BRIEF BACKGROUND ON SURCOD'S HISTORY

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Women from the savings groups dancing and clapping
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Old logo
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Sunset over Chididi, view from Nsanje inland port
SURCOD's 2014 logo - Designed by Paulina Hoffmann
The idea of SURCOD was born in 2006 in Chikwawa district, Southern Malawi. It took a few years for the project to be officialised and Surcod was registered under the Government of Malawi as a Company Limited by guarantee on 17 May 2010 – the registration number is CR10522 Companies Act 1984. Since 3 October 2011, SURCOD is also registered as a member of the Council for Non-Governmental Organisations in Malawi – the registration number is C564/211 and the certificate number is 01/151.
The founder and current executive director of this local organisation, January Watchman Mvula, was raised in the poor community of Chididi, in Nsanje district, Southern Malawi; the same community where he would later focus the impact of the organisation. With the help of an educational background in Community Development, January’s vision came into existence after spending most of his life working in the rural and mountainous area of Chididi. There, one really experiences the daily hardships of living in a remote area where there is no road networks, no boreholes, no trading centres, or no hospitals. The aim was - and still is - to work hand in hand with local communities using participatory methods to map up people’s development needs and work with them as an integral part of their communities.
Chididi remains at the core of SURCOD's development work. But our ambitions and strong desire to bring about change are taking us beyond the borders of Nsanje district. We want to contribute to the improvement of rural communities' livelihoods throughout Malawi and we are convinced that we are making a difference.