Africa-Press – Malawi. Mother Care Groups (MCGs) in Lilongwe District, formed under the Malawi Health Equity Network (MHEN) through the Health Strengthening Immunisation Project, have grown beyond their initial goal of promoting child vaccination — now emerging as a beacon of financial inclusion for rural women.
In the outskirts of Lilongwe under Traditional Authority (T/A) Chadza, the Mphesi MCG was established in 2020 with 30 women, primarily focused on increasing immunisation coverage for under-five children. However, during a recent visit to appreciate their voluntary work, it was discovered that the group has also used their weekly meetings to form village savings and loan groups, helping members improve their financial well-being.
Group chairperson Mervin Ntola said the initiative has been a major success, noting a significant increase in the number of children completing full immunisation schedules.
“At first, before MHEN came in, we only had about 30 to 40 children completing all vaccination stages. Now, we receive between 70 and 80 children on immunisation days. The change has been tremendous,” Ntola said.
Health Surveillance Assistants (HSAs) in Lilongwe say the formation of MCGs has eased their workload, as women are now more proactive in bringing their children for vaccination.
Frank Kadam’manja, an HSA at Thang’ombe (Chisomo MCG) under Daula Health Post in T/A M’bang’ombe, said the groups have transformed community attitudes toward immunisation.
“We used to have serious under-coverage, but since MHEN formed these Mother Care Groups, we’ve seen a major turnaround. Coverage has increased by more than 40 percent across all vaccines,” he said.
He, however, appealed for more staff to cope with the growing workload.
“With the numbers we’re now handling, it would help if we had at least four HSAs here, but currently we are only two,” Kadam’manja added.
The Health Strengthening Immunisation Project is being implemented by MHEN through the Ministry of Health, with support from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI). The initiative, valued at about US$3 billion, is being rolled out in several districts including Lilongwe, Mchinji, Ntchisi, Dowa, Blantyre, Chitipa, and Kasungu.
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