Hana Rockey, 47, is a mother of eight. She lives in Nanja Village, Southern Malawi – and in poverty. But things are looking up since she received a pregnant cow and training in livestock management from Oxfam Unwrapped.
Hana was identified by a Mkakazi project – a special initiative that distributes pregnant heifers to women beneficiaries in Southern Malawi, with a particular emphasis on helping poorer rural households and those affected by HIV and AIDS.
Hana attended a dairy cow management course and in March 2005 she received one of the 75 cows that Oxfam Unwrapped distributed in her region. Her dairy cow gives her an average of eight litres of milk a day – and an income of around k14, 000 per month, which pays for her two daughters’ secondary school fees and the day-to-day running costs of her big family.
Hana’s cow has changed her life. To date, it has given her three heifers, one of which has already been passed on to help another family – and this heifer has also calved. The profit from another heifer sale will go to pay for the iron sheets that, along with the baked bricks, will help her construct a house.
A happy ending to a regular ‘dairy’ story…