Bisiyoni Mteteya’s productive life came to a close in 1998 when he lost his sight.

Life instantly became tough for the 90-year-old man in Jordan Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Lundu in Blantyre.

He could not do piecework to support his household of four, which quickly slid into debilitating poverty.

“I was the breadwinner,” recalls Mteteya. “But the loss of vision robbed me of the ability to work and fend for my family.”

The family lost vital possessions, including goats and chickens as they struggled to overcome worsening poverty.

The father of two children says his family experienced perennial hunger as he could not farm.

The Mteteyas pose with their goats

 “I was the only one fetching food for my family as my wife has a mental disorder. Even if people helped us to grow maize, we couldn’t harvest enough as we couldn’t afford fertiliser for our fields are barren,” he explains.

For years, they have been surviving on alms from well-wishers in the neighbourhood.

“Most days we could stay hungry or have a meal a day, depending on availability of well-wishers,” he recounts.

The Mteteyas’ livelihood has been improving since 2018 when they  started receiving monthly cash transfers.

However, they now eat three meals a day, mostly balanced diets containing six food groups.

The family can also afford fertilisers and hire farm labourers to improve crop yields from their small plots.

Mteteya credits the change of fortunes to the nationwide Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP) funded by the World Bank.

The government-led social protection programme is implemented by the National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC).

According to NLGFC, the bank  supports monthly cash grants to 7 897 ultra-poor and labour-constrained households to eliminate debilitating poverty in the district.

Mteteya receives K10 000 every month, up from K7 200 four years ago.

 “The amount may be seen as small change, but it helps improve our living conditions. We no longer starve. I now own seven goats and chickens. We are slowly beating poverty,” he says.

Emily Peter, 16, and her two siblings, also survive on the monthly cash-outs. She receives K12 000 monthly.

The teenager in T/A Kapeni, Blantyre, has been taking care of her siblings since 2020 when their mother abandoned them following her stepfather’s imprisonment for defilement.

The mother used to receive the social cash transfers for the family before she left.

“If it were not for the programme, we could have starved to death. We survive on it. We use it to buy food and other needs for our well-being,” says Emily.

Blantyre District Council social cash transfer coordinator Dumisani Maona is pleased that the intervention is achieving its ultimate goal of lessening the hardships of the poorest of the poor at risk of sliding into worse poverty.

“It is exciting to note that beneficiaries are becoming food-secure and acquiring assets. Children are healthy and they are growing up to meet their full potential,” he says.

Maona reckons that the intervention is on the right track for beneficiaries to further improve nutrition, health, school enrolment and shelter in the district.

Mteteya asks government to increase the payment to fast-track his dream of living in an improved house.

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