FORT HUACHUCA — As democratic nations grow in Africa, some of their young Army officers are attending the Intelligence Center on this Southern Arizona post.
With the United States creating the African Command, which some of the continent’s officers said is a good thing, soldiers from Malawi, Mali and Nigeria said their nations are concerned about potential terrorism within their borders, as Africa is a target for such problems.
On Wednesday, 15 officers from 11 African countries hosted a lunch for those attending the center, where they provided their native foods and talked about their homelands.
“Africa is of high interest now,” said Lt. Col. Ed Riehle, commander of the 304th Military Intelligence Battalion.
The American officer said having a gathering of all the representatives from African nations provides an ability to exchange ideas and educate other international officers and U.S. Army personnel outside of a more formal classroom setting.
Malawi in eastern Africa
On Wednesday, 1st Lt. Clement Ngalonde, of Malawi, graduated from the basic officers course and was remaining for additional training before heading back to his homeland.
Malawi is a small landlocked nation, that has a small army — about two brigades strong — of about 7,000 soldiers, he said.
“We have no Navy,” Ngalonde laughingly said.
A member of the brigade called the Malawi Rifles — that old British touch lingers in the former colony of Great Britain — said all officers in his nation’s Army need intelligence training.
Learning the American way of gathering intelligence “was a bit too technical for me,” Ngalonde said adding, Malawi’s Army is primarily infantry.
“I was an infantry platoon leader,” he said.
A nation of about 11 million, he said his homeland is suffering from a high number of HIV/AIDS cases, noting the average life expectancy for men is 39 and for women, 40. “We have a lot of orphans,” Ngalonde said.
The nation’s agricultural-based economy is also having a hard time, he said.
“We depend on tobacco,” Ngalonde said noting with smoking becoming socially unacceptable in parts of the world that endangers it as a cash crop.
And, throughout Africa there are terrorist problems as many nations on the continent keep a wary eye on those developments, he and two other officers from African nations said.
Nigeria is oil exporter
As for Lt. Nakati Johnson, from Nigeria, he said some of the turmoil in his homeland can be attributed to outside interference.
And, the turmoil in his homeland includes internal problems, especially in the oil rich delta area of Nigeria, he said, adding is country is the fifth largest exporter of oil to the United States.
His homeland, on the west coast of Africa, has untold natural riches which can be used to help the nation’s population but in some cases multi-national companies are taking advantage of the resources to the detriment of some Nigerians, Johnson said. As the most populous nation in Africa — about 180 million people — the one-time British colony’s defense force consists of slightly more than 100,000, the majority in the Army.
A graduate of the National Defence Academy, Johnson said he has a bachelor’s degree in computer science.
What he and others in Nigeria’s military are concerned about is the spreading war on terrorism, noting the conflict “is not just limited to the United States and England.”
Being trained in the intelligence aspects of fighting a war is important, he said, noting he is in his second month of training at Fort Huachuca, with four more months to go to complete the basic officers course.
Mali has long history
For 1st Lt. Almoustapha Toure, his current trip to the Arizona post is his second training one. He is a graduate of the basic officers course and is now attending the advance one.
The history of Mali is exciting, he said, noting parts of the nation were where three empires ruled, including the first black one on the continent. He can trace his family’s lineage back to an emperor of the Songhei Empire, Askia Mohammed Toure, who died in the 16th century.
And, although he did not claim kinship, the current president of Mali has the same last name — Amadou Toumani Touré. A nation of slightly more than 13 million people, the Mali officer said, “We have a very small Army of six brigades.”
The former French colony, landlocked Mali in western Africa has seen pressure from north of the Sahara to south of the great desert region. The nation is known for its warriors and for being a country with a highly educated history, Toure said.
It is in Mali where the legendary and actual city of Timbuktu — also known as Tombouctou — exists.
During its time of importance between 1100 and 1600, it was a place of learning and trade, he said. Timbuktu means the well of a woman named Buktu, Toure added.
Like many African nations, Mali is in a state of transition, he said. And, ensuring it is a democracy is important, Toure added.
As in many African nations, there are natural resources that can be used to help the people of Mali, he said.
And, like other African nations Mali is struggling with bad elements in society ranging from smugglers to people who want to import terrorism, Toure said.
He, and the two other officers, said the United States African Command is needed to ensure democracy in Africa. “It will help us a lot,” Toure said.
