Malawi Union for Informal Sector (MUFIS) had conducted a two-day workshop on negotiation and advocacy workshop at Chilambula Lodge in Lilongwe district.
The event brought people from all the regions of the country of which some of those people were branch leaders and formal members.
The president of Mufis who is also the president of National Federation of Trade Unions (NAFETU), Ken Williams Mhango discouraged the spirit of Jealousy to between the members of the informal sector hence encouraged love between them so that other unions must take them as good example.
In an interview with Mhango, he said that after organizing vendors, now this time they have started organizing people in the cooperatives, small medium enterprises like people who are growing tobacco, tea and bananas among other.
He also explained about the ‘Feed Malawi’ project which he said it was started after they started organizing people in the cooperatives since when these people from the cooperatives produces, people from the market go and order from them to sell to the markets as the outlet of all the products.
“We have taken ourselves as people who are trying to serve Malawi by feeding them with our different products we sell in the markets as well as producing in the cooperatives and this is in line with the vision 2063 as well as the project of the Mega farms which the President of the Republic of Malawi had started. We are behind that project but its unfortunately that the government did not approach us, but it’s not too late, they can approach us so that together we can fight food insecurity in the country”, said Mhango.
Dorica Bauleni, one of the participants from Chirimba Market in Blantyre and also the one who was a chairperson of the house during the two days of the workshop said that she as people with albinism, they are discriminated but she found it differently when she joined Mufis.
“In 2020 Mufis invited us for a technical training which they took 8 people with albinism from Chirimba and I was one of those people. I felt so proud because I did plumbing which helps my life besides the business I do in the market and after all, I have a peace of mind because the union is not taking me as a person with albinism but rather we are being treated as human beings as well” said Bauleni.
Therefore, Bauleni encouraged many people especially those with albinism to join the union in the sense that there is no selective when it comes to be a member of the organization at Mufis.
She also added that Mufis has helped them in terms of teaching them capacity building, collective bargaining and negotiations, their rights as vendors and one thing which is helpful is how to do their businesses for it to be more profitable.
In addition to what Bauleni had said, Alice Magadalena Chanza who is a Councilor from Kapoka in Chitipa district and also a member of Mufis said that they are having cooperatives in their district which they grow different things like Soya beans, vegetables, groundnuts, coffee, pine trees and maize among others which gives them money as well as helping in fighting food insecurity.
