Malawi police in Zomba, the former colonial capital in the south of the country, have arrested a Tanzanian doctor for conducting illegal clinical trials on several Aids sufferers, APA learnt here Tuesday.
According to the Zomba Police Chief, Sam Sally, the authorities arrested McOsano Thadeo, a clinical officer at St. Luke Hospital, after the Pharmacy, Medicines and Poisons Board revealed his illegal dealings with Aids patients who attended the clinic.
"We are keeping the suspect in police custody and he will appear in court very soon," he said.
Pharmacy, Medicines and Poisons Board Registrar Alex Sosola said six HIV-positive patients who underwent the trials have since died at the hospital within a year.
"He was illegally conducting clinical trials on patients without the board’s approval," he said.
Thadeo was working at the hospital’s palliative care for HIV patients, where he gave additional drugs to Aids patients.
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Malawi president to host state luncheon for Flames
Still relishing the 2-1 defeat of the mighty Simbas of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last Saturday in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika will officially honour his victorious national football team, the Flames, with a state luncheon at his New State House on Wednesday, APA learnt here Tuesday.
Minister of Youth Development and Sports, Symon Vuwa Kaunda, said in Lilongwe that the luncheon is Mutharika’s mere token of appreciation of the players for making it into the second leg of the tournaments.
"This is to thank the team for making it possible to go through tough matches like playing with such renowned teams as Egypt and the DRC and at the same time booking a place in the second leg of both tournaments," he said.
He said the Flames’ victory had brought smiles back to every citizen of the country.
Kaunda added that the success had not come on a silver platter but rather it was the result of government’s commitment towards sports, and football in particular.
Minister of Youth Development and Sports, Symon Vuwa Kaunda, said in Lilongwe that the luncheon is Mutharika’s mere token of appreciation of the players for making it into the second leg of the tournaments.
"This is to thank the team for making it possible to go through tough matches like playing with such renowned teams as Egypt and the DRC and at the same time booking a place in the second leg of both tournaments," he said.
He said the Flames’ victory had brought smiles back to every citizen of the country.
Kaunda added that the success had not come on a silver platter but rather it was the result of government’s commitment towards sports, and football in particular.
WORLD BANK GROUP: World Bank Provides Malawi With First Weather Risk Management Contract New Instrument Helps Fight Negative Impact of Drought
The World Bank today announces its first-ever weather risk management contract to help Malawi protect itself against the risk of severe drought. It also marks the first time that a member of the International Development Association (IDA) is able to access World Bank market-based risk management tools. On behalf of the Government of Malawi, the UK Department of International Development (DfID) provided financial support to cover the premium payment for the contract.
The Government of Malawi approached the World Bank for help with managing the risk posed by severe drought. Malawi suffers from chronic drought that cuts agricultural yields and depresses farmer incomes, negatively affecting the government's budget. When drought strikes, it increases the price of maize, the main source of food for a large part of the population. The purchase of the weather hedge is part of a larger framework designed to reduce agricultural risk in the country.
"Agriculture is a major sector and source of growth for the Malawian economy," said Honorable Goodall Gondwe, Minister of Finance. "Market-based weather risk management tools can not only help protect against the adverse effects of drought, but are also a potentially valuable tool for enhancing Malawi's food security."
"We see the Malawi contract as a natural complement to our work to help countries access market-based tools for managing a range of risks, including interest rate, currency, commodity and weather-related risks," said Gloria Grandolini, Director of the World Bank Treasury's Banking and Debt Management Department.
Weather risk management transactions can be adapted to countries' specific needs, depending on the type of weather hazard, level of protection, and the estimated financial loss associated with a severe and catastrophic event. The potential application of this product spans diverse sectors, e.g., agriculture, energy production, and tourism.
The World Bank, working with Malawi, structured the contract as an option on a rainfall index. The index links rainfall and maize production so that if precipitation falls below a certain level, the index will reflect the value of the projected loss in maize production. Under the contract, if the maize production in the country, as estimated by the rainfall index, falls to 10% below the historical average, Malawi will receive a payout of up to a maximum of $5 million.
The new product is available both to low- and middle-income countries. "We see ourselves as a bridge between our clients and the market," adds Ms. Grandolini. "We offer our experience in transacting derivatives when it is needed, but we also know that our role is temporary and the key is to build national capacity to facilitate future direct transactions between the client and financial markets."
