Mothers Leading the Way to End Child Malnutrition in Mposa

Cotrida Amin, 21, began her journey into motherhood with joy, but it soon turned into fear. At just six months old, their baby boy began losing weight.

“He dropped to only six kilograms. That was the start of our nightmare. He was diagnosed with malnutrition. We spent many days in the hospital and used a lot of money on transport,” says Cotrida .

The turning point came when Cotrida and her baby were enrolled in World Vision Malawi’s Community Complementary Feeding and Learning Sessions (CCFLS), a special program introduced in their village. Through these sessions, Cotrida and other mothers learned how to prepare nutritious meals using locally available foods.

“I learned how to mix different local foods to make healthy porridge for my baby. I followed everything I was taught, and now my son is two years old and weighs 11.9 kilograms. Now , my baby  is happy, strong, and playful. I did not know it could be this simple to save a child’s life” Says Cotrida.

Cotrida’s story is not an isolated one. Across Mposa, mothers are witnessing improvements in their children’s health. Through CCFLS sessions, knowledge is spreading quickly, and malnutrition is slowly becoming a thing of the past.

Melia Dyton, a trained care leader, is one of the people driving this change. She teaches mothers in her community how to incorporate six food groups into their daily meals.

“We are now seeing healthy children in Mposa. World Vision gave us knowledge, and now we are passing it on.” Says Dyton.

Each care leader is responsible for ten households, visiting them regularly to guide and supervise mothers. They do not just focus on nutrition; they also teach families how to prevent common illnesses like malaria and diarrhea.

According to Liny Mwanja, Projects Officer for Maternal and Child Health at World Vision Malawi, this child health and nutrition program began in 2011 and 2012, aiming to help children with stunted growth. Since then, the impact has been significant.

“We targeted children under five and trained communities to manage malnutrition themselves. Children showing signs of malnutrition are either enrolled in the program or referred to health centers. Now, there are far fewer cases of malnutrition among children. Before, we could have at least seven malnourished children in a community each month. But now, there are times when we do not have a single case” Says Mwanja.

Another major part of the program is encouraging households to grow nutritious crops in their backyard garden to provide their families with fresh vegetables and fruits.

Back at home, Cotrida spends her days preparing healthy meals and watching her son laugh and play. 

Over the past 15 years, World Vision Malawi has been implementing the CCFLS program, successfully saving 3,200 children from malnutrition and reaching 5,500 households with vital health and nutrition messages.