Some lessons from Malawi's democracy

This Saturday, May 9, 2009, a group of people gathered at Goma Primary School in Chikwawa. The bicycle parade to Mgabu Trading Centre, as one way of sensitizing people about the beauty of taking part in national elections, was taking long to start. But everybody kept quiet, no murmuring, complaints or whatever- just some inner hymning, pain. It was as if everybody, more or less, blamed themselves for their delinquency, lack of power to make things happen their way or merely pushed it over to bad luck.
Among this group were Chikwawa group village heads- Goma, Senjere, Changa, Makande, Linga, Singano, Konzere, Jombo, Mpheza, and Mgabu. At Mgabu Trading Centre waited Traditional Authority (T/A) Mgabu himself, and a host of other T/As; Ngowe and Sub-TA Masache, among others. The meeting at Mgabu Trading Centre was initially slated for 10:00am, but arrival delays for a Two-toner vehicle carrying the Public Address System meant 12:00 noon would be the most probable time for departure to the Trading Centre.
Then, around 11:00am, something happened- unrelated to the event that was to be, but in the end (it) related, all the same. Made to relate by the sharp democratic tuned eye of Maynard Nyirenda, Programmes Officer for the Sustainable Rural Growth and Development Initiative (SRGDI), an organisation behind this great gathering of traditional leaders and other villagers, for some, the relatively long distance they had traveled registering on the colours of their bicycles. The village ‘motor vehicles’ had added some dusty colour to their, mostly, black colour.
Distance speaks. It speaks through dust that clings to such mobile property as bicycles, vehicles, ferries, even wheelbarrows.
Back to 11:00am, and what happened:
A man in his late 30s was chasing a little dog in, somewhat, lucid manner from the Southern end of Goma Primary School. He caught up with it just some two metres from Nyirenda and me, behind the primary school. The ‘master’ then started whipping the little dog, fiercely, without mercy, to the extent of even throwing six stones at it (poor dog!). To Nyirenda’s amazement, the dog did not come anywhere near us to seek refuge but lied down before him, licking his hands in an attempt to mollify him.
That is typical of dogs; they often remain close to their master, even when the master is away. They wait at home for his return, for in the dog’s mind the master will always return, and then follows him whenever it is permitted once he returns. The man, who later said his name was Simeon Makaza, was a good man, according to some of the villagers who sat patiently under Acacias trees, waiting for the bicycle parade to Mgabu. He was only infuriated at his dog’s discourtesy in eating his two mice. He had laboured and toiled really had to get those two (mice) because, he claimed, eight more had eluded his seemingly clever hands.
“I wanted to teach it (the dog) a lesson because it is still young, only nine months old. As they say, Kuongola mtengo ndiukadali waungono (the best time to straighten a tree is when it is still tender and young),” said Makaza, seemingly satisfied with the ‘job’ he had done.
We did not leave Makaza at Goma Primary School, he and his dog. He went home, some 100 metres away, took his bicycle and joined the bicycle parade for Mgabu when 12:00 noon came and it was time to go. Every one on the parade wore t-shirts written ‘Ndife Amodzi’ (We are One). Except some four people because they had come alittle late when the t-shirts had run out, but they still cycled, fully aware of the importance of the day.
Any lessons from the ‘master’-little dog scenario at Goma (Primary School)? I asked Nyirenda.
“Yes,” said Nyirenda. “It is like democracy”.
Here is a master and his little dog, and you talk about democracy. Has that scenario gone that far?
“It’s not going far; I am just applying the things we come across everyday, like what we saw at Goma, and relating them to democracy. The symbols we come across in life may represent so many things, including the relationship between leaders and their subjects, which I may link to democracy. There must always be a process through which leaders are made accountable………….”
I say, how does that relate to democracy?
“It relates. The dog had eaten its master’s two mice, isn’t it?”
He claimed so.
“Right. That applies in democratic systems of government, like ours here in Malawi. The national leaders ‘eat’ our votes because we cast them (votes) for them. It is like investing power in them and we expect something back. Something like development initiatives and accountability; there must be a way through which the leaders are accountable. By beating up the dog, the owner- I wouldn’t love to call him master, which does not apply in democracy because the master is the voter, the purported subject- Makaza was just trying to make it accountable for the two mice. Everything we see could have lessons to the systems of our every day life,” said Nyirenda.
That was the reason national leaders have to play to ‘little dog’ once every five years, he said. Just what happened on May19, 2009.
So, the delays in departing for Mgabu were a blessing in disguise; one more lesson about democracy. Nyirenda said, for Malawi’s democracy to grow and attain maturity to the level of the United States of America, for instance, there was need to gauge the pay we have traveled, and suggest some of the things we may put in place to make our leaders accountable, other than instilling in them the spirit that they were ‘masters’.
Rafiq Hajat, Executive Director for the Institute for Policy Interaction (IPI) and his counterpart at the Active Youth Initiative for Social Enhancement, Marcel Chisi, agree with Nyirenda that there is need to draw some lessons from the 15 years of Malawi’s democracy. The boat is not half empty because even chairperson for the Public Affairs Committee (Pac) Fr. Boniface Tamani, Human Rights Consultative Committee’s (HRCC) chairperson, Undule Mwakasungula and Gender Support Programme’s Cecilia Mussa agree- a common voice echoed by political analysts and scientists.
Some of these lessons came out clearly during public lectures organized by SRGDI with funding from the German institution GTZ. It came under the ‘Demokalase Yathu’ (Our Democracy) Project, which was conceived to help Malawians design democratic principles that make local sense, and tallies with our hopes, wishes and aspirations. Hajat, Mzuzu University political analyst Noel Mbowela, Chancellor College lecture in the Department of Political and Administrative Studies Joseph Chunga, among others, guided Malawians through this process. Each step towards the whole 15-years process a lesson.
Malawi has no parliament, just a national assembly

