit to make it worthwhile to operate these businesses full-time.
M24
The road from Rumphi boma all the way up to Chitipa is horrendous to say the least. It is the infamous back road to Chitipa and is the shortest distance between the two bomas. The only problem is that it is the worst road in Malawi and gets progressively worse the further you travel, the worst of which begins after Chilenda camp. Currently, the only way to get to Chitipa safely and timely is to travel around Nyika, through Karonga and then west to the boma. This is a longer distance but really the only option. The entire stretch of the back road measures about 224km. The portion closest to Chitipa is nearly impassible with gaping cracks and dangerous cliffs. The portion from Rumphi boma to the Mwazisi turnoff (basically Chitanga) is labeled M24 on the road network map. This is the portion that Wellesley and I hope to get paved. The entire road is currently under analysis by the Arab Development Bank, they hope to pave all 224km of the back road. The initial and economic reports have been completed but there has been an issue with completing the feasibility study. Due to internal disagreements the project has been put on hold for an unknown period of time and it could be years before any progress is made. Thus, we have undertaken the task of finding funding for the unpaved 40km segment of M24. This segment faces the heaviest traffic and is economically a vital area. All the main villages run along this road and these villages have access to electricity. While in Lilongwe, we met with the Roads Authority’s chief engineer and collected all the current reports on this road. He was an incredibly helpful and well-spoken man that showed us designs for a cheaper road that is just as strong. We were able to reduce the cost estimate from $600,000 per km to $200,000. This puts the total cost at roughly $8 million to pave the M24. Now the hard part: funding. Once we complete further research we hope to begin shopping a small proposal to various donors, corporations, and embassies in hopes of slowly selling each portion of the road. $8 million is a large sum, but when broken up it amounts to a minute portion of donor budgets. We are fully aware we will not pave this road before our time ends, but we can at least put the wheels in motion.
The Women’s Group has lost some momentum over the last two months. The main reasons being that I was away and all the women are busy tending to tobacco. They made over Mk. 3,000 from jam sales last year, a great figure for a business they just started. Also, the women planted the CG-7 groundnuts this year so that we would not have to buy more when we begin oil pressing again. Fortunately, TLC has promised us two more presses which will increase our production. With the EPA office almost completed we will be able to move all our supplies and have a central location for meetings. Over the next month I hope to make the stamps and labels for the jam bottles to begin expanding the market for selling. Wellesley designed a lovely logo that will serve as the group logo and be part of a large mural on the EPA’s northern wall. Otherwise, there are some other ideas we are floating about for businesses. The group has been successful but the lack of self-sufficiency worries me. They have funds, members and resources to continue but the problem is they are not generating enough money yet. We will keep pushing until the businesses are more established and perhaps we will reach a point where they are generating enough profit to make it worthwhile to operate these businesses full-time.
M24
The road from Rumphi boma all the way up to Chitipa is horrendous to say the least. It is the infamous back road to Chitipa and is the shortest distance between the two bomas. The only problem is that it is the worst road in Malawi and gets progressively worse the further you travel, the worst of which begins after Chilenda camp. Currently, the only way to get to Chitipa safely and timely is to travel around Nyika, through Karonga and then west to the boma. This is a longer distance but really the only option. The entire stretch of the back road measures about 224km. The portion closest to Chitipa is nearly impassible with gaping cracks and dangerous cliffs. The portion from Rumphi boma to the Mwazisi turnoff (basically Chitanga) is labeled M24 on the road network map. This is the portion that Wellesley and I hope to get paved. The entire road is currently under analysis by the Arab Development Bank, they hope to pave all 224km of the back road. The initial and economic reports have been completed but there has been an issue with completing the feasibility study. Due to internal disagreements the project has been put on hold for an unknown period of time and it could be years before any progress is made. Thus, we have undertaken the task of finding funding for the unpaved 40km segment of M24. This segment faces the heaviest traffic and is economically a vital area. All the main villages run along this road and these villages have access to electricity. While in Lilongwe, we met with the Roads Authority’s chief engineer and collected all the current reports on this road. He was an incredibly helpful and well-spoken man that showed us designs for a cheaper road that is just as strong. We were able to reduce the cost estimate from $600,000 per km to $200,000. This puts the total cost at roughly $8 million to pave the M24. Now the hard part: funding. Once we complete further research we hope to begin shopping a small proposal to various donors, corporations, and embassies in hopes of slowly selling each portion of the road. $8 million is a large sum, but when broken up it amounts to a minute portion of donor budgets. We are fully aware we will not pave this road before our time ends, but we can at least put the wheels in motion.
Project Updates - Part II
MBA & TLC
Where to begin on the beekeepers? The FOM grant money has been well spent and over 100 hives have already been completed. The carpenters are hard at work while the remaining 80 planks are on the way. There was quite a bit of drama surrounding the transport of the planks. We paid the head of Parks & Wildlife at Nyika (Mr. Zamini) Mk. 14,000 for fuel to transport 200 planks from Chilenda to Mwazisi. The whole event was a disaster but 120 planks plus free discards made it to Mwazisi, meanwhile I lost my sanity. It took three days in the cold, rainy plateau and most of it spent arguing to the get the planks here. Once they made it, as I expected, Zamini cancelled the deal on the remaining planks and demanded another Mk. 14,000 to bring the rest. The man is a swindler, I knew the day I met him, silver-tongued he oozes of distrust and reeks of the criminal. However, we literally had no choice. I’ve called him numerous times since the first shipment and each time he has a new excuse on why he cannot bring the planks. The Parks department makes trips at least once a month to take the staff to a nearby boma to buy supplies and food. Chilenda is isolated and more trips are made, it’s just that this man wants some more money in his pocket and we don’t have any left. Private trucks transport large shipments of wood almost once a week to various selling points along the main road and to the boma. One of the selling points is Chitanga, the village next to Mwazisi. These trucks are owned by local merchants and definitely carry a little on top for friends and chiefs. That’s when I had the idea to try these trucks and even if they only carry 10-20 extra planks each trip they would eventually bring our remainder. Fortunately, the lead carpenter for the hive project is friends with a chief in Chitanga, whose son is a driver for the lumber trucks. He agreed to bring some planks each trip and the best part is it would only cost us Mk.500 per set transported. The plan is in motion, let’s hope it works. In the meantime, the Executive Committee is scouting an ideal location to hang the hives. Due to transport logistics in the rains the site maybe moved from Vwaza to Nyika.
