RED project Grows Fashion Designing in Chikumbu Village

According to the 2018 population census, 1,224,602 Malawian youths were unemployed representing 18.5 unemployment rate.

As the figures from this study proved scary in the job market, Save the Children Malawi embarked on an area development program to impart different entrepreneurial skills to the youths of Zomba district in 2016.

Peter from Chikumbu village in Zomba is one of the youths that took part in this initiative and was grilled on tailoring skills in a two months course.

With passing of time, Peter has started extending the same skills that he was trained on to his fellow youths of the Chikumbu village through Resilience Economic Development (RED) project which is being implemented by Save the Children.

According to Peter, the initiative is very important to the youths now since the increase in unemployment rate has left many youths indulging in different malpractices that has ruined their future.

“Youths have seen this program very profitable in their lives and have committed themselves completely to it. The learners that I am tutoring in this short course are now able to design and sew clothes. I was taught from an initiative like this one and I am very delighted to teach others also.”

Peter has further commended RED project for the materials that were made available to them which necessitated learning.

 One of Peter's trainees Chalera was compelled to start tailoring with hope that his life will change. Chalera desires to master fashion and designing so that he will be able to produce the most desirable and latest outfits.

Speaking in an interview, Chalera expressed his profound gratitude with the coming of RED project. He said that fashion has become very trendy in his area and what makes fashion designing lucrative is that only few people know how to design clothes.

He said, “I am growing into a fashion designer and I know I will develop more. Currently I am able to sew dresses, skirts and trousers. As soon as I am done with my lessons, I am sure a lot of people will flock to me because of what I am capable of doing.”

Chalera also said that he wants to take advantage of their youthful instructor because he is a role model and his mode of delivery makes concepts very easy to grasp.

Chikumbu Village is one of the targeted areas in Zomba in the RED project funded by Save the Children Italy and the project is being implemented by Save the Children Malawi.