One of the things that came out clearly was the revelation by Chisi that Malawi has no parliament, only a national assembly. This took students from the Catholic University by surprise. There was some sort of understandable disgust provoked by that revelation, though it is clear that constructive thinking, ironically, is almost taking the place in Malawian politics of the politics of patronage as the void once filled by the zeal to appease, regionalism and nepotism is being filled with pour ideologies.
Having done away with the one party system of government, and thus one-sidedness in thinking, people can now focus on a myriad of other issues- truths, half truths, untruths, abuse, ignorance, or prejudice.
Chisi has picked prejudice, saying the events of 1997 in parliament, when members of parliament (MPs) repelled the Senate, hinged on prejudice for the people of Malawi because, as the behaviour of MPs during the 2004 to 2009 House manifested, there was need for checks and balances.
“Who could check that bunch of MPs? Not the constituents, because those people were clearly following their party leaders’ bid, but the senate. That is to say chiefs, minority groups, among others. It is sad, but true, that Malawi has no parliament because of that action in 1997. Parliament comprises both the senate and the national assembly,” said Chisi.
Hajat, however, says, as far as he was concerned, the Senate was still there- at least in his mind- because the 1997 MPs did not call for a referendum when undertaking such a ‘grandiose’ as to discard off chiefs and other minority groups in that one mad sweep.
That sounds very much like in 1993. In that year, Malawi’s political curtain was apparently in tatters and appeared ripe for revolution. Then came May17, 1994, when came the abrupt, but highly anticipated, change- a new untried political demand made for a nation of learners. It was a curious state of limbo buried by a collective barrage of hope.
“That revolution is not over. We need that spirit to reverse the damage imposed by a handful people over a nation state. We need the Senate,” says Hajat.
He may be infuriated because, as it turned out, the hopeful image of politics of perfection proved merely an illusion. The specter of a smooth ride and fairness was apparently remote from a country still dozing from a dictatorship, weakened by a new slanderous, castigating multiparty regime still nursing the pangs of a shattered economy, an overtaxed population and rife with traits of regionalism.
We may be lucky now, though, as political analysts and experts have started replacing the lack of serious dissent, based on the view that democracy would be perfect and the constitution hole-free. The likes of Edge Kanyongolo, Boniface Dulani, among others, have contributed a willingness to do voluntary research that unearths our shortfalls. No longer do members of the academia, civil society organisations (CSOs), private sector and the media view the political situation through the same prism.
This pleases Nyirenda, who chips in: “This situation will accord the curious, progressive citizen a candid view of where our democracy has come from while, for political scholars, it will supply some footnotes to the relevance of citizens’ participation and, of course, give more ammunition to the ‘dyed-in-the-wool’ critic of the Republican constitution.”
Nobody is willing to relinquish grip over public media
One Bruce Sterling never set foot on Malawi, yet the practical machinations of his words render credence in Malawi. If that sounds unfamiliar, here him (Sterling): “Knowledge is power. Do you suppose that (that) fragile little form of yours, your primitive legs, your ridiculous arms and hands, your tiny, scarcely wrinkled brain can contain all that power? Certainly not! Already, your race is flying to pieces under the impact of your own expertise. The original human form is becoming obsolete.”
Nyirenda agrees that knowledge is power. There are so many ways of getting this knowledge- through school class rooms, conferences, meetings, seminars, every day experience. But none, he says, surpasses the power of radio in Malawi, and to some extent television. And no radio station surpasses the reach of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation’s (MBC) Radio One (though Zodiac Broadcasting Station is going that distance).
“People are being denied balanced knowledge here in Malawi; those entrusted with the mandate to rule and not letting go off MBC, and that has an impact on democracy. What it means when we say ‘Knowledge is power’, we mean to say it can change perspectives, it can tilt results, it can misinform. Our people are being shown one side of the coin and that is a serious anomaly,” says Nyirenda, an observation once shared by many.
Dulani, Kanyongolo, Hajat, Mwakasungula, Hajat, international electoral observers, parliament, former president Bakili Muluzi (himself an abuser of the same) have all spoken about it. Even the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority and Electoral Commission’s (EC) media monitoring units have pointed it out. No change.
Students who also patronized the Demokalase Yathu Public lectures felt the same- the need to open up the airwaves to dissenting views.
“Let the people get the power. Whether they have the capacity to contain that power (knowledge) is irrelevant in democracy. Democracy means power to the people and knowledge is one way of imparting that knowledge, power,” says Mwakasungula.
EC Chairperson, Justice Anastasia Msosa, bemoaned it too (patronage of the public media in her assessment of the official campaign period.