Running parallel to up starting the Mwazisi Beekeepers is a greater project from Total Land Care. TLC’s Kulera Biodiversity Project has two years left on the clock and one of major segments is the amalgamation of all beekeeping groups in Nyika. Once combined, the new enterprise will explore opportunities in bottling and marketing honey under its own brand, perhaps even internationally. Currently, Mzuzu Coffee Growers bulk buys the honey from beekeepers around Nyika at an astonishingly low price. The farmers make virtually nothing and the company bottles and sells the honey at a significant premium. Cutting out this middle man is next logical step for these beekeepers that already produce quality honey in large quantities. Combining all the groups will enable a stable and constant supply of honey, which is crucial for any successful business. Also, the quantity will be in the hundreds of tones, enough to satisfy both residential and commercial customers. And most importantly, the new enterprise will redistribute profits back to the farmer and generate new income sources for many rural families. TLC has already sent consultants to analyze the prospects of this project. There is an office in Hayway filled with honey processing equipment that is unused. It was from an old grant provided by an NGO many years ago. The office is still there and I suggested that the new group use the facility for commencing processing. Mwazisi’s group will be merged into the larger group. Hopefully next week I and Mr. Mkandawire (TLC’s Northern chief) will travel to Thazima and meet with Duncan, the chairman of the Thazima Beekeepers Association. TBA is the largest honey producing group in Nyika and has been in existence since the 1980s. They are the biggest suppliers to Mzuzu Coffee and will serve as the central group once all the groups are combined. As with any large undertaking, we will see how this plays out.
Where to begin on the beekeepers? The FOM grant money has been well spent and over 100 hives have already been completed. The carpenters are hard at work while the remaining 80 planks are on the way. There was quite a bit of drama surrounding the transport of the planks. We paid the head of Parks & Wildlife at Nyika (Mr. Zamini) Mk. 14,000 for fuel to transport 200 planks from Chilenda to Mwazisi. The whole event was a disaster but 120 planks plus free discards made it to Mwazisi, meanwhile I lost my sanity. It took three days in the cold, rainy plateau and most of it spent arguing to the get the planks here. Once they made it, as I expected, Zamini cancelled the deal on the remaining planks and demanded another Mk. 14,000 to bring the rest. The man is a swindler, I knew the day I met him, silver-tongued he oozes of distrust and reeks of the criminal. However, we literally had no choice. I’ve called him numerous times since the first shipment and each time he has a new excuse on why he cannot bring the planks. The Parks department makes trips at least once a month to take the staff to a nearby boma to buy supplies and food. Chilenda is isolated and more trips are made, it’s just that this man wants some more money in his pocket and we don’t have any left. Private trucks transport large shipments of wood almost once a week to various selling points along the main road and to the boma. One of the selling points is Chitanga, the village next to Mwazisi. These trucks are owned by local merchants and definitely carry a little on top for friends and chiefs. That’s when I had the idea to try these trucks and even if they only carry 10-20 extra planks each trip they would eventually bring our remainder. Fortunately, the lead carpenter for the hive project is friends with a chief in Chitanga, whose son is a driver for the lumber trucks. He agreed to bring some planks each trip and the best part is it would only cost us Mk.500 per set transported. The plan is in motion, let’s hope it works. In the meantime, the Executive Committee is scouting an ideal location to hang the hives. Due to transport logistics in the rains the site maybe moved from Vwaza to Nyika.
Running parallel to up starting the Mwazisi Beekeepers is a greater project from Total Land Care. TLC’s Kulera Biodiversity Project has two years left on the clock and one of major segments is the amalgamation of all beekeeping groups in Nyika. Once combined, the new enterprise will explore opportunities in bottling and marketing honey under its own brand, perhaps even internationally. Currently, Mzuzu Coffee Growers bulk buys the honey from beekeepers around Nyika at an astonishingly low price. The farmers make virtually nothing and the company bottles and sells the honey at a significant premium. Cutting out this middle man is next logical step for these beekeepers that already produce quality honey in large quantities. Combining all the groups will enable a stable and constant supply of honey, which is crucial for any successful business. Also, the quantity will be in the hundreds of tones, enough to satisfy both residential and commercial customers. And most importantly, the new enterprise will redistribute profits back to the farmer and generate new income sources for many rural families. TLC has already sent consultants to analyze the prospects of this project. There is an office in Hayway filled with honey processing equipment that is unused. It was from an old grant provided by an NGO many years ago. The office is still there and I suggested that the new group use the facility for commencing processing. Mwazisi’s group will be merged into the larger group. Hopefully next week I and Mr. Mkandawire (TLC’s Northern chief) will travel to Thazima and meet with Duncan, the chairman of the Thazima Beekeepers Association. TBA is the largest honey producing group in Nyika and has been in existence since the 1980s. They are the biggest suppliers to Mzuzu Coffee and will serve as the central group once all the groups are combined. As with any large undertaking, we will see how this plays out.
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