We invite you to join us as we virtually walk from our Open Arms Malawi base in Mangochi to our base in Blantyre, focusing on a few of the nursery schools that we have helped to build and continue to support as milestones along the way. These nursery schools speak to the heart of our work at Open Arms Malawi.

Although 88% of children in Malawi attend primary school, net enrolment in secondary school is only around 15% (UNICEF, 2019). Preschool education makes up around 0.2% of the countrys education budget . This lack of investment in both infrastructure and resources at pre-primary level prevents access to early learning and directly impacts both Malawis poor long-term educational outcomes and socioeconomic development.

44% of Malawians are aged under 15 and, with a population growth of 2.6% (UNESCO, 2018), the need to invest in early learning is paramount for the socioeconomic development of the country. Education is the most effective route out of poverty.

Providing preschool education and a nutritious meal to over 500 children every day, our nursery school programme is working to address these infrastructural and resource problems.

We built these nursery schools in partnership with local communities. Each year we fund a teacher, an assistant, educational resources, food, and a project officer for monitoring purposes, but the communities own and run the schools. Since access to preschool education is minimal, especially in rural areas, nursery schools are directly addressing some of the most pressing educational and socioeconomic challenges which Malawi faces.

The milestones we will be reaching are as follows:

Milestone 1: Kondwani Nursery School in Kungumbe Village. We are extremely proud of our feeding station and nursery school programme, which began in 2003. Open Arms has a policy of providing nursery education to the children returned to their communities at two years old, whenever this is possible.

Milestone 2: Chimwemwe Nursery School and Feeding Station. A feeding station is a place where children can receive free basic nursery education, plus a hot nutritious meal every day. Open Arms currently assists with the running of 7 feeding stations, reaching an estimated 400 children.

Milestone 3: Nansenga Nursery School and Feeding Station. Our feeding stations and nursery schools have become an invaluable resource to local communities who are also encouraged to use them for activities that benefit the whole village (adult literacy, and HIV testing are ways that they have been used).

Milestone 4: Kungumbe Nursery School and Feeding Station. By providing for the educational and nutritional needs of these children and their wider communities, our nursery schools support the Malawi Early Childhood Development (ECD) Strategic Plan which focuses on child development holistically. The plan recognises the need for increased pre-primary capital spending on ECD centres like nursery schools.

Milestone 5: Madalitso Nursery School and Feeding Station. As the 6th poorest country in the world (IMF, 2019), Malawi's education budget is overstretched. Working in line with government policy, our community-owned nursery schools support clearly identified strategic goals to combat malnutrition and poor educational outcomes.

Milestone 6: Mchocholo Nursery School and Feeding Station. Delivering pre-primary education and nutrition to rural communities, our schools improve childrens long-term educational opportunities and socioeconomic and health prospects.

Milestone 7: Kafulimira Nursery School and Feeding Station. A daily meal of fortified porridge combats malnutrition which affects 37% of Malawian children under 5 with stunting (UNICEF, 2018) and is directly linked to cognitive development central to educational performance.

Milestone 8: Tisawataye Nursery School and Feeding Station. Education enables upward socioeconomic mobility; preschools improve long-term educational outcomes and offer a route to improved employment later in life. Attention to the nutritional needs of children also bolsters educational performance, improves long-term health prospects, and combats the socioeconomic effects of malnutrition.

Milestone 9: Namalo Nursery School and Feeding Station. For children in the low-income countries, early learning is a springboard allowing them to catch up with their more privileged peers. Preschool education gives them more chances to do well in primary school later, continue through secondary school, and eventually find work with a better pay. Global Partnership for Education. At Open Arms, we believe the same.

Milestone 10: Kumanda Nursery School and Feeding Station. By actively pursuing UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) 1 (No Poverty), 2 (Zero Hunger), 4 (Quality Education) and 10 (Reduced Inequalities), the schools are making a valuable contribution to the long-term socioeconomic and health sustainability of Malawi.