The Projects

SeedforLife.FeedforLifeSCIO is split into four separate Projects based over in Malawi working with a Community called Bemvu the core project being:

Farming Programme

The original concept was for Seed for Life Scotland to send funds over to Malawi to purchase hybrid seed and fertiliser to farmers selected by their own community who prepare the ground, sow and care for the growing crop at harvest time, part of their yield is given back to the Management Committee in Malawi who use part of this loan repayment to feed the primary school children and the other part is sold when the price is at its height and the money received is used to purchase seed and fertiliser the following season. The farmers can then keep the balance of their harvest in order to feed their families and sell any surplus in order to get a better standard of living. The basis of the Project always was that over time it would become Self Sufficient by generating enough funds from the sale of crop to purchase all inputs each year. It is also a self help project in order for it to succeed the Farmers have to complete the work themselves - it is not just a handout year on year, all monies raised in the UK goes direct to the Management Committee in Bemvu who have to account for their  expenditure on a monthly basis backed up by Bank Statements. As part of this programme we also supply Fruit trees in order to supplement the diet and indigenous trees  which are required for fuel.

Primary School Feeding Programme

We are committed to feeding the Primary School Children a meal a day through term time - if they didn't receive this extra meal many of the Children would only be receiving one small meal a day especially in the lean months January through to March. The food that is prepared comes out of the Farming Programme by a dedicated team of ladies who use the wages they receive as a much needed  boost to their family budgets. When we started the programme in 2018 the school roll stood at 1200 in September 2023 it now stands at 1400 pupils due to the attraction of being fed which also means more Children are staying in education rather than leaving school at 7 or 8 years of age to work the land with the added advantage of that families are saving on having to feed a child that one meal a day.

Scholarship Programme

The only way that Malawi is going to enable itself to free itself of the subsistence farming poverty trap is through education and to this end we support children throughout their education from primary to secondary school and University.

Secondary School education has to be paid for in Malawi and as the majority of the population are subsistence farmers many parents cannot afford this extra cost which means that the Children just join the cycle that their parents are in - scrapping a meagre living from the land. SeedforLife currently is committed  to supporting 20 pupils through their Secondary School Education - this is gifted to the Children and we do not expect any monetary value in return.

The programme is also sponsoring 2 students through their four year University Course.

Harvest Fund

This is aimed at the old and infirm who receive assistance with fertiliser and soya seed. This is gifted and we do not expect any monetary value in return.