Ansah urges Phalombe vulnerable groups to embrace cooperatives

Vice President Dr Jane Mayemu Ansah has urged vulnerable groups, particularly people with disabilities, to form cooperatives and engage in income-generating activities to improve their livelihoods and reduce dependence on handouts.

Ansah said this today in the area of Traditional Authority Kaduya in Phalombe when she donated assorted relief items to 1, 000 households under the Dr Jane Ansah Foundation (JAFO).

The Vice President stressed the need for communities to embrace self-reliance.

She said the Foundation is committed to supporting disadvantaged communities, but its focus is on empowering people to become economically self-reliant rather than making them dependent on handouts.

Ansah encouraged people in Phalombe to organise themselves into cooperatives and take advantage of economic empowerment opportunities such as Malawi Agricultural Development Fund (MADEF) loans.

She also encouraged communities to venture into businesses such as animal husbandry and rabbit farming, saying collective economic activities can provide sustainable sources of income for vulnerable people.

Ansah pledged to return to Phalombe if the communities organise themselves, make progress and invite her to witness their achievements.