Our Projects

Community-led justice, gender equality, social services, and climate resilience across 3 Traditional Authorities.

School-based program tackling harmful male gender norms through education, mentorship, and national research.

Four-year project in Phalombe, Machinga, and Mulanje supporting VS&L, entrepreneurship training, and community empowerment.

Improving access to quality education through school infrastructure, teacher training, and safe learning environments.

Tackles HIV/AIDS in rural Blantyre with integrated support services, nutrition, youth leadership, and grassroots networks.

Including "Her Future Her Choice" and "Girls Get Equal" which strengthened SRHR and reduced early marriage rates.

The CHOICE Project (Comprehensive Health Options through Innovative Community Engagement) is a transformative, gender-responsive initiative funded by Global Affairs Canada and led globally by Oxfam. CAVWOC is proudly collaborating as part of a powerful multi-sectoral consortium to advance the Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) of the most vulnerable and marginalized populations in Malawi. Geographically focused on catchment areas within Lilongwe and Balaka districts, the project champions the bodily autonomy and health rights of adolescent girls, young women (AGYW), and persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Operating on a gender-transformative framework, the project directly targets the root causes of healthcare exclusion, poverty, and systemic gender inequality through dismantling harmful socio-cultural norms, upgrading public health facilities with Youth Corners, and ensuring non-discriminatory access to comprehensive contraceptive care, safe abortion, and post-abortion care. A central pillar is the shift toward community-led social accountability using Community Score Cards (CSC) and digital feedback channels. The consortium members are: Oxfam (Global Lead), CAVWOC, FPAM, Ipas, Point of Progress and VillageReach.

1.0 Introduction The 'Reducing Poverty and Inequality in Malawi' project, funded by Oxfam Ireland, is currently underway in Mchinji, Lilongwe Rural, and Phalombe districts. This initiative is being executed by Oxfam Malawi in close partnership with CAVWOC, CEWAG, and CYO, in collaboration with the respective district councils. The project is guided by the following key objectives: Improving Access to GBV Essential Services and Increasing Women and Girls' Participation in Decision-Making Increasing Institutional Responsiveness in Promoting Gender Equality and Resilient Livelihoods Enhancing Household, Community, and Institutional Anticipatory Preparedness and Capacity CAVWOC is implementing a component on gender justice in Phalombe to achieve the improvement of access to GBV essential services and increasing Women and Girls' participation in decision-making. Impact areas: Phalombe district, 6 Traditional Authorities namely; Jenala, Khando, Tamani, Kasongo, Phweremwe and Nkhulambe 2.0 Expected Outcomes: Increased capacity of local community structures on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG), prevention, mitigation and response. Increased representation of Women Leadership in community structures Improved capacity of GBV survivors especially women and girls in TEVET and Entrepreneurship skills Increased capacity of District and community level GBV Essential services providers 3.0 Project Interventions: The project has established and strengthened women groups called Women Movements who have been trained to raise awareness, conduct advocacy activities and facilitate case referrals among other things. The Women Movement groups’ membership comprises of women who hold various responsibilities in the communities such as Mother groups, Youth groups, Women Living with HIV, economic empowerment groups and the like. The project has also strengthened Community Victim Support Units (CVSUs) to ensure that they are effectively and efficiently handling Gender Based Violence (GBV) related issues. These CVSU members are working hand in hand with the Women Movements in case referrals and awareness raising. Project is divided into 3 levels namely Micro and Meso and each level has a number of activities as outlined below; MICRO LEVEL OUTCOME: Community actors demonstrate increased support for the equal rights of women, marginalized and vulnerable groups Building local community capacity in EVAWG (Mobilization, Shifting negative social norm, Rights awareness and Response, referral Systems) Training of Community structures as community action groups (women groups including mother groups, community, community policing, chiefs, youth network, religious leaders, child protection workers, community development facilitator, HSA, VSU etc) in GBV, referral mechanisms including development of case flow Support Quarterly review meetings with EVAWG community action groups to assess the progress of GBV interventions in the impact communities Conduct EVAWG Campaigns to mobilize individuals on reporting GBV Building the capacity of GBV survivors especially women and girls in TEVET and entrepreneurship skill Training of GBV Survivors especially women and Girls in TEVET and Entrepreneurship skills 40 women trained in tailoring and 20 in soap making Facilitating agency of women and women groups, movements in Transformative Women's Leadership and Rights Training of women and girls on STAR circle approach Interface meetings with duty bearers’/Service providers on the rights of VAWG survivors and their responsibilities MESO Level Outcome: Local leaders more effectively advocate for rights, peace and security of all Strengthening district level GBV referral systems for Essential service providers (Police, Health and Judiciary) Support Legal aid and Circuit courts at community level (3 mobile court sessions conducted in 2024 on sexual violence related issues) Supporting social accountability mechanisms for community and district service providers on GBV referral services and access to justice. Strengthen coordination of Technical Working Group on GBV at district and Community Levels Conducting VAWG campaigns on international commemorations (16 days, International Women's Day, Day of African child) at district level