The World Bank Group (WBG) has developed a broad range of financing solutions to help countries prepare to respond to natural disasters. The Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option (CAT DDO) provides a committed line of credit that can be drawn on upon the occurrence of a major natural disaster. On September 16, 2008, Costa Rica became the first country to benefit from this product.
The WBG recently helped 16 Caribbean countries establish the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF), the first multi-country facility to offer parametric insurance against major hurricanes and earthquakes. The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is helping create the Global Index Reinsurance Facility (GIRIF), a multi-donor trust fund linked with a specialized index-based reinsurance company. Each of these solutions is most effective when integrally linked to a country's wider disaster risk management strategy.
The Government of Malawi approached the World Bank for help with managing the risk posed by severe drought. Malawi suffers from chronic drought that cuts agricultural yields and depresses farmer incomes, negatively affecting the government's budget. When drought strikes, it increases the price of maize, the main source of food for a large part of the population. The purchase of the weather hedge is part of a larger framework designed to reduce agricultural risk in the country.
"Agriculture is a major sector and source of growth for the Malawian economy," said Honorable Goodall Gondwe, Minister of Finance. "Market-based weather risk management tools can not only help protect against the adverse effects of drought, but are also a potentially valuable tool for enhancing Malawi's food security."
"We see the Malawi contract as a natural complement to our work to help countries access market-based tools for managing a range of risks, including interest rate, currency, commodity and weather-related risks," said Gloria Grandolini, Director of the World Bank Treasury's Banking and Debt Management Department.
Weather risk management transactions can be adapted to countries' specific needs, depending on the type of weather hazard, level of protection, and the estimated financial loss associated with a severe and catastrophic event. The potential application of this product spans diverse sectors, e.g., agriculture, energy production, and tourism.
The World Bank, working with Malawi, structured the contract as an option on a rainfall index. The index links rainfall and maize production so that if precipitation falls below a certain level, the index will reflect the value of the projected loss in maize production. Under the contract, if the maize production in the country, as estimated by the rainfall index, falls to 10% below the historical average, Malawi will receive a payout of up to a maximum of $5 million.
The new product is available both to low- and middle-income countries. "We see ourselves as a bridge between our clients and the market," adds Ms. Grandolini. "We offer our experience in transacting derivatives when it is needed, but we also know that our role is temporary and the key is to build national capacity to facilitate future direct transactions between the client and financial markets."
The World Bank Group (WBG) has developed a broad range of financing solutions to help countries prepare to respond to natural disasters. The Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option (CAT DDO) provides a committed line of credit that can be drawn on upon the occurrence of a major natural disaster. On September 16, 2008, Costa Rica became the first country to benefit from this product.
The WBG recently helped 16 Caribbean countries establish the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF), the first multi-country facility to offer parametric insurance against major hurricanes and earthquakes. The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is helping create the Global Index Reinsurance Facility (GIRIF), a multi-donor trust fund linked with a specialized index-based reinsurance company. Each of these solutions is most effective when integrally linked to a country's wider disaster risk management strategy.
HEALTH-MALAWI: Help for Women with Obstetric Fistula
A group of 138 unhappy and mostly destitute women from Malawi’s lake district of Mangochi have something to look forward to this week: They will have a chance to restore their dignity and pride by accessing a medical service usually not available to them.
Some of the women have been unable to control the flow of urine and faeces from their bodies for many years due to a medical condition known as obstetric fistula. Others are recent victims of this demeaning condition.
According to United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reproductive health officer, Dorothy Lazaro, obstetric fistula occurs during the process of giving birth and is caused by extended pressure of the child’s head against the soft tissue in the mother’s pelvis.
The tissue eventually dies from the lack of blood supply, and a hole develops between either the rectum and vagina or between the bladder and vagina. As a result, women lose control of the flow of urine and sometimes faeces.
UNFPA and Malawi’s Ministry of Health have jointly organised a "Fistula Week" where women with this condition will undergo operations and receive free medical services to reverse the condition.
Apart from medical complications, women suffering from obstetric fistula have to face numerous social obstacles. They are outcasts in their communities because their husbands abandon them when they fall ill. In addition, community members do not want to get close to them because of the smell that emanates from their bodies due to the continuous flow of excreta.