“The public media has performed miserably in leveling the playing field for other political parties,” she said.
Democratic governance makes it necessary to provide a time frame, which in Malawi’s case comes every five years after any other national election, where it is necessary to unmask, through a secret ballot, the mass of repressed political wishes lying within the unconscious so that a new possibility founded on informed knowledge and choices may be launched to inspire people towards the next course of development. Two months before this all-important unmasking process, the EC pays for airtime on public broadcasters so that other political players should have a platform to share their plans, aspirations, wishes compressed in manifestos.
It never happened in Malawi this time (2009), though it happened in 1994 when the winds of change drew cracks across the hither to single wall. This is despite the fact that, with the 2004 general elections approaching and Muluzi ineligible to succeed himself- having served the two constitutional terms- people though things would change.
There is hope, however, as most analysts agree. Chisi and Mwakasungula agree that 2009 may not be fatefully late a beginning to start the process of change. We are still learning, says Chisi, as evidenced by the fact, for example, that it may take Malawi over 228 years to reach the level of democracy of the United States (if maturity in democracy was measured by the number of years in it, which is, fortunately, not the case. Democracy lies in the head- the willingness to learn and change).
While it may be hard to know the real intents behind people who would want to abuse their political mandate by monopolizing public airwaves, Mwakasungula says it becomes less hard to isolate their intents from the will of the people. It all boils down to intolerance and selfishness, which is often fortified by their propaganda apparatus including the use of public broadcasters.
Our liberalized markets need democracy, too
The idea behind democratic systems of government is to avoid monopoly of power by politicians. Those who re-designed democracy must have learnt it the hard way from corporations that monopolized markets in the past. The corporations originally had power over every dimension of people’s lives: they produced what they (not people) wanted; produced of whatever quality they determined; they fixed prices and costs; they decided on the future of each of their employees and, sometimes, on the future of entire communities.
They could even determine where people lived; what work, if any, would do for them (people); what they had to eat, drink and wear; what sort of knowledge, schools and universities needed to encourage; and what kind of society children had to inherit. Not only that, they also affected everybody in their treatment of natural resources and how they decided to deal with their own factory garbage and residues.
Some of these ills, chips in Hajat, continue to be practiced with our market players.
“Take our tobacco buyers, for instance; they form cartels and connive on prices; they refuse to share, let alone disclose, part of their huge profits with the tobacco farmer in Rumphi, Kasungu, Dedza. The case is the same with the tea grower in Mulanje, Thyolo; and cotton growers in Salima, Chikwawa, Nsanje. This shows the clear need for democracy in our market economy,” says Hajat.
He adds that the British government, for instance, makes more money from taxes imposed on tobacco products that the real man who toils on the ground in Malawi can even imagine. They make billions, he says, when it is the same old poverty story for the African farmer.
His sentiments may emanate from the reality that, while our economic system is sold to us under the banner of a liberalized, free enterprise economy, experience shows that free enterprise no longer exists, if in deed it ever did. This because free enterprise, as the name implies, would have been a system in which buyers and sellers had equal powers, met at a neutral market in the real village, possess equal information and make their trade without leaving traces of poverty behind.
Our markets may not be that neutral, in the words of Hajat, because tobacco buyers dictate the stakes and government still passes legislation that rigs the market by giving certain groups investment tax credits, incentives, depletion and depreciation allowances, subsidies, rebates and price supports.
Assertions best understood by long time Kasungu farmer, Andrew Bauti: “We need democracy on the tobacco market, and powers enabling farmers to vote out players who practice unfair trade. In our system, currently, neither small and big businesses nor buyers and sellers are equal in any way. It is very unfair on us because we toil and get nothing in return.”
That may be true because power is contagious. It can only be fought with equal, or more, power. Buyers are more powerful than the rural farmer. That is where democracy comes in when, for once, common citizens retain their power to fight possible excessive of power by those in elected positions. This upon the realization that every human group that exercises power does so, not in such a way as to bring total happiness to those who are subject to it, but in such a way as to increase that power.
That happens when we all pretend to own up to the moral values of democracy none of us possesses. And Hajat is against it.
From personal to ideology-based politics
