Written by CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteer Mr. Chifundo Chibaka

This is an ideology that I have come to learn and believe for a while now. It portrays the cost that each of us will have to pay to achieve a desired outcome in life.

A week after settling at my site, I was introduced to a local vibrant youth club by one of my earliest friends. The group has 13 active members and we meet twice a week to discuss issues of interest to us. I instantly felt a connection with the group of dedicated and hardworking youth trying to change the narrative and push our dreams forward no matter the cost. I was quickly introduced to the group’s objective and the desire to improve the social economic welfare of the members. We are also involved in community sensitisation and education on various issues that range from girls education to child labor.

I found the club in the early phases of two income-generating programs and these are bee keeping and chicken rearing. The group decided to get a loan of MK30,000.00 ($40) to expand the programs to the level we desired. The money has helped us build a new chicken house large enough to house the expected number of chickens we are in the process of buying, the purchasing of 30 young hens and four young cocks, buying of chicken vaccines and purchase of materials to build four beehives. The group has members with different skills, some whom volunteered to fix the beehives at no fee. Recently a member of the same group offered a dimba land (for off-season agriculture) to the club for free to use and the group plans to plant beans and vegetables for commercial purposes to boost the earnings.

In the past weeks different individuals hired us to work on their farms in this harvesting season and this is expected to add about MK85,000.00 ($115) to the groups’ account.

This group of young people has come together and formed a vibrant club with goals to improve the economic status of young people in the area and its being manifested in the actions that they are willing to work for their dreams to come true.