training

"We are busy, busy with business. Busy as bees!" said the ladies at Luso la Manja with huge grins on their faces as they worked on their first Dsenyo order which they were awarded after successfully
finishing their training.  All of the groups we have worked with are expressing so much joy and gratitude for the opportunity to work in partnership with Dsenyo.  They not only get business from us and are
paid a fair wage for their labor, but they receive free training from Dsenyo which elevates their skills to the next level and empowers them with knowledge about product design and quality standards for an
export market.  As each day passes and as I spend more time training with our producer groups, I am more and more convinced than ever that Dsenyo's approach fills a much needed void.

I am traveling with Tamara Banda, a driven, talented and confident young business woman. With Dsenyo's support, Tamara has started KAFUTARO Import & Export. Dsenyo will contract with Tamara's business to provide services like coordinating between our different producer groups, managing quality control, delivering materials, collecting finished goods, and serving as translator during training sessions. In the past, Tamara was one of the leading female soccer referees in the Northern Region and a long distance runner for the Malawi Police College.

I'm here in Malawi for the month of March and promised I would keep all of you up to date on my blog. I resolved to blog for each leg of the trip:

1. Lilongwe
2. Kasungu
3. Mzuzu (Ekwendeni, Nkhata Bay)
4. Khande
5. Zambia
6. Tanzania 

Well, I'm already in Mzuzu, leaving tomorrow for Khande and feeling a bit behind on blogging. So here's a brief overview of my first few days in Malawi which I spent in Lilongwe getting settled and touching base with people in the capitol city.