The Dalitso Project

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The Dalitso Project

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Working hand in hand to beat poverty through orphan care, education, food programs, vocational training, health care and house building in Malawi.

The Dalitso Project is a registered Scottish charity SC046514 The Dalitso Project is a Christian based charity working in partnership with Aquaid Lifeline to provide orphan care, education, vocational training, food programs and house building for the poorest of the poor in Malawi, the warm heart of Africa. Dalitso means ‘blessing’ in Chichewa, the language of Malawi. As a charity we aim to bless the people of Malawi but have found that they bless us in return. The groups involvement in Malawi began in 2007 when a group of 7 young people visited Namisu orphan school and village in the south of Malawi and got to see the tough conditions children were living in. With this they decided to fund the building and running of 2 daycare centres and 2 residences for the most at risk young people. These are based in the Thyolo and Kambilonjo regions. Each of these centres are up and running and care for 300 plus children, providing nursery care, additional education (primary schools are only open in the mornings), food and training/further education for the older young people. Since then 2 further trips of 15 have visited the projects, 2 gap students and now a yearly trip ensures that developments of these projects continue. In Kambilonjo which is a very hard to reach, mountainous region of Malawi on the Mozambique border, a health clinic has been built in partnership with the local government. This will mean that the children in our centres and the local community have access to medical care on their doorstep instead of having to take the 1 hour journey on the back of a truck down a very bumpy and often dangerous road like before. To raise money to fund these main projects we run regular fundraisers and a Sponsor Child program. More information of upcoming events and how to get involved in the Sponsor program is available regularly on the main page.

27/10/2026

Now that we’re back from our trip, we’re moving into our Christmas fundraisers! 🎄

First up is our Soup, Scones & Stalls Fundraiser on Saturday 7th November, 10am–2pm at Arbroath Town Mission.

Enjoy soup and tea/coffee for £3, a scone and tea/coffee for £3, or soup, a scone and tea/coffee for £5. There’ll also be stalls to browse!

All money raised will go towards The Dalitso Project Christmas Appeal 2026 which we will be sharing details of soon. We’d love to see you there!

Keep an eye on our page this weekend too, when we’ll be sharing information about our Christmas soups and puddings.

24/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – They’re Home! ❤️

The team are finally home! What a journey! ✈️🌍

Blantyre, Malawi 🇲🇼 ➡️ Beira, Mozambique 🇲🇿 ➡️ Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 🇪🇹 ➡️ Marseille, France 🇫🇷 ➡️ Manchester, England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 ➡️ followed by a long drive north to Scotland! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏡

But every mile was worth it! ❤️

After another wonderful few weeks in the Warm Heart of Africa, the team have returned home with lots of memories and so much to reflect on. 🇲🇼❤️

A huge thank you to everyone in Malawi for welcoming the team so warmly once again, to everyone back home for their continued support, and to everyone who followed their journey on social media. ❤️

Over the coming weeks, the team will be sorting through meeting notes, organising children’s reports and photos, and reflecting on everything they saw, heard and experienced during their visit.

And there’s still so much more to share! ❤️

Although the journey home marks the end of this trip, the memories, connections and work continue. Keep following the Dalitso Project for more updates from Malawi 2026! 🇲🇼❤️

❤️

23/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 21!

The Malawi 2026 trip has officially come to an end! ❤️

The team left Thyolo this morning after devotions and began the long journey home to Scotland. They travelled to Blantyre for their first flight to Ethiopia, with a brief stop in Mozambique along the way.

The team are now in Ethiopia, waiting for their next flight in a few hours! 🇪🇹

Safe travels home, team! ✈️🇲🇼

22/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 20! ❤️

This morning, the team started the day with devotions before setting off on a 6.7km walk to visit the house the staff have been saving up to build! 🏡 Then they walked to our land, where we have the gardens, before heading back to the centre.

Francis also came to visit the team, and there were lots of important meetings throughout the day to finalise things with the social worker, teachers and Kiri.

Becky and Aileen headed to the market to pick up a few bits and bobs before returning to play some games with the kids. Charis spent some time in the classroom watching Boniface. ❤️

And this evening, after dinner, the team will enjoy their last night of singing, games and choir performances, including some brand-new Christmas songs! 🎶🎄

21/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 19 🇲🇼

The team started the day with morning devotions before Kiri decided it was time for a little adventure! She took everyone to a dam they’d never visited before (can you believe there are still places to explore after all their visits?! 😄).

They even got out on the water for some rowing, and Kiri revealed it was her very first time in a rowing boat! 🚣‍♀️ As you can see from the photos, she had a brilliant time in the boat with Fraser and Sheila. After a couple of hours exploring the dam together, it was time to head back to the centre.

