The Story of Mpata Community
The community of Mpata is located about 15 kilometres from the nearest town of Dedza in an area surrounded by rocky, rolling hills. With few opportunities for employment, many people rely on farming small plots of land and selling vegetables in the nearby market. There is a shortage of clean drinking water, requiring people to walk far distances for water. Each of these challenges adds to the vulnerability of the people living in Mpata community.
125 Children currently supported
13 Care Workers coordinated by Chitsanzo
Basic Services Started in 2018
15 KM from the DEDZA Local Office
Hands at Work began operating in Malawi in 2008 in the rural village of Mngwere, about 15 kilometres from Dedza. Mngwere is an isolated community and very impoverished. Local school teacher Royie Nazombe encountered Hands at Work’s vision to see the local churches unite as Christ’s body to care for his community’s most vulnerable children and grasped it immediately. He left his job as a teacher to concentrate full time on mobilising and organising compassionate local volunteers. In order to address the most essential needs of an orphaned or vulnerable child in Mngwere Community, Hands at Work aims to provide one nutritious meal to each child per day, served at the Life Centre.
In Mngwere, three sub feeding points operated to provide children access to life-giving services of daily food security, access to education, and basic health care. Children would access these from the feeding point location closest to their home. In 2010, Hands at Work began to mobilise local volunteers from a few churches in one of the feeding point locations known as Mpata by sharing the vision of Hands at Work. Over the years, Mpata began to grow in its capacity when the number of Care Workers gradually increased. Holy Home Visits were happening frequently, and daily services were provided for the most vulnerable children. In April 2018, Mpata became its own independent Community Based Organisation, operating out of its Life Centre and with a team of local volunteer Care Workers who care for 125 of the most vulnerable children.
When the owner of the facility where the Mpata CBO was based asked for the Life Centre to relocate, the Care Workers, together with the local Hands at Work team in Dedza, approached the chief and were subsequently given a piece of land to use as their own. Members of the community reached out in compassion and provided materials and labour to construct a shelter. In 2020, a new secure toilet was constructed at the Mpata Life Centre, increasing the health and hygiene of the Care Workers and the most vulnerable children.
Meet Fredah
Twelve-year-old Fredah* stays with her mother and two siblings, aged eight and 15 years. Their parents divorced, leaving their mother to care for the children on her own. Two older siblings, who are themselves vulnerable, left to get married and so are unable to help support their mother. The family has been struggling to put food on the table and buy clothes or basic items. Fredah and her siblings became part of the CBO in 2019 when they were discovered by Care Workers in the community who realised their vulnerability. Fredah is now able to embrace being a child and enjoys coming to the Care Point where she plays netball with her friends. The children receive a hot, nutritious meal every day, which significantly lightens the family’s burden. Fredah is currently in grade 4 at school and her favourite lessons are maths and Chichewa. One day she would like to become a doctor.
The local Hands at Work team in Dedza currently supports six Community Based Organisations, which exist to care for the most vulnerable in their communities. The office provides training, networking, and encouragement to those Community Based Organisations like Mpata. It also gives administrative support, including helping with funding proposals, monitoring and evaluation, bookkeeping and reporting to donors.
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