Former president Joyce Banda wants Malawi to declare false Coronavirus statistics!

Here are her words, verbatim. She seems not happy that Malawi has no case of Covid-19.

She seems to have set her eyes on the money that highly affected African countries are set to receive.

Joyce Banda's words:
My fellow Malawians I am saddened to see that Malawi is missing from the list of countries that can benefit from this fund during this time.  I request government to be proactive and stop politicizing this pandemic.  

In the past week I was interviewed by MIJ Radio Station expressing my opinion about our situation as a nation during this time of the coronavirus pandemic.  In that interview I expressed my concern at our apparent lack of preparedness or lack of access to accurate information about our preparedness from government. Other countries in the region provide frequent briefings so that the nation knows what is happening in their countries.  As for Kenya the Minister of Health briefs the nation on daily basis.  The written briefs we see each day are not good enough as more than half of our people have no access to this information.  

I have been following the information being provided by other Governments to their people and I feel very sad because:

1.  The global community cannot assist us when we are hiding our statistics and our challenges to fight the pandemic.

2.  When there is apparent politicization of this fight and apparent lack of political will to confront this pandemic as a united front regardless of our political and religious affiliations.


May God Bless You All!

UK Aid Provides K1.7bn to Malawi for Covid-19 Response

• UK AID PROVIDES 1.7 BILLION KWACHA FOR COVID-19 (CORONAVIRUS) PREVENTION AND PREPAREDNESS IN MALAWI

For immediate release

The DFID - UK Department for International Development has provided approximately 1.7 billion kwacha (£1.8 million) to UNICEF Malawi to strengthen Malawi’s capacity to prevent a COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

Although Malawi does not have confirmed cases at the moment, so far the Covid-19 outbreak has affected 197 countries with over 21,000 deaths, and over 450,000 confirmed cases as of 26 March 2020, according to the World Health Organization. There are over 2,000 confirmed cases in Africa across 39 countries. Malawi’s neighbors, Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania all have reported cases. 

With this UK Aid funding, UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Health to improve airport and border screening capacity; train health workers to respond to a potential outbreak; and equip emergency treatment units with medical and intensive care supplies as well as water and sanitation facilities so that they are ready to treat potential cases. DFID has also helped set up the testing facility in the national Public Health laboratory in Lilongwe.

Head of DFID in Malawi, David Beer, said “We recognise the need to act fast, to help Malawi prepare for the threat of COVID-19. This is why we have provided £1.8m with immediate effect, to set up emergency treatment units and rapid response teams, and critically, to boost public health messaging. I call on all Malawians to follow official advice, especially on handwashing and social distancing.”

“In the absence of effective treatment, raising awareness of the risk factors for Coronavirus infection and the protective measures individuals and communities can take, is the only way to reduce human infection.  Thanks to DFID through UNICEF for this very timely support to the Malawi Government,” said the Secretary for Health and Population Dr Dan Namarika. 

“There is no vaccine or specific antiviral medicine to treat this virus. The best course of action is to avoid infection. UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Health and Population to develop contingency plans and communication materials. The support from DFID is timely and will assist our ongoing collaborative effort with the Government of Malawi to prevent the virus from spreading in Malawi,” said UNICEF Malawi Representative Rudolf Schwenk.

Misinformation has cropped up all over the world including in Malawi since COVID-19 began spreading. UK Aid funding will also help ensure that citizens will receive accurate, reliable information about what to do to protect themselves.
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Note to editors
• COVID-19 is a new virus linked to the same family of viruses as SARS and some types of common cold. It is transmitted through direct contact with respiratory droplets (from coughing and sneezing), and touching surfaces contaminated with the virus.
• Symptoms can include fever, dry cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath. Some may have very mild or no symptoms. Most people (about 80 per cent) recover without needing special treatment. In more severe cases, an infection can cause pneumonia, severe illness, and death in some patients. Older people and those with underlying medical problems are at a higher risk of developing a serious illness.
• To avoid the risk of transmission, people should: 
1. Wash their hands frequently using soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub;
2. Cover their mouth and nose with flexed elbow or tissue when coughing or sneezing – not your hands;
3. Avoid close contact with anyone who has a cough or other flu-like symptoms;
4. Ensure children’s routine immunizations are up to date;
5. Seek medical care early if they have fever, cough and difficulty breathing, and share previous travel history with their health care provider;
• On 28 February 2020, WHO upgraded its assessment of the risk of coronavirus and public health impact at the global level from “high” to “very high”, signaling the urgency for every country to act aggressively to contain the disease and mitigate the impact on those affected.
• Misinformation has cropped up across the internet since #coronavirus, or #COVID-19, began spreading. #UNICEF Health Experts give us the facts and six things they think you should know. We remind all to seek reliable sources on how to prevent #coronavirus or #COVID19 and not to pass on unverified information from mass media and social media posts. Please visit UNICEF’s website, the Ministry of Health’s Facebook page or the World Health Organization.

About UK Aid
DFID has a longstanding record of supporting countries across the globe to prepare for large disease outbreaks. Our partners in vulnerable countries are also ensuring they are prepared by ensuring they have adequate supplies and health systems can cope. 

In addition to the UK’s support of £1.8m to Malawi, the UK has announced up to £544m of funding to support the global efforts to combat the outbreak of COVID-19. This includes up to £150million to the International Monetary Fund to help developing countries focus their available resources to tackling the virus and a £65 million investment into COVID-19 research. The UK is providing £10million to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to help prevent the spread of this outbreak by supporting developing countries to rapidly identify and care for patients with symptoms. Additional experts funded by UK aid will be deployed to the WHO to help coordinate the international response.

