Enabling a thriving ecosystem for individuals and communities to become self-reliant
2024 was quite a reflective and engaging year, whereby we amplified the voice of our community, including youth, women, local community leaders, investment partners and donors, local implementing partner organisations, our board and management team, towards understanding the community needs and feedback. From an informed perspective, we leaped and rebranded from Mzuzu E-Hub to Emerge Livelihoods, and we are delighted to embark on a five-year journey towards creating endless possibilities for everyone to THRIVE!
Our 2024-2029 Strategic Plan aims to foster socio-economic growth for communities through transformative solutions, leveraging technology and innovation, and promoting inclusivity and collaboration.
This is such an important milestone for us – a moment of self-analysis, delight, and open-mindedness. It’s an ambitious journey being taken with thoughtful analysis and a reflection of who we aspire to BE. Join us on our transformative journey to reinterpret our pathways and approaches, reinvest in our community, and redefine what impact looks like for every individual and community we touch, allowing them to access diverse opportunities to unleash their greatest potential.
Learn more about our Strategic Plan
How can we create meaningful change whilst creating an enabling environment for individuals and communities to attain their greatest potential and self-reliance?
This has been a big question the vision of Emerge Livelihoods has been inspired by and lies at the core of our strategy. As we provide responses to why the big shift in this five-year strategic plan, we are fully aware of the evolving landscape, new opportunities and lessons learnt and believe we are not beginning this journey out of ignorance – rather with a ton of experience. More than a strategic plan – this is our pathway to where we would like to be in 2029 – adapting innovation and flexibility to adjust across the journey running through 2024-2029.
This strategy builds on the strong foundation under the Mzuzu E-Hub established in 2017 with key achievements from the past 5 years (2017-2023) including implementation of locally led solutions through our FLAGSHIP PROGRAMS known as Bizcubation and Media and ICT Literacy Education (MILE), global recognition as a key contributor towards sustainable entrepreneurship and digital transformation,strong community engagement, collaboration and partnerships and strengthened communities through infrastructure development. A notable highlight has been the positive energy our community has served demonstrating what investing in human capital development and enterprise development can do towards transforming livelihoods and landscapes.
It is most pleasing to collaborate and engage with our communities and encounter how a small contribution can translate into MEANINGFUL IMPACT–half of it being less of money rather in the sense of community and how individuals connect with individuals. Or businesses connecting with businesses. A network of networks. All these influencing others to strive for better lives across their communities.
As we progress, this strategy intends to drive meaningful change within Emerge Livelihoods through an ecosystem led approach focusing on five strategic pillars strongly driven by community needs and priorities whilst remaining committed towards our historical background as a home for solutions derived by our communities towards amplifying self-reliance and quality of life amongst individuals.
The strategy showcases our commitment towards working with key stakeholders and
communities to create meaningful change in Emerge Livelihoods work. We are very excited to collaborate and get the change we deserve!
– Wangiwe Joanna Kambuzi
Each strategic pillar and priorities are informed strongly by the knowledge we have learnt and what we know:
- Annually, we provide equitable opportunities benefiting 5000 individuals and communities, with the majority being youth exploring leadership development, education and training, formal employment, and entrepreneurship; and communities solving diverse problems across different sectors.
- At the center of the strategic plan is the feedback accumulated from our community through literature reviews, one on one interviews, focus group discussions and consultative workshops.
“Emerge Livelihoods is addressing pains amongst Malawian youth, specifically poverty and unemployment. This positions them as one of the most sort for service providers amongst the youth. The new strategy resonates with me and I envision scalability and growth of not only my venture but all other ventures that Emerge invests in through debt, grants and equity for transformation.”
– Patrick Kuyokwa, Alumni, Founder of Agricentre
“Emerge Livelihoods has been a beacon of hope in my journey as an entrepreneur and emerging leader. Through the digital skills program, I not only gained practical skills but also secured seed capital that helped me begin commercializing those skills. As I continue to grow, I’m more inspired than ever and I look forward to walking the next chapter with Emerge Livelihoods as they continue to support and empower people like me over the next five years.”
– Yilinase Chawinga, Alumni, Founder of AdVantage Training Centre
“When I joined the graphic design program, I never expected that I would come this far. I’m truly grateful for the support Emerge Livelihoods provided. I gained valuable experience in design, and now I not only work as a graphic designer but also have the confidence to teach others. Thank you for helping me reach a place I never thought possible. Please continue doing the same for others.”
– Chawanangwa Phiri, Digital Skills Trainee
Our 5 Key strategic objectives
Technology and Innovation Spaces
Establish Emerge Hubs – technology and innovation spaces across Malawi and beyond that will bring together creators and innovators to bring impact ideas to life. Emerge Livelihoods will collaborate with local organisations and educational institutions to establish community impact hubs and makerspaces to foster creativity amongst communities.
Capacity Building
Coordinate capacity development interventions for individuals and communities through leadership development, education and training to advance digital inclusion, employability, digital innovations and entrepreneurship.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development
Enhance livelihood transformation through scaling emerging enterprises to transition into high growth potential enterprises. Emerge Livelihoods will implement training, mentorship and coaching and networking initiatives whilst providing resources that will amplify the growth and success for micro, small and medium enterprises across Malawi and beyond.
Investment Support Facilitation
Facilitate investment support through the Emerge Fund – providing access to financing for emerging enterprises in Malawi and beyond. Emerge Livelihoods will invest in climate focused sectors including agriculture and food security, renewable energy, circular economy-waste management, water and sanitation and eco-tourism.
Gender Mainstreaming
Amplify girls and women’s voices through the SheEmerge initiative mainstreaming gender inclusion across all Emerge Livelihoods interventions and increasing women participation in economic activities, reducing gender disparities in diverse socio-economic indicators.