Then comes the question of presidential and parliamentary elections. Sterling wrote that elections were a means by which people delegated and extended their mandate to national leaders so that, after a specific period of time, the people (electorate) get their mandate back and extend it through the election, or re-election, of new leaders.
Every thing in life is an extension, he argued: as the wheel is an extension of the foot; clothing an extension of the skin; the roof an extension of the sky; synthetic hair an extension of tree leaves; democracy an extension of choice, to the effect that it is no longer meaningful to see democracy as a subject. It has even moved from an object of desire to that of designing.
People have designed elections not as an end, but a means to an end. And the way Malawians are achieving their means to this end (electing leaders) has pleased Fr. Boniface Tamani, chairperson for the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) so much.
“People have moved from the politics of personalities to politics based on principles and ideologies, something we have been advocating for all these years. It is pleasing to note that we have started moving towards that direction,” said Tamani.
It is only natural to appreciate, as he does, because every election is a complex process. The complexity is compounded by the reality that it involves a multi-purposed society of ever-evolving egos, a development that means voting on personal, regional, or ideological lines could not be out of the complete question. To expect that every one will vote on the basis of principles is tantamount to thinking that every citizen thinks alike, says Nyirenda.
“Elections, and democracy in other words, counters the myth that we live as autonomous individuals, as islands unto ourselves, without rights balanced by duties. Our ‘Demokalase Yathu Project’, for instance, is premised on the realization that every decision each and every Malawian makes-whether it be to sell yourself into slavery or to sell yourself into prostitution- adds to and creates the telos of communities you are part of. You do not exist as an island, in democracy, you live in the context of majority wishes,” said Nyirenda.
Not that the majority should take everything for themselves, he adds, but must employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding to improvise the minority population (voters), the social-economically disenfranchised, the socially and politically marginalized and the psychologically weak. When people vote on ideology lines, it feeds into their nature that they must consider the wishes of others without being tainted by partisanship, nepotism, regionalism, or whatever,” according to Nyirenda.
Many analysts have hailed Malawians for voting along ideological lines this time around, though sentiments by Malawi Congress Party leader, John Tembo, seemed to suggest he wanted people to maintain the status quo.
What does the sentence, “Those who know the politics of this country will understand that the way (Bingu wa) Mutharika has amassed the number of votes he has is very, extra-ordinary”, mean? (That is an issue for next time).
People get the government they deserve
This is Rafiq Hajat’s tirade against none-voters. During the 2004 parliamentary and presidential elections, only one in every two registered voters trekked to the polling station, while the rest stayed home, some remained on the wheel (track and bus drivers). It is called voter apathy, a term referred to a scenario where eligible voters decide to stay out for various reasons. There has, however, never been a comprehensive study on the reasons voters opt to stay out of the polling station even before voting (when you vote, you are not supposed to linger around the polling station. Before you vote, you are most welcome).
“Some of these people were then heard murmuring and complaining about all sorts of things. If you don’t vote, the administration that comes in is the one you deserve. The solution lies in voting,” he said.
He may be backed by fact. In 2004, people gave Mutharika, then standing on United Democratic Front ticket 36 per cent of the presidential vote. The policies, ideologies and principles he brought into office were the things that the people deserved.
Come May19, 2009. There was a huge turn out, which Muluzi has equated to the situation and enthusiasm of 1994. It can not be ruled out that most of the voters that shunned voting in 2004 came out this time around, and voted for Mutharika.
Mutharika has chalked 2, 946, 103 votes, translating into 50.7 per cent of the total votes. Tembo, his staggeringly insignificant runner up, got 24 per cent of the vote when he got 1, 370, 044 of the 5.8 million registered voters.
Why do we say that? “Because Mutharika has amassed an overwhelming number of votes than anyone else in multiparty democracy since 1994. The people who stayed out have understandably contributed to this, after discovering that, may be, Mutharika style of leadership is the one they wanted and deserve,” says Gender Support Programme’s Cecilia Mussa.
The youth have a great role to play in Malawi’s democracy
It came out clearly, from the minds of Chancellor College’s Chunga and Mbowela of Mzuni, that Malawian youths form a political bloc that can be dismissed at one’s own peril. The youths, especially those pursuing higher education, are taken as role models in rural areas, are flexible to new ideas, have more access to communication channels, and have the energy to pursue their dreams, said Chunga, and could therefore influence political change.