Nations represented
Officers from a number of African nations, former colonies of England and France, are attending the Intelligence Center on Fort Huachuca.
Currently the nations represented by one or two officers are:
• Algeria — 2
• Botswana — 2
• Djibouti — 1
• Egypt — 2
• Malawi — 1
• Mali — 1
• Morocco — 1
• Nigeria — 1
• Senegal — 2
• South Africa — 1
• Tunisia — 1
BILL HESS can be reached at 515-4615 or bill.hess@svherald.com.
Thursday, 14 June 2007
Malawi coalition on edge
Malawi’s supreme court is due to deliver a much-anticipated ruling on Friday which could lead to mass expulsions of MPs and the collapse of President Bingu wa Mutharika’s minority government.
The court is to determine whether the speaker of parliament should have the power to expel some 60 MPs -- half of whom are loyal to Mutharika’s government -- who have changed their party affiliation since being elected, court sources said.
If Chief Justice Leonard Unyolo and two other senior judges grants the speaker the power to expel the lawmakers after parliament reconvenes on June 29, it could pave the way for mass by-elections to the 193-member parliament.
The judgment will be the climax to a long-running dispute which has already been before the lower courts, with Mutharika himself leading the pressure for a definitive ruling after opposition parties began pushing for the expulsions.
Mutharika, who had poached dozens of opposition and independent lawmakers to join his Democratic Progress Party, decided to take the case to the supreme court last January to appeal a ruling by the constitutional court which granted the expulsion powers to the speaker, Louis Chimango.
The speaker has yet to make his intentions clear but is widely expected to expel the lawmakers given his background as a member of the opposition Malawi Congress Party. –Sapa-AFP
The court is to determine whether the speaker of parliament should have the power to expel some 60 MPs -- half of whom are loyal to Mutharika’s government -- who have changed their party affiliation since being elected, court sources said.
If Chief Justice Leonard Unyolo and two other senior judges grants the speaker the power to expel the lawmakers after parliament reconvenes on June 29, it could pave the way for mass by-elections to the 193-member parliament.
The judgment will be the climax to a long-running dispute which has already been before the lower courts, with Mutharika himself leading the pressure for a definitive ruling after opposition parties began pushing for the expulsions.
Mutharika, who had poached dozens of opposition and independent lawmakers to join his Democratic Progress Party, decided to take the case to the supreme court last January to appeal a ruling by the constitutional court which granted the expulsion powers to the speaker, Louis Chimango.
The speaker has yet to make his intentions clear but is widely expected to expel the lawmakers given his background as a member of the opposition Malawi Congress Party. –Sapa-AFP
Malawi coalition on edge
Malawi’s supreme court is due to deliver a much-anticipated ruling on Friday which could lead to mass expulsions of MPs and the collapse of President Bingu wa Mutharika’s minority government.
The court is to determine whether the speaker of parliament should have the power to expel some 60 MPs -- half of whom are loyal to Mutharika’s government -- who have changed their party affiliation since being elected, court sources said.
If Chief Justice Leonard Unyolo and two other senior judges grants the speaker the power to expel the lawmakers after parliament reconvenes on June 29, it could pave the way for mass by-elections to the 193-member parliament.
The judgment will be the climax to a long-running dispute which has already been before the lower courts, with Mutharika himself leading the pressure for a definitive ruling after opposition parties began pushing for the expulsions.
Mutharika, who had poached dozens of opposition and independent lawmakers to join his Democratic Progress Party, decided to take the case to the supreme court last January to appeal a ruling by the constitutional court which granted the expulsion powers to the speaker, Louis Chimango.
The speaker has yet to make his intentions clear but is widely expected to expel the lawmakers given his background as a member of the opposition Malawi Congress Party. –Sapa-AFP
The court is to determine whether the speaker of parliament should have the power to expel some 60 MPs -- half of whom are loyal to Mutharika’s government -- who have changed their party affiliation since being elected, court sources said.
If Chief Justice Leonard Unyolo and two other senior judges grants the speaker the power to expel the lawmakers after parliament reconvenes on June 29, it could pave the way for mass by-elections to the 193-member parliament.
The judgment will be the climax to a long-running dispute which has already been before the lower courts, with Mutharika himself leading the pressure for a definitive ruling after opposition parties began pushing for the expulsions.
