Mere weeks after pulling off his Canadian Idol mask, CTV's Ben Mulroney is getting ready to pull on a new one -- as the face of UNICEF's Trick or Treat campaign.
It will be the eTalk host's second year as a spokesperson for UNICEF's long-standing Halloween campaign. The job consists mainly of using his well-known visage to bring attention to the campaign through public appearances and education, spreading the word that kids and adults alike are sought to help out in the fundraising effort.
Mulroney got on board last year to be a voice for the program's new concept, which left the ubiquitous Halloween-night change collection boxes behind for an extended period of fundraising instead.
Including the "Dare to Wear a Costume" campaign for the workplace and an online fundraising component, the program now stretches over the course of the month.
"We got rid of the boxes for dozens of reasons," Mulroney told CTV.ca. "The boxes weren't working anymore, they were played out... It was a brand new thing for the first time in over 30 years. Canadians responded to it."
Running since 1955, the Trick or Treat campaign has raised more than $94 million and has been many young Canadians' first exposure to charitable giving and the specter of global poverty.
This year, proceeds will go to the Schools for Africa, a joint effort between UNICEF, the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Hamburg Society for the Promotion of Democracy and International Law.
Funds raised go to the construction of schools in Malawi and Rwanda, and will provide educational materials for and teacher training to improve the quality of education to keep children in school longer.
According to UNICEF, about 400,000 Rwandan children don't have access to education, while in Malawi, fewer than 50 per cent of students reach grade five.
Mulroney had the opportunity to see the program's work for himself last year on a trip to Malawi and says the experience firmly solidified the importance of UNICEF's work.
"Malawi's one of the poorest countries in the world," he said. "It's also a democratic country, which was one of the reasons we went there. The work ... had a good chance of continuing after we left.
"I don't know that (a visit to Africa is) in the cards for this year, but there's going to be a lot of radio and getting my face out there to constantly reminding kids that it's never too late to sign up."
Saturday, 13 October 2007
520,000 Malawians on 'watch list' for possible starvation
Despite a maize surplus, some half-a-million Malawians affected by drought may face food shortages before the 2008 harvest, a United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) official said Saturday.
"Some 520,000 people in four districts which were affected by drought are on close watch as they may face risk of food shortages before next year's harvest," Matthews Nyirenda told AFP.
Nyirenda, citing a recent report by the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee, composed of donors and the government, said four of the country's 28 drought-affected areas were being watched closely.
The districts include Karonga and Mzimba in the north, Ntchisi in the central region and Mulanje in the south.
The WFP would soon review the food security situation in the districts and, depending on the outcome of the assesment, would provide humanitarian assistance through targeted food distribution, Nyirenda said.
Despite being swamped with surplus maize from two bumper harvests, food security is still a pressing issue in the poor southern African nation.
Malawi, which annually needs two million tonnes to feed its 12 million people, is this year in surplus of about 1.1 million tonnes. About 400,000 tonnes have been exported to cash-strapped Zimbabwe.
The surplus has been due to subsidised fertiliser and prolonged periods of rainfall, agriculture experts say. The country met its food needs for the first time in seven years in 2006 with a harvest of 2.2 million tonnes.
About 45 percent of Malawians live below the poverty line and on less than a dollar a day.
Kaohsiung mayor to help Malawi athletes attend 2009 World Games
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu pledged Friday to help Malawi athletes attend the World Games, slated to take place in the southern port city in 2009.
Chen made the promise during a meeting with Esther Mcheka Chilenje Nkhoma, the first deputy speaker of Malawi's National Assembly, and three female Malawi lawmakers.
Saying that she will give money to allow Malawi athletes and Chilenje to attend the games, Chen expressed appreciation to Malawi for strongly supporting Taiwan's bid to join the United Nations.
Meanwhile, Chen noted that Kaohsiung has attached great importance to ecology and environmental protection during its transformation from a heavy-industry city to a trade-and-tourism city.
She said she hopes Kaohsiung can have "a clean and natural environment like Africa."
Chen said that in Taiwan, women have equal opportunities to men to participate in politics, pointing out that the vice president and one-quarter of the Cabinet are women.
In response, Chilenje said that there are limited opportunities for Malawi women to take part in politics. However, she said she believes female lawmakers often pay more attention to social problems related to children, women and minority groups.
Chilenje expressed a wish to establish collaboration with Kaohsiung to learn more about the city's experience in developing heavy industry.
Chilenje also thanked Taiwan for offering aid to Malawi and reiterated the country's staunch backing for Taiwan's U.N. membership bid.
Chen made the promise during a meeting with Esther Mcheka Chilenje Nkhoma, the first deputy speaker of Malawi's National Assembly, and three female Malawi lawmakers.
Saying that she will give money to allow Malawi athletes and Chilenje to attend the games, Chen expressed appreciation to Malawi for strongly supporting Taiwan's bid to join the United Nations.
Meanwhile, Chen noted that Kaohsiung has attached great importance to ecology and environmental protection during its transformation from a heavy-industry city to a trade-and-tourism city.
She said she hopes Kaohsiung can have "a clean and natural environment like Africa."
Chen said that in Taiwan, women have equal opportunities to men to participate in politics, pointing out that the vice president and one-quarter of the Cabinet are women.
In response, Chilenje said that there are limited opportunities for Malawi women to take part in politics. However, she said she believes female lawmakers often pay more attention to social problems related to children, women and minority groups.
Chilenje expressed a wish to establish collaboration with Kaohsiung to learn more about the city's experience in developing heavy industry.
Chilenje also thanked Taiwan for offering aid to Malawi and reiterated the country's staunch backing for Taiwan's U.N. membership bid.
From Malawi to Glenrothes
YOUNGSTERS at two local primary schools have been given a taste of Malawi.
Pupils at Star and Milton of Balgonie primaries welcomed Victoria and Overtoun Mazunda in an exchange between Scotland and the African country.
The Mazundas, from Lusangazi, were in Fife visiting friends at St Kenneth's Parish Church in Kennoway and Windygates in a follow-up to a trip by parishioners earlier this year.
Overtoun is the minister of Lusangazi church, while Victoria teaches home economics in a high school.
They visited local schools to talk about lifestyles in their country and Victoria cooked up some Malawaian dishes for the children to try.
Kenya: When Power Failure Saved Stars From the Jaws of Defeat
The fourth All-Africa Games soccer tournament semi-final between Kenya's Harambee Stars and Malawi was brought to a premature end because of a sudden black-out at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, in 1987.
With Malawi leading 1-0 and pressing hard for another goal, the stadium was plunged into darkness following power failure, leaving the referee with no alternative but to call off the clash amid protests by the Malawians who claimed there was foul play to save the home team.
They apparently felt the Kenyans, sensing imminent defeat had "deliberately" tampered with the lights to rob them of victory.
The Games organisers immediately ordered the teams to meet again in a replay the next day.
This time, Harambee Stars turned the tables by beating the unlucky Malawi 1-0 to stride into the final against Egypt on the penultimate day of the Games.
As it turned out Egypt had the last laugh, pipping Harambee Stars 1-0, thanks to a controversial goal netted from a suspiciously offside position. But the question still remains: Did the Kenyans really tamper with the lights as alleged by Malawi?
Addis Ababa friendly
After winning the 1961 Gossage Cup in Mombasa, the Football Association of Kenya landed an invitation from Ethiopia for an international friendly in Addis Ababa at a short notice.
With little time to round up a full team, coach Ray Bachelor managed to raise an under-strengh squad, depleted by the absence of top stars that featured in the team that had lifted the Gossage Cup. But the Kenyans did not want to disappoint their hosts.
Batchelor, who doubled up as manager, left with only ten players, decided to field himself to fill the remaining 11th berth to complete the team.
Bathroom fight
The national Ethiopian side had little difficult in winning the hurriedly organised game before their home supporters.
To make the situation worse, Kenya's captain and one of his colleagues were involved in a fight in the bath-room, causing damage to the hotel's property.
Embarrassed and dismayed, the Football Association of Kenya slapped a 12 month suspension on both players as soon as the team jetted back in disgrace.
Consequently both of stars missed the 1962 Gossage Cup hosted by Kenya and won by Uganda at the City Stadium.
With Malawi leading 1-0 and pressing hard for another goal, the stadium was plunged into darkness following power failure, leaving the referee with no alternative but to call off the clash amid protests by the Malawians who claimed there was foul play to save the home team.
They apparently felt the Kenyans, sensing imminent defeat had "deliberately" tampered with the lights to rob them of victory.
The Games organisers immediately ordered the teams to meet again in a replay the next day.
This time, Harambee Stars turned the tables by beating the unlucky Malawi 1-0 to stride into the final against Egypt on the penultimate day of the Games.
As it turned out Egypt had the last laugh, pipping Harambee Stars 1-0, thanks to a controversial goal netted from a suspiciously offside position. But the question still remains: Did the Kenyans really tamper with the lights as alleged by Malawi?
Addis Ababa friendly
After winning the 1961 Gossage Cup in Mombasa, the Football Association of Kenya landed an invitation from Ethiopia for an international friendly in Addis Ababa at a short notice.
With little time to round up a full team, coach Ray Bachelor managed to raise an under-strengh squad, depleted by the absence of top stars that featured in the team that had lifted the Gossage Cup. But the Kenyans did not want to disappoint their hosts.
Batchelor, who doubled up as manager, left with only ten players, decided to field himself to fill the remaining 11th berth to complete the team.
Bathroom fight
The national Ethiopian side had little difficult in winning the hurriedly organised game before their home supporters.
To make the situation worse, Kenya's captain and one of his colleagues were involved in a fight in the bath-room, causing damage to the hotel's property.
Embarrassed and dismayed, the Football Association of Kenya slapped a 12 month suspension on both players as soon as the team jetted back in disgrace.
Consequently both of stars missed the 1962 Gossage Cup hosted by Kenya and won by Uganda at the City Stadium.
Friday, 12 October 2007
Zimbabwe: Over 3 Million Need Food Aid
ZIMBABWE, which requires 1,8 million tonnes of the staple maize crop annually, is expecting only 800 000 tonnes from local production with the remaining million tonnes to be imported from Malawi , government officials have said.
The country also has a wheat deficit of 255 130 tonnes as it expects 144 870 from the winter wheat season production which was badly affected by power outages and lack of coordination by government and other players in the sector, according to a parliamentary report.
A total of 480 000 tonnes of wheat is required annually. The country is experiencing a critical shortage of bread and maize meal, with the latter being felt more in the southern parts of the country which are further away from the Mutoko, Kotwa, Murehwa and Marondera depots which are receiving imports from Malawi.
At least 3,3 million people are in need of food aid, according to World Food Programme estimates while government estimates that 600 000 families require food aid. Government allocated an additional $800 billion for the purchase of maize by GMB from local farmers as well as for imports under the 2007 supplementary budget and the WFP says it is mobilising US$97 million to meet the country's food needs.
Giving oral evidence on the country's food security to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Land and Agriculture last week, Agriculture permanent secretary Ngoni Masoka and Grain Marketing Board acting chief executive Samuel Muvuti said government had stepped up imports of the two products.
However, they said distribution was being hampered by the unavailability of fuel for road and rail transport, the poor state of roads and distance from receiving depots to numerous distribution centres nationwide. Masoka said maize imports from Malawi were by road and transporters were at times reluctant to use some routes due to the poor state of roads while they also intermittently experienced fuel problems back in Malawi .
He pointed out that out of the 800 000 tonnes expected from local production, the GMB was expecting to receive 220 000 tonnes as the rest would be retained by farmers and families for subsistence use.
Muvuti told the committee that the speedy collection of local grain was also being affected by the unavailability of grain bags which had to be imported.
He revealed that the GMB owed a South African company US$1 million for grain bag imports as a local company, Grain Bag, had limited capacity although it was reported to be exporting some.
"So far we have imported 400 000 tonnes of maize from Malawi and we need to import 200 000 tonnes. A total of 260 000 tonnes has already been consumed and we need to import 260 000 tonnes which is yet to be contracted as we are still mobilising foreign currency."
Commenting on current stocks, Muvuti said as of September 24,GMB had received 164 562 tonnes from local producers comprising small scale farmers and the corporate sector including Delta, National Foods and Crest Breeders all involved in contract farming.
