By Chrissie Mainjeni, Chiradzulu
Survivors of Cyclone Freddy in Chiradzulu have emphasised the importance of hard work and self-reliance as they continue to find their feet after the natural disaster in 2023.
These are people of Mtauchira Village, whose homes were completely destroyed during the cyclone and they later relocated to Mikolongwe, where a new village named Mussa was established.
Through the Ray of Hope project, implemented by Young Women Rise (Yowori), some survivors received loans to start small-scale businesses, engage in farming and form Village Savings and Loans groups to rebuild their lives.
Speaking to MBC Digital, Village Head Mussa, born Austin Maloya, condemned the culture of dependency.
“What happened to us cannot be reversed, but we are grateful to government, the corporate world and organisations like Yowori for giving us another chance to live. We have 59 good houses specifically built for us. Government also allocated one acre of land to each household, where we grew maize, sweet potatoes, pigeon peas, and tomatoes,” he said.
Maloya said they are currently harvesting and selling sweet potatoes and are hopeful that the maturing pigeon peas will yield more. He, however, appealed for further support, including fertiliser and start-up capital.
Yowori Programmes Manager, Linnes Chamadenga, said the two-year project, which began in May 2024, aims to bring renewed hope to 22 targeted households.
With £10,000 funding (approximately K22 million) from The Hilden Charitable Fund of the UK, Chamadenga said the initiative seeks to empower the community in finance, agriculture and environmental management to ensure sustainability.
Chiradzulu District Disaster Risk Management Officer, Patrick Mulinga, commended Yowori for complementing government efforts and encouraged the survivors to work hard instead of depending on handouts, which he said are not sustainable.