Mutharika, who had poached dozens of opposition and independent lawmakers to join his Democratic Progress Party, decided to take the case to the supreme court last January to appeal a ruling by the constitutional court which granted the expulsion powers to the speaker, Louis Chimango.
The speaker has yet to make his intentions clear but is widely expected to expel the lawmakers given his background as a member of the opposition Malawi Congress Party. –Sapa-AFP
TRADE-MALAWI: Clothing and Textiles Become Unstitched
BLANTYRE, Jun 14 (IPS) - Following the liberalization of the global trade in textiles and clothing between 1994 and 2005, Malawi has seen an influx of second-hand clothing on the local market. But while consumers have been happily buying cheap items on almost every street corner, the country's textile industry has been steadily collapsing.
Despite Malawi being among the developing states allowed to export textiles and garments to the US market under the preferential access provided by the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the country's textile industry is still failing to advance.
Jacqueline Chipembere (23) from Malawi's capital Lilongwe is one of thousands of Malawian consumers who have stopped buying apparel made in their country. She says second hand clothes are a lot cheaper than the garments made in Malawi.
‘‘I only have to pay something like one US dollar for a second-hand blouse but to buy a garment that is made here I have to part with a minimum of 15 US dollars," she says.
Up to 65 percent of Malawians are living in poverty, which means having less than 1 US dollar per day. Most people would rather spend the little they have on necessities other than clothing.
The lack of internal markets is not the only problem that Malawi's textile industry faces. Chairperson of the Garments and Textile Manufacturers Association of Malawi, Kantilal Desai, who owns a textile company called Knitwear Industries, says that AGOA has favourable conditions which offer tangible incentives for African countries to continue their efforts to open their economies and markets.
But Malawi is still failing to export much under the trade arrangement.
There is no investment from the private sector in the textile industry. Currently, Desai's own company has orders amounting to 6 million US dollars which it cannot fill. ‘‘We lack machinery and trained personnel to handle current market demand,'' he said, adding that there was need for more private investment in the industry.
The Malawi Investment Promotion Agency (MIPA), a body that works towards attracting, facilitating and encouraging both foreign and local investment, has been calling on investors to start large-scale cotton farming on estates.
Presently cotton is mostly grown by smallholder farmers. Two districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje, located in Malawi's Lower Shire valley, produce about 31,144 tons of cotton out of a national total of close to 50,000 tons.
According to MIPA, the cotton produced is not enough to meet the ginning capacity that is available in the country. The three ginning companies, Great Lakes Cotton Company, Clark Cotton and Iponga, use only 30 percent of their processing capacity.
Many farmers in Malawi are becoming reluctant to grow cotton. They feel that it is not as profitable as other crops since cotton prices are low. Cotton is Malawi's third biggest export product, with tobacco being number one. The pricing problem is currently dogging both tobacco and cotton.
Maliko Sagawa, a farmer from one of the country's cotton-growing districts in Chikwawa, says that cotton buyers appear to have formed a cartel to fix prices.
‘‘We do not make much profit from our sales. Actually, I am thinking of abandoning cotton farming and maybe growing some other crop that will be more viable,'' says Sagawa.
There seems to be more farmers who are making similar decisions. In March last year, the country's largest textile manufacturing company, Mapeto David Whitehead and Sons Malawi Limited, sent its staff on leave due to the scarcity of cotton. The company uses about 1,200 metric tons of cotton a year.
Last month, the Malawian government ruled that the minimum price of cotton this year should not be less than three cents. Last year's price was two cents per kilogramme but the cotton buyers protested and boycotted the procurement. The buyers argued that they have to pay taxes and so need to pay less than what the government was prescribing.
Principal secretary in the ministry of agriculture, Patrick Kabambe, told the press that it was impossible to reduce the prices as they were agreed to at the highest government level. The buyers were left with no choice but to buy the cotton at the recommended price.
James Chuang, the ambassador for Taiwan, has since promised to help Malawi's textile sector by assisting with the growth of organic cotton which, he says, has a high potential on the international market.
Malawian president Bingu wa Mutharika is supportive of the plan. He says that Taiwan, as Malawi's trade partner, will help grow organic cotton on a large scale. Mutharika has encouraged companies to utilize locally grown cotton to feed into the textile manufacturing rather than exporting it.
Despite Malawi being among the developing states allowed to export textiles and garments to the US market under the preferential access provided by the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the country's textile industry is still failing to advance.
