Thanks to FROM Scotland (Famine Relief for Orphans in Malawi), households in Malawi have received emergency maize and soya flour in the months before the harvest.
Most of the babies that come to Open Arms come from Malawi’s poorer families. Many are one-parent households with a single mother trying to cultivate a small piece of land, undertake daily piecework and simultaneously care for children. These are the families that we meet on outreach every week.
Every year, the months of February and March are a struggle for these families. Malawi experiences a cyclical food shortage before maize can be harvested in April. In 2021 our Outreach team, who monitor those children who have returned home, realised that the coronavirus pandemic had made these months even more desperate.
Malawi’s low income families earn money through daily piece work or other casual self employment. But the general reduction in economic activity caused by the pandemic has made these opportunities scarce. The parents and children we support were going hungry, unable to support themselves through the food shortage.
In response to this dire situation, FROM Scotland provided funding for 105, 25kg bags of maize and 105, 5kg bags of fortified soya flour. This incredible support means that our team in Malawi can give temporary, nutritional support to the most food insecure households. It means that parents who are struggling can feed their children.
We are so grateful to all of our supporters who enable this life-saving work, and who step up to help when the unexpected happens. Here at Open Arms, we are committed to being reactive and flexible in our community outreach so we can be there for as many children as we can. Sadly, this kind of event is not uncommon, but we want to make sure that the boys and girls we support have the best chance to thrive at home.
If you would like to support this work, make a donation here: https://www.openarmsmalawi.org/how-you-can-help/donate
Your donation will help children in Malawi grow up healthy with the love of a family
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