Mbowela cited last year’s election in the United States of America, where he said the youth, as a bloc, influenced the election of Barack Obama, as the first African American president. This influence lies not in voter apathy, but in the ways their goals and aspirations are employed and the common end to which they are directed. In the USA, this common end came in their hope for change, and voting for it.
It lies in action, youths’ power, according to Mbowela and Chunga. Action Chunga said was evident during the nationalist period when university youths formed a universities’ revolution group that influenced political change across the width and breadth of the continent.
A power still evident in current development initiatives. The youth contribute towards farming in Malawi, they have helped in Malawi Social Action Fund work, as well as the income generating public works programme, adds Chunga.
But their main power and influence lies in their numbers. If only they redirect their energies (from violence) to leadership participation, their influence could work well for the country’s development, in the reckoning of Chunga.
Gender equality, too, is a great issue
A long, long battle that represents, in a way, the short of human rights advocacy. The United Nations has mechanisms that ensure that the minority are not suppressed by the majority- some form of guarantee that the majority will not take everything for themselves but employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding on the needs of the minority.
Nowhere do they talk about the suppressed majority, like women, and how the powerful, influential minority should handle them (selflessness, compassion, compromise, servility, understanding), a magnanimous sought of international oversight because women contribute a whooping 52 per cent to the Malawian population.
The suppression of women arose originally on grounds of economics, which held that cultural and moral change derive from changes in economic structure. This perceived suppression got perpetuated with the concept of private property; mainly because women could reproduce, they, like animals, were defined as property.
Mussa feels that this practice is continuing in Malawi, looking at the nature of positions our women hold in society. It is evident in the continued second class status most women are subjected to, especially in rural areas where the husband is very much the patriarch to be feared and worshipped in equal measure.
“It is also clear in the difficulties women continue to face in so many areas- their continued difficulty in regulating such matters as sex, marriage, procreation and divorce,” she says, one of the reasons gender activists may have almost turned gender equality advocacy into women empowerment campaigns.
Mussa is convinced this practice is also rampant in employment because it allows employers to get two workers for the price of one as there are huge disparities between salaries men and women get at the workplace. The man is paid wages but his wife, who performs the services necessary for him to live a decent life during the many hours he spends at work, is not paid (by the husband).
Women also provide a cheap reserve of labour, which helps keep wages down and profits up.
Will this change?
Emma Kaliya, NGO Gender Coordinating Network’s chairperson sees no reason why it should not. She says, through advocacy work, things were now improving- raising the hopes even high for women the black clouds may ascend even further and live room for light. This light comes when women are elected, or appointed, into decision making decisions.
“That is why we have applauded President Mutharika for choosing Joyce Banda, a reputable woman, as his running mate and, consequently. Vice president of this country. We are really happy. Now we want a female speaker,” said Kaliya.
Some 40 seats have gone to women in parliament, following the May19 elections. This goes against the goal for the 50-50 campaign for women in decision making positions.
Gender activists are not worried. They say ensuring that women get to the same level as men, in terms of numbers and influence, is a process. But it is not a one-day process.
As Malawi moves more and more towards the island of democratic maturity, women shall finally make it, according to Kaliya, who sums up:
“We know for sure it will happen, and society will be an improved lot because women are known for their caring nature, their unsurpassed love.”
The battle for women empowerment, a majority that suffers suppression, is a battle of love, and care.
Local government elections are an integral part of democracy
Hajat says the absence of councilors has been felt for the past four years, one that shows that their presence fills some void in the democratic open space. He says failure to hold them violates people development and political rights, as the duty of MPs was not to initiate development activities in their areas but make laws.
Nyirenda and the others agree. How can we help the common Malawian understand the tenets and principles of democracy when there is no democracy near him (meaning councilors). He says councilors were democracy brought to the people, to sit and chat with the people and sleep with the people.
“Unlike most MPs, councilors live with the people they represent; they know them personality. Isn’t that not democracy near the people?”
This has been one of the shorts so far, democracy that stays with the people. The distance from Salima to Capital Hill is too huge to be ‘walked’ on foot. The distance to the councilor’s house is not, says Nyirenda.
The journey to explore the lessons from our fifteen-year old democracy, too, is too huge to walk on foot. It is like walking from Salima to Capital Hill.
We are at Mvela.

