Our Mission

Chikondi Malawi is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization that supports feeding and farming programs for orphans in seven villages in the outskirts of Lilongwe, Malawi.

The purpose of Chikondi Malawi is to alleviate suffering and improve the lives of disadvantaged children in Africa. The terrible toll of HIV/AIDS is not limited to the sick and dying. It has created a generation of orphans.

Extended family (particularly the grandmothers, "agogos") do their best to care for the children left behind, but most are already overburdened with their own hunger and health issues. In addition, although Malawi has faced drought before, multiple years of persistent drought have driven the needs of this already-vulnerable population to an unprecedented high.

Life is difficult for these precious children. Without adequate nutrition, they will weaken. They will lose their stamina, mental capacity to complete their required school work, and ability to combat the disease threats in this environment – which include diarrhea, pneumonia, tuberculosis and malaria. Nutrition provided in their daily meals at the orphan feeding center provides their bodies with the capacity to overcome the obstacles challenging them daily, and give them hope for a brighter future.

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Our Programs

Feeding Assistance

The current focus of Chikondi Malawi is providing supplemental nourishment to several hundred orphans in a safe, warm and loving environment. Chikondi Malawi feeds about 600 children breakfast and lunch every day during the school week.

There is also a bicycle cart that delivers lunch to about 150 grandmothers, "agogos", who take care of the orphans in the remote villages. The food is purchased locally and prepared by cooks from the community at the feeding center.

Farming Assistance

Over 90 percent of the population in Malawi makes a living by subsistence farming. Bountiful harvests require vast amounts of rainfall which Malawi has not received recently.

Moisture in the soil is the key to a successful harvest and currently the local farmers are being introduced to a farming program that does not involve tilling the soil. This program also promotes using organic compost to maintain soil moisture during the dry seasons.

Our Needs

Contributions to Chikondi Malawi will support several hundred orphaned and vulnerable children by providing food, basic necessities, essential medical supplies and educational assistance.

$35 feeds one orphan for a month

$40 provides a goat for an orphan to raise for milk or food

$90 provides school uniforms for 22 orphans

$100 provides one cookie for each of the 600 children expected at the feeding center on Christmas Day

$120 provides a bale of used clothings from Europe consisting of at least 400 items for children

$130 provides a bar of soap as a Christmas gift to each of the orphans

$750 provides tuition and books for one college-age orphan for a year of education

$2,500 provides solar equipment for students to study in the evening hours

For more information, please contact [email protected]
Chikondi Malawi is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. Your contribution is tax deductible.

The Need in Malawi

The orphan population in Malawi is about one million. To be an orphan in one of the poorest countries of the world is a frightening experience. For many of the adolescents in the seven-village area, they have taken care of one or both parents with HIV/AIDS, and upon their parents’ death, the children were then left with the responsibility of fending for themselves and providing care for their younger siblings.

Malawi remains one of the world’s least-developed and most-densely populated countries, with its population now exceeding 22 million. Approximately 82% of the population continues to live in rural areas, where subsistence farming is the primary livelihood. According to the most recent Human Development Report data, poverty levels remain critical: approximately 71% of the population lives below the international poverty line of US $2.15 a day (the World Bank threshold for extreme poverty).

The Human Development Report for 2025/2026 ranks Malawi 172nd out of 193 countries in its Human Development Index (HDI). This ranking reflects the ongoing struggle to improve life expectancy, access to education, and gross national income per capita in the face of persistent economic and climate-related shocks.

Malawi Facts

Capital: Lilongwe
Area comparison: slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Official languages: English and Chichewa
Population: 22 million
Orphan population: 1.2 million
GDP: $12.5 billion and per capita $560
Main agricultural products: sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, sorghum, cattle, goats
Main industries: tobacco, tea and sugar processing, sawmill products, cement
Climate: sub-tropical with a rainy season (Nov-May) and dry season (Jun-Oct)
Geography note: landlocked, Lake Malawi contains more fish species than any other lake on Earth

Leadership

Dr. John Podgore and his wife, Ione Podgore, founder of Chikondi Malawi

Dr. John Podgore

Dr. Podgore chooses to come to Malawi annually to treat malaria during the height of malaria season, where in some hospitals up to four children will occupy one bed because of the overwhelming number of patients and lack of facilities.

During his time in Malawi, Dr. Podgore’s main focus is his mentoring program for fourth-year medical students, mostly from the University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth. The program, centered at Daeyang Luke Hospital, a Korean charity hospital located outside Lilongwe, provides students a broad knowledge of infectious diseases and medicine in Africa.

Ione Podgore

Ione Podgore, founder of Chikondi Malawi, and her husband John, had their first encounter with “the warm heart of Africa” in 2005 during a year-long engagement with the CDC in Malawi.

Ione Podgore, founder of Chikondi Malawi, and her husband John, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, had their first encounter with “the warm heart of Africa” in 2005 during a year-long engagement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Malawi. They became caught up in the spirit and warmth of the people of this small, gentle nation. They have lived one-quarter of their married life in Africa. Says Ione, “There is something about Africa that fills your heart to such an extent that you want to return as often as you can.” For Ione Podgore, that something is the orphans at the feeding center located in a rural area outside the capital city of Lilongwe.

Get Involved

Will you help the children of Malawi? Donations are always welcomed. What are you called to do?

WHAT WOULD YOU GIVE TO SPREAD THAT SMILE?

MALAWI AND HUNGER SEEM TO WALK HAND IN HAND

FREEDOM FROM HUNGER IS FREEDOM TO THRIVE

THERE ARE A LOT OF SMALL HANDS WITH BIG DREAMS WAITING