Kirsty Nash: working with Wells for Zoë in Mzuzu, Malawi

An academic requirement of the degree in International Development and Food Policy in UCC is to undertake a work placement with an NGO in a developing country in our third year. I am currently undertaking my five-month work placement with Wells for Zoë in Mzuzu, Northern Malawi. Wells for Zoë is a small, personal organisation, focused on providing clean water to rural communities in Malawi, but also has many other community development projects in education, sustainable agriculture, horticulture, and forestry.

When I heard about all the work being done by Wells for Zoë, I was very interested in the organisation’s bottom-up approach of working with communities to assist them to develop themselves. I was overjoyed to be accepted as an intern with Wells for Zoë. It is a significant opportunity to gain an insight into what is being done on the ground to help the rural poor in Malawi, and gain a deeper understanding of the types of issues I have been learning about throughout my studies. I have been involved in many aspects of development work since starting at Wells for Zoë, and have gained experience in both the administrative responsibilities of the organisation in addition to assisting with the various field programmes.

A core task of my internship is to increase the organisation’s online and social media presence, of which I have been updating on a daily basis to keep the public informed of the organisation’s ongoing projects and initiatives. In addition to this, I have been writing blog posts for the organisation’s website. This task has allowed me to accompany my colleagues on various field programmes, including pump installations, preschool and school visits, functions, training workshops and tree-planting projects – taking photos and videos of the projects in action and writing blogs about the visits. As well as this, I assist in the assessment and documentation of various factors of the community, including assessing the nearest water source, nearest school, crops grown, number of people who benefit from a project etc. This information is then inputted into Excel spreadsheets and added to the organisation’s database.

In addition to this, I have become involved in the educational department of the organisation. As the organisation pays fees for and supports girl students through secondary school, we facilitate extra Saturday classes to assist with their studies. A crucial policy of the organisation’s development approach is a thorough follow up procedure. I have been assisting with the assessment of the grades and educational progress of the girls. In doing so, we can further look into the background and personal problems that a girl may be facing, which might perhaps hinder her school performance. As well as assisting with this academic aspect, I have also been trained and involved in the facilitation of reusable sanitary pad workshops and life skills classes for the girls supported by Wells for Zoë.

My experience with Wells for Zoë so far has been an incredible introduction into the sectoral operations of an NGO in a developing country. Having the opportunity to engage in both administrative and field work, I have gained knowledge of how both elements of administrative and field work are necessary in the execution of effective development projects. I have also gained a well-rounded insight into how development projects and initiatives are carried out, using the organisation’s ethos of a grassroots bottom-up approach within all aspects of their developmental work.

For further information on the type of work I have been involved in with Wells for Zoë, visit my blog: https://wellsforzoe.org/portfolio/kirsty-nash/