The Salvation Army Empowers the Women of Malawi

Malawi ranks among the six poorest countries in the world and The Salvation Army in Canada and Bermuda has scaled up its Goat Bank Programme for rural women in Malawi.

Poverty is on the increase and, to provide basic needs for their families, the majority of women prostitute. This Programme has changed lives and improved the economic status of women and their children.

Mature female goats were provided to 780 women. Goats are among key sources of household income and can be sold or exchanged for other materials. Women residing in rural communities are now able to meet their families’ basic needs such as schooling, food, medical treatment and other social needs. The cost of one goat is US$35.

The benefits of this project are five-fold. Women:
raise their income through goats.
support their families through goats.
acquire knowledge and skills on goat rearing and management skills.
learn group dynamics and how to work as a team.
establish support groups as a result of the project.

In many communities in Malawi Salvation Army officers provided additional skills and knowledge to beneficiaries and organized experience-sharing meetings. Here, those who benefited from similar projects shared their experiences and challenges with the new beneficiaries.

Worldwide, financial support raised by The Salvation Army assists programs in 115 countries. Through disaster services, education and healthcare, development projects such as micro-credit loans, goat-rearing programs and clean water supplies, the Army aims to meet physical, emotional and spiritual needs of marginalized individuals.
In recent years, The Salvation Army World Missions office has responded to natural and man-made disasters in dozens of countries around the world – from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami to the 2005 Pakistan earthquake as well as disasters including the floods in Bangladesh and the earthquake in Peru.
The Army also engages in day-to-day outreach in some of the poorest areas around the globe. Just as domestic Salvation Army programs are developed with the specific needs of the community in mind, the Army’s international work is generated at the local level in close partnership with those who utilize the services.