Malawi has no official statistics on how many women are afflicted with fistula but government, with UNFPA’s assistance, is currently carrying out a study to determine the scale of the problem.
Lazaro says that there is such a large number of fistula patients in Mangochi because early marriages abound in the district, which result in young women giving birth before their bodies are ready to endure the strains of pregnancy and birth.
She explains that young women often go through a prolonged labour process that causes the soft tissues between the pelvis to die, which then creates holes between the bladder and/or the rectum and the vagina. "We have come across girls as young as 13 giving birth, and this age group usually risks developing fistula," says Lazaro.
She also says that most women in Mangochi give birth at home with no medical care or follow up examinations.
The head of the national health ministry’s Reproductive Health Unit (RHU), Dr. Chisale Mhango, says Malawi lacks sufficient infrastructure for maternal care -- another contributing factor to fistula. The lack of health services is also responsible for the country’s high maternal mortality rate -– with 807 deaths per 100,000 live births -– the second-highest on the continent after war-torn Sierra Leone.
"It’s very difficult for us to cope with maternity cases because of the lack of medical personnel that the country continues to face," says Mhango.
The country’s efforts to attain Millennium Development Goal (MDG) number five, which aims to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters by 2015, are being severely hampered by these shortcomings.
There is only one doctor and four clinical officers in the whole of Malawi who are qualified to carry out fistula repairs, according to Lazaro. More than 100 registered nurses are reported to be leaving the country each year for the developed world in search of higher-paying jobs. Malawi’s Ministry of Health statistics indicate that one doctor takes care of up to 64,000 patients.
But this week, UNFPA has brought into the country two surgical specialists from Holland and Kenya to provide support to the existing local medical personnel in treating the women during fistula week.
"The specialists will also provide a refresher course on fistula repair to our local medical personnel," says Lazaro. She, however, worries that the efforts of fistula week might be hampered by a lack of bed space available in the health care facilities in Mangochi to treat the 138 women.
"The women have to be monitored for two weeks after the operation and it may not be feasible for the health facilities to have so many women hospitalised for such a long time," says Lazaro.
As a long-term plan developed locally to prevent fistula, UNFPA in Malawi is recommending fistula prevention programmes to be linked with education systems to ensure that girls remain in school for a longer time. The UN agency also recommends that youth-friendly health services be made widely available to prevent early pregnancies.
Malawi is not the only country faced with high maternal mortality rates. Globally, 99 percent of maternal deaths occur in the developing world and half of these take place in Africa, according to a joint statement released by UNFPA, World Bank, UNICEF and World Health Organisation in late September.
The agencies say the MDG goal on maternal mortality is showing the least progress compared to the other seven MDG goals, which aim to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve universal primary education, promote gender equality and empowerment of women, reduce child mortality, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases and ensure environmental sustainability and develop a global partnership for development.
"Every minute a woman dies in pregnancy or childbirth in the world," says the statement.
The agencies pledged to enhance support to countries with the highest maternal mortality during the next five years and will work with governments and civil society to strengthen national capacity by conducting needs assessments and ensuring that health plans are MDG-driven.
The UN agencies have also promised to address the urgent need for skilled health workers, particularly midwives, reduce financial barriers to access health facilities, especially for the poorest, tackle the root causes of maternal mortality and morbidity which include gender inequality low access to education, especially for girls, child marriage and adolescent pregnancy.
Malawi is hoping to be one of the countries to benefit from this new pledge to scale up efforts to eliminate fistula and maternal deaths, says Lazaro.
Some of the women have been unable to control the flow of urine and faeces from their bodies for many years due to a medical condition known as obstetric fistula. Others are recent victims of this demeaning condition.
According to United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reproductive health officer, Dorothy Lazaro, obstetric fistula occurs during the process of giving birth and is caused by extended pressure of the child’s head against the soft tissue in the mother’s pelvis.
The tissue eventually dies from the lack of blood supply, and a hole develops between either the rectum and vagina or between the bladder and vagina. As a result, women lose control of the flow of urine and sometimes faeces.
UNFPA and Malawi’s Ministry of Health have jointly organised a "Fistula Week" where women with this condition will undergo operations and receive free medical services to reverse the condition.
