A Visitor from Kondoa Tanzania

We were honoured by the visit of Anglican Bishop Given Gaula of Kondoa, Tanzania. He came to see if the work we do can help people in his diocese fight hunger and malnutrition. His diocese faces significant water stress as an obstacle to food production. However, irrigation and good farm practices could overcome the challenge.

 We looked at the water pumps that AWP uses to see if they are appropriate to his diocese. He thought they could work because people are only using watering cans for their small gardens now.

Later we visited the Mziza farming club and demonstration garden. He was impressed by the quality of maize, and saw the importance of fertilizer in Malawi. In central Tanzania, farmers don't use fertilizer to grow maize. The bishop noted that in Malawi, without fertilizer or significant quantities of compost/manure, the maize crop will produce nothing.

 His words of encouragement to our Mziza farming club were much appreciated. As a fellow African, he could speak directly to the importance of farming and the challenges they face in their lives.

We traveled through the city to get a perspective on development and culture in Lilongwe. The bishop was impressed by our good road system, the same roads that foreigners bemoan. We should not take even one small piece of development for granted. Having grown up in Tanzania, he was very interested in Malawian history. Before leaving for the airport, we took him to Kamuzu Banda's mausoleum to appreciate the progress Malawi has made since independence in 1964.

We look forward to the possibility of applying our experience to work in his area of Tanzania.