So over the past days I
have been updating you on our project concerning improved stoves which I am
doing with the women in my community. I have been giving you some details regarding
the progress of the same. I must confess that the journey hasn't been smooth
and an easy path at all. I decided to start the project with the available
resources and build from that as we grow it into something big. It is said in
the good book that we must not despise the humble beginning of small things,
and myself being a “religious” man knows how to value such humble beginnings. Today
I am both humbled and very glad to look back and appreciate the collective efforts
of the women and myself especially after reaching this far.
So, Friday July 8th
was the day myself and the women’s group gathered at the same place where we
left the unfinished movable Chitete-zo Mbaula. The day was chilly but this did
not keep us in our warm blankets to save the work for another day. We were
there to all work together and witness the finishing of our stove and the mood
was exciting. To make it more exciting,
we had a new member who came to join after hearing of our work from her friends.
In no time after we grouped, we were onto the business of the day. If you
remember from my previous post we were remaining with fixing and attaching the
stands and handles. And so the work started. We molded the handles and the
stands. The women learnt so fast how to do all this and it was an exciting
moment for us all especially after we were done with our prototypes. We fixed
the stands and the handles and the rest was for the stove to dry up and allow
us to test how we had done.
At this stage I would say
I am so proud of my village and especially the women in this group whom I have
been working with to make these prototypes a success. Now we know where we
stand, we can gladly pat ourselves at the back and whisper loudly “Great job!”J. So the whole process of
making these stove prototypes has helped us identify a few areas we need to
work on so as to make this entire project a complete success. We plan to search
for clay that is suitable for the stoves in terms of quantity and more
importantly quality. We are also in need of materials for the group to have to
make the whole work easier and lastly we plan to have expert trainings for
these women so that as a group they can function well in terms of leadership
and strategizing on marketing and making returns. We are an excited group and
we are the group that believes that “It’s all possible if we put our minds to
it and work together.”
As I conclude, I would
like to appreciate the support and mentorship from the both the Global Initiative Food Security and Citizens’ Climate Lobby and from the CorpsAfrica team here in Malawi and
from DC, you guys keep me on my feet and I must salute you. To all the family
and friends reading, commenting and following my blog from far and wide, I say thank
you as well, I wouldn't be more encouraged if not for your moral support and
the many views I am getting on this blog. Surely together we can do more J J
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| women pose for a photo with the finished stove |
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| collective effort |
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| :) |
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| final touches |
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| two prototypes in 2 weeks |
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