Apart from medical complications, women suffering from obstetric fistula have to face numerous social obstacles. They are outcasts in their communities because their husbands abandon them when they fall ill. In addition, community members do not want to get close to them because of the smell that emanates from their bodies due to the continuous flow of excreta.
Malawi has no official statistics on how many women are afflicted with fistula but government, with UNFPA’s assistance, is currently carrying out a study to determine the scale of the problem.
Lazaro says that there is such a large number of fistula patients in Mangochi because early marriages abound in the district, which result in young women giving birth before their bodies are ready to endure the strains of pregnancy and birth.
She explains that young women often go through a prolonged labour process that causes the soft tissues between the pelvis to die, which then creates holes between the bladder and/or the rectum and the vagina. "We have come across girls as young as 13 giving birth, and this age group usually risks developing fistula," says Lazaro.
She also says that most women in Mangochi give birth at home with no medical care or follow up examinations.
The head of the national health ministry’s Reproductive Health Unit (RHU), Dr. Chisale Mhango, says Malawi lacks sufficient infrastructure for maternal care -- another contributing factor to fistula. The lack of health services is also responsible for the country’s high maternal mortality rate -– with 807 deaths per 100,000 live births -– the second-highest on the continent after war-torn Sierra Leone.
"It’s very difficult for us to cope with maternity cases because of the lack of medical personnel that the country continues to face," says Mhango.
The country’s efforts to attain Millennium Development Goal (MDG) number five, which aims to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters by 2015, are being severely hampered by these shortcomings.
There is only one doctor and four clinical officers in the whole of Malawi who are qualified to carry out fistula repairs, according to Lazaro. More than 100 registered nurses are reported to be leaving the country each year for the developed world in search of higher-paying jobs. Malawi’s Ministry of Health statistics indicate that one doctor takes care of up to 64,000 patients.
But this week, UNFPA has brought into the country two surgical specialists from Holland and Kenya to provide support to the existing local medical personnel in treating the women during fistula week.
"The specialists will also provide a refresher course on fistula repair to our local medical personnel," says Lazaro. She, however, worries that the efforts of fistula week might be hampered by a lack of bed space available in the health care facilities in Mangochi to treat the 138 women.
"The women have to be monitored for two weeks after the operation and it may not be feasible for the health facilities to have so many women hospitalised for such a long time," says Lazaro.
As a long-term plan developed locally to prevent fistula, UNFPA in Malawi is recommending fistula prevention programmes to be linked with education systems to ensure that girls remain in school for a longer time. The UN agency also recommends that youth-friendly health services be made widely available to prevent early pregnancies.
Malawi is not the only country faced with high maternal mortality rates. Globally, 99 percent of maternal deaths occur in the developing world and half of these take place in Africa, according to a joint statement released by UNFPA, World Bank, UNICEF and World Health Organisation in late September.
The agencies say the MDG goal on maternal mortality is showing the least progress compared to the other seven MDG goals, which aim to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve universal primary education, promote gender equality and empowerment of women, reduce child mortality, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases and ensure environmental sustainability and develop a global partnership for development.
"Every minute a woman dies in pregnancy or childbirth in the world," says the statement.
The agencies pledged to enhance support to countries with the highest maternal mortality during the next five years and will work with governments and civil society to strengthen national capacity by conducting needs assessments and ensuring that health plans are MDG-driven.
The UN agencies have also promised to address the urgent need for skilled health workers, particularly midwives, reduce financial barriers to access health facilities, especially for the poorest, tackle the root causes of maternal mortality and morbidity which include gender inequality low access to education, especially for girls, child marriage and adolescent pregnancy.
Malawi is hoping to be one of the countries to benefit from this new pledge to scale up efforts to eliminate fistula and maternal deaths, says Lazaro.
Malawi: Thirty Locals Repatriated From Malawi
THIRTY Rwandan refugees were last week repatriated from Malawi.
The group who arrived through Kigali International Airport, were living at Zareka refugee camp. They include seven men, eight women and 15 children.
Talking to The New Times, Joanna Pollonais, the UNHCR External Relations officer in Rwanda confirmed that they were in good shape and happy to be in their country and that many more want to be repatriated.
She however did not mention the number of those who want to be repatriated but added that those who had returned had done so on their own will.