Jacqueline Chipembere (23) from Malawi's capital Lilongwe is one of thousands of Malawian consumers who have stopped buying apparel made in their country. She says second hand clothes are a lot cheaper than the garments made in Malawi.
‘‘I only have to pay something like one US dollar for a second-hand blouse but to buy a garment that is made here I have to part with a minimum of 15 US dollars," she says.
Up to 65 percent of Malawians are living in poverty, which means having less than 1 US dollar per day. Most people would rather spend the little they have on necessities other than clothing.
The lack of internal markets is not the only problem that Malawi's textile industry faces. Chairperson of the Garments and Textile Manufacturers Association of Malawi, Kantilal Desai, who owns a textile company called Knitwear Industries, says that AGOA has favourable conditions which offer tangible incentives for African countries to continue their efforts to open their economies and markets.
But Malawi is still failing to export much under the trade arrangement.
There is no investment from the private sector in the textile industry. Currently, Desai's own company has orders amounting to 6 million US dollars which it cannot fill. ‘‘We lack machinery and trained personnel to handle current market demand,'' he said, adding that there was need for more private investment in the industry.
The Malawi Investment Promotion Agency (MIPA), a body that works towards attracting, facilitating and encouraging both foreign and local investment, has been calling on investors to start large-scale cotton farming on estates.
Presently cotton is mostly grown by smallholder farmers. Two districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje, located in Malawi's Lower Shire valley, produce about 31,144 tons of cotton out of a national total of close to 50,000 tons.
According to MIPA, the cotton produced is not enough to meet the ginning capacity that is available in the country. The three ginning companies, Great Lakes Cotton Company, Clark Cotton and Iponga, use only 30 percent of their processing capacity.
Many farmers in Malawi are becoming reluctant to grow cotton. They feel that it is not as profitable as other crops since cotton prices are low. Cotton is Malawi's third biggest export product, with tobacco being number one. The pricing problem is currently dogging both tobacco and cotton.
Maliko Sagawa, a farmer from one of the country's cotton-growing districts in Chikwawa, says that cotton buyers appear to have formed a cartel to fix prices.
‘‘We do not make much profit from our sales. Actually, I am thinking of abandoning cotton farming and maybe growing some other crop that will be more viable,'' says Sagawa.
There seems to be more farmers who are making similar decisions. In March last year, the country's largest textile manufacturing company, Mapeto David Whitehead and Sons Malawi Limited, sent its staff on leave due to the scarcity of cotton. The company uses about 1,200 metric tons of cotton a year.
Last month, the Malawian government ruled that the minimum price of cotton this year should not be less than three cents. Last year's price was two cents per kilogramme but the cotton buyers protested and boycotted the procurement. The buyers argued that they have to pay taxes and so need to pay less than what the government was prescribing.
Principal secretary in the ministry of agriculture, Patrick Kabambe, told the press that it was impossible to reduce the prices as they were agreed to at the highest government level. The buyers were left with no choice but to buy the cotton at the recommended price.
James Chuang, the ambassador for Taiwan, has since promised to help Malawi's textile sector by assisting with the growth of organic cotton which, he says, has a high potential on the international market.
Malawian president Bingu wa Mutharika is supportive of the plan. He says that Taiwan, as Malawi's trade partner, will help grow organic cotton on a large scale. Mutharika has encouraged companies to utilize locally grown cotton to feed into the textile manufacturing rather than exporting it.
Nu Skin employees give back with educational gifts
Nu Skin employees say that the greatest perk in their job is being able to help other people in a way that can really be seen and felt.
Wednesday, employees at Nu Skin's Provo headquarters -- from the top brass down to the regular joes -- took time to prepare literacy kits bound for Utah County's neediest, as well as desperate orphans in Malawi, a landlocked country in southwestern Africa.
The global neutraceutical company has long been determined to change the world, and for that reason it established the Foundation for Good about 10 years ago.
The foundation has served millions of meals to malnourished and impoverished children who are on the brink of death.
"I love knowing that I'm part of that because it makes my job seem like more," said Nu Skin employee and volunteer RaLyn McManus as she watched pallets of supplies being plastic-wrapped for shipping.
The event took place in the park to the east of Nu Skin's Provo headquarters. Hundreds of employees took one-hour shifts working at tables putting education kits together. Inside the kits were basic school supplies and what is expected by many to be a treasured gift: a book.
