USAID launches Primary Education Initiative in Malawi

The governments of the United States and Malawi have launched a $5.3 million three-year project for junior primary school pupils. The project, known as Tikwere Interactive Radio Instruction, is being sponsored by USAID and Malawi’s Ministry of Education. Tikwere, which means “Let Us Rise,” promotes learning through radio programs. Voice of America English to Africa Service reporter Lameck Masina in Blantyre says the Tikwere radio project is part of the government’s plan to improve teaching and learning conditions for more than three million primary school students.

The 30-minute programs are broadcast in the local language, Chichewa. The public service broadcaster, Malawi Broadcasting Corporation, airs them twice a day into first-year classrooms. In the next few years the broadcasts will be extended to Standard Two and Three.

The broadcasts include stories, activities, and exercises that require both pupils and teachers to participate. The stories’ characters and issues are fictional but are based on local situations. Teachers and learners have fun, singing and responding verbally and physically to instructions from the radio characters.

The program ideas are drawn from the new curriculum, which was launched in January 2007. The scripts are produced, recorded, tested and revised by the producers before they go on air.

Olive Masanza is the deputy minister for education responsible for primary and secondary education. He says, “With the coming of this radio program I think Malawi will…benefit. In the classroom you [are] only able to teach a hundred children but on the radio you are teaching millions.”

Marisol Perez is the head of USAID’s education team. She says the idea is to get children interested in school and to create a new way of teaching, “We think this a benefit in that it also allows for teachers to try out new methodologies and how to manage classrooms. Another benefit is that you have children interested in learning and over time you see the increases in enrollment. [And, among] the children [who do] come to school, this might retain their interest.”

The teachers say the project is good but does have short-comings.

Fayiness Zuze is the standard one teacher at Kachere Primary School, where the project was officially launched. She says, “Tikwere project is progressing well [but it does have some difficulties… [They] are that we have large classes and we have got time limits. Some items are long, so they do not suit our time. For example, when they tell us to go outside and walk on the road, we don’t do -- we just listen to the radio.”

The United States government has provided 10,000 "Freeplay" Lifeline radios that are able to generate power through hand cranking and solar energy. That’s about one radio for 55 students, but schools with more students may receive more.

Perez says similar projects have proven effective in the 10 African countries where they are being implemented, including Tanzania, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia. She says between 100 and 150 programs are produced annually.

The project is also being used in countries outside Africa -- India, Pakistan, Haiti and Honduras.

The programs are produced at the Malawi College of Distance Education (MCDE), with funding from USAID.

Previous efforts by the college to conduct educational radio programs failed because it could not afford the costs charged by the station. But the head of the college, Bethel Masauli, says the Tikwere programs have proved effective, and the government will find a way to keep them on the air if USAID decides to curtail funding in 2010.

Masauli says instead of using the state broadcaster, the college may set up its own FM station to broadcast the programs in schools.

Slotland Auctions African Art at CAC, Amsterdam to Raise Funds for Malawi Aid Project

2 April 2008 (Amsterdam) – Like many other online casinos, Slotland.com is exhibiting at the Casino Affiliates Conference in Amsterdam this week. But Slotland isn’t like any other online casino. Like their competitors, representatives from Slotland will be discussing online and mobile business opportunities with affiliates. But unlike the others, Slotland will also be using the event to raise further funds for the school it has built in Malawi and to acknowledge the support affiliates have given to the project.

Over the last two years, Slotland has donated nearly $100,000 to build a school and community center in a remote village in Malawi, one of the poorest nations on earth. Earlier this year, the company donated a fundraising website (www.help-malawi-children-charity.org) where players and affiliates can make personal contributions.

“One of our affiliates, CasinoRanking.com, was so moved by our project,” said Affiliate Manager Martin Smith, “They donated a full month’s commissions. As a successful affiliate that’s been working with Slotland for many years, this was quite a significant amount.”

The Slotland exhibition booth will feature the usual marketing posters and paraphernalia associated with a trade show, but it will also display a collection of unique African artwork. The paintings will be sold by silent auction throughout the conference and all proceeds will go directly to the boNGO Worldwide Project Team in Malawi, as do all donations made through the website.

