Update from Robyn - October 2008

Mphatso Children’s Foundation is employing an incredible 53 staff. PLUS the community garden workers who each receive Kw200 ($1.60 Aust) each time they work

Ten people per group working on a rotating roster five days a week. Each family (150 on the register) has 1 member working- that’s a lot of families being impacted by the gifts that are being given. For 7 out of those 10 that $1.60 will be their only income until their turn comes again.

Also 28 groups’, churches and football teams are on the list. There are now eight nursery schools with an average of 140 children at each one. We are supposed to have a 100 limit! Each nursery school is made up of 4 -5 different villages and in some areas more than that.

We are providing porridge for 10 babies (all orphans) plus more that are on baby formula. Fifteen of our elderly and those too sick to eat anything other than porridge, mostly HIV sufferers are also being blessed with a meal a day. These numbers fluctuate but we are using an extra 50kg bag of porridge per week for those in desperate situations.

A packet of sugar is Kw120 (95 cents). A cake of soap for bathing is Kw50 (40 cents). Some buy sugar one week then wait weeks to buy tea with the next Kw200. Robyn asked some of the staff if it was true that the Aid Agencies in Malawi say that if a person has a wage it directly affects 40 other people. They laughed and said that would be easy to do.