Dowa District Community Based Organisations (CBOs) have asked the National Aids Commission (NAC) to clarify why a grant amounting to K1.5 million to each of the CBOs of the district was not fully fulfilled.
The CBOs said they have been asking this to the Dowa District Councils Aids Coordinator, Martin Pindamkono, only to be told to wait and that waiting has turned into no hope with no official report.
Speaking in an interview, the district’s CBO representative to the council, Lajab Chigumula, said 53 CBOs of the district wrote various proposals to NAC seeking funding for their planned activities.
Chigumula said it was worrisome to see that out of their proposals, some got Mk170,000 while others Mk350,000, a development which had to force all the CBOs of the district to revise their activities to match the amount of money given.
“The CBOs were promised to be given the remaining Mk1.3 million but up to date, they are receiving no response making some CBO’s not to function with all the receipts and reports sent to the NAC headquarters in Lilongwe,” he said.
The CBOs’ representative to the council asked NAC to come to the open explaining to them through their council what it did with the Mk60 million money allocated to the CBOs of the district.
He said that needy girls, orphans and vulnerable children were getting support from the CBOs of the district through bursaries, pass on programs for pigs and goats but all this have stopped, a development which people of the district are pointing fingers at the council for not supporting the needy through bursaries in the district.
Chigumula added that when the CBOs go to the council secretariat, they are always asked to write reports and they are tired of doing so, accusing the council’s District Aids Coordinator (DAC) of lacking the truth of the matter.
However, speaking during an Education Service Committee meeting held at the Dowa boma on 23rd October, 2017, Dowa Acting District Education Manager (DEM), Josephy Chafukira highlighted that his office did not have bursary funds.
Chafukira informed the members that there was a general outcry of people who seek bursary support from the education office pleading with the members to lobby for more funds to support the needy on bursary scheme.
Dowa eeshi!! sizava.