Every year, we have a difficult decision to make and this year was no different. With several amazing organisations applying, it was hard to pick just one winner of the 2022 World Animal Day grant.
This annual grant, only available to our hard-working World Animal Day ambassadors, always offers the opportunity for organisations to start a new project, increase their advocacy and help more animals – the latter being the main goal of the day itself!
One very ambitious organisation caught our attention this year though and we’re delighted to be able to reward Lilongwe Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (LSPCA) Malawi with the 2022 World Animal Day grant – congratulations!
Lilongwe Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (LSPCA), Malawi.
‘We aspire to live in a world where animals in Malawi are treated with respect, care and compassion.’
LSPCA Malawi formed in 2008 when individuals came together to advocate for Malawi animals living in poor conditions in the country. They became a registered charity in 2010, the first domestic animal welfare charity in Malawi. Since their formation, the LSPCA have worked on many vital campaigns tackling issues such as donkey welfare, rabies and chicken transportation and welfare.
The issue
The World Animal Day grant will allow the charity to work towards their goal of eliminating the roadside sale of animals, a practice that the LSPCA have seen leads to enormous animal suffering.
During the time that the charity has been monitoring the problem, young animals have been sold prematurely, animals have been exposed to extreme weather conditions and many have been found to be suffering from untreated diseases.
Some puppies confiscated by the LSPCA were even found to have their ears glued to make them appear more like German Shepherd puppies – which unfortunately led to extreme burns.
The LSPCA are determined to end this animal welfare issue and, in just one year, managed to confiscate 176 animals from 43 different pet sellers.
In addition to this, their 2021 media campaign reached over two million people, helping to raise awareness of the rapidly growing problem.
The project
Upon receiving the 2022 World Animal Day grant, the LSPCA plan to:
Cooperate with Malawi Police Service (MPS), Lilongwe City Council (LCC) and Department for Animal Health and Livestock Development (DAHLD) – using their strong existing relationship with the Malawi Police Service, the LSPCA plan to come to an agreement with the MPS to build working plans about how suffering animals can be confiscated from roadside sales.
Carry out patrols and confiscate animals over 12 months – by conducting 20 monthly confiscation patrols around Lliongwe, this business type will quickly become unattractive to existing sellers, discouraging others from also joining.
Increase adoptions – the LSCPA plan to continue their awareness campaign that will encourage people to adopt animals that have received essential preventative veterinary care.
Follow up on prosecutions – the charity aims to follow up on existing prosecutions and achieve wins that will also disincentivise other roadside animal salespeople from continuing the practice.
Conduct awareness campaigns – by continuing their public awareness work, the LSPCA plans to educate the general public of Malawi of the health and animal welfare concerns of buying roadside animals in poor health.
The LSPCA believe that the problem of roadside animal sales can be eradicated and aim to maximise their grant by allocating it carefully to each part of their detailed 12-month plan working toward this goal.
The LSPCA are our main grant winner in 2022 and we are looking forward to following the work of this fantastic organisation as the project commences!
We would like to take a moment to thank all of our dedicated World Animal Day ambassadors who work tirelessly throughout the year to improve the lives of animals all around the world. We also like to extend our gratitude to all of our caring Naturewatch Foundation* supporters, without whom none of this would be possible.
Thank you!