Hi, I’m Ciara Kenny, and next week I am travelling to Zambia to live for a month in a rural village called Makwatata, which is in the Eastern region of the country, close to the border with Malawi. While I’m there I will be blogging about every aspect of life in the village, from farming to religion, healthcare to education and entertainment.

The stories of the people of Makwatata will be told through a series of written blog posts, which will be supplemented with photos and short video or audio clips to help to illustrate what I am writing about.

The project is about giving the villagers a voice, by providing a forum in which they can express their views on issues that affect their lives. It is also about creating a greater understanding for us all about what life is like for the millions of smallholder farmers in rural communities like Makwatata all across Sub-Saharan Africa.

All of the content will be uploaded here on the ‘A Village in Africa’ blog in real time, so readers can follow my progress as the month goes on.

To receive regular updates about the project, you can “like” our Facebook page, or follow us on Twitter.

This project is supported by Self Help Africa.

You can read an article about the project in the Weekend Review here.