He said he expected deliveries to improve following the maize delivery bonus of $11,4 million per tonne (bagged) announced by central bank governor Gideon Gono in his mid-term monetary policy statement last week.
The country also has a wheat deficit of 255 130 tonnes as it expects 144 870 from the winter wheat season production which was badly affected by power outages and lack of coordination by government and other players in the sector, according to a parliamentary report.
A total of 480 000 tonnes of wheat is required annually. The country is experiencing a critical shortage of bread and maize meal, with the latter being felt more in the southern parts of the country which are further away from the Mutoko, Kotwa, Murehwa and Marondera depots which are receiving imports from Malawi.
At least 3,3 million people are in need of food aid, according to World Food Programme estimates while government estimates that 600 000 families require food aid. Government allocated an additional $800 billion for the purchase of maize by GMB from local farmers as well as for imports under the 2007 supplementary budget and the WFP says it is mobilising US$97 million to meet the country's food needs.
Giving oral evidence on the country's food security to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Land and Agriculture last week, Agriculture permanent secretary Ngoni Masoka and Grain Marketing Board acting chief executive Samuel Muvuti said government had stepped up imports of the two products.
However, they said distribution was being hampered by the unavailability of fuel for road and rail transport, the poor state of roads and distance from receiving depots to numerous distribution centres nationwide. Masoka said maize imports from Malawi were by road and transporters were at times reluctant to use some routes due to the poor state of roads while they also intermittently experienced fuel problems back in Malawi .
He pointed out that out of the 800 000 tonnes expected from local production, the GMB was expecting to receive 220 000 tonnes as the rest would be retained by farmers and families for subsistence use.
Muvuti told the committee that the speedy collection of local grain was also being affected by the unavailability of grain bags which had to be imported.
He revealed that the GMB owed a South African company US$1 million for grain bag imports as a local company, Grain Bag, had limited capacity although it was reported to be exporting some.
"So far we have imported 400 000 tonnes of maize from Malawi and we need to import 200 000 tonnes. A total of 260 000 tonnes has already been consumed and we need to import 260 000 tonnes which is yet to be contracted as we are still mobilising foreign currency."
Commenting on current stocks, Muvuti said as of September 24,GMB had received 164 562 tonnes from local producers comprising small scale farmers and the corporate sector including Delta, National Foods and Crest Breeders all involved in contract farming.
He said he expected deliveries to improve following the maize delivery bonus of $11,4 million per tonne (bagged) announced by central bank governor Gideon Gono in his mid-term monetary policy statement last week.
How Malawi went from a nation of famine to a nation of feast
Something is missing in Malawi these days: anxiety. The sense of tension and strain that underlay nearly every conversation and interaction in the past few years, hungry years, is absent. There is a lightness in most parts of the country, an expansiveness, a certain sense of peace.
It has to do with the nkhokwe, the woven twig corn cribs that stand in the yards of every house. They're full. They're full to overflowing at many houses, two-thirds full with plenty of corn at others. Certainly so full that no one bothers to guard them. Who would steal, when the country has a grain surplus of more than a million tonnes?
A record harvest, a massive surplus of the staple crop, would be good news anywhere in the developing world. But it's particularly gratifying in Malawi, a country that has been plagued with critical food shortages several times in the past decade. In 2002, an estimated 1,500 people starved to death in the worst food shortage since independence. In 2005, the United Nations World Food Program scrambled to supply emergency rations to more than five million people, nearly half the country.
This year, Malawi is itself supplying the WFP, selling 400,000 tonnes of maize for use in emergency operations in neighbouring Zimbabwe.
The key question is, What happened? How did Malawi go from famine-plagued to food exporter?
While steady rains have undoubtedly helped, that's not the whole answer. Over the past couple of years, Malawi has broken with an orthodoxy long advocated by Canada and other Western donor nations: The impoverished country has gone back to subsidizing poor farmers. Condemned by donors as an impediment to the development of a sustainable agricultural sector, the subsidies have been a raging success.
"What is different [this year] is the access to inputs," explained Patrick Kabambe, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. "People are so poor they use recycled seed and no fertilizer. They can't meet their needs that way and they grow no surplus. People sink deeper and deeper into poverty. It's a vicious cycle. We had to do something."
Starting in 2006, and on a larger scale this year, the government distributed coupons to low-income farmers to allow them to purchase 50-kilogram sacks of fertilizer for 950 kwacha($7) rather than the market price of 4,500 kwacha. As a result, the average farmer's yield jumped to two tonnes a hectare from 800 kilograms.
The fertilizer subsidy cost the government $62-million - 6.5 per cent of the total government budget, a "whack of cash" in the words of one top economist - but that pales in comparison to the $120-million the government spent importing food aid in the 2005 famine. And the sale of maize to Zimbabwe and other countries will inject an additional $120-million into the national economy, a sizable figure here.
Mary Kalika certainly thinks the subsidy policy makes sense. Ms. Kalika and her five children farm a little less than a hectare of land in this nine-house village in central Malawi. "We harvested 42 oxcarts of maize this year; that is the most ever for this land," she said. "It's very good news, and it's because of the subsidized fertilizer."
Ms. Kalika has already sold some of her surplus to buy seeds and tools to plant tomatoes to sell in town for cash. She may put a new roof on their house, and buy the children school uniforms if the tomato crop does well.
That's Mr. Kabambe's goal, his vision for helping people out of the cycle of poverty. That seems straightforward enough, but the history of subsidizing agriculture here is a lesson in the competing interests and influences that go into the politics of food and aid.
Back in the 1990s, the Malawi government gave the poorest farmers a package of fertilizer and seeds every year. The program was so popular that in 1999, they made it universal, for all farmers, and posted a large national surplus. But starting in 2000, the donor nations on whom this country depends for nearly half its budget forced the government to scale back and then finally to scrap the policy, saying it "distorted the market" and would prevent a sustainable agricultural base.
The result? Smaller and smaller harvests and two years of famine.
Some blame fell on poor rains, but it was also true that the 75 per cent of the population who are subsistence farmers could not afford either fertilizer or seeds.
That left them vulnerable to what the development industry calls "shocks" - such as one household member contracting HIV or malaria and being too sick to farm - leaving them with too little to eat and forced to sell items of value to survive. At the same time, larger farmers and traders capitalized on the poor harvest by stockpiling, while the government made decisions that were both ill-advised and corrupt, and mishandled the national strategic grain reserve. The next few years were a disaster.
"We didn't advise the government to stop starter packs [of free seed and fertilizer]. We said if you want to subsidize, it has to be targeted," World Bank country director Tim Gilbo said. "It doesn't make sense to subsidize those who can afford to buy. We didn't have a problem with it, our only advice was that it should be targeted."
But in fact, in 2002, World Bank staff told The Globe and Mail that the subsidies were a vote-buying scheme that made it virtually impossible for any solid agricultural market to develop in the country, and that they were pushing the government to scrap it.
"Over time we have softened our stance a little," acknowledged Mr. Gilbo, who was not in Malawi then.
But the market-distortion sentiment was echoed at the time by many donors, including Canada and Britain, who funded the subsidies - this was the era of total dominance of the idea that private sector investment and development was the fastest way to end poverty - and the government was forced to abandon the program.
Eventually, the Malawi government took a stand, quite out of character in Africa where donor countries dictate domestic policy. "The president said [to civil servants] that he would never go begging for food for his people again," Mr. Kabambe recalled. Stuff the donor countries, they said, in essence: Bring back the subsidies. Hence the low-cost fertilizer. And a 370,000-tonne surplus last year. And the record-smashing 1.2 million tonnes this year.
"The subsidy is the best thing to happen in the agricultural sector in years," said Richard Petautchere of the Malawi Economic Justice Network, an organization that advocates for the poor. "We have the land, we have the water, we have everything, but that doesn't matter if you just can't buy seeds or fertilizer."
Mr. Kabambe said donors have also come to see the wisdom in the subsidies - "they've all come back around to say we want to support this" - and Britain and the EU have pledged to underwrite the fertilizer coupons for four years.
Mr. Gilbo said that of course it was positive that Malawi has a food surplus this year, but he argued that this national surplus will drive the price of maize low, which means farmers earn less for any surplus they grow and also remove any incentive to grow more than they will eat the next year.
"All those farmers who begged, borrowed and stole to buy extra fertilizer last year are now looking at that decision and rethinking it," he said. "The lower the maize price, the better it is for food security but worse for market development."
Only getting more people out of subsistence agriculture and into the larger economy will ultimately end poverty, Mr. Gilbo said. He noted that there is an "opportunity cost" to Malawi spending so much on subsidies - money that otherwise might have been spent on anti-malarial bed nets or roads to the most isolated villages - and subsidies, a blunt instrument, may not be the best way to get the poor what they need most.
And, he said, there is a risk of "silver bullet syndrome," with people overconfident that Malawi is now food-secure. "What concerns me is this feeling that Malawi has changed from an import nation to an export nation," Mr. Gilbo said. "This year you had good conditions, subsidies, lots of rainfall and the neighbours are short. If next year there is no rain and South Africa has a huge surplus - then what? It's just not true to say that the fertilizer subsidy has overcome all the problems."
Mr. Kabambe said he understands the need to develop the market, but the World Bank and others are not always realistic. "There are parts of this country where the 'market' doesn't exist. We can't say the market will take care of it," he said. "The government has a responsibility."
His emphasis, instead, is to try to persuade farmers to grow crops other than maize - high-value items such as Ms. Kalika's tomatoes, that can be sold for cash - and to promote small-scale irrigation so farmers are less vulnerable to fluctuations in rainfall.
But in the meantime, the fertilizer coupons stay. "We have no time-frame for ending subsidies; over the medium term they're going to be there," he said. "They will be phased out as income levels of farmers rise. We see it as a worthwhile investment. Look at the cost of doing nothing."
Facts on Malawi
52%
Population living below the poverty line in 2005, almost half of them in ultra-poverty.
90%
Population living in rural areas, mostly engaged in smallholder, rain-fed agriculture, and therefore highly vulnerable to annual rainfall volatility.
It has to do with the nkhokwe, the woven twig corn cribs that stand in the yards of every house. They're full. They're full to overflowing at many houses, two-thirds full with plenty of corn at others. Certainly so full that no one bothers to guard them. Who would steal, when the country has a grain surplus of more than a million tonnes?
A record harvest, a massive surplus of the staple crop, would be good news anywhere in the developing world. But it's particularly gratifying in Malawi, a country that has been plagued with critical food shortages several times in the past decade. In 2002, an estimated 1,500 people starved to death in the worst food shortage since independence. In 2005, the United Nations World Food Program scrambled to supply emergency rations to more than five million people, nearly half the country.
This year, Malawi is itself supplying the WFP, selling 400,000 tonnes of maize for use in emergency operations in neighbouring Zimbabwe.
The key question is, What happened? How did Malawi go from famine-plagued to food exporter?
While steady rains have undoubtedly helped, that's not the whole answer. Over the past couple of years, Malawi has broken with an orthodoxy long advocated by Canada and other Western donor nations: The impoverished country has gone back to subsidizing poor farmers. Condemned by donors as an impediment to the development of a sustainable agricultural sector, the subsidies have been a raging success.
"What is different [this year] is the access to inputs," explained Patrick Kabambe, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. "People are so poor they use recycled seed and no fertilizer. They can't meet their needs that way and they grow no surplus. People sink deeper and deeper into poverty. It's a vicious cycle. We had to do something."
Starting in 2006, and on a larger scale this year, the government distributed coupons to low-income farmers to allow them to purchase 50-kilogram sacks of fertilizer for 950 kwacha($7) rather than the market price of 4,500 kwacha. As a result, the average farmer's yield jumped to two tonnes a hectare from 800 kilograms.
The fertilizer subsidy cost the government $62-million - 6.5 per cent of the total government budget, a "whack of cash" in the words of one top economist - but that pales in comparison to the $120-million the government spent importing food aid in the 2005 famine. And the sale of maize to Zimbabwe and other countries will inject an additional $120-million into the national economy, a sizable figure here.
Mary Kalika certainly thinks the subsidy policy makes sense. Ms. Kalika and her five children farm a little less than a hectare of land in this nine-house village in central Malawi. "We harvested 42 oxcarts of maize this year; that is the most ever for this land," she said. "It's very good news, and it's because of the subsidized fertilizer."
