Help Our Vaccinators Pedal Toward Change

Our previous updates have highlighted the bicycles, the training, and the logistics. But I want to emphasise that the true story of this project is not about us at the Rural Poultry Centre, it is about the community-based vaccinators (CBVs) who do the work in the villages.

Our network of CBVs has continued to grow and strengthen. These are local women and men trained to vaccinate village chickens against Newcastle disease - the single most devastating threat to poultry in rural Malawi. Chickens are important and most rural households raise them. They are a source of protein, income, and resilience. When Newcastle disease strikes, flocks can be wiped out in days, and with them, a family's livelihood.

The bicycles we distributed earlier this year have made a real difference already. CBVs who used to walk for hours between villages can now reach more households in less time. This means more chickens vaccinated, more families protected, more food on the table, and more kids' school fees paid. The impact is that simple and effective.

The CBVs  are the ones who knock on doors, explain the importance of vaccination, and return time after time to ensure flocks are protected. We provide the training, and where we can the bikes, but it is their dedication that turns this into impact.

At RPC we have other initiatives, but we know that behind it all, Newcastle disease prevention is the single most impactful intervention we offer. Help us stand behind the CBVs who make it happen.

Pat Boland

Director of the Rural Poultry Centre

Links:

• Why it matters - in brief.