150 graduate from social cash transfer programme
About 150 social cash transfer beneficiaries in Nkhata Bay and Dedza districts will graduate from the programme with assets such as grocery stocks, fruit trees or livestock for sustainable livelihoods.
Speaking in Nkhata Bay, Community Savings and Investment Promotion (COMSIP) Communications Manager, Emmanuel Muwamba, said COMSIP would bring new initiative to deserving graduates.
He said one 100 beneficiaries from Dedza and 50 from Nkhata Bay, will be selected based on their potential to graduate out of poverty.
“We will roll out a new initiative to provide assets to deserving members of COMSIP groups under social cash transfer programme in Nkhata Bay and Dedza districts,” Muwamba said.
“The asset transfer beneficiaries will be selected based on their potential to graduate out of poverty into sustainable livelihoods,” Muwamba said.
“Beneficiaries will receive goats, pigs, chickens, ducks, rabbits, grocery stock, farm inputs and fruit trees and bicycles for kabaza. Others will be running restaurants and tea rooms,” he explained.
Nkhata Bay Group Village Headman Kakhongwe applauded World Bank through COMSIP for uplifting living standards for rural communities through social cash transfer and public works programmes.
Kakhongwe said the programmes have changed living standards of rural communities as most of them are able to eat three times a day.
“We thought that the beneficiaries of social cash transfer programme will just graduate without receiving anything.
“But today we are hearing that COMSIP will give social cash transfer programme beneficiaries assets for them to graduate. This is a plus to the households,” GVH Kakhongwe said.
On his part, Nkhata Bay District Community Development Officer, Oscar Maseko, assured COMSIP that his office would ensure that deserving households benefit from the asset transfer programme.
Nkhata Bay and Dedza districts started social cash transfer programme using unified beneficiary registry pilot phase in 2015/2016 with funding from World Bank through Local Government Finance Committee.
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