Welcome to The Sparkle Foundation!

Equal opportunity – everyone deserves it, but not everyone has it. Unfortunately, individuals, communities, and countries face barriers that perpetuate the inequalities we see today.

Our mission at The Sparkle Foundation is to deliver a future in which every community has an equal opportunity to live a life of health and self-sufficiency in Malawi and beyond. Registered as a non-profit organisation in the UK, UAE and Malawi, we are building an army of changemakers.

With a dedicated team comprising over 40 staff members and a network of more than 200 volunteers spanning the globe, we have been able to extend our support to over 15,000 individuals to date. Our current operations are centered in Zomba, a district in the southern region of Malawi, Africa. The Sparkle Foundation is not just an organisation; it's a beacon of hope, a driving force for positive change.

Our vision extends far beyond the borders of Zomba, as we aspire to ignite brighter futures for communities worldwide. We are committed to identifying and responding to the unique needs of each place we serve. Our mission is to bridge the gap, making education, nutrition, health, and business opportunities accessible to all those who are in need.

Join us on this incredible journey to make a profound difference in the lives of countless individuals. The Sparkle Foundation is just beginning, and we invite you to be a part of our transformative work. Together, we can create a world where everyone has the chance to thrive.

Who are we?

The Sparkle Foundation's journey began in 2008 when our CEO and Founder, Sarah, visited Malawi for volunteering and underwent a life-saving operation. Struck by the limited educational resources available to orphans in the community, Sarah embarked on a mission to raise £30,000 to purchase land in Zomba, Malawi. She used this land to construct a nursery school, which was eventually handed over to the local community.

This initiative marked the birth of Sparkle Malawi. As support grew, the organisation expanded its efforts, employing individuals from the neighbouring villages, enhancing the education program, and providing crucial support in nutrition and healthcare. Since then, our commitment remains unwavering as we continue to deliver our integrated approach, tailoring our programs to meet the evolving needs of our community.

At Sparkle, we want to drive positive change within the charity sector through our sustainable and replicable best-practice community model. We strive to create lasting and long-term change, through local engagement.

How do we achieve this? We firmly reject the notion of working in isolation, instead embracing a comprehensive approach to our mission. Our four pillars—Community, Education, Nutrition, and Healthcare—interdependently contribute to our success.

Education: Early Childhood Development (ECD) remains largely out of reach for the majority of children under the age of five in Malawi, primarily due to poverty, family difficulties, or resource limitations. We bridge this gap by offering educational opportunities to children aged two to six through our Early Childhood Development Programme, which currently spans two locations in Malawi.

After completing our ECD Programme, these children transition to local schools and later return to Sparkle to participate in our afternoon program, tailored to complement and enhance their education as per the local curriculum up to age 14.

Nutrition: Sparkle children are provided with two meals a day, ensuring they have the energy for a day of learning and fun! The food we serve is packed with nutrients so that we keep children (and staff) nourished and healthy.

Health: We extend a helping hand to community members residing in the 17 villages within Sparkle Malawi's outreach areas, providing essential healthcare services free of charge. Operating from our on-site medical clinic, our dedicated Health Officer tends to the medical needs of up to 80 patients daily. In cases of emergency, where time is of the essence, our Sparkle ambulance swiftly transports individuals to the hospital.

Moreover, our clinic has been instrumental in community-wide vaccination efforts, effectively combating diseases like polio and cholera, all while raising awareness about various healthcare issues. Today, thanks to collaborative efforts both locally and internationally, our Sparkle clinic has expanded its services to include screenings for early cervical cancer detection. Additionally, we are addressing the rising incidence of mental health challenges in Malawi through our newly initiated mental health support project.

Community: Our work is meticulously shaped by the specific needs of the community, characterized by active collaboration with community committees, village leaders, and government bodies. Each of our programs aligns seamlessly with our overarching vision and is geared towards the active empowerment of our members. Our goal is to equip individuals with the tools and knowledge they need to achieve self-sufficiency and food security. Whether it involves organising social and sports activities such as our football and netball academy, delivering business development workshops, or providing financial training, we tailor our initiatives to the unique requirements of each village. This ensures that the outcomes are community-driven and align with the national strategy, fostering sustainable development from within.

Sparkling in 2023

After a rocky start to the year, with Malawi experiencing the devastation of Cyclone Freddy, forex shortages, a worsening cholera outbreak and steep rises in inflation, our operations and support to those who needed it was even more crucial.

With the aid of grants, corporate partnerships, donations, fundraising campaigns, and volunteer support (remotely and in Malawi), we have lots of exciting work happening at Sparkle Malawi. We are on our way to building our third site, planning our fourth, working on a farm project so that we can eat what we grow, all while we continue with our current work across our four pillars. From sports tournaments to community awareness campaigns, the sky is the limit with what we can achieve to positively impact our beneficiaries.

Across the UK, UAE and indeed the world, we are so fortunate to have the support of volunteers… our youngest is four years old and the eldest is eighty-four. At Sparkle we believe that every single one of us can make a difference, no matter our age, skills, work experience, background, or gender.

Sparkle and YallaGive

With the support of YallaGive, we have been able to share an easy to use and trusted platform with our supporters to enable them to fundraise with confidence. By being able to personalise fundraising campaign pages, our supporters are enabled to share their message of ‘Why Sparkle’, resulting in a more meaningful campaign that they can share with their own friends and families.

The social media coverage given to us by YallaGive has allowed us to share our mission and aims across a wider network, raising more funds and awareness for The Sparkle Foundation. We are so grateful for YallaGive’s continued support and can’t wait to see where our partnership will take us next! We look forward to changing more lives together.

Ready to make a change?

In a world that often feels divided, our unified efforts sparkle brightly as we extend a helping hand to the most vulnerable in Malawi. When we work together, our impact can transcend borders… so wherever you are in the world, are you ready to join our army?