"I am inspiring girls in my rural community,” Essmy
How Malawi's social cash transfer programme is enabling girls to achieve their dreams.
Essmy Mathayo of Chibalala Village, Traditional Authority Njolomole in Ntcheu District, central Malawi, nearly married before the age of 18 due to poverty.
Her zeal to become a doctor suffered a blow just a week into her form two as her parents could no longer afford to pay her school fees.
“I spent a year at home. I was dejected,” says the 21-year-old girl.
A concerned neighbour sponsored her return to Dombole Community Day Secondary School (CDSS), but uncertainty persisted.
She says even though her family was receiving monthly social cash transfers, the support, coupled with earning from piecework, could not meet their daily needs.
“After completing secondary education, my fiancée and I started saving for our wedding which was scheduled for December last year. We produced 21 bags of maize getting ready for marriage, but we shelved the idea when I was selected to study information and communication technology at Namitembo technical college in Zomba,” she recounts.
Essmy’s family is among the beneficiaries of the Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP), which targets the poorest households across the country.
“I didn’t know where transport money and fees would come from as the monthly social cash transfers were not enough. However, my love and I agreed that marriage could wait,” says the firstborn in a family of four children.
In January 2024, Essmy was selected for financial assistance from the Social Protection for Gender Empowerment and Resilience Programme (SP-GEAR) through the Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare.
Funded by the European Union and the Government of Ireland in partnership with UNICEF, SP-GEAR links girls from SCTP households to vocational training and social services to accelerate their rise from poverty.
Essmy received MK200 000 ($114) for the first term. She paid tuition and rent. She also bought food, a cookstove, some learning materials, clothes, and shoes.
“Without the financial support, I would have been married like my peers who already have two or three children,” says the trainee.
She endured high self-boarding expenses at Namitembo until March 2024 when the Ministry facilitated her transfer to a boarding technical college in Salima District along Lake Malawi.
“Salima Technical College is fantastic, and I learn in peace. My future looks promising. My dressing and looks say it all. When I go home, everyone knows I’m a college girl. I am inspiring girls in my rural community to stop marrying young,” says Essmy.
And she refuses to quit.
“After obtaining the ICT diploma, I will get a loan to study for a degree in computer science at Mzuzu University or the University of Malawi. I want to inspire girls to dream big,” she says, her unyielding eyes firmly fixed on her best friend, Sarah Chadzera.
Sarah, from Chitsulo Village, TA Gunya in Ntcheu, is studying bricklaying. She also receives SP-GEAR support.
“I’m living my dream. I want to build my nation brick by brick like Melifa, the skilled bricklayer I read about in the Standard Four Chichewa textbook. The support I get every term gives me peace of mind. I focus on what tutors teach since my main needs are sorted."
Like Essmy, Sarah wants to inspire girls and create jobs for the youth.
When she returned home in June, Sarah carried application forms for her peers interested in applying for vocational training.
“I want to become an independent woman and change my life, family, fellow artisans, and girls who lack role models. If I need a civil engineering degree to achieve this, I will go for it,” concludes Sarah.