Building partnerships with webmasters since 1998, Slotland has earned a reputation for giving a good deal, and paying promptly. One of the world’s most trusted and reliable casino affiliate programs recently extended its reach to the mobile games platform. Slotland.com, one of the first to release real-money casino games for mobile phones and PDAs nearly two years ago, brings experience and a stellar reputation from its online business to the new world of mobile entertainment.

“The mobile gambling business is exploding and I think a lot of affiliates will want to hear about opportunities in the mobile gambling market,” said Smith. “We have an excellent mobile affiliate program that offers benefits most do not. For one thing, we pay commissions on ALL mobile deposits. There’s never any negative carryover. We think that’s only fair, and fair is how we like to do business.”

Earlier this year, Slotland.com launched a free 3D casino, WinADay.com, a whole new kind of online casino experience with realistic three-dimensional lobbies and virtual casino employees to assist with the free instant-play Flash games.

Malawi boxer to fight Egyptian

Malawi's well known boxer Wilson Masamba will face an Egyptian opponent in a title fight scheduled for June this year, World Boxing Empire(WBE) announced on Sunday.

The proposed opponent for Malawi’s Wilson Masamba is Ramadan Awod “Bom Bom” from Cairo, Egypt,” said WBE president Emmanuel Mlundwa.

He further said the title of the fight was Universal Boxing Organisation (UBO) Featherweight).

However Masamba is scheduled for another preparatory fight in Kazakhstan this month but Mlundwa said the June fight would not hamper the boxer’s preparatory fight.

Mlundwa said UBO had now confirmed the fight and Malawi Boxing Association (Maba) and Masamba’s promoter had to come up with a date for the bout.

Maba president Jerome Waluza confirmed to Malawi’s local daily of the Daily Times that they had received the letter of notification of the fight against the Egyptian.

Meanwhile Malawi’s athletes found it tough at IAAF World Championship in Edinburgh on Sunday when they failed to win any medal.

The Southern African country was represented by Catherine Chikwakwa Chunda, Miriam Thole and Mike Tebulo.

The 8km women’s senior category was won by Ethiopia’s Tirunesh Dibaba whereas in the men’s category Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele was the winner.

Malawian president expresses thanks for China's support

Malawian President Bingu Wa Mutharika Tuesday expressed his sincere gratitude to China for its support for the Southern African country.


"The financial support from China will be granted in the form of concessionary loans over a five-year period," Mutharika told a press conference in the Malawian capital.

Mutharika, who paid his first visit to Beijing in late March, said China has pledged to offer financial aid in the next five years to several large projects in Malawi, including the construction of a 100-km road connecting Malawi's two northern districts of Chitipa and Karonga, and the parliament building in the capital.

Mutharika said Malawi now enjoys the preferential trade regime offered by China under the framework of the Africa-China Forum, which will boost significantly Malawi's exports to China.

The Malawian leader also defended his government's decision to establish diplomatic relations with China in late December, saying that the decision was among other factors based on the one China principle that have been adopted by the international community.

Madonna expected in Malawi

American pop star Madonna is due back in Malawi next week for what is expected to be a final court ruling on whether she can adopt a child from the southern African country, airport officials said on Tuesday.

A senior official at Lilongwe International Airport told Reuters her jet was cleared for landing from April 8 and she was expected around that time.

In February, Malawian Information Minister Patricia Kaliati praised Madonna's efforts to rally support for orphans in the impoverished country and said it would be wrong for the government to deny the pop star's adoption of a child there.

Madonna is in the process of adopting a Malawian boy, David Banda.

She began adoption proceedings in 2006 after meeting the boy in a local orphanage. The toddler is living with Madonna and her film director husband Guy Ritchie in London.

The adoption has been controversial, with critics accusing the government of skirting laws that ban non-residents from adopting children in Malawi, which has been badly hit by the AIDS epidemic and is one of the poorest in the world.

There are an estimated 1 million orphans in the country, many of whom are infected with the HIV virus. Malawi's government is amending its adoption laws.