"Repatriation is voluntary. So when refugees are ready to return to their country of origin, UNHCR is there to provide solutions in terms of human assistance, protection and logistics," Pollonais explained, adding, "We're discussing with the government of Malawi the best approach to repatriate them in a big number."
This has come following the good bilateral relationship between Rwanda and the government of Malawi.
In September 2007, President Paul Kagame had a three-day state visit to Malawi where, together with his counterpart Bingu Wa Mutharika, inaugurated Paul Kagame Road in the southern African country's capital, Lilongwe.
Predictably, the two presidents discussed the refugee issue, agreeing that a tripartite commission comprising both governments and the UNHCR be instituted and immediately devise means of having those Rwandans repatriated home.
This is in line with Kigali's desire to have all Rwandan refugees in as many countries repatriated home to help rebuild and develop their motherland.
The group who arrived through Kigali International Airport, were living at Zareka refugee camp. They include seven men, eight women and 15 children.
Talking to The New Times, Joanna Pollonais, the UNHCR External Relations officer in Rwanda confirmed that they were in good shape and happy to be in their country and that many more want to be repatriated.
She however did not mention the number of those who want to be repatriated but added that those who had returned had done so on their own will.
"Repatriation is voluntary. So when refugees are ready to return to their country of origin, UNHCR is there to provide solutions in terms of human assistance, protection and logistics," Pollonais explained, adding, "We're discussing with the government of Malawi the best approach to repatriate them in a big number."
This has come following the good bilateral relationship between Rwanda and the government of Malawi.
In September 2007, President Paul Kagame had a three-day state visit to Malawi where, together with his counterpart Bingu Wa Mutharika, inaugurated Paul Kagame Road in the southern African country's capital, Lilongwe.
Predictably, the two presidents discussed the refugee issue, agreeing that a tripartite commission comprising both governments and the UNHCR be instituted and immediately devise means of having those Rwandans repatriated home.
This is in line with Kigali's desire to have all Rwandan refugees in as many countries repatriated home to help rebuild and develop their motherland.
Malawi Hit By Foot And Mouth Disease Outbreak
Malawi’s Secretary for Agriculture and Food Security, Andrew Daudi, on Monday warned that there was an outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the country’s two southern districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje on the border with Mozambiaque.
The animal disease is a highly contagious viral disease which affects all cloven hoofed animals, including cattle, goats, sheep and pigs and other wildlife ruminants.
He told APA during an interview that the disease has serious social and economic implications for a country like Malawi if not controlled and managed timely.
“We are doing everything possible to manage and control the outbreak by putting up measures in order to contain the disease,” he said.
He said some of the measures put in place included temporary suspension of all live livestock markets, banning all livestock slaughtering, intensification of public awareness in its early detection, prevention and control of the disease, among others.
He therefore urged the feedlot owners to stop the restocking of their units within the outbreak period.
The animal disease is a highly contagious viral disease which affects all cloven hoofed animals, including cattle, goats, sheep and pigs and other wildlife ruminants.
He told APA during an interview that the disease has serious social and economic implications for a country like Malawi if not controlled and managed timely.
“We are doing everything possible to manage and control the outbreak by putting up measures in order to contain the disease,” he said.
He said some of the measures put in place included temporary suspension of all live livestock markets, banning all livestock slaughtering, intensification of public awareness in its early detection, prevention and control of the disease, among others.
He therefore urged the feedlot owners to stop the restocking of their units within the outbreak period.
Saving Sex Workers in Malawi
Twenty-seven year-old Lima Wochi from Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe, looks dejected. She ventured into prostitution at the tender age of 12. She says she is tired of sex work and is looking for a way out of it.
Prostitution is deemed unacceptable in Malawi but the sex trade continues to thrive. Large numbers of women, especially young ones, are seen loitering around street corners, near hotels, bars and other entertainment places.
Wochi is one of these women. She immediately catches one’s attention as she prowls around a popular bar in Chigwirizano, one of the capital city’s popular entertainment joints. The woman has all sorts of scars on her face and thighs – many of her customers have inflicted physical and emotional abuse on her over the years.
“The worst case of abuse I encountered was two years ago when three men gang-raped me and beat me up. I couldn’t work for three months as I was seriously injured,” Wochi recalls pensively.