In all, employees prepared nearly 10,000 kits that included books, paper and pencils.
Former Nu Skin vice president Sid Henderson and his wife, Joyce, spent six months in Malawi working to educate an impoverished population on everything from basic literacy to agriculture techniques. Sid continues to work around the world to help eradicate some of the most devastating poverty on earth.
"Realize that the books you send will be the first book that child will ever hold, let alone own," Joyce told the employees.
Provo mayor Lewis Billings also addressed the employees.
"We are richly blessed, and if we continue to share a portion of that we will continue to be richly blessed," Billings said.
Nu Skin's Nourish the Children program supplies meals for nearly 166,000 malnourished children every month.
Giving for Nu Skin employees is both a pragmatic and an altruistic activity.
"We're a marketing company. ... It's hard to motivate yourself to go out and sell another bottle of lotion. It's hard work," said foundation director and Nu Skin executive Steve Lund.
His solution to that problem: Attach yourself to something good. Lund says that by helping people in need, it makes the hard work of sales more meaningful.
"It's about more than the economic model," he said.
The company has a long list of philanthropic activities in a number of countries, all working to serving the varied needs of people.
Lund says there are particularly big problems in Malawi. The nation's economy is stalled, people are starving and, in places, famine has been there for so long that many people have lost basic agricultural skills.
According to Lund, Nu Skin, via several programs, has effectively created a micro economy in the country -- funding farmers and building plants to make VitaMeal, a specially formulated meal for extremely malnourished populations.
Programs that come under the Foundation for Good umbrella include the Build a Village Project in Malawi, where 45 to 50 families will come and spend a year learning farming, carpentry and fishing skills.
In Kenya, the foundation has the Opportunity Fund for Developing Countries, which provided clothing, textbooks and school supplies for 100 Kenyan children during the 2007 school year.
The foundation has similar projects in China, North and South Asia, the Pacific, Europe and the Americas.
Nu Skin covers the foundation's administrative costs, so all donations benefit programs directly.
The supplies directed toward Utah County residents will be distributed through the United Way of Utah.
Wednesday, employees at Nu Skin's Provo headquarters -- from the top brass down to the regular joes -- took time to prepare literacy kits bound for Utah County's neediest, as well as desperate orphans in Malawi, a landlocked country in southwestern Africa.
The global neutraceutical company has long been determined to change the world, and for that reason it established the Foundation for Good about 10 years ago.
The foundation has served millions of meals to malnourished and impoverished children who are on the brink of death.
"I love knowing that I'm part of that because it makes my job seem like more," said Nu Skin employee and volunteer RaLyn McManus as she watched pallets of supplies being plastic-wrapped for shipping.
The event took place in the park to the east of Nu Skin's Provo headquarters. Hundreds of employees took one-hour shifts working at tables putting education kits together. Inside the kits were basic school supplies and what is expected by many to be a treasured gift: a book.
In all, employees prepared nearly 10,000 kits that included books, paper and pencils.
Former Nu Skin vice president Sid Henderson and his wife, Joyce, spent six months in Malawi working to educate an impoverished population on everything from basic literacy to agriculture techniques. Sid continues to work around the world to help eradicate some of the most devastating poverty on earth.
"Realize that the books you send will be the first book that child will ever hold, let alone own," Joyce told the employees.
Provo mayor Lewis Billings also addressed the employees.
"We are richly blessed, and if we continue to share a portion of that we will continue to be richly blessed," Billings said.
Nu Skin's Nourish the Children program supplies meals for nearly 166,000 malnourished children every month.
Giving for Nu Skin employees is both a pragmatic and an altruistic activity.
"We're a marketing company. ... It's hard to motivate yourself to go out and sell another bottle of lotion. It's hard work," said foundation director and Nu Skin executive Steve Lund.
His solution to that problem: Attach yourself to something good. Lund says that by helping people in need, it makes the hard work of sales more meaningful.
"It's about more than the economic model," he said.
The company has a long list of philanthropic activities in a number of countries, all working to serving the varied needs of people.
Lund says there are particularly big problems in Malawi. The nation's economy is stalled, people are starving and, in places, famine has been there for so long that many people have lost basic agricultural skills.
According to Lund, Nu Skin, via several programs, has effectively created a micro economy in the country -- funding farmers and building plants to make VitaMeal, a specially formulated meal for extremely malnourished populations.
