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Personal stories from Malawi

Irene Lusiasi: Chiwaya village, Thyolo District.

Seventy-nine year old Irene Lusiasi's five children all died of AIDS. Now she has eight orphaned grandchildren all under the age of twelve to care for.

A day in the life

To support the children Irene spends eight hours a day, six days a week, working on the local coffee estate. Her day begins at 4.30am when she prepares porridge for her grandchildren.

She then walks for half an hour to the plantation where from 6.00am until 2.30pm, she carries out the back-breaking task of picking coffee. She earns 653 Kwacha a month (less than £6). That doesn't even cover a 50kg bag of maize, which costs 850 Kwacha.

In a good year, Irene's small plot of land yields fifteen 50kg bags of maize. Last year's poor weather conditions and lack of fertiliser yielded only five bags.

Irene Lusiasi and her eight grandchildren Karlotta Magalasa

 




 

 

 

 

How your money helps

Irene has received some assistance from the Elderly People's Association (EPA - local partners in Malawi who HelpAge International work through), in the form of vegetable seeds and information about how to grow them. She now has a thriving plot of peas, beans and turnips.

Karlotta Magalasa: Sekeni village, Chikwawa District

Seventy-eight year old Karlotta Magalasa was left destitute from the floods of 2001.

"I was terrified. When it was light I realised that I had lost everything. My house had been swept away, along with my livestock, clothes, cooking pots and bedding."

The holes in the thatching shed light upon her meagre possessions: a pair of wellington boots, a sleeping mat and several items of tattered clothing hanging from the roof.

Karlotta was given seeds by the EPA last August to help her rebuild her life.

 

 

 

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