Churches also plan: Anglican in Malawi

ANGLICAN DIOCESE OF UPPER SHIRE
(Church of the Province of Central Africa)

























DIOCESAN STRATEGIC PLAN
(MLOZO wa DAYOSIZI)

2009 – 2014


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

VISION:

A self sustaining Church that is Christ centred and strive to serve humankind wholistically.

MISSION:

Anglican Diocese of the Upper Shire is a Christ-centred church that is commissioned to discipleship and proclamation of the gospel through provision of social, economically and pastoral services.

VALUES:

 Faith:

 Transparency:

 Dialogue:

 Accountability:

 Love:

 Unity:

 Integrity:

 Commitment:

 Learning:

 Trust:

 Upholding and defending the teaching of the faith.

 Ecumenical: Fellowship to other churches

 Excellence : We aim to excel in all that we do.

 Partnership:
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.1 Preface
1.1 Forward
1.2 Preamble

1. Introductions and Background
i. Functions and structural framework
ii. Basis of the strategic plan
iii. linkage with the overall vision /mission of the Anglican Province of Central Africa
iv. Linkage with Mission of the global Anglican Community
v. Linkage with he Mission of the Malawi and World Council of Churches

2. Review of the Performance
i. Achievements
ii. Setbacks
iii. Lessons learnt

3. Current Reality and Assumptions of the Plan
i. situational Analysis
ii. Stakeholders Analysis
iii. Swot Analysis
iv. need to change
v. Assumptions of the Plan
vi. Strategic Foundations

4. Vision
5. Mission Statement
6. Values
7. Strategic Plan Pillars
i. Key Result Areas
ii. Goals and Strategies
iii. Annual Strategic objectives
iv. Key Performance Indicators
v. Performance
vi. Monitoring and Evaluation
vii. Strategic Financial Plan
viii. Implementation Plan
8. Conclusion



Preamble:

This document sets out a strategic plan for the Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire. It reviews strengths, weaknesses,threats and opportunities, presents a series of statements relating to Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire's vision, mission, values and objectives and goals to be realised in the execution of its ministry

Introduction and Background:

The Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire emerged out of the division of the Diocese of Southern Malawi into two in 2002. Most if not all its coverage is part of what was the then Diocese of Southern Malawi. However, when the two Dioceses were partitioned, its financial position weakened hence the need to reposition its efforts. This strategic plan therefore outlines the ways and means on how such challenges can be addressed. The Diocese has had two sets of leadership since its division. It has culminated therefore that current new; leadership felt it imperative that the Diocese must have a strategic focus for its development and ministry.