Programs that come under the Foundation for Good umbrella include the Build a Village Project in Malawi, where 45 to 50 families will come and spend a year learning farming, carpentry and fishing skills.
In Kenya, the foundation has the Opportunity Fund for Developing Countries, which provided clothing, textbooks and school supplies for 100 Kenyan children during the 2007 school year.
The foundation has similar projects in China, North and South Asia, the Pacific, Europe and the Americas.
Nu Skin covers the foundation's administrative costs, so all donations benefit programs directly.
The supplies directed toward Utah County residents will be distributed through the United Way of Utah.
Malawi off track on primary education
Included to make a comment on statistics!
I only ever comment on what I see, and I have yet to see anything that might approximate to any type of decent primary education, in any village where we work. These are remote nad rural, but how can you teach up to 80 students who are sitting on a bare floor, looking at a white board, that was once black, with no chalk, no books, no copies, learning by rote from poorly or untrained teachers, who are paid one third the wage of nurses, (about €60 per month).
Contrast this with free University education, how dim can you be!!
The answer to so many issues in Malawi is good, appropriate primary education and more especially for girls. The enclosed article is more windowdressing and only shows what you can do with statistics. Get real.
Malawi off track on primary education
BY DICKSON KASHOTI
08:23:09 - 12 June 2007
Malawi is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for gender parity in primary and secondary education but off track in relation to universal primary education.
A draft report of the number of primary school age children in school and their survival to Standard 5 and adult youth literacy rate, says only a tiny fraction of those who enroll in Standard one complete primary school.
According to the draft joint programme review for 2006, which assesses the Ministry of Education, since the introduction of free primary education in 1994, the education sector has made significant progress with around 80 percent of primary age children now in school, saying gender parity has now been achieved at primary level.
“Literacy levels amongst young people have dramatically improved by 13 percent between 1998 and 2005. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain. Although access at primary level is good compared to many other countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region, 20 percent of primary school children are not attending school and quality continues to be low,” says the report.
The report says less than a third of children who enroll in Standard one complete primary school. Nearly a fifth of children repeat a year. Only three percent of Standard 4 students were recently assessed competent in Mathematics and English.
At secondary school level, the report says, access is poor: only 6,000 children started secondary school in 2005, saying this means only about seven percent of the children who started primary school in 2006 would have probably proceeded to secondary education.
“Quality at secondary also needs to improve: on average, 50% of secondary students fail the final exam. In addition, as the MGDs highlights, access to
tertiary education needs to expand if Malawi is to produce the professionals it needs to work, in hospitals, schools, business and government. On average, 1,300 students a year graduate from the universities of Malawi and Mzuzu,” says the report.
The report asks government to align national budgets with MGDs, saying the 2006/07 budgets were poorly aligned and this affected the quality of education.
Malawi is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for gender parity in primary and secondary education but off track in relation to universal primary education.
“Literacy levels amongst young people have dramatically improved by 13 percent between 1998 and 2005. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain. Although access at primary level is good compared to many other countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region, 20 percent of primary school children are not attending school and quality continues to be low,” says the report.
The report says less than a third of children who enroll in Standard one complete primary school. Nearly a fifth of children repeat a year. Only three percent of Standard 4 students were recently assessed competent in Mathematics and English.
At secondary school level, the report says, access is poor: only 6,000 children started secondary school in 2005, saying this means only about seven percent of the children who started primary school in 2006 would have probably proceeded to secondary education.
“Quality at secondary also needs to improve: on average, 50% of secondary students fail the final exam. In addition, as the MGDs highlights, access to tertiary education needs to expand if Malawi is to produce the professionals it needs to work, in hospitals, schools, business and government. On average, 1,300 students a year graduate from the universities of Malawi and Mzuzu,” says the report.
I only ever comment on what I see, and I have yet to see anything that might approximate to any type of decent primary education, in any village where we work. These are remote nad rural, but how can you teach up to 80 students who are sitting on a bare floor, looking at a white board, that was once black, with no chalk, no books, no copies, learning by rote from poorly or untrained teachers, who are paid one third the wage of nurses, (about €60 per month).
Contrast this with free University education, how dim can you be!!
The answer to so many issues in Malawi is good, appropriate primary education and more especially for girls. The enclosed article is more windowdressing and only shows what you can do with statistics. Get real.