📚 Back at the centre, Charis attended a couple of classes, while Becky got busy experimenting with dried mango! 🥭 Mangoes are in season at the moment, and Becky has been making the most of them by juicing them, making mango iced tea and now trying her hand at drying them.

The hope is to turn these mango creations into a small business that can generate income to support the centre. What a great way to make the most of the local produce and create something sustainable! 🖤

🎓 A very special celebration is coming up! Joyce graduates on Friday in nursing and midwifery! She proudly showed off her graduation outfit and had a lovely photo with Kiri. Unfortunately, Kiri has other commitments and won’t be able to attend the graduation, but Joyce’s mum will be there to celebrate this amazing achievement with her.

🚚 The kids were delighted to get a wee ride in the truck down to the gate! Just look at those happy faces! 😍❤️

Another full day at the centre, with the added bonus of a little adventure! 💚🇲🇼

Project

20/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 18 ☀️🥵

Absolutely boiling today! 🥵

The team started the day with devotions before heading off to another busy day in Thyolo.

Fraser spent the day in Blantyre, taking Kiri with him as she attended a conference. Meanwhile, the rest of the team spent the morning visiting some of the young people on our programme who are supported at home due to the distance, and completing their reports.

🌈 A busy afternoon!

- Becky and Aileen got creative with the nursery children, making masks together.
- Aileen enjoyed some parachute games with some of the kids.
- Sheila made sure the final sponsor children’s parcels were handed out.
- Charis spent some time with Boniface, one of the teachers.
- The village banking group held their meeting today, and we were treated to a wee dance to finish! 💃🕺

We also had a lovely visit from Crissy and her baby boy, Kersten. Crissy was previously a boarder with the project, so it was wonderful to see her again with her little one. ❤️

The day is now winding down with the kids finishing up with a game of footy. ⚽ Another busy day in Thyolo, and did we mention it was hot! 🥵

🇲🇼

19/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 17

The team began the day with devotions at the centre, followed by a staff meeting to discuss the work and ongoing progress.

One highlight was hearing how the staff are using the profits from the shop not only to restock it, but also to begin building a house that they can rent out to generate additional income for the centre. 🏡

The team had the opportunity to visit the Traditional Authority (TA). The TA also took them to see the traditional court, where local disputes, including those relating to land are solved.

In the afternoon, the team visited the T Estate, which is a significant part of the Thyolo community. Later in the day, there was plenty of fun as they spent time playing with the children. ❤️

Becky prepared a relish using the vegetables gifted to the team by a kind-hearted lady who supports the team during their time in Thyolo. She also generously shared fresh green maize, which the team enjoyed for lunch. 🌽🥬

The team finished the day with another game of Mira, bringing Day 17 to a happy close!

18/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 – Day 16 🇲🇼

Today the team walked 30 minutes to Kiri, our administrator’s church. On the way home they spotted some monkeys 🐒 and bumped into Ndalakwa Mwicha, who was part of the Dalitso Project and trained as a motorbike mechanic. He was busy fixing a tyre on a minibus when he spotted the team and came over to say hello. It’s great to see his training coming in handy! 🏍️🔧

This afternoon was spent having lots of fun with the boarders! There was Jenga, Lego building, Ankle Burst (the balloon game), Yahtzee and Uno. The team also taught the kids how to juggle! 🤹

Then we got stuck into some games, including the Malawian game Mira, Shoe & Bottle, Wipeout, Elephant Football and One Bounce. There was plenty of laughter and a bit of competition along the way! 😂

At the end of Mira, everyone shook hands after a good game – although Aileen and Charis might not have been quite so happy about it after losing! 🤣

And our photographer for the day? Iona, aged just 5! 📸 How lovely to see her capturing all the fun!

Another day full of fun, friendships and making memories in Malawi ❤️🇲🇼

18/10/2026

🇲🇼 Malawi 2026 - fuel queues! 🇲🇼⛽

Imagine waiting for hours just to buy fuel! In Malawi, a trip to the petrol station can turn into a whole-day outing. 😩😂

Would you wait in this queue? 👀👇

17/10/2026

🇲🇼Malawi 2026 - Day 15

Finally arrived in Thyolo! 🇲🇼❤️

We left Kambilonjo early this morning, with the children singing and waving us goodbye. What a lovely send-off! 🥰👋

Saturday is market day in Kambilonjo, so getting through the busy streets took a little time. The roads were pretty terrible in places, with lots of untarmacked sections making the journey long, bumpy and VERY hot! 🥵🚗

Along the way, the team stopped to visit our friends John and Modesta. We also visited the borehole near Modesta’s house, and Aileen couldn’t resist having a go herself! 💧😊

Fuel queues were absolutely massive, but thankfully we didn’t need to join them! 🙌⛽️

But we made it safely to Thyolo, ready to see what our final week has in store. ❤️🇲🇼

Address

Arbroath

Website

https://thedalitsoproject.weebly.com/

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