Women in Malawi are more likely to suffer the effects of poverty. The country’s tribal culture is a patriarchal system that keeps women heavily dependent on men for various social, legal and economic reasons. However, there is an encouraging movement of young women seeking to empower themselves and determine their own paths.
Lawyers for Good has the pleasure of working with many of these inspiring individuals, who are implementing their visions to empower the women of their country.
Enelless Phiri
Enelless Phiri runs an initiative called Anthu Aluso, which she established in 2013 to provide women living in impoverished and isolated communities with the education and training they need to break free of their cycle of poverty. The initiative runs recycling workshops that provide women with skills to turn ordinary discarded items into works of art, and also helps the women find a market for their products. Anthu Aluso also participates in a small art exhibition in Malawi, which Enelless hopes will one day grow to an international platform.
Malawi has a high unemployment rate of around 25%, and Enelless points to the fact that many women have little in the way of skills and often very little hope, living as they do on less than a dollar a day. The female population is vulnerable to gender-based violence and sexual harassment, and Enelless is determined to help women gain power through economic independence. Initiatives like Anthu Aluso are important in a country like Malawi, where access to funding or support would otherwise be impossible.
Enelless is driven by her passion for art. She believes that when you teach a woman to be empowered you empower a nation, because the woman will reinvest in her family’s education and health, thus breaking the cycle of poverty for future generations.
Lawyers for Good supports Anthu Aluso through the creation and management of a legal structure for the initiative. LFG is also assisting Enelless in her goal of finding and renting a space that can become a hub and art retreat for women.
Endrina Maxwell
Endrina Maxwell is a passionate farmer, having started at an early age to raise her school fees and pay for other needs. Under the brand NutriSecret, Endrina now runs multiple product lines. Her ‘sunflower cake’ is produced from her homegrown sunflowers and sold to livestock and poultry farmers for feed. She produces pawpaw jam from wild pawpaw, and has recently expanded her business to include fish farming. She is committed to encouraging women to develop a healthier lifestyle, and all her products are pure and promote healthy living.
Endrina is also driven by a desire to empower her fellow women financially, and most of her casual labourers are women on the basis that if a woman has money, there will be food on the table and her children will go to school. She’s concerned by the fact that in Malawi it’s very difficult to obtain financing as banks charge high interest rates and many women lack the collateral required to secure funding. Endrina herself has been fortunate to receive a micro loan on favourable terms, which allowed her to purchase her own processing machine. She is currently building a structure to house it and is confident that without the financial burden of using other people’s machines, she will be able to hire more women and, in turn, contribute to their own economic independence.
Lawyers for Good is working with Endrina to develop her business plan and corporate structure. We’re also assisting in the preparation of proposals for further funding, and helping her develop other business skills.