Further UK aid support will challenge harmful misinformation about coronavirus in South East Asia and Africa before it is able to spread worldwide and cause damage here in the UK. This support demonstrates how UK aid is making the world a safer place by tackling disease outbreaks that do not respect borders.
The UK is committed to spending 0.7 percent of GDP on Official Development Assistance. UK aid tackles the global challenges of our time including poverty and disease, mass migration, insecurity and conflict – aiming to make the world a better, safer and more prosperous place. For more information on the work of UK aid in Malawi visit: https://www.gov.uk/world/organisations/dfid-malawi

About UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. For more information about UNICEF and its work for children in Malawi visit: www.unicef.org/malawi

For more information, please contact:

Benson Linje, DFID Malawi, Lilongwe, Benson.Linje@fco.gov.uk; Tel: +265 882 576 929
Rebecca Phwitiko, UNICEF Malawi, rphwitiko@unicef.org; Tel: +265 999 282 723
Joshua Malango, Ministry of Health, malangojoshua@gmail.com; Tel +265 884 495 839

Malawi Government Slams High Court Judge Over Coronavirus Injunction

PRESS RELEASE

GOVERNMENT DISTURBED BY JUDGE KENYATTA’S ORDER ON CHINESE NATIONALS AMID CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

The Government of Malawi is disturbed and dismayed by the High Court Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda’s order that released four Chinese nationals who had been quarantined on arrival at Kamuzu International Airport on Tuesday 17 March, 2020.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services sent back to China ten nationals and detained four others because they did not have return air tickets for their immediate return.  The four were quarantined pending processing of their return air tickets.

The deportation and quarantining of the Chinese was in keeping with international practice currently recommended to curb the spread of the devastating coronavirus from high-risk countries.

It was while the four waited for the tickets that a local legal firm, Wilknson & Associates, sought a court order which Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda granted, releasing the four even before any tests were conducted on them and before the recommended 14-day quarantine period had elapsed.

Government finds Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda’s order disturbing and short on patriotism as he has undermined local and global efforts to protect lives from the virus.

At a time different players are taking active roles to prevent importation of Covid-19 into Malawi, it is disappointing that Judge Nyirenda is pulling in the opposite direction. The court order has potential to make Malawi a weak link in global efforts to fight Covid-19.

Government would like to commend the Immigration Department for acting diligently to protect Malawians from potential importation of Covid-19.

Government would also like to commend various sector players who have heeded measures introduced to protect Malawians and the rest of the world from the outbreak.

It is against this background that Government is dismayed with Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda’s order that may have put millions of Malawians at potentially high risk.

We find it unfortunate that of all players, it should be the Judiciary that chooses to put the lives of millions at a potential risk, especially at a time players in different sectors have complied with Government’s guidance in Covid-19 prevention.

Government, therefore, joins the many voices that have spoken against the court order. Government would like to ask Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda to join the efforts in in the fight against Covid-19, instead of being an enemy of the efforts.

Finally, Government encourages the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services to apply for the vacation of the injunction for the sake of fighting Covid-19.

Going forward, it is the the expectation of the Government that the Judiciary will play its role in protecting Malawians and the rest of the world from the devastating Covid-19.

Mark Botomani, MP
MINISTER OF INFORMATION, CIVIC EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY

Malawi submits Second Periodic Report to African Charter on Rights

Malawi has submitted its 2nd Periodic Report to the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR) and the Maputo Protocol.

You can access here: https://www.achpr.org/states/statereport?id=132

Malawi's development partners speak on respect for rule of law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JOINT STATEMENT FROM THE AMBASSADORS OF JAPAN, NORWAY, NIGERIA, TANZANIA, AND THE UNITED STATES, THE HIGH COMMISSIONER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, THE AMBASSADOR AND HEAD OF DELEGATION OF THE EU, IN AGREEMENT WITH THE EU HEADS OF MISSION IN MALAWI - THE AMBASSADORS OF GERMANY AND IRELAND, AND THE HEAD OF MISSION FROM THE EMBASSY OF ICELAND ON THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN MALAWI.

As long standing partners, our governments are committed to supporting Malawi to achieve its goals of democracy and development. We have been encouraged by the progress that the country has made since 1994 in terms of building an open and respectful political landscape. This process has been underpinned by a belief in the value of tolerance and a rejection of violence as a means of resolving political disputes.
 
We have therefore watched the rising political tensions with growing concern. We believe that in order for Malawi’s progress towards a stronger and more inclusive democracy to be deepened, it is critically important to refrain from using inflammatory language, and to show restraint when it is used by others. We therefore call on political party and community leaders to work together to deescalate the situation and focus on the common history and experiences that unite Malawians which are far greater than what divides them.

We also urge all political parties, the civil society, religious and traditional leaders, and all  peace-loving Malawians to deeply reflect on the principles of national policy under the Constitution of Malawi especially principle 13 (L) which calls for peaceful settlement of disputes through negotiation, good offices, mediation, conciliation and arbitration. This is the time for dialogue and peacebuilding, not deepened divisions which could undermine the unity of the country.

We believe that it is equally important for everyone to respect the rule of law at this important moment in the country’s history. This means abiding by both the letter and the spirit of the law and the Constitution, and for authorities to be upholding it consistently in all cases.

We therefore welcome the commitment of all of the main political parties to abide by the verdict of the Constitutional Court on 3 February 2020, and the judgement that the Supreme Court will issue after hearing the appeal against that verdict in April. We call on political leaders to reaffirm their confidence in the judiciary, their willingness to find common ground, and their commitment to democratic norms and values.