Ms. Kalika has already sold some of her surplus to buy seeds and tools to plant tomatoes to sell in town for cash. She may put a new roof on their house, and buy the children school uniforms if the tomato crop does well.
That's Mr. Kabambe's goal, his vision for helping people out of the cycle of poverty. That seems straightforward enough, but the history of subsidizing agriculture here is a lesson in the competing interests and influences that go into the politics of food and aid.
Back in the 1990s, the Malawi government gave the poorest farmers a package of fertilizer and seeds every year. The program was so popular that in 1999, they made it universal, for all farmers, and posted a large national surplus. But starting in 2000, the donor nations on whom this country depends for nearly half its budget forced the government to scale back and then finally to scrap the policy, saying it "distorted the market" and would prevent a sustainable agricultural base.
The result? Smaller and smaller harvests and two years of famine.
Some blame fell on poor rains, but it was also true that the 75 per cent of the population who are subsistence farmers could not afford either fertilizer or seeds.
That left them vulnerable to what the development industry calls "shocks" - such as one household member contracting HIV or malaria and being too sick to farm - leaving them with too little to eat and forced to sell items of value to survive. At the same time, larger farmers and traders capitalized on the poor harvest by stockpiling, while the government made decisions that were both ill-advised and corrupt, and mishandled the national strategic grain reserve. The next few years were a disaster.
"We didn't advise the government to stop starter packs [of free seed and fertilizer]. We said if you want to subsidize, it has to be targeted," World Bank country director Tim Gilbo said. "It doesn't make sense to subsidize those who can afford to buy. We didn't have a problem with it, our only advice was that it should be targeted."
But in fact, in 2002, World Bank staff told The Globe and Mail that the subsidies were a vote-buying scheme that made it virtually impossible for any solid agricultural market to develop in the country, and that they were pushing the government to scrap it.
"Over time we have softened our stance a little," acknowledged Mr. Gilbo, who was not in Malawi then.
But the market-distortion sentiment was echoed at the time by many donors, including Canada and Britain, who funded the subsidies - this was the era of total dominance of the idea that private sector investment and development was the fastest way to end poverty - and the government was forced to abandon the program.
Eventually, the Malawi government took a stand, quite out of character in Africa where donor countries dictate domestic policy. "The president said [to civil servants] that he would never go begging for food for his people again," Mr. Kabambe recalled. Stuff the donor countries, they said, in essence: Bring back the subsidies. Hence the low-cost fertilizer. And a 370,000-tonne surplus last year. And the record-smashing 1.2 million tonnes this year.
"The subsidy is the best thing to happen in the agricultural sector in years," said Richard Petautchere of the Malawi Economic Justice Network, an organization that advocates for the poor. "We have the land, we have the water, we have everything, but that doesn't matter if you just can't buy seeds or fertilizer."
Mr. Kabambe said donors have also come to see the wisdom in the subsidies - "they've all come back around to say we want to support this" - and Britain and the EU have pledged to underwrite the fertilizer coupons for four years.
Mr. Gilbo said that of course it was positive that Malawi has a food surplus this year, but he argued that this national surplus will drive the price of maize low, which means farmers earn less for any surplus they grow and also remove any incentive to grow more than they will eat the next year.
"All those farmers who begged, borrowed and stole to buy extra fertilizer last year are now looking at that decision and rethinking it," he said. "The lower the maize price, the better it is for food security but worse for market development."
Only getting more people out of subsistence agriculture and into the larger economy will ultimately end poverty, Mr. Gilbo said. He noted that there is an "opportunity cost" to Malawi spending so much on subsidies - money that otherwise might have been spent on anti-malarial bed nets or roads to the most isolated villages - and subsidies, a blunt instrument, may not be the best way to get the poor what they need most.
And, he said, there is a risk of "silver bullet syndrome," with people overconfident that Malawi is now food-secure. "What concerns me is this feeling that Malawi has changed from an import nation to an export nation," Mr. Gilbo said. "This year you had good conditions, subsidies, lots of rainfall and the neighbours are short. If next year there is no rain and South Africa has a huge surplus - then what? It's just not true to say that the fertilizer subsidy has overcome all the problems."
Mr. Kabambe said he understands the need to develop the market, but the World Bank and others are not always realistic. "There are parts of this country where the 'market' doesn't exist. We can't say the market will take care of it," he said. "The government has a responsibility."
His emphasis, instead, is to try to persuade farmers to grow crops other than maize - high-value items such as Ms. Kalika's tomatoes, that can be sold for cash - and to promote small-scale irrigation so farmers are less vulnerable to fluctuations in rainfall.
But in the meantime, the fertilizer coupons stay. "We have no time-frame for ending subsidies; over the medium term they're going to be there," he said. "They will be phased out as income levels of farmers rise. We see it as a worthwhile investment. Look at the cost of doing nothing."
Facts on Malawi
52%
Population living below the poverty line in 2005, almost half of them in ultra-poverty.
90%
Population living in rural areas, mostly engaged in smallholder, rain-fed agriculture, and therefore highly vulnerable to annual rainfall volatility.
Botswana: 'African Reading Ambassador' is in Town
Cleo Bonny has a passion for reading and that passion has taken the 27-year-old Malawian all over the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.
Bonny says despite being brought up in abject poverty by his single mother, the late Meria Hysteyns Nzeru, there were always books in the family home.
The young writer, who has been dubbed the 'African reading ambassador', says that it was difficult being brought up without a father figure but he survived by literally burying his head in the books.
"After supper every evening, my mother would gather us (children) in the living room and make us read books before retiring to bed," Bonny said.
He added that when he was much younger, he used to struggle with the arrangement because all he wanted to do after school was rest and play but his mother would have none of it. According to the avid reader, everything that had words written on it was respected in the family home, so much that later it became a habit for the boy to pick up old newspapers and take them home.
After finishing his primary education in Malawi, Bonny moved to South Africa where he did Audio Visual Communications at Tutuka Casting in Orangegroove, Johannesburg. He says after completing the course in 1998, and instead of looking for a full-time job, he visited several schools and companies in a bid to promote the culture of reading. However, the turning point came in 2001 when the head of Xolani Primary School in Gugulethu, Cape Town, told him that he was 'a natural leader."
This was enough to motivate the young pioneer to embark on the project full-time. So far, Bonny claims to have reached out to over 500,000 pupils in his crusade.
"I have visited all the provinces in South Africa touching every school and it's funny how I have been more welcome in area dominated by whites," said Bonny.
The determined motivator says although a prophet is never welcome by his people he has done a lot of work in his home country. According to some newspaper reports, the young man has struggled to make a breakthrough in Malawi although he has already reached out to some 15,000 pupils there. Bonny has covered South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique.
He is now setting his sights on covering the rest of the SADC region before December.
The 'ambassador' says his vision is to visit all the countries in Africa.
He further explains that he has been able to finance his tours by selling his book, The Young Commentator wherever he goes. The book teaches young people "to read as fast a soccer commentator would talk".
The young writer says that he has been exposed to untold dangers throughout his campaigns but that does not deter him. Although he is reluctant to dwell on the issue, some of the 'dangers' include perverts.
"A lot of horrible things have happened to me but that will not stop me," declared Bonny casting a determined look.
On whether he is able to 'walk the talk', Bonny says that reading is an integral part of his life and that he reads an average of 30 books a month, which most would find hard to do.
"Whenever I want to read a book and finish it quickly, I find a quiet place where there is less movement and read my book until I finish it," he says.
The motivator claims that it takes him just a day to finish reading one thick volume or three small ones.
Several newspapers in the SADC region have covered Bonny's campaigns.
Bonny says despite being brought up in abject poverty by his single mother, the late Meria Hysteyns Nzeru, there were always books in the family home.
The young writer, who has been dubbed the 'African reading ambassador', says that it was difficult being brought up without a father figure but he survived by literally burying his head in the books.
"After supper every evening, my mother would gather us (children) in the living room and make us read books before retiring to bed," Bonny said.
He added that when he was much younger, he used to struggle with the arrangement because all he wanted to do after school was rest and play but his mother would have none of it. According to the avid reader, everything that had words written on it was respected in the family home, so much that later it became a habit for the boy to pick up old newspapers and take them home.
After finishing his primary education in Malawi, Bonny moved to South Africa where he did Audio Visual Communications at Tutuka Casting in Orangegroove, Johannesburg. He says after completing the course in 1998, and instead of looking for a full-time job, he visited several schools and companies in a bid to promote the culture of reading. However, the turning point came in 2001 when the head of Xolani Primary School in Gugulethu, Cape Town, told him that he was 'a natural leader."
This was enough to motivate the young pioneer to embark on the project full-time. So far, Bonny claims to have reached out to over 500,000 pupils in his crusade.
"I have visited all the provinces in South Africa touching every school and it's funny how I have been more welcome in area dominated by whites," said Bonny.
The determined motivator says although a prophet is never welcome by his people he has done a lot of work in his home country. According to some newspaper reports, the young man has struggled to make a breakthrough in Malawi although he has already reached out to some 15,000 pupils there. Bonny has covered South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique.
He is now setting his sights on covering the rest of the SADC region before December.
The 'ambassador' says his vision is to visit all the countries in Africa.
He further explains that he has been able to finance his tours by selling his book, The Young Commentator wherever he goes. The book teaches young people "to read as fast a soccer commentator would talk".
The young writer says that he has been exposed to untold dangers throughout his campaigns but that does not deter him. Although he is reluctant to dwell on the issue, some of the 'dangers' include perverts.
"A lot of horrible things have happened to me but that will not stop me," declared Bonny casting a determined look.
On whether he is able to 'walk the talk', Bonny says that reading is an integral part of his life and that he reads an average of 30 books a month, which most would find hard to do.
"Whenever I want to read a book and finish it quickly, I find a quiet place where there is less movement and read my book until I finish it," he says.
The motivator claims that it takes him just a day to finish reading one thick volume or three small ones.
Several newspapers in the SADC region have covered Bonny's campaigns.
Thursday, 11 October 2007
FIFA gives Malawi stadium approval to host 2010 WC qualifiers
The world football governing body FIFA has finally given the giant Kamuzu Stadium of Malawi its seal of approval to host the 2010 World Cup and Africa Nations Cup qualifying matches.
The upshot followed a visit by FIFA inspector Frank Valdermaca who declared it fit last week after inspection, website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi reported Wednesday.
Chief executive officer of the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) Yasin Osman confirmed the development describing it as "good news". "We have every reason to smile because this time around FIFA is so strict as regards the state of stadium." Vadermaca inspected the stadium last week and was quite impressed with the progress on the rehabilitation work. But he also pointed out that there is need to complete the remaining work (in good time)," said Osman.
Vadermaca confirmed in a telephone interview having been impressed with the progress of renovations being at the stadium."Except for a few areas, I think government has met most of the requirements -- the construction of a brick fence is in process; the stands have been painted; and a room which will cater for FIFA bureau has been allocated," Vadermaca said.
FIFA recently wrote all its member associations, including FAM, to finalize rehabilitation works of major stadium that were recommended to host 2010 World Cup qualifiers or else they would be declared unfit to stage the global showcase's qualifying matches.
Director of Sports in the Ministry of Sports Justin Saidi boasted Tuesday that he expected FIFA to give its seal of approval because most of the work has been done "We are also in the process of erecting the tunnel and numbering the seats," said Saidi. He said the renovations are expected to be completed at the end of the year at an estimated cost of 130 million (nearly US$1 million).
The upshot followed a visit by FIFA inspector Frank Valdermaca who declared it fit last week after inspection, website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi reported Wednesday.
Chief executive officer of the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) Yasin Osman confirmed the development describing it as "good news". "We have every reason to smile because this time around FIFA is so strict as regards the state of stadium." Vadermaca inspected the stadium last week and was quite impressed with the progress on the rehabilitation work. But he also pointed out that there is need to complete the remaining work (in good time)," said Osman.
Vadermaca confirmed in a telephone interview having been impressed with the progress of renovations being at the stadium."Except for a few areas, I think government has met most of the requirements -- the construction of a brick fence is in process; the stands have been painted; and a room which will cater for FIFA bureau has been allocated," Vadermaca said.
