Sixty-year-old Severiano Phinifolo from Wayisoni Village, Tradition Authority Mduwa in Mchinji District and his 51-year-old wife, Magadalena, who have physical disabilities, are looking for well-wishers to help them.

Due to the physical disability, Severiano is confined to a wheelchair and Magadalena relies on crutches.

In an interview on Tuesday, Phinifolo said they depend on begging to survive.

“However, she is now weak as she is growing old.  We only eat once in the evening when going to sleep,” he said.

Phinifolo and his wife sit in front of their house

The couple also takes care of their granddaughter, Yankho, who goes to Chitunda Primary School on an empty stomach.

“My daughter trekked to Zambia and we never hear from her, but she left us her child who we are staying with in these poor conditions,” said Magadalena.

Despite the challenges, the couple is not enrolled in Social Cash Transfer Programme and missed out on Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP).

Mchinji district principal social welfare officer Emmanuel Gerevazio said for now, they can just ask for support from well-wishers while looking for ways to respond to the situation.

“On having the couple on Social Cash Transfer Programme, the enrolment process is rigorous as beneficiaries are drawn from the universal beneficiary registry, which makes it difficult to just enroll anyone into the programme,” he said.

Village head Wayisoni said they simpathise with the family.

“However, the village is also grappling with its own challenges as no one qualified for AIP and most people have no food, resorting to eating only once a day,” he said.

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