World Connect

Scaling up piggery Initiative for Mvugo Women Support Group for people living with HIV.

Year: 2020

Country: Malawi

Project Status: Funded

Impact Sector: Economic Opportunity

Project Investment: $691.78

Project Launch: 4-22-20

This pig rearing project will economically empower women living with HIV/AIDS. The women, who already have six pigs, will be trained in pig farming and will procure nine more pigs that will be passed on to other community members. Profits from piglet sales will be pooled in a revolving fund for members to use to launch small businesses. Ultimately, the women aim to generate enough income to support their regular visits to the health center for Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART).

Final Report: 12-31-20

With $691.78, Mwelura Harawa, the founder of Tigwirane Manja Foundation partnered with Tigwirane Manja Club and together have successfully implemented a piggery pass on project in Mvugo village that will economically improve the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS. Prior to the project, the group members procured six pigs that were reared for the same purpose. Through this project, the group procured nine additional piglets, bringing the total to fifteen. The overall number of pigs increased to 20 when one pig delivered five piglets. Eighteen of these pigs were distributed to 18 out of the 25 support group members for management at their individual homes. Two more pigs (male and female) have been kept at the main pig pen for production purposes. Once all the 25 members have received pigs, the group will commence selling of pork and pigs to community members to generate income that will aid in transportation costs when accessing Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) treatment. The project, which is ongoing will help each support group member to rear pigs which can be sold to generate household income. Additionally, the members will also benefit from the pigs managed in the group pen, providing more money towards group activities. At the moment, 96% of the members have not missed their ART clinic appointments and 23 members have suppressed viral loads. These statistics will probably improve with increased income levels that will also be used in procurement of nutritious food to boost their lives further.