FIFA recently wrote all its member associations, including FAM, to finalize rehabilitation works of major stadium that were recommended to host 2010 World Cup qualifiers or else they would be declared unfit to stage the global showcase's qualifying matches.
Director of Sports in the Ministry of Sports Justin Saidi boasted Tuesday that he expected FIFA to give its seal of approval because most of the work has been done "We are also in the process of erecting the tunnel and numbering the seats," said Saidi. He said the renovations are expected to be completed at the end of the year at an estimated cost of 130 million (nearly US$1 million).
Fighting for Rights of People with Disabilities in Malawi
In Malawi, people with disabilities are among the poorest of the poor. Statistics indicate that many of them probably live on less than a dollar a day. That’s the case in many other African countries as well. While many have tried but failed to bring relief to the handicapped, one wheel chair-bound activist, Mussa Chiwaula, has succeeded. Some Malawians call them “opunduka” and “odwala” – the crippled and the sick. At best, they’re considered the silent recipients of public charity. One parliamentarian activist Mussa Chiwaula, “a troublesome lot.”
In general, he was referring to the handicapped – an estimated 4.6 million people in Malawi. The 52-year-old Chiwaula has been confined to a wheelchair since he was four years old. He was struck by polio while his family was living in Zimbabwe.
Today, he’s the executive director of the NGO the Federation of Disability Organizations in Malawi, an organization he and his colleagues founded in 1999 to promote the rights of people with disabilities.
Since then Chiwaula has been lobbying the government to help people with disabilities improve their lives and contribute to the development of the country.
In 2004, the Malawi-based Human Rights Consultative Committee awarded him recognition for his efforts. He said the award was a reflection of his own self-confidence. He says “I believe in myself. I don’t have time to pity myself. I forget that I have a disability, because I look at myself as somebody who is just like any other person and somebody who has got a lot of potential. And I think I have proved to many people that people with disabilities are able to make it in life.”
One of his notable achievements came after he lobbied the government to curtail all forms of discrimination against people with disabilities. The result was a government-endorsed policy called Equalization of Opportunities for People with Disabilities. The policy promotes equal opportunity for persons with disabilities and their full participation in all social, economic, political and cultural activities. As a result, he says the policy has led to an increasing number of people with disabilities being employed in both the public and private sectors. But Chiwaula says the policy, while well meaning, needs reinforcement. This, because there are still some who are ignoring the initiative.
He says that “The policy without legislation can not give you the best results that are required. That’s [just] paper. We need to have supporting legislation to give the policy some teeth so that it becomes more effective"
In this regard, he says, his organization has come out with a draft bill that was sent to the Parliament three years ago. If passed, the bill will protect people with disabilities against all forms of stigmatization and discrimination. Chiwaula also helped lead a successful effort to encourage the media to avoid terms that people with disabilities find offensive, such as “disabled people” and “the blind.” They prefer “people with disabilities,” and “people with visual impairments.” His organization is running awareness campaigns encouraging primary school teachers to integrate children with disabilities in school activities.
Chiwaula was born to Malawian migrant workers who worked in Zimbabwe. He applauds the country for its treatment of people with disabilities. “When I was in Zimbabwe, my school fees were paid for by the government. So this is something that I would want to encourage the government to do here, so that they invest a lot of money in the education of children with disabilities.” He says.
But the development did not put him off. He is now studying for a degree in public administration with the South Africa-based Institute for Administration and Commerce.
A father of six, he is married to a woman whom he describes as a source of his happiness. He says he feels none of the inferiority that prevents many people with disabilities from marrying able-bodied partners. “I was very much against the idea of me getting married to somebody with a disability. I am not saying that it’s wrong for somebody with disability to fall in love with someone with disability -- I think it’s a question of love. But in my opinion, I think that you can build integration if we got married with people without disabilities.” He adds.
Chiwaula says being disabled has taught him that achievements come only with a fight. He says he appreciates the support of other people who are willing to go the extra mile to help people with disabilities. But he concedes that it takes time to completely change traditional views.
He says that " We are dealing with attitudes that are so entrenched, that have been there for generations of years. So as an organization we know that it is going to take along time for them to change. But, we are very optimistic because so far we have seen some change in terms of how [the public looks] at people with disabilities now [compared to] 20 years ago.”
Chiwaula says disability has given him strengths many others do not have, such as physical and mental resilience. Physical confinement has not limited his curiosity or spirituality. The slim and bespectacled activist says he’s a Christian who loves reading books on the world’s various religions, art, and development issues. He’s also a painter whose works have been shown in Malawi, Canada, the Republic of China, Australia and South Africa. He says his greatest challenge is discrimination.
But instead of getting angry, he takes action. He says he was refused entrance to the University of Malawi (Chancellor College) university on the grounds that it did not have “proper facilities” to accommodate him. “It was painful,” he said, “ to see some of my friends proceed – some of whom had not done better than me.”
His solution was to enroll in correspondence courses, or “private study,” with the Malawi College of Distance Education – in which he earned his “A-levels” which are used to gain access to some advanced degrees. Afterwards, he enrolled for a degree in public administration in South Africa.
Chiwaula says he’s not interested in party politics, which he says limits one’s independence by forcing allegiance to the ideals of a party. But he may be interested in doing more consultancy work, which would take him and his blue wheel chair around Africa as a proponent of reforms for the disabled.
In general, he was referring to the handicapped – an estimated 4.6 million people in Malawi. The 52-year-old Chiwaula has been confined to a wheelchair since he was four years old. He was struck by polio while his family was living in Zimbabwe.
Today, he’s the executive director of the NGO the Federation of Disability Organizations in Malawi, an organization he and his colleagues founded in 1999 to promote the rights of people with disabilities.
Since then Chiwaula has been lobbying the government to help people with disabilities improve their lives and contribute to the development of the country.
In 2004, the Malawi-based Human Rights Consultative Committee awarded him recognition for his efforts. He said the award was a reflection of his own self-confidence. He says “I believe in myself. I don’t have time to pity myself. I forget that I have a disability, because I look at myself as somebody who is just like any other person and somebody who has got a lot of potential. And I think I have proved to many people that people with disabilities are able to make it in life.”
One of his notable achievements came after he lobbied the government to curtail all forms of discrimination against people with disabilities. The result was a government-endorsed policy called Equalization of Opportunities for People with Disabilities. The policy promotes equal opportunity for persons with disabilities and their full participation in all social, economic, political and cultural activities. As a result, he says the policy has led to an increasing number of people with disabilities being employed in both the public and private sectors. But Chiwaula says the policy, while well meaning, needs reinforcement. This, because there are still some who are ignoring the initiative.
He says that “The policy without legislation can not give you the best results that are required. That’s [just] paper. We need to have supporting legislation to give the policy some teeth so that it becomes more effective"
In this regard, he says, his organization has come out with a draft bill that was sent to the Parliament three years ago. If passed, the bill will protect people with disabilities against all forms of stigmatization and discrimination. Chiwaula also helped lead a successful effort to encourage the media to avoid terms that people with disabilities find offensive, such as “disabled people” and “the blind.” They prefer “people with disabilities,” and “people with visual impairments.” His organization is running awareness campaigns encouraging primary school teachers to integrate children with disabilities in school activities.
Chiwaula was born to Malawian migrant workers who worked in Zimbabwe. He applauds the country for its treatment of people with disabilities. “When I was in Zimbabwe, my school fees were paid for by the government. So this is something that I would want to encourage the government to do here, so that they invest a lot of money in the education of children with disabilities.” He says.
But the development did not put him off. He is now studying for a degree in public administration with the South Africa-based Institute for Administration and Commerce.
A father of six, he is married to a woman whom he describes as a source of his happiness. He says he feels none of the inferiority that prevents many people with disabilities from marrying able-bodied partners. “I was very much against the idea of me getting married to somebody with a disability. I am not saying that it’s wrong for somebody with disability to fall in love with someone with disability -- I think it’s a question of love. But in my opinion, I think that you can build integration if we got married with people without disabilities.” He adds.
Chiwaula says being disabled has taught him that achievements come only with a fight. He says he appreciates the support of other people who are willing to go the extra mile to help people with disabilities. But he concedes that it takes time to completely change traditional views.
He says that " We are dealing with attitudes that are so entrenched, that have been there for generations of years. So as an organization we know that it is going to take along time for them to change. But, we are very optimistic because so far we have seen some change in terms of how [the public looks] at people with disabilities now [compared to] 20 years ago.”
Chiwaula says disability has given him strengths many others do not have, such as physical and mental resilience. Physical confinement has not limited his curiosity or spirituality. The slim and bespectacled activist says he’s a Christian who loves reading books on the world’s various religions, art, and development issues. He’s also a painter whose works have been shown in Malawi, Canada, the Republic of China, Australia and South Africa. He says his greatest challenge is discrimination.
But instead of getting angry, he takes action. He says he was refused entrance to the University of Malawi (Chancellor College) university on the grounds that it did not have “proper facilities” to accommodate him. “It was painful,” he said, “ to see some of my friends proceed – some of whom had not done better than me.”
His solution was to enroll in correspondence courses, or “private study,” with the Malawi College of Distance Education – in which he earned his “A-levels” which are used to gain access to some advanced degrees. Afterwards, he enrolled for a degree in public administration in South Africa.
Chiwaula says he’s not interested in party politics, which he says limits one’s independence by forcing allegiance to the ideals of a party. But he may be interested in doing more consultancy work, which would take him and his blue wheel chair around Africa as a proponent of reforms for the disabled.
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Malawi 2007 growth revised to 7.5 pct from 5.6 - IMF
The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday raised its forecast for Malawi's economic growth this year to 7.5 percent from 5.6, citing good performance in the transport, distribution and agriculture sectors.
IMF resident representative in Malawi Maitland McFarlan said sound economic policies and anticipated good rains were also among the reasons for the upward revision in gross domestic product (GDP) expansion.
"Malawi's economy remains strong, buoyed by sound policies, a good harvest and favourable external conditions," he told a press briefing.
He said inflation had slowed more quickly than expected, while most of the country's targets under a Poverty Reduction and Growth facility (PRGF) programme had been met.
On Tuesday Malawi's central bank Governor Victor Mbewe told Reuters in an interview that inflation should stay in single digits during 2007 after slowing to 7.2 percent year-on-year in August from 7.4 in July.
Mbewe warned, however, that higher oil prices posed the biggest threat to the target.
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe, a former World Bank economist, told Reuters the government was happy with the latest revision.
"This evaluation is a true reflection of what is happening on the ground and a stable microeconomic environment," he said.
Gondwe said that since attaining debt relief, Malawi's external debt slid to 23 percent of GDP at the end of last year compared with 142 percent at the end of 2005.
The World Bank and the IMF cancelled $2.9 billion of Malawi's debt in September last year, but the country remains one of the world's poorest nations with annual per capita income of about $160, and continues to rely heavily on foreign aid.
IMF resident representative in Malawi Maitland McFarlan said sound economic policies and anticipated good rains were also among the reasons for the upward revision in gross domestic product (GDP) expansion.
"Malawi's economy remains strong, buoyed by sound policies, a good harvest and favourable external conditions," he told a press briefing.
He said inflation had slowed more quickly than expected, while most of the country's targets under a Poverty Reduction and Growth facility (PRGF) programme had been met.
On Tuesday Malawi's central bank Governor Victor Mbewe told Reuters in an interview that inflation should stay in single digits during 2007 after slowing to 7.2 percent year-on-year in August from 7.4 in July.
Mbewe warned, however, that higher oil prices posed the biggest threat to the target.
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe, a former World Bank economist, told Reuters the government was happy with the latest revision.
"This evaluation is a true reflection of what is happening on the ground and a stable microeconomic environment," he said.
Gondwe said that since attaining debt relief, Malawi's external debt slid to 23 percent of GDP at the end of last year compared with 142 percent at the end of 2005.
The World Bank and the IMF cancelled $2.9 billion of Malawi's debt in September last year, but the country remains one of the world's poorest nations with annual per capita income of about $160, and continues to rely heavily on foreign aid.
Left behind, but still smiling
When celebrities adopt, it’s not only their new child’s life that is affected, as Rachel Holloway finds out when she visits the orphanage where Madonna found her son.
