A week's pension for a grandmother in Tanzania

Lake Victoria is also known from the documentary film "Darwin's Nightmare" because in the 1950s an invasive species of fish, the Nile perch, was released here. It reproduced incredibly quickly and thereby upset the balance of the lake's entire ecosystem. In addition to the ecological catastrophe that this caused, this fish also ensures that the lake's residents can go fishing intensively. It has therefore developed into an important source of income. The film also shows the social consequences of intensive fishing. The fishermen often live several days away from their home villages and prostitution is flourishing in the coastal areas. The use of condoms is still highly unpopular and as a result AIDS infection rates remain high. The English word AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome and describes a specific combination of symptoms that occur in humans as a result of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). According to the international organization UN-AIDS, in 2012 around 35.3 million people worldwide were HIV-positive and there were around 3.4 million new HIV infections (UN-AIDS, 2012). In sub-Saharan Africa, 26 million people live with HIV. Children are particularly affected. If medical care is poor, the probability that parents will die from the disease is very high.
Since the state welfare system in Tanzania cannot provide for these orphans, the grandparents often take on responsibility for the children. A small pension means a lot to these grandmothers: "First the food! We buy corn and dried fish. If there is anything left over, we buy soap or matches. Or we save to buy clothes for the grandchildren." The children's school attendance is also ensured by the regular income. In addition to material survival, the project also offers space for psychological support and social exchange.