607 HOUSEHOLDS BENEFIT FROM KARONGA DIOCESE FOOD CRISIS PROJECT

The Vicar General of the Diocese of Karonga, Monsignor Lorent Dziko, has reiterated the commitment of the Diocese to move beyond providing spiritual support to the people entrusted to her pastoral care by addressing their holistic needs as well.

The Vicar General made these remarks at Mwenelondo Health Centre on Wednesday when he presided over the launch of once-off cash transfers to 607 households who were affected by prolonged dry spells which hit Karonga District in 2023.

*Vicar General Monsignor Lorent Dziko handing over a cash disbursement to a beneficiary flanked by a representative from Mukuru.*

Each of the 607 beneficiary households received a consumption cash disbursement of One Hundred Thousand Malawi Kwacha (K100,000) through Mukuru mobile wallet transfers.

Speaking after receiving the money, one of the beneficiaries from Mwakisenjere Village in the area of Senior Chief Mwirang’ombe, Mable Mkandawire (37) appreciated the intervention stating that because of the dry spells, her family only managed to harvest two 50kg bags of maize from a 3-acre field. This she said was not enough to feed her family of 7 members. She said she will use the money to buy maize and foodstuffs for the family.

*Elderly beneficiaries withdrawing money from Mukuru Mobile money agents*

In his remarks, Precious Kumwenda, a member of the Karonga District Disaster Response Committee advised the beneficiaries to use the funds for the intended purpose.

Speaking on behalf of the Development Desk, Deodatus Muriya emphasized stressed the need for the community leaders not to interfere or influence the beneficiaries into misappropriation of the cash packages.

The cash transfers are a part of the Karonga Diocese Food Crisis Project which is a response to the 2023 drought that affected a lot of families within the diocese and being implemented with support from the Scottish Government and the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF) through the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM).

In the exercise, the Diocese of Karonga has distributed once-off cash assistance to 607 beneficiaries in the areas of Traditional Authorities Wasambo, Mwirang’ombe and Kyungu in Karonga District.