When I worked in Malawi during my gap year in 2005, I had the privilege of spending time at the Home of Hope orphanage, just outside the country’s capital, Lilongwe. Back then the orphanage, though fairly well supported by Malawian standards, was little known to people outside Malawi itself. Two years later, however, the homes and faces of countless children who reside there have been splashed all over the world’s tabloids, glossies and broadsheets alike. The adoption of David Banda, who was just 13 months old at the beginning of the debacle last October, caused scores of journalists to descend upon the orphanage. What did they want? A snapshot of David, the latest addition to Madonna’s family.
My return to Home of Hope this summer finds little change at first glance; groups of girls chatter amongst themselves as I enter the compound, the youngest crying out, excited by the presence of an Azungu (white person). Life goes on the same as ever; the children rise at 5.30 for their morning devotions, eat at the same times and still giggle and laugh at the smallest things. As I settle back into life at the orphanage, I talk to one of the eldest, Chipiliro Chimtika, 19. Chipiliro, which means patience, is an intense character. Despite having lived at the orphanage for most of his life, he has a remarkably positive outlook and a great awareness of politics. It is he who eventually brings up the subject of the adoption.
He asks me how British people reacted to David’s adoption and is surprised when I inform him of the backlash. I ask how many days Madonna stayed at the orphanage before deciding on a child to adopt. He laughs shortly, and there is an awkward pause.
“Days?” he asks, somewhat incredulously. “She was here for just over two hours.” Malawians, for whom even a greeting can take up to 20 minutes, find this hurried western attitude confusing, if not inexcusably rude. She certainly didn’t abide by the law which states that foreign visitors must remain in Malawi for 18 months before officially adopting a Malawian-born child.
Chipiliro isn’t the only Malawian with a strong opinion on the subject. One friend, Aaron Maulidi, simply shakes his head when the ‘Madonna issue’ crops up, before quietly murmuring: “It’s bad, very bad. Her behaviour…it is not good.” As we talk I begin to get the feeling that there is deep resentment to the adoption. “Imagine,” he says, looking me in the eye, “if the process was reversed, and a Malawian picked a child from England to take back in a matter of hours.”
It must be taken into account that here it can take two hours to wait for a bus, and people cook slowly on fires, doing without the luxury of electricity. As I reflect on this, suddenly the few days that Madonna cumulatively spent in Malawi seem even more remarkable. Is it not ridiculous that the woman who has adopted this boy knows next to nothing about his country, his culture, or even his family?
Back at the Home of Hope, I meet some of Chipiliro’s friends who, having seen him talking to me, have some things to get off their own chests. Frank Rabbo, a laid-back sports fanatic who is popular with the girls at the orphanage, seems insistent that corruption within Malawi played a part in the hurried adoption. “The corruption, it is everywhere,” he laments. The growing circle of boys around us murmurs in agreement. “We are embarrassed by our country,” one boy admits.
Despite the attempts of President Bingu wa Mutharika’s Democractic Progressive Party to root out the problems that have crippled Malawi since the fall of President Hasting Banda’s regime in 1994, the boys insist that corruption still exists, from village chiefs to government officials. The motto ‘Stop Corruption; Develop Malawi’ plastered across billboards throughout the Republic suddenly seems somewhat ironic.
But what of David? Whilst most cannot deny that David’s quality of life will be much improved in England, this cannot make the adoption entirely acceptable in many people’s eyes. Elton Samuel, another Home of Hope orphan, reminds me of the implications of the cultural gap between England and Malawi. Elton tells me that he is concerned that his “little brother will no longer be a Malawian” having not heard the official language of Chichewa, or ever learned to cook the national dishes, or even understood the importance of dancing at a traditional festival. These may seem like insignificant details, but for a country ranked number one for poverty by the CIA World Factbook, where the average life expectancy is only 40, culture is one thing of which Malawians feel they can be proud. For David Banda to lose this heritage suggests to Malawians that their culture is worthless to the outside world.
Amid all the noise being made by the children at the orphanage, its founder, Reverend Chipeta, keeps markedly quiet. This dignified silence is significant. Here is a man who, despite his involvement in the Home since its foundation, was not once consulted by the government about the adoption of a child in his care.
As he proudly told me of the new developments since my last visit, and of his hope that enough money could be raised for two new houses, I found myself falling silent. Although I would have loved to hear his view on the adoption, I couldn’t quite bear to ruin the mood with the awkward questions that he has probably had to contend with for the last few years.
Sitting on a fallen tree by the side of the road, I have a final chat with Chipiliro and his friends. As we laugh and joke about the differences between our cultures, I mention that perhaps I will write about the boys in a newspaper when I get home. Chipiliro beams his huge, Malawian smile at me and nods. “It is good for people to know how we feel about these things.”
Looking out across the scrubland as I travel back, I conclude that Chipiliro is right; it is good for people to know how Malawians feel. Madonna herself is not entirely to blame for such oversight, but her actions in Malawi over the past year have highlighted a broader issue: that the West can sometimes act in a way that seems to overlook the feelings of people in smaller, non-western nations.
As Malawians see it, Madonna’s actions imply that having greater wealth is, for us Azungus, an adequate excuse for bypassing the people and laws of countries that are desperately trying to develop and be considered equals in the international arena.
When I worked in Malawi during my gap year in 2005, I had the privilege of spending time at the Home of Hope orphanage, just outside the country’s capital, Lilongwe. Back then the orphanage, though fairly well supported by Malawian standards, was little known to people outside Malawi itself. Two years later, however, the homes and faces of countless children who reside there have been splashed all over the world’s tabloids, glossies and broadsheets alike. The adoption of David Banda, who was just 13 months old at the beginning of the debacle last October, caused scores of journalists to descend upon the orphanage. What did they want? A snapshot of David, the latest addition to Madonna’s family.
My return to Home of Hope this summer finds little change at first glance; groups of girls chatter amongst themselves as I enter the compound, the youngest crying out, excited by the presence of an Azungu (white person). Life goes on the same as ever; the children rise at 5.30 for their morning devotions, eat at the same times and still giggle and laugh at the smallest things. As I settle back into life at the orphanage, I talk to one of the eldest, Chipiliro Chimtika, 19. Chipiliro, which means patience, is an intense character. Despite having lived at the orphanage for most of his life, he has a remarkably positive outlook and a great awareness of politics. It is he who eventually brings up the subject of the adoption.
He asks me how British people reacted to David’s adoption and is surprised when I inform him of the backlash. I ask how many days Madonna stayed at the orphanage before deciding on a child to adopt. He laughs shortly, and there is an awkward pause.
“Days?” he asks, somewhat incredulously. “She was here for just over two hours.” Malawians, for whom even a greeting can take up to 20 minutes, find this hurried western attitude confusing, if not inexcusably rude. She certainly didn’t abide by the law which states that foreign visitors must remain in Malawi for 18 months before officially adopting a Malawian-born child.
Chipiliro isn’t the only Malawian with a strong opinion on the subject. One friend, Aaron Maulidi, simply shakes his head when the ‘Madonna issue’ crops up, before quietly murmuring: “It’s bad, very bad. Her behaviour…it is not good.” As we talk I begin to get the feeling that there is deep resentment to the adoption. “Imagine,” he says, looking me in the eye, “if the process was reversed, and a Malawian picked a child from England to take back in a matter of hours.”
It must be taken into account that here it can take two hours to wait for a bus, and people cook slowly on fires, doing without the luxury of electricity. As I reflect on this, suddenly the few days that Madonna cumulatively spent in Malawi seem even more remarkable. Is it not ridiculous that the woman who has adopted this boy knows next to nothing about his country, his culture, or even his family?
Back at the Home of Hope, I meet some of Chipiliro’s friends who, having seen him talking to me, have some things to get off their own chests. Frank Rabbo, a laid-back sports fanatic who is popular with the girls at the orphanage, seems insistent that corruption within Malawi played a part in the hurried adoption. “The corruption, it is everywhere,” he laments. The growing circle of boys around us murmurs in agreement. “We are embarrassed by our country,” one boy admits.
Despite the attempts of President Bingu wa Mutharika’s Democractic Progressive Party to root out the problems that have crippled Malawi since the fall of President Hasting Banda’s regime in 1994, the boys insist that corruption still exists, from village chiefs to government officials. The motto ‘Stop Corruption; Develop Malawi’ plastered across billboards throughout the Republic suddenly seems somewhat ironic.
But what of David? Whilst most cannot deny that David’s quality of life will be much improved in England, this cannot make the adoption entirely acceptable in many people’s eyes. Elton Samuel, another Home of Hope orphan, reminds me of the implications of the cultural gap between England and Malawi. Elton tells me that he is concerned that his “little brother will no longer be a Malawian” having not heard the official language of Chichewa, or ever learned to cook the national dishes, or even understood the importance of dancing at a traditional festival. These may seem like insignificant details, but for a country ranked number one for poverty by the CIA World Factbook, where the average life expectancy is only 40, culture is one thing of which Malawians feel they can be proud. For David Banda to lose this heritage suggests to Malawians that their culture is worthless to the outside world.
Amid all the noise being made by the children at the orphanage, its founder, Reverend Chipeta, keeps markedly quiet. This dignified silence is significant. Here is a man who, despite his involvement in the Home since its foundation, was not once consulted by the government about the adoption of a child in his care.
As he proudly told me of the new developments since my last visit, and of his hope that enough money could be raised for two new houses, I found myself falling silent. Although I would have loved to hear his view on the adoption, I couldn’t quite bear to ruin the mood with the awkward questions that he has probably had to contend with for the last few years.
Sitting on a fallen tree by the side of the road, I have a final chat with Chipiliro and his friends. As we laugh and joke about the differences between our cultures, I mention that perhaps I will write about the boys in a newspaper when I get home. Chipiliro beams his huge, Malawian smile at me and nods. “It is good for people to know how we feel about these things.”
Looking out across the scrubland as I travel back, I conclude that Chipiliro is right; it is good for people to know how Malawians feel. Madonna herself is not entirely to blame for such oversight, but her actions in Malawi over the past year have highlighted a broader issue: that the West can sometimes act in a way that seems to overlook the feelings of people in smaller, non-western nations.
As Malawians see it, Madonna’s actions imply that having greater wealth is, for us Azungus, an adequate excuse for bypassing the people and laws of countries that are desperately trying to develop and be considered equals in the international arena.
Tuesday, 9 October 2007
Country Under Fire Over Attacks On Refugees - Reports
Malawi President Bingu Wa Mutharika has come under heavy criticism from Rwandan of opposition groups for apparently colluding with Kigali officials to crack down on opposition political asylum seekers, a local newspaper has reported.
Last week on Monday, a Rwandan refugee in Malawi Dr Jean Marie Vianney Rwabukwisi was attacked at night by unknown assailants. The attack occurred barely four weeks after Mr. Kagame met Mr. Mutharika during the inauguration of a three kilometres Paul Kagame Road in the capital Lilongwe.
The armed bandits are said to have fired several shots and rushed in Rwabukwisi's house destroying several personal belongings but nobody was neither killed nor injured.
The opposition alliance comprises of; the Rwandan Democratic Alliance, Resistance Forces for Democracy, Republican Rally for Democracy and other independent political leaders under the umbrella of UDF-Inkingi have alleged that armed under-cover government intelligence operatives from Rwanda are to blame, according to the Nyasa Times.
The groups that are no strangers to bitter attacks on the authorities in Kigali want the Malawian President to take full responsibility of the attacks on Rwandan refugees in the country.
The Malawian daily reports that the groups have appealed to the Malawian authorities to investigate Rwabukwisi's home attack and to make public their findings so that those involved are apprehended and punished according to national law and international standards.
Malawi is home to over 5,000 Rwandan refugees who are on the verge of being repatriated back home following the signing of a tripartite agreement between the governments of Malawi, Rwanda and UNHCR.
Government of Rwanda has stepped up efforts to have thousands of Rwandans living in countries across the region saying they need to return home to be part of the vigorous reconstruction process but critics argue otherwise.
Last year, Tanzania expelled up to 30.000 Rwandan refugees urging them to return following the pacification of the region. The Tanzanians say more thousands are to come amid complaints indicating some people lost their hard-earned property.