The 2009-2014 strategic plan being the first of its kind for the Diocese of Upper Shire therefore sets out the Vision, Mission, Values, Goals, Objectives, strategies and performance indicators. In a nutshell, it outlines what direction the Diocese would like to take in the period under consideration in its endeavour to further both spiritual and social well being of its flock. This strategic plan has emerged out of an extensive consultation that involved; the Diocesan Bishop and his assistant, members of both the clergy and the laity as well as heads of institutions under the Diocese. This was purposely done so that the plan commands wide support and carries within it the aspirations of all stakeholders in the Church. It is our hope that even those stakeholders that didn't directly contribute to the development of the strategic plan will give it the much needed support.

The strategic plan is both indicative and prescriptive. It outlines the necessary strategies that need to be realised in order to attain the Diocesan Vision and Mission. In view of the need to monitor and measure progress, the plan sets targets that indicate major milestones towards the attainment of agreed goals and objectives. The plan further strives to outline an implementation programme that describes the main activities necessary for the achievement of the objectives with reasonable and agreeable time frames that takes into account resource constraints.
DIOCESAN BISHOP:









































Imprimatur: +Brighton Upper Shire





PREFACE:

The need for a strategic plan in any organisation need not to be overemphasised. Indeed a strategic plan for the Diocese of Upper Shire is very important in terms of its present as well as future roles and responsibilities placed on it in its ministry of both word and sacrament. Thus, this strategic plan sets a clear direction for the Diocese in the execution of its responsibilities.

This plan has been developed to cover a period of five years from October, 2009 to September, 2014. This is the first plan for the Diocese since its inception as earlier highlighted. Although so much has been done in the Anglican Church in Malawi since its formation, much of it has been done haphazardly without following a properly outlined plan. Effectiveness of development and growth of the church without a strategy lives things to happen by chance as opposed to clearly outlined and envisioned plan of this nature.

It is the intention of the Diocese to ensure that this plan forms the foundation upon which all future planning frameworks will be based. In this regard, the Diocesan office being a central coordinating office, recognises the important role it is supposed to play in disseminating of information relating to kinds of programmes and projects for the Diocese.

The role of our traditional and other prospective partners will be inseparable in the implementation of this strategy. Partner support forms an integral part of the document as such their understanding and appreciation of our areas of interest will be a major concern for the Diocese.

Now that the document is finalised, far reaching gratitude should go to the entire family of stakeholders that took part in this process, the facilitators and our partners who generously made resources available for this type of exercise (see attached list of participants), for their cooperation, commitment and support rendered.

Acknowledgements would be incomplete without recognising and appreciating the invaluable role played by our facilitators; Rev. Fr. Goodson Chipapala, Rev. Fr. Francis Chipala and Rev. Fr. MacDonald Sembereka in facilitating the whole process of developing the strategic plan.

It is my sincere hope that this strategic plan will enable the Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire contribute positively in setting up and implementing responsive development programmes in its effort to serve the people of God entrusted to it.


BASIS OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN:

'If you don't know where your organisation is going any road will get you there'.

The quote here summarises the way in which the diocese has been operating. It was then felt that if it is to succeed in this competitive environment there was need to develop a plan

The strategic plan concept was initiated following the recognition of certain deficiencies and constraints in the provision of services to the faithful and the community at large. There was no provincial Strategic Plan or past apart from the working guides to base on.

This strategic plan aims at:-

 utilizing the opportunities
 strengthening the spiritual life in the church
 be self sustaining church
 train more clergy and laity
 transparency and accountability
 have the ownership of the Diocese
 good record keeping in the church
 increase the number of structures

Linkage with the overall vision and mission of the Anglican Church of the Province of Central Africa:

The Diocese will ascribe to the enactments of the Provincial Synod, which is the Legislative body of the Province of Central Africa as stated in the Canons and Constitution

Linkage with the Mission of the Global Anglican community:

The Diocese of upper Shire ascribes to full communion with the church of England and with the Anglican communion throughout the world, holds the Faith of Christ as taught in the Holy Scriptures, preached by the Apostles, summed up in the Creeds and confirmed by the undisputed General Councils of the Holy Catholic Church. The diocese also accepts the principles of worship set forth in the Book of Common Prayer

The Anglican Communion's vision is on Unity: towards a vision of the Unity we seek:Making Visible the Unity we Share.

Linkage with the Mission of the Malawi and World Council of Churches:

The Malawi Council of Church ( MCC) has the following as their main objectives: Human transformation following the image of Christ, promoting development and fostering unity, peace, justice and love amongst the human race. The World Council of Churches (WCC) Vision: God in your grace, transform the world.

