By Starphel Sithole
While COVID19 has negatively affected the economy, the Coalition of Women Living with HIV and AIDS (COWLHA) with funding from UNAIDS has empowered 1500 People Living with HIV (PLHIV) through business training across the country. The training has registered positive strides as attendees have ventured into various businesses and some extended their businesses after attending a 3-day training held in April 2022 at Mphatso Motel.
One of the beneficiaries, Monica Munthali of Kaning’ina Village Bank who has recently opened a grocery shop and owns a farm produce shop said the initiative has opened a new chapter in her life.
‘Before the training, I was running a single business and was not able to account for it hence it was not stable. Through the business training I breathed a new lease of life as the project equipped me with knowledge on how to venture into business, manage and extend my business, not only that the training helped me on identifying my customers’ needs”, narrated Munthali.
Munthali further encouraged others who did not have the opportunity to attend the training to adopt the business tips to sustain their businesses as it also helps in boosting the economy.
On some of the challenges that she is facing in her business; Munthali mentioned that because she was not given a business training certificate; it limits her opportunities to embark into new business avenues. Munthali also bemoaned inaccessible loans and high cost of interest rates for loans that are accessible. But despite the burdens, Munthali has managed to employ two people to help her in marketing her products.
In his comment, Chairperson for the Mzuzu Business Training Alumni, Dunstan Kondowe hailed COWLHA as an implementer and the funder UNAIDS for empowering PLHIV to start and sustain businesses in the COVID19 era as it has a potential of boosting the lives of PLHIV. ’We are grateful and excited with the gesture for the training of PLHIVs in Mzuzu and how it has transformed our lives’ he stated. Kondowe has however appealed to COWLHA and the project funders to help them register their group as a cooperative that would help them to easily find markets for their products to specifically targeting fellow PLHIVs.
Commenting on the fruits of the project, Judith Mkandawire COWLHA Regional Coordinator says they thought it wise to engage PLHIV so that their welfare can be improved through entrepreneurship. ‘We are pleased with the project progress as it has registered an increased number of PLHIVs who can be able take care of themselves amidst the COVID19 pandemic. We are striving to boost the small-scale businesses to provide alternative sources of livelihoods to survive the high cost of living’ Mkandawire explained.
COWLHA conducted the Business trainings in three districts in the country which included Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre.