Ugandan officials are also in the spotlight following the alleged forced expulsion of about 3200 Rwandans - claims dismissed by authorities in Kampala and Kigali. Uganda actually says more 2000 still remain and will be moved into Rwanda as well.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR has been keen to distance itself from the controversial repatriation saying the affected refugees were not under its jurisdiction.
Last week on Monday, a Rwandan refugee in Malawi Dr Jean Marie Vianney Rwabukwisi was attacked at night by unknown assailants. The attack occurred barely four weeks after Mr. Kagame met Mr. Mutharika during the inauguration of a three kilometres Paul Kagame Road in the capital Lilongwe.
The armed bandits are said to have fired several shots and rushed in Rwabukwisi's house destroying several personal belongings but nobody was neither killed nor injured.
The opposition alliance comprises of; the Rwandan Democratic Alliance, Resistance Forces for Democracy, Republican Rally for Democracy and other independent political leaders under the umbrella of UDF-Inkingi have alleged that armed under-cover government intelligence operatives from Rwanda are to blame, according to the Nyasa Times.
The groups that are no strangers to bitter attacks on the authorities in Kigali want the Malawian President to take full responsibility of the attacks on Rwandan refugees in the country.
The Malawian daily reports that the groups have appealed to the Malawian authorities to investigate Rwabukwisi's home attack and to make public their findings so that those involved are apprehended and punished according to national law and international standards.
Malawi is home to over 5,000 Rwandan refugees who are on the verge of being repatriated back home following the signing of a tripartite agreement between the governments of Malawi, Rwanda and UNHCR.
Government of Rwanda has stepped up efforts to have thousands of Rwandans living in countries across the region saying they need to return home to be part of the vigorous reconstruction process but critics argue otherwise.
Last year, Tanzania expelled up to 30.000 Rwandan refugees urging them to return following the pacification of the region. The Tanzanians say more thousands are to come amid complaints indicating some people lost their hard-earned property.
Ugandan officials are also in the spotlight following the alleged forced expulsion of about 3200 Rwandans - claims dismissed by authorities in Kampala and Kigali. Uganda actually says more 2000 still remain and will be moved into Rwanda as well.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR has been keen to distance itself from the controversial repatriation saying the affected refugees were not under its jurisdiction.
Ballina couple off to Malawi
Ballina couple do their bit for charity
MAYO sporting legend Liam McHale is preparing for one of the biggest challenges of his life this month as he gets ready for a trip to one of the poorest countries in the world.
The well-known Ballina basketballer and footballer, and his wife, Sinéad, who is a nurse, have both signed up for a skill-sharing mission to Malawi and will leave for the povery-stricken African nation on October 30.
The couple will be travelling for two weeks as part of a 40-strong group with Tracey Piggott’s ‘Playing for Life’ charity organisation. The charity was set up by the TV personality two years ago, following her visit to Ethiopia in 2004.
‘Playing for Life’ offers sports people an opportunity to provide sporting facilities, skills and training to underprivileged youths and communities in deprived areas of the world. The funds raised by the charity organisation are used to provide sporting facilities and programmes to combat the spreading of HIV/AIDS.
“They asked us if we’d be prepared to take two weeks out of our life to help out,” Liam McHale told The Mayo News last week.
“We’re fortunate here in Ireland that we’re living in a prosperous country but Tracey explained that Malawi is in a really, really bad way. To be honest, I had no idea that Malawi is as poor as it is. People out there are lucky if they get one meal a day and there is a huge problem with AIDS.
“We attended an Open Day a couple of weeks ago and there’s no doubt it’s going to be very rough out there. But both of us are really looking forward to it and can’t wait to get stuck in.”
Liam and Sinéad are currently in the midst of a fund-raising campaign to support their trip, and have been busy researching and getting vaccinated in recent weeks.
John Maughan and a number of Mayo ladies’ footballers made a similar trip to Malawi last year, and were given a unique opportunity to see at first hand the work of the charity and were part of the efforts being made to alleviate hunger and poverty.
“While we’re over there a gym is going to be opened and we’ll be working on building an extension for a school,” explained McHale.
“What I like about it is that we’ll be doing a week of coaching and a week of building. All the kids will get three square meals a day while we’re doing the coaching week and it’ll be a chance for them to experience something that we take for granted. We’re very fortunate here and this is a chance to give something back to people less fortunate.
“The big thing that appealed to me about this is the educational aspect to it. For the two weeks we’re there people will be teaching locals how to preserve food, lay blocks, roof buildings, computer skills and we’ll get a chance to do some coaching too. But trying to leave some lasting impression in terms of education is the key thing for me.”
Among those joining McHale in coaching the local children in his first week there will be John Lynch from Tyrone, who lined out against Mayo in the 1989 All-Ireland semi-final.
While all that is going on, Sinéad will be working with a group of other medically-trained staff, vaccinating members of the local community and offering badly-needed health care.
“We’ve done a fair bit of research on the internet and the Open Day was a big help,” admitted McHale. “The reality is that we’ll be working between eight and ten hours a day in a very poor country so there won’t be any lounging beside a pool at a five-star hotel or anything.
“I’ll be doing some football and basketball coaching and I’m going to be keeping an eye out for a few footballers that might help us win that All-Ireland,” he joked.
The aim of the ‘Playing for Life’ charity is to assist in developing a safe and happy environment for young people, through sport, in several underprivileged areas. The mission is also to create an educational series of games, and the charity also strives to involve the local community in building multi-purpose facilities, sharing skills and improving self-sufficiency.
Malawi is a small, narrow country, wedged between Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique, and bordered on its eastern flank by Lake Malawi.
IF you would like to contribute to Liam and Sinéad’s trip to Malawi, and help the ‘Playing For Life’ charity, please contact Liam on 087 9810890
MAYO sporting legend Liam McHale is preparing for one of the biggest challenges of his life this month as he gets ready for a trip to one of the poorest countries in the world.
The well-known Ballina basketballer and footballer, and his wife, Sinéad, who is a nurse, have both signed up for a skill-sharing mission to Malawi and will leave for the povery-stricken African nation on October 30.
The couple will be travelling for two weeks as part of a 40-strong group with Tracey Piggott’s ‘Playing for Life’ charity organisation. The charity was set up by the TV personality two years ago, following her visit to Ethiopia in 2004.
‘Playing for Life’ offers sports people an opportunity to provide sporting facilities, skills and training to underprivileged youths and communities in deprived areas of the world. The funds raised by the charity organisation are used to provide sporting facilities and programmes to combat the spreading of HIV/AIDS.
“They asked us if we’d be prepared to take two weeks out of our life to help out,” Liam McHale told The Mayo News last week.
“We’re fortunate here in Ireland that we’re living in a prosperous country but Tracey explained that Malawi is in a really, really bad way. To be honest, I had no idea that Malawi is as poor as it is. People out there are lucky if they get one meal a day and there is a huge problem with AIDS.
“We attended an Open Day a couple of weeks ago and there’s no doubt it’s going to be very rough out there. But both of us are really looking forward to it and can’t wait to get stuck in.”
Liam and Sinéad are currently in the midst of a fund-raising campaign to support their trip, and have been busy researching and getting vaccinated in recent weeks.
John Maughan and a number of Mayo ladies’ footballers made a similar trip to Malawi last year, and were given a unique opportunity to see at first hand the work of the charity and were part of the efforts being made to alleviate hunger and poverty.
“While we’re over there a gym is going to be opened and we’ll be working on building an extension for a school,” explained McHale.
“What I like about it is that we’ll be doing a week of coaching and a week of building. All the kids will get three square meals a day while we’re doing the coaching week and it’ll be a chance for them to experience something that we take for granted. We’re very fortunate here and this is a chance to give something back to people less fortunate.
“The big thing that appealed to me about this is the educational aspect to it. For the two weeks we’re there people will be teaching locals how to preserve food, lay blocks, roof buildings, computer skills and we’ll get a chance to do some coaching too. But trying to leave some lasting impression in terms of education is the key thing for me.”
Among those joining McHale in coaching the local children in his first week there will be John Lynch from Tyrone, who lined out against Mayo in the 1989 All-Ireland semi-final.
While all that is going on, Sinéad will be working with a group of other medically-trained staff, vaccinating members of the local community and offering badly-needed health care.
“We’ve done a fair bit of research on the internet and the Open Day was a big help,” admitted McHale. “The reality is that we’ll be working between eight and ten hours a day in a very poor country so there won’t be any lounging beside a pool at a five-star hotel or anything.
“I’ll be doing some football and basketball coaching and I’m going to be keeping an eye out for a few footballers that might help us win that All-Ireland,” he joked.
The aim of the ‘Playing for Life’ charity is to assist in developing a safe and happy environment for young people, through sport, in several underprivileged areas. The mission is also to create an educational series of games, and the charity also strives to involve the local community in building multi-purpose facilities, sharing skills and improving self-sufficiency.
Malawi is a small, narrow country, wedged between Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique, and bordered on its eastern flank by Lake Malawi.
IF you would like to contribute to Liam and Sinéad’s trip to Malawi, and help the ‘Playing For Life’ charity, please contact Liam on 087 9810890
Malawi's Mbewe sees single digit inflation in 2007
SUN CITY, South Africa (Reuters) - Malawi's central bank Governor Victor Mbewe said on Tuesday inflation should stay in single digits during 2007 although higher oil prices posed the biggest threat.
"We expect that inflation will remain in the single digit in this year ... that is our target. At the moment the higher international oil price is the biggest threat to inflation," Mbewe told Reuters on the sidelines of a banking conference.
Mbewe added that the central bank was looking at "further reduction in interest rates" for the southern African country, but did not give further details.
Official data showed that Malawi's headline inflation slowed to 7.2 percent year-on-year in August, from 7.4 percent the previous month, with food inflation, which accounts for 58.1 of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), dipping to 6.6 percent from 6.7 percent.
Drought-prone Malawi has had a bumper maize crop this year, helping to lower the cost of the staple grain.
It had a surplus of 1.3 million metric tonnes of maize from the 2006/2007 cropping season, more than three times the surplus in the previous year.
"We had a drought (in the past) and this was a problem for inflation but we managed to bring it back to single digits about 6 months ago with certain interventions, such as irrigation schemes and subsidies for farmers," Mbewe said.
Economic analysts have, however, said rising fuel prices could increase Malawians' transport and farming costs, reversing the gains made on the inflation front.
The landlocked country has no oil refineries and is a net importer of fuel.
"The international oil price is our biggest concern because it will lead to higher prices. But as I said, the surplus maize will ease the pressure," Mbewe said on Tuesday.
He said Malawi's macroeconomic fundamentals have stabilised, and that the central bank was "comfortable" with the Malawian kwacha's exchange rate.
"We are looking at a further reduction in interest rates. We have cut them twice in the past year, but its difficult to discuss monetary policy further than that," Mbewe added.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi cut its bank rate to 17.5 percent from 20 percent in August, citing the improved outlook for inflation and other economic fundamentals.
"We expect that inflation will remain in the single digit in this year ... that is our target. At the moment the higher international oil price is the biggest threat to inflation," Mbewe told Reuters on the sidelines of a banking conference.
Mbewe added that the central bank was looking at "further reduction in interest rates" for the southern African country, but did not give further details.
Official data showed that Malawi's headline inflation slowed to 7.2 percent year-on-year in August, from 7.4 percent the previous month, with food inflation, which accounts for 58.1 of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), dipping to 6.6 percent from 6.7 percent.
Drought-prone Malawi has had a bumper maize crop this year, helping to lower the cost of the staple grain.
It had a surplus of 1.3 million metric tonnes of maize from the 2006/2007 cropping season, more than three times the surplus in the previous year.
"We had a drought (in the past) and this was a problem for inflation but we managed to bring it back to single digits about 6 months ago with certain interventions, such as irrigation schemes and subsidies for farmers," Mbewe said.
Economic analysts have, however, said rising fuel prices could increase Malawians' transport and farming costs, reversing the gains made on the inflation front.
The landlocked country has no oil refineries and is a net importer of fuel.
"The international oil price is our biggest concern because it will lead to higher prices. But as I said, the surplus maize will ease the pressure," Mbewe said on Tuesday.
He said Malawi's macroeconomic fundamentals have stabilised, and that the central bank was "comfortable" with the Malawian kwacha's exchange rate.