Wochi says she went back to the sex trade because she knew no other way of earning a living. But she says she is now too worn-out to go on.
“I don’t want to be a prostitute anymore. I am fed up with everything that comes with it, but my main problem is that I never went to school and I can never get good employment,” she worries.
Another of Wochi’s major concerns is the risk of contracting HIV. She has not been brave enough to go for an HIV test yet. The 2006 Malawi Behavior Surveillance Survey indicates that up to 70 percent of sex workers are HIV positive – this is the highest rate being faced by one group of people in the country – the national prevalence rate for Malawi is 14 percent. AIDS is Malawi’s second leading cause of death after malaria.
Wochi says she was forced into prostitution by abject poverty. “I found sex work lucrative and I thought it was a very easy way of making money.” She left her rural village in southern Malawi and moved to the country’s capital, Lilongwe. She immediately started roaming around the city’s drinking places and hotels plying the sex trade.
Now, Wochi is looking for a substantial sum of money that will set her off in a “more respectable business.” She is paid US$3 for providing sex without using a condom and US$1 for sex with a condom. “I sleep with five men on a good night but sometimes I go without getting any customers,” she says.
The United Nations Population Fund’s HIV Prevention Officer Humphreys Shumba says that sex work in Malawi is mainly driven by poverty. The country remains one of the most impoverished in the world and is ranked among the 14 poorest nations by the 2007/2008 United Nations Human Development Index, which ranks countries based on broader indicators of their quality of life including life expectancy, enrollment in school, freedom from disease and other measures.
According to 2008 research findings by the Community Health Department at the University of Malawi, up to 83 percent of prostitutes in Malawi are known to depend solely on sex work for their livelihoods and 95 percent of them have children. Sixty nine percent of the women who are involved in the sex trade are divorced.
Shumba says unprotected sex, which is often practiced by sex workers, is among the key drivers of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Malawi. “Sex work in Malawi is characterized by, among other factors, lower age of entry into the trade where girls as young as 12 years are known to be sex workers,” he says. Since 2005, government has since been deploying child protection officers to find and rehabilitate child prostitutes so they can return to their communities.
Shumba explains that lack of negotiation skills and assertiveness in ensuring safer sex through condom use also aggravates the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted illnesses.
UNFPA has since funded the Family Planning Association of Malawi (FPAM) to work on reducing the transmission of HIV among the prostitutes by empowering them to practice safer sex, and by increasing the sex workers’ access to reproductive health, voluntary counseling and testing.
So far, the law in Malawi is silent on prostitution. However, the police usually carry out night raids and arrest anyone found loitering in entertainment and public places – most of those arrested are prostitutes. The police charge them with minor infractions: either being found Idle and Disorderly, or Rogue and Vagabond - crimes that do not exact harsh punishment.
Grace Thupi, a sex worker, says she was once arrested during a night raid and was taken to court. “I was charged with Rogue and Vagabond and the court imposed a suspended sentence of two weeks in jail,” she says.
To fill in the gaps, FPAM is engaging the sex workers by providing them with information, skills for negotiating safer sex (condom use) and alternative livelihood options, says Bessie Nkhwazi, the NGO’s district manager for Lilongwe.
FPAM, the government, NGOs and other service providers in Malawi realize that they cannot stop prostitution overnight, so their focus is largely on HIV prevention. And though FPAM and UNFPA create their workplans with the government, it’s mainly for appearances so they can say the government is somehow involved. Some of the money that FPAM receives comes from the National AIDS Commission, which is a government body, but the government is mainly helping to combat child prostitution through the deployment of child protection officers. The implementation of actual programs, especially those for older prostitutes, are really falling on the NGOs.
“We are addressing the economic and social obstacles faced by those indulging in the sex work trade. The sex workers are undergoing training in business management and they are also being equipped with vocational skills such as tailoring, running hair salons, restaurants and mushroom growing,” says Nkhwazi.
Jane Banda, 25, is one sex worker who has been trained in tailoring. She is waiting for a loan to be provided by UNFPA through FPAM that will set her up with her new business.
“I have been abused so much in this trade. Some man picked me up from the drinking joint and dumped me in a grave yard in the middle of the night. I have never been as scared as I was on that night. I can’t live like that anymore,” declares Banda.
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