Our story

I had been to Africa several times, and each time I was touched by how genuine the friendliness and cheerfulness of the people I met were - even though they live on so much less than we do. My last trip was a journey of almost two months through East Africa in an overland truck.

But it was in Malawi that this feeling hit me most deeply. At Kande Beach, halfway along the west side of Lake Malawi, cheerful children waved everywhere - not to beg, but purely out of curiosity. I asked if someone could paint a picture from a photo of my son, because he was incredibly ill. That is how Rodger came along, a souvenir seller/small farmer of around forty.

At half past five the next morning, Rodger was at my door, not with a painting, but with an idea. He had asked the medicine man whether he would help my sick son Ivar, with no strings attached. A gesture so beautiful it moved me to tears!

So began an unforgettable journey, over washed-away roads and in a small boat, to collect the ingredients for the medicine. I will never forget that day.

How did Stichting 100% Malawi come about?

Once I was back home, several people from the village called me a number of times to ask how Ivar, my son, was doing and whether I still needed medicine, and to tell me they were praying for me every day.

How remarkable that people who have almost nothing do nothing but give!

When I asked them, months later, whether I could do something for them, maize was the only thing they asked for. What is a luxury for them is simply pig feed for us. So I gave them a sack of maize, and it turned out they even shared it with sick neighbours!

What wonderful people I had met, and how easily I could help in a way that was simple for me! I then asked Rodger whether, in consultation with the village Chief, he could take stock of who in the village really needed help.

He did a truly fantastic job! It brought to light around 65 people who were genuinely living below Malawi’s subsistence level.

For each of them we have their story, their name and videos of their little homes, which truly lack everything. They own no chairs or tables, usually no bed, and sleep on plastic sacks and torn blankets!

So I simply started with good old-fashioned food aid, because these people could no longer even hold the proverbial fishing rod to catch fish for themselves.

And look where we are now, only a year and a half later!

• We still give food aid to around 65 people every month
• We have now built a preschool
• We have our own land where we harvest our own crops
• We make our own food for the school
• We have chickens and fruit trees
• We have created a playing field
• We run farming courses
• And we run women’s projects
• We have a water pump
• etc., etc.