Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
In the garden, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
For the first time since 2005, the three sisters live in their own home. After being split apart and sent to various orphanages, they are finally able to start a new life together, as a family.
Sisters Gertrude, Elisa and Maureen cook in the courtyard of their gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
In the garden next to her gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
In the garden next to her gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Next to the front door of her gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
She has lived here since 2015. Like all the others, her gowelo has a living room, a bedroom and a storage room. Her father died when she was very young, and she was sent to an orphanage by her mother, where she remained until she was brought back to her village. Happiness now lives opposite her mother, in the community where she was born.
Thomas is studying agriculture at Green Malata, a nearby entrepreneurial training village which is run by the same charity that built his gowelo. In his house he raises guinea pigs, pigeons, and cultivates fields in the surrounding countryside. “My gowelo is good because I can go to school and I do not have to worry about where I will sleep.”
Mulanje District, Malawi, 2017.
Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Jennifer’s gowelo was recently renovated and expanded to include a private shower and cooking area.
Teresa stands in her gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
She moved into her gowelo in 2015, after she graduated from high school. After her parents passed away, Teresa, and her brother Thomas were sent to live in a nearby orphanage where she stayed until her gowelo was built. One day, she would like to study nursing and work in a hospital.
Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
On the porch of his gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
John’s parents died in a car accident in 2005. “When I heard that I was going to help build my own house I was very happy. I asked my relatives to help me organise some bricks. “ John is waiting to hear if he has passed his high school exams, after which he would like to study art. He has a passion for music videos, and is convinced there is much room for improvement when it comes to editing and cinematography.
Alex (19) sits in the bedroom of his gowelo that was damaged by a recent fire, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
In his gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Wyclef lives in the same village as his sister and takes care of his sister and her 4 children after her husband passed away. Wyclef is a big football fan, and loves to watch matches on tv, or if he can afford it, in a nearby stadium.
James (19) sits in his gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
James was very young when his father died. Although his mother is still alive, she is unable to support him as women in Malawi have a far harder time finding employment than men. James is proud of his gowelo, which he decorated himself. When he is not studying to become a plumber, he likes to listen to music on a portable radio which he powers with a car battery. His dream is to one day open his own business.
James (19) sits on the porch of his gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Elias is the manager of Green Malata, a nearby entrepreneurial training village run by the same charity that funded the building of his gowelo. He too is an orphan who attended the same orphanage as many of the others. After catching the eye of the charity’s director, he was taken under her wing, and became intimately involved with the gowelo program, overseeing the construction of more than 70 of them.
Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.
Like Elias, Mphatso was involved in the gowelo program from the very beginning. After Margriet Sacranie-Simons, the charities’ director, saw what he was capable of, she asked him to help organise and distribute the building materials needed to build the gowelos. Currently, Mphatso is working to improve the biogas facitilies at Green Malata, the nearby entrepreneurial training village.
After her mother passed away in 2007, Tamanda was sent to a local orphanage, where she still lives. She rents out her gowelo in order to earn some extra income. When she graduates, Tamanda wants to become a biology or English teacher.
Blessings sits on the porch of her gowelo, Mulanje District, Malawi, 2016.