Card trains Malawian women in crop marketing through cooperatives
A humanitarian and relief organization, Churches Action in Relief and Development (CARD), on has appealed to Malawi women farmers to form cooperatives as one way of fighting poverty using common front.
CARD Dowa Project coordinator, Mabvuto Phiri, made the call in Dowa this week before a group of 4,000 women who came from the area of traditional authority Msakambewa and Mkukula.
Phiri said it is unfortunate that women are experiencing challenges when marketing their produce.
“What happens is that most rural farmers are snatched their money by their husbands and on the other hand vendors come in to buy the produce at low prices, so our women suffer from all fronts, that is why CARD with support from OXFARM is here to train these women,” said Phiri.
In a bid to boost the income for rural farmers CARD has already connected all the farmers to Sun-Seed Oil Company.
“What it means is that the company will buy all the produce from these women and that vendors will now have no chance to still from our women,” said Phiri.
In an interview, NGO-Gender Coordinating Network Chairperson Emma Kaliya, commended CARD for the training, urging the organisation to extend its tentacles to other districts..
“There is strength in unity that is why we are encouraging our rural women to form cooperatives,” said Kaliya.
CARD is a humanitarian church based organisation which provides relief rehabilitation and facilitates development to disaster affected areas.