Malawi off track on primary education
BY DICKSON KASHOTI
08:23:09 - 12 June 2007
Malawi is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for gender parity in primary and secondary education but off track in relation to universal primary education.
A draft report of the number of primary school age children in school and their survival to Standard 5 and adult youth literacy rate, says only a tiny fraction of those who enroll in Standard one complete primary school.
According to the draft joint programme review for 2006, which assesses the Ministry of Education, since the introduction of free primary education in 1994, the education sector has made significant progress with around 80 percent of primary age children now in school, saying gender parity has now been achieved at primary level.
“Literacy levels amongst young people have dramatically improved by 13 percent between 1998 and 2005. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain. Although access at primary level is good compared to many other countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region, 20 percent of primary school children are not attending school and quality continues to be low,” says the report.
The report says less than a third of children who enroll in Standard one complete primary school. Nearly a fifth of children repeat a year. Only three percent of Standard 4 students were recently assessed competent in Mathematics and English.
At secondary school level, the report says, access is poor: only 6,000 children started secondary school in 2005, saying this means only about seven percent of the children who started primary school in 2006 would have probably proceeded to secondary education.
“Quality at secondary also needs to improve: on average, 50% of secondary students fail the final exam. In addition, as the MGDs highlights, access to
tertiary education needs to expand if Malawi is to produce the professionals it needs to work, in hospitals, schools, business and government. On average, 1,300 students a year graduate from the universities of Malawi and Mzuzu,” says the report.
The report asks government to align national budgets with MGDs, saying the 2006/07 budgets were poorly aligned and this affected the quality of education.
Malawi is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for gender parity in primary and secondary education but off track in relation to universal primary education.
“Literacy levels amongst young people have dramatically improved by 13 percent between 1998 and 2005. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain. Although access at primary level is good compared to many other countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region, 20 percent of primary school children are not attending school and quality continues to be low,” says the report.
The report says less than a third of children who enroll in Standard one complete primary school. Nearly a fifth of children repeat a year. Only three percent of Standard 4 students were recently assessed competent in Mathematics and English.
At secondary school level, the report says, access is poor: only 6,000 children started secondary school in 2005, saying this means only about seven percent of the children who started primary school in 2006 would have probably proceeded to secondary education.
“Quality at secondary also needs to improve: on average, 50% of secondary students fail the final exam. In addition, as the MGDs highlights, access to tertiary education needs to expand if Malawi is to produce the professionals it needs to work, in hospitals, schools, business and government. On average, 1,300 students a year graduate from the universities of Malawi and Mzuzu,” says the report.
World Bank Offers Loans for African Cellphone Networks
IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, has announced its largest financing to date in Sub-Saharan Africa, a US$320 million package, to five operations of Celtel International (an MTC subsidiary) to help expand and upgrade its fast growing mobile networks in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Uganda. The investment will result in better quality mobile access in countries with extremely limited telephone services, creating new opportunities for businesses and consumers across the economic spectrum.
IFC will provide a $160 million loan for its own account; it's largest to date in Sub-Saharan Africa. That loan is complemented by another $160 million in syndicated loans with participating commercial banks and parallel loans from bilateral financial institutions. The transaction also marks the first ever mobilization of IFC syndicated loans in Madagascar, Malawi and Sierra Leone, helping to bring long-term (7 year) commercial financing to markets at the frontier of private sector development. The syndication includes three South African banks that are participating in IFC's B-loan program for the first time.
Celtel, which was acquired by MTC of Kuwait in April 2005, will use the funds to modernize and develop the mobile networks in countries with obsolete and inadequate fixed-line networks and very low telephone penetration rates, ranging from just over four phones for every 100 people in Malawi and Madagascar to about 10 per 100 people in Sierra Leone. Since the MTC's acquisition of Celtel it has invested $10 billion in African mobile telecom services.
"Investment in infrastructure such as telecommunications is crucial for Africa's economic development, and our long term collaboration with IFC shows that the private sector can play an important role in fulfilling that need" said Mo Ibrahim, Celtel's Chairman.
IFC will provide a $160 million loan for its own account; it's largest to date in Sub-Saharan Africa. That loan is complemented by another $160 million in syndicated loans with participating commercial banks and parallel loans from bilateral financial institutions. The transaction also marks the first ever mobilization of IFC syndicated loans in Madagascar, Malawi and Sierra Leone, helping to bring long-term (7 year) commercial financing to markets at the frontier of private sector development. The syndication includes three South African banks that are participating in IFC's B-loan program for the first time.