"We are looking at a further reduction in interest rates. We have cut them twice in the past year, but its difficult to discuss monetary policy further than that," Mbewe added.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi cut its bank rate to 17.5 percent from 20 percent in August, citing the improved outlook for inflation and other economic fundamentals.
Hospital send patient home
...Government still looking for a specialist in SA—Ngaunje
By Rex Chikoko
Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), a referral hospital in
Blantyre Malawi, has discharged a patient, suffering from a cancer,
despite the referral committee of Ministry of Health recommended that
she should sent to South Africa for further treatment.
The patient, Mphatso Mhango, was referred to QECH from Mzuzu hospital, three months ago where doctors at QECH also referred her to outside the country for further treatment, however two months down the line the patient is still in the country.
One of Mhango's relatives,Vilunjike Manda, said it was surprising that government was failing to facilitate the transportation of the patient despite the referral committee's recommendation after assessing the gravity of the situation.
"Nobody is telling us what is happening and to make matters worse the patient has been discharged without telling us the way forward," he said.
Manda said he has been taking up the matter with the hospital authorities but they have been directing him to ministry's head quarter.
"We were told that it was a benign tumor which if operated on quickly the patient will get work, however the case has been worsening while the patient was in hospital.
"We do not know the idea behind discharging the patient when she was supposed to be going to South Africa for treatment," he said.
A Member of the Referral Committee Dr. Mathias Joshua, who was also the Acting Hospital director at the time the decision was made said government is trying to identify a doctor who would attend to the patient when she went to South Africa.
"We are currently looking for a doctor in South Africa who would to the operation, once the doctor has been identified she is going to be sent for operation," he said.
However, Dr Joshua would not tell how long it would take to identify a doctor based on the urgency of the matter saying: "The process of sending her to South Africa has started and someone is looking for a doctor."
Minister of Health Marjorie Ngaunje said much as she was not aware of that particular case she said the process of sending a person outside the country further treatment takes time.
She said there is a government agent in South Africa who search for doctor when a referral case is forwarded to him and that the patient can only leave the country when the doctor has been identified.
"It is not easy to find a specialist in South Africa, there are a lot people who are waiting to be sent for further treatment," she said.
Ngaunje said every Malawian has got a right to treatment and there was not special treatment for VIPs when it come to referring people to outside the country hospitals.
"Human dignity is supreme in sickness and there are no VIPs when it comes to sending people outside the country for treatment," she said.
Concerns have been raised that government favours government dignitaries when it comes to referring people for outside treatment despite that those people are financially capable to seek treatment else where.
Referral Committee was established to be recommending patient, mostly those who would not afford to pay for their treatment, to outside hospitals.
It has been observed that government dignitaries, when they are sick, are quickly send to outside the country's hospitals even if the ailment would be treated locally.
Rex Chikoko is a print journalist with Malawi News. You can contact him on phone 265-9-558 423 or 265-8-858 423 email:rexchikoko@yahoo.co.uk or chikokorex@gmail.com
By Rex Chikoko
Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), a referral hospital in
Blantyre Malawi, has discharged a patient, suffering from a cancer,
despite the referral committee of Ministry of Health recommended that
she should sent to South Africa for further treatment.
The patient, Mphatso Mhango, was referred to QECH from Mzuzu hospital, three months ago where doctors at QECH also referred her to outside the country for further treatment, however two months down the line the patient is still in the country.
One of Mhango's relatives,Vilunjike Manda, said it was surprising that government was failing to facilitate the transportation of the patient despite the referral committee's recommendation after assessing the gravity of the situation.
"Nobody is telling us what is happening and to make matters worse the patient has been discharged without telling us the way forward," he said.
Manda said he has been taking up the matter with the hospital authorities but they have been directing him to ministry's head quarter.
"We were told that it was a benign tumor which if operated on quickly the patient will get work, however the case has been worsening while the patient was in hospital.
"We do not know the idea behind discharging the patient when she was supposed to be going to South Africa for treatment," he said.
A Member of the Referral Committee Dr. Mathias Joshua, who was also the Acting Hospital director at the time the decision was made said government is trying to identify a doctor who would attend to the patient when she went to South Africa.
"We are currently looking for a doctor in South Africa who would to the operation, once the doctor has been identified she is going to be sent for operation," he said.
However, Dr Joshua would not tell how long it would take to identify a doctor based on the urgency of the matter saying: "The process of sending her to South Africa has started and someone is looking for a doctor."
Minister of Health Marjorie Ngaunje said much as she was not aware of that particular case she said the process of sending a person outside the country further treatment takes time.
She said there is a government agent in South Africa who search for doctor when a referral case is forwarded to him and that the patient can only leave the country when the doctor has been identified.
"It is not easy to find a specialist in South Africa, there are a lot people who are waiting to be sent for further treatment," she said.
Ngaunje said every Malawian has got a right to treatment and there was not special treatment for VIPs when it come to referring people to outside the country hospitals.
"Human dignity is supreme in sickness and there are no VIPs when it comes to sending people outside the country for treatment," she said.
Concerns have been raised that government favours government dignitaries when it comes to referring people for outside treatment despite that those people are financially capable to seek treatment else where.
Referral Committee was established to be recommending patient, mostly those who would not afford to pay for their treatment, to outside hospitals.
It has been observed that government dignitaries, when they are sick, are quickly send to outside the country's hospitals even if the ailment would be treated locally.
Rex Chikoko is a print journalist with Malawi News. You can contact him on phone 265-9-558 423 or 265-8-858 423 email:rexchikoko@yahoo.co.uk or chikokorex@gmail.com
Ancient African Megadroughts May Have Driven Human Evolution -- Out Of Africa
Science Daily — From 135,000 to 90,000 years ago tropical Africa had megadroughts more extreme and widespread than any previously known for that region, according to new research.
The dynamically-positioned drilling barge Viphya, departing port. Lake Malawi is one of the world's largest and deepest lakes, and along with Lake Tanganyika contains more than 80% of the surface freshwater on the African continent. New drill core evidence shows that the 700 m-deep lake was reduced by more than 500 m prior to 75,000 years ago, indicating periods of severe aridity. (Credit: Image courtesy of M.R. Talbot, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Bergen)
Learning that now-lush tropical Africa was an arid scrubland during the early Late Pleistocene provides new insights into humans' migration out of Africa and the evolution of fishes in Africa's Great Lakes.
"Lake Malawi, one of the deepest lakes in the world, acts as a rain gauge," said lead scientist Andrew S. Cohen of The University of Arizona in Tucson. "The lake level dropped at least 600 meters (1,968 feet) -- an extraordinary amount of water lost from the lake. This tells us that it was much drier at that time."
He added, "Archaeological evidence shows relatively few signs of human occupation in tropical Africa during the megadrought period."
The new finding provides an ecological explanation for the Out-of-Africa theory that suggests all humans descended from just a few people living in Africa sometime between 150,000 and 70,000 years ago.
"We've got an explanation for why that might have occurred -- tropical Africa was extraordinarily dry about 100,000 years ago," said Cohen, a UA professor of geosciences. "Maybe human populations just crashed."
Other researchers have documented droughts in individual regions of Africa at that time, such as the Kalahari desert expanding north and the Sahel expanding south, he said. "But no one had put it together that those droughts were part of a bigger picture."
Tropical Africa's climate became wetter by 70,000 years ago, a time for which there is evidence of more people in the region and of people moving north. As the population rebounded, people left Africa, Cohen said.
The newly discovered drastic drought also suggests the famous cichlid fishes of Lake Malawi evolved four to eight times slower than previously thought, altering scientists' view of fish evolution in the African Great Lakes.
Cohen and his colleagues have been working for years to learn more about ancient Africa's climate and ecology by coring Africa's deepest lakes.
The scientists discovered the ancient megadroughts by studying sediments cored from the bottom of Lake Malawi, an African rift lake that is currently 2,316 feet (706 meters) deep, and comparing those findings with similar records from Lakes Tanganyika and Bosumtwi.
"What's unique about the Malawi, Tanganyika and Bosumtwi cores is that they're continuous records. We can see what happened in one place over a long period of time," Cohen said.
Extracting cores from Lake Malawi required the kind of rig used in ocean-going drilling expeditions. Those expeditions just sail a drill-equipped ship to the desired site.
However, the Lake Malawi Drilling Project's target was land-locked.
The international research team collected the equipment necessary, shipped it overland, rented a barge and outfitted it to become a scientific drilling vessel. They equipped the ship, M/V Viphya, with the type of GPS positioning system needed to hold the large ship steady under windy and wavy conditions. The drilling equipment was lowered 1,942 feet (592 meters) to the lake bottom and bored into the lake's sediment another 1247 feet (380 meters). If the ship didn't hold its position over the drilling site, the expensive drilling equipment might snap.
The work was successful -- the team extracted a series of cores, some as much as 1247 feet (380 meters) long, representing hundreds of thousands of years of African history.
Such lake cores contain a high-resolution record of the things that fell in or died in the lake -- plankton, aquatic invertebrates, charcoal from fires on land, pollen from the surrounding vegetation. Scientists analyze those materials to figure out what the vegetation and the lake conditions were like at a particular point in time.
The researchers used radiocarbon and other dating techniques to establish the age of regions of the Malawi cores. Then researchers took samples at 300-year-intervals.
Samples from the megadrought times had little pollen or charcoal, suggesting sparse vegetation with little to burn.
Cohen said, "The area around Lake Malawi, which today is heavily forested and has rainfall levels comparable to the southeastern U.S., at that time would have looked like Tucson."
One indicator of drought present in the cores were species of invertebrates and plankton that only live in shallow, turbid, algae-rich waters -- a situation very different from the deep, clearwater lake that Malawi is now.
"During the megadrought, Lake Malawi was algae-filled and pea-soup green, much like modern-day Lake Turkana," Cohen said. "Lake Turkana is known as the Jade Sea."
The African Great Lakes are known for the spectacular biological diversity of their cichlid fish species, which number in the hundreds. A dramatic increase in the number of species was thought to happened after a dry spell about 25,000 to 15,000 years ago.
In contrast, Cohen and his colleagues suggest that the rise in species diversity happened after the megadroughts. By 70,000 years ago the lake had risen to more or less its current level and it had become a freshwater lake as it is today.
Although the team has used the lake cores to peer back in time 150,000 years, there's still much more to do: the Lake Malawi core represents as much as 1.5 million years of tropical Africa's past.
Climate change led mankind out of Africa
Climate change is thought to explain mankind’s exodus from Africa to colonise other parts of the world.
A switch from drought to wetter conditions led to a population expansion and the spread of early humans to other continents about 70,000 years ago.
The prolonged period of drought some 90,000-135,000 years ago had created such stresses on Homo sapiens that the population had crashed, researchers believe. This could help to explain why mankind is thought to be descended from a relative handful of people in Africa.
“We’ve got an explanation for why that might have occurred,” said Professor Andrew Cohen, of the University of Arizona.
“Tropical Africa was extraordinarily dry about 100,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence shows relatively few signs of human occupation during the mega-drought period.”
The idea was consistent with previous studies, which have suggested an earlier exodus about 125,000 years was “ultimately unsuccessful”. Researchers concluded that there was an ecological reason for the human exodus after sediment and fossil samples revealed that Africa had been racked by a series of prolonged droughts, which were “more extreme and widespread” than any other dry periods identified in tropical Africa and would have devastated plant and animal life.
Sediment from core samples of Lake Malawi, one of the world’s deepest lakes, revealed that water levels dropped by at least 1,986ft (600m).
Lake Malawi is 2,316ft deep today but during the mega-drought, which researchers said was the most likely explanation for the drop in water levels, it fell to just 410ft deep.
During this period the land around the lake turned into semi-desert, an arid scrubland habitat with limited resources for primates - in stark contrast to the lush vegetation today.
In their report, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists said: “The end of arid conditions in tropical Africa closely coincides with the onset of aridity elsewhere on the continent.
“Thus, a likely period for human population expansion out of equatorial Africa would have been during the climatic ‘crossover’ time, between 90 and 70 thousand years ago.”
The interval was long enough, they said, to tally with other evidence suggesting that Homo sapiens reached Australia about 50,000 years ago.
The core samples provided a record of the quantities and types of plankton, invertebrates and pollen that dropped to the bottom of the lake. Species found during the mega-drought period lived only in shallow, algae-rich waters indicating turbid waters. Lake Malawi, in the Great Rift Valley, would have been “algae-filled and pea-soup green”. From 90,000 to 70,000 years ago, the water levels in the lake rose to current levels.
Scientists involved in the study said the discovery of mega-droughts suggested that cichlid fish, for which the lake is famous, evolved much slower than previously believed. It had been thought that the fish had evolved 15,000-25,000 years ago but the core samples suggested that it could have originated from as long ago as 90,000 years.
A switch from drought to wetter conditions led to a population expansion and the spread of early humans to other continents about 70,000 years ago.
The prolonged period of drought some 90,000-135,000 years ago had created such stresses on Homo sapiens that the population had crashed, researchers believe. This could help to explain why mankind is thought to be descended from a relative handful of people in Africa.
“We’ve got an explanation for why that might have occurred,” said Professor Andrew Cohen, of the University of Arizona.
“Tropical Africa was extraordinarily dry about 100,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence shows relatively few signs of human occupation during the mega-drought period.”
The idea was consistent with previous studies, which have suggested an earlier exodus about 125,000 years was “ultimately unsuccessful”. Researchers concluded that there was an ecological reason for the human exodus after sediment and fossil samples revealed that Africa had been racked by a series of prolonged droughts, which were “more extreme and widespread” than any other dry periods identified in tropical Africa and would have devastated plant and animal life.
Sediment from core samples of Lake Malawi, one of the world’s deepest lakes, revealed that water levels dropped by at least 1,986ft (600m).
Lake Malawi is 2,316ft deep today but during the mega-drought, which researchers said was the most likely explanation for the drop in water levels, it fell to just 410ft deep.
During this period the land around the lake turned into semi-desert, an arid scrubland habitat with limited resources for primates - in stark contrast to the lush vegetation today.
In their report, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists said: “The end of arid conditions in tropical Africa closely coincides with the onset of aridity elsewhere on the continent.
“Thus, a likely period for human population expansion out of equatorial Africa would have been during the climatic ‘crossover’ time, between 90 and 70 thousand years ago.”
The interval was long enough, they said, to tally with other evidence suggesting that Homo sapiens reached Australia about 50,000 years ago.
The core samples provided a record of the quantities and types of plankton, invertebrates and pollen that dropped to the bottom of the lake. Species found during the mega-drought period lived only in shallow, algae-rich waters indicating turbid waters. Lake Malawi, in the Great Rift Valley, would have been “algae-filled and pea-soup green”. From 90,000 to 70,000 years ago, the water levels in the lake rose to current levels.
Scientists involved in the study said the discovery of mega-droughts suggested that cichlid fish, for which the lake is famous, evolved much slower than previously believed. It had been thought that the fish had evolved 15,000-25,000 years ago but the core samples suggested that it could have originated from as long ago as 90,000 years.
Local Fair Trade Jeweler Creates Unique Bracelet for AIDS Awareness and Phoenix Fashion Week
Proceeds from Attapinya’s “Hope in Africa” Bracelet will go to Partners in Malawi. Bracelet will be debuted on November 5th at Phoenix Fashion Week.
In recent years the problems of poverty, famine, and AIDS have continued to exacerbate one another in Malawi. Over 1 million of its 11 million inhabitants are HIV positive and of that, over half a million children have become infected or orphaned by AIDS. Red ribbons and red products help to raise awareness and funds to help fight the AIDS epidemic all over the world. Here in Arizona, one local Fair Trade jewelry designer has joined the cause and created an elegant, one-of-a-kind piece to help in the crusade. Attapinya designed the “Hope in Africa” bracelet to support the Partners in Malawi Organization, a southern California-based nonprofit that works to promote awareness of the epidemic through the efforts of Dr. Perry Jansen and the Partners in Hope Community Clinic in Lilongwe, Malawi. On November 5th, Attapinya will debut the piece at Phoenix Fashion Week during the opening night Celebrity Charity Fashion Show from which all proceeds will be donated in full to the Partners in Malawi organization.
“Deeply inspired by the work of Dr. Perry Jansen [founder of the Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope organizations], I created the Hope in Africa bracelet so that when it is worn, it will remind the wearer to pray for strength and hope for our sick friends on the other side of the world. It is a statement for those who never mistake the power of hope and prayer, “ said Aphinya Deley, chief designer and president of Attapinya.
The “Hope in Africa” bracelet is an 18K white gold vermeil chain with an 18K yellow gold vermeil toggle closure in the shape of the African continent, and an 18K yellow gold vermeil and garnet charm in the shape of the African symbol, Nyame Biribi Wo Soro, meaning “God is in the Heavens”. In Africa, this symbol is a reminder that God listens to all prayers for healing, strength, and peace. Retailed at $450 USD, the Hope in Africa bracelet can be purchased at attapinya.com and 25% of all sales will be donated to Partners in Malawi.
About the Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope Organization
The vision of Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope (a Malawian nonprofit organization) is “to have a significant impact on the HIV/AIDS epidemic and in the lives of people infected and affected by HIV in a way which brings glory to GOD and demonstrates Christ’s love in word and deed.” Spearheaded by Dr. Perry Jansen, the southern California-based organization strives to meet the immediate physical and spiritual needs of all patients as well as develop skilled Malawian leaders in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
About Attapinya
Since its inception in 2004, Aphinya Deley, chief designer and president, has transformed her love of nature and Yoga into a socially responsible line of Yoga jewelry and bags whose production enhances the lifestyle of not just the yogi consumer, but also the artisans themselves. An ardent supporter and member of the Fair Trade Federation, Attapinya adheres to eco-conscious business standards that benefit low-income artisans and laborers in developing countries in order to create economic self-sufficiency.
In recent years the problems of poverty, famine, and AIDS have continued to exacerbate one another in Malawi. Over 1 million of its 11 million inhabitants are HIV positive and of that, over half a million children have become infected or orphaned by AIDS. Red ribbons and red products help to raise awareness and funds to help fight the AIDS epidemic all over the world. Here in Arizona, one local Fair Trade jewelry designer has joined the cause and created an elegant, one-of-a-kind piece to help in the crusade. Attapinya designed the “Hope in Africa” bracelet to support the Partners in Malawi Organization, a southern California-based nonprofit that works to promote awareness of the epidemic through the efforts of Dr. Perry Jansen and the Partners in Hope Community Clinic in Lilongwe, Malawi. On November 5th, Attapinya will debut the piece at Phoenix Fashion Week during the opening night Celebrity Charity Fashion Show from which all proceeds will be donated in full to the Partners in Malawi organization.
“Deeply inspired by the work of Dr. Perry Jansen [founder of the Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope organizations], I created the Hope in Africa bracelet so that when it is worn, it will remind the wearer to pray for strength and hope for our sick friends on the other side of the world. It is a statement for those who never mistake the power of hope and prayer, “ said Aphinya Deley, chief designer and president of Attapinya.
The “Hope in Africa” bracelet is an 18K white gold vermeil chain with an 18K yellow gold vermeil toggle closure in the shape of the African continent, and an 18K yellow gold vermeil and garnet charm in the shape of the African symbol, Nyame Biribi Wo Soro, meaning “God is in the Heavens”. In Africa, this symbol is a reminder that God listens to all prayers for healing, strength, and peace. Retailed at $450 USD, the Hope in Africa bracelet can be purchased at attapinya.com and 25% of all sales will be donated to Partners in Malawi.
About the Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope Organization
The vision of Partners in Malawi and Partners in Hope (a Malawian nonprofit organization) is “to have a significant impact on the HIV/AIDS epidemic and in the lives of people infected and affected by HIV in a way which brings glory to GOD and demonstrates Christ’s love in word and deed.” Spearheaded by Dr. Perry Jansen, the southern California-based organization strives to meet the immediate physical and spiritual needs of all patients as well as develop skilled Malawian leaders in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
About Attapinya
Since its inception in 2004, Aphinya Deley, chief designer and president, has transformed her love of nature and Yoga into a socially responsible line of Yoga jewelry and bags whose production enhances the lifestyle of not just the yogi consumer, but also the artisans themselves. An ardent supporter and member of the Fair Trade Federation, Attapinya adheres to eco-conscious business standards that benefit low-income artisans and laborers in developing countries in order to create economic self-sufficiency.
UA scientist: Drought recovery 100,000 years ago spurred African exodus
Recovery from a "megadrought" 100,000 years ago precipitated the exodus of ancient humans from tropical Africa to Europe and Asia, according to a UA researcher.
Analysis of soil samples extracted from below the bottom of the 2,000-foot-deep Lake Malawi in Africa shows the area believed to the cradle of anatomically modern humans depicts an area hit hard by drought, said Andy Cohen, University of Arizona geology professor.
Cohen is lead researcher and lead author of "Ecological consequences of the early Late Pleistocene megadroughts in tropical Africa," which was released Monday.
Cohen's findings offer an ecological explanation for the "out of Africa" hypothesis that suggests that all modern humans descended from a core group of ancient people living in Africa between 150,000 and 70,000 years ago.
The lake-bottom core samples show the area became rejuvenated between 90,000 and 70,000 years ago, with lakes rising to current levels following the severe drought.
"That period of time gives the ideal window when people might have gotten out of Africa," he said. "It was getting wetter and the Nile was flowing fully providing a north/south corridor.
"This might provide a mechanism for explaining the timing," he said. "When conditions got better we saw an expansion into a lot of other areas. Population growth allowed people to expand."
The spring 2005 field work was filled with challenges.
Lake Malawi, bordered by Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania, is landlocked, so a ship specially equipped for ocean-floor drilling could not be used.
Cohen's group leased a 160-foot, 800-ton barge and converted it into a drilling platform using equipment and staffing from Seacore, a English drilling company.
"Technologically and logistically it was very tough," he said. Vessel issues forced expenses and delays that cut 45 planned drilling days to 23, he said.
Despite the challenges, the rig was able to bore into the lake floor sediment more than 380 meters - 1,250 feet - and secure 3-inch diameter core samples for analysis.
Cohen spent more than a year analyzing the top 80 meters, or 265 feet, representing the past 150,000 years, of the 380 meter long core samples prior to writing the report that was released Monday.
Research continues, and the bottom end of the core samples may chart history from as long ago as 750,000 years.
"We're just scratching the surface of what these core samples have to tell us," Cohen said.
Analysis of soil samples extracted from below the bottom of the 2,000-foot-deep Lake Malawi in Africa shows the area believed to the cradle of anatomically modern humans depicts an area hit hard by drought, said Andy Cohen, University of Arizona geology professor.
Cohen is lead researcher and lead author of "Ecological consequences of the early Late Pleistocene megadroughts in tropical Africa," which was released Monday.
Cohen's findings offer an ecological explanation for the "out of Africa" hypothesis that suggests that all modern humans descended from a core group of ancient people living in Africa between 150,000 and 70,000 years ago.
The lake-bottom core samples show the area became rejuvenated between 90,000 and 70,000 years ago, with lakes rising to current levels following the severe drought.
"That period of time gives the ideal window when people might have gotten out of Africa," he said. "It was getting wetter and the Nile was flowing fully providing a north/south corridor.
"This might provide a mechanism for explaining the timing," he said. "When conditions got better we saw an expansion into a lot of other areas. Population growth allowed people to expand."
The spring 2005 field work was filled with challenges.
Lake Malawi, bordered by Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania, is landlocked, so a ship specially equipped for ocean-floor drilling could not be used.
Cohen's group leased a 160-foot, 800-ton barge and converted it into a drilling platform using equipment and staffing from Seacore, a English drilling company.
"Technologically and logistically it was very tough," he said. Vessel issues forced expenses and delays that cut 45 planned drilling days to 23, he said.
Despite the challenges, the rig was able to bore into the lake floor sediment more than 380 meters - 1,250 feet - and secure 3-inch diameter core samples for analysis.
Cohen spent more than a year analyzing the top 80 meters, or 265 feet, representing the past 150,000 years, of the 380 meter long core samples prior to writing the report that was released Monday.
Research continues, and the bottom end of the core samples may chart history from as long ago as 750,000 years.
"We're just scratching the surface of what these core samples have to tell us," Cohen said.
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