Celtel, which was acquired by MTC of Kuwait in April 2005, will use the funds to modernize and develop the mobile networks in countries with obsolete and inadequate fixed-line networks and very low telephone penetration rates, ranging from just over four phones for every 100 people in Malawi and Madagascar to about 10 per 100 people in Sierra Leone. Since the MTC's acquisition of Celtel it has invested $10 billion in African mobile telecom services.
"Investment in infrastructure such as telecommunications is crucial for Africa's economic development, and our long term collaboration with IFC shows that the private sector can play an important role in fulfilling that need" said Mo Ibrahim, Celtel's Chairman.
WHO seeks safe blood for pregnant women
GENEVA -- The U.N. health agency announced a drive Thursday to give pregnant women increased access to safe blood, warning that about 125,000 mothers bleed to death during childbirth each year.
The World Health Organization said safe blood donations were vital in helping women survive pregnancy. The agency said that two years after establishing a national blood transfusion service in 2003, Malawi's maternal mortality rate due to severe blood loss dropped more than 50 percent.
"We must do everything we can to improve the chances of women during and after childbirth," said WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.
The new initiative is part of the WHO's broader agenda for providing universal access to safe transfusions.
Of the 20 countries with the highest maternal mortality rates, 19 are in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in 16 women die from pregnancy-related causes. WHO said that compares with 1 in 2,800 in rich countries.
As part of the campaign, WHO is trying to help countries increase voluntary blood donation and ensure quality screening and rational use of blood to tackle pregnancy complications.
WHO has long urged countries to rely on voluntary, unpaid blood donations to ensure a safe and sufficient supply. Worldwide, the highest rate of contamination is found among donors who give blood for money or other forms of payment.
"People who are paid to give blood are more likely to lie," said Daniela Bagozzi, a spokeswoman for WHO's health technology and pharmaceuticals division. "Those who give blood for altruistic reasons are less likely to lie about risky sexual behavior."
A WHO survey based on 2004 data collected from 172 countries and covering 95 percent of the world's population has shown progress in ensuring a safer, more adequate supply of blood.
Between 2001 and 2004, 60 countries reported an increase in the percentage of blood collected from voluntary unpaid donors, 41 countries maintained the same level, while 37 showed a decline.
Almost three-quarters of the 40 sub-Saharan African countries have yet to establish national quality-control systems. About 28 percent of the 148 countries providing data on screening were unable to test the donated blood for one or more major infections.
Generally, 1-3 percent of the population needs to give blood to meet a country's needs. In 80 countries, less than 1 percent of the population donates blood.
The World Health Organization said safe blood donations were vital in helping women survive pregnancy. The agency said that two years after establishing a national blood transfusion service in 2003, Malawi's maternal mortality rate due to severe blood loss dropped more than 50 percent.
"We must do everything we can to improve the chances of women during and after childbirth," said WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.
The new initiative is part of the WHO's broader agenda for providing universal access to safe transfusions.
Of the 20 countries with the highest maternal mortality rates, 19 are in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in 16 women die from pregnancy-related causes. WHO said that compares with 1 in 2,800 in rich countries.
As part of the campaign, WHO is trying to help countries increase voluntary blood donation and ensure quality screening and rational use of blood to tackle pregnancy complications.
WHO has long urged countries to rely on voluntary, unpaid blood donations to ensure a safe and sufficient supply. Worldwide, the highest rate of contamination is found among donors who give blood for money or other forms of payment.
"People who are paid to give blood are more likely to lie," said Daniela Bagozzi, a spokeswoman for WHO's health technology and pharmaceuticals division. "Those who give blood for altruistic reasons are less likely to lie about risky sexual behavior."
A WHO survey based on 2004 data collected from 172 countries and covering 95 percent of the world's population has shown progress in ensuring a safer, more adequate supply of blood.
Between 2001 and 2004, 60 countries reported an increase in the percentage of blood collected from voluntary unpaid donors, 41 countries maintained the same level, while 37 showed a decline.
Almost three-quarters of the 40 sub-Saharan African countries have yet to establish national quality-control systems. About 28 percent of the 148 countries providing data on screening were unable to test the donated blood for one or more major infections.
Generally, 1-3 percent of the population needs to give blood to meet a country's needs. In 80 countries, less than 1 percent of the population donates blood.
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