The MCC and WCC focuses on the transformation theme in which all aim to transform the community in which they live through engagement in activities that promote peace, unity and justice.


SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengthern

 good team spirit
 existing infrastructure
 political goodwill
 partnership
 enough institutions
 human resource highly
 qualified people
 Auditing Accounts
Weakness

 luck of IGA
 improper use of liturgy
 recognition of retired personnel
 failure to use the parishioners
 land not used
 failure to reach out
 priorities not well defined
 luck of focus
 Monitoring and Evaluation
 Identifying other preachers in the Church
 Luck of follow-ups to church activities


Opportunities

 Christian awareness is currently in the wind
 government which encourages Christianity
 New leadership - Bishop
 Infrastructure
 Human resources Threats

 emerging of new churches
 Islam-giving scholarship to people
 untimely deaths
 Donor fatigue
 Deforestation
 Encroachment
 Global warning



Goals Strategies
To extend Gods Kingdom Evangelism, Counselling, Social work, Lay training
To build the capacity of both laity and the clergy Training,refresher course of both the laity and the clergy,and heads of institutions
exposure of the people
external learning
raining of new clergy
advocacy on the education
To live the Gospel Provision of Education
project that target vulnerable groups


Group II

1. Mangochi land
office complex

2. St. George's land
to build flats to be rented out by university student & other people

3. Kaphiridzinja Cottage

4. Camping site for families and others

5. Malosa land
 should be used as agricultural land to supply to various facilities
 preservation of the forest in Malosa hill

Other Projects
1. 100% ownership of Chilema
2. Contract farming in piggery, vegetables etc.
3. Turn Kunkuli into a tourist centre or private school
4. Building of houses for rental purposes in Malosa, Zomba, Mangochi and Liwonde
5. Construction of a halls
6. Revival of the Malosa filling station
7. Retrieve Mangochi secondary school.
8. Utilisation of rural areas like Matope to open up a rural training centre
9. Water supply at a cost to the communities
10. Agro- forest and animal husbandry project


PRIORITIES

~SHORT TEAM PROJECTS~














~LONG TEAM PROJECTS~





REVIEW OF THE PAST PERFORMANCE:

Achievements:
The achievements of the diocese since establishment cover major undertakings as outlined below:

Education:
 Academic excellence (good grades)
 Quality teachers
 Quality human resources.

Health:
 9 health centres
 2 major hospitals
 College of Nursing

Evangelism:
 Church planting
 Strengthening Sunday School
 Accountability in Accounts Dept.( update of Audited Accounts)

Achievements in Churches:
 From 4 to 5 Archdeaconaries.
 Parishes increased from 23 to 26 parishes
 further studies for Priests i.e. Diploma, Degree and Masters
 increasing number of Parishes

New Projects:
 Netsforlife
 HIV and AIDS

Infrastructure:
 5 new Priest's houses
 3 maize mills
 Construction of new hostels,houses,classrooms at College of Nursing
 Unfinished Daughters of the King building

Integrated farming:
 Information Technology Improvements i.e. Computers & Internet
 Rehabilitation of water system
 Transportation (motor bikes and vehicles)
 The opening of Leonard Kamungu College
 Establishment of Diocesan Development Programmes
 The Diocese has the new Bishop
 Opening of Chaplaincies in secondary schools

Setback:
Despite numerous achievements as detailed above, there have been some setbacks regarding our performance such as:
 Over dependence on external assistance
 Absence of the Project Coordinator
 Lose of the unused/undeveloped land

Lessons Learnt:
 Lack of planning retards progress
 continuous training of both clergy and the laity is necessary in order to enhance performance and keep abreast with modernity in the church.

CURRENT REALITY AND ASSUMPTIONS OF THE PLAN

Situational Analysis

This strategic Plan will outlined the work to be carried out by each arm of the Diocese and will be reviewed through Diocesan Standing committee, Archdeaconaries,and clergy meetings. It is hoped with the Strategic Plan the Diocese will strategically plan its activities in such a way that the reviews carried out on a regular basis, this will also help monitor progress.

Diocesan properties

 2 hospitals and 9 health centres
 Nursing and midwifery college
 Diocesan offices
 Secondary Schools
 Primary schools
 Motor bikes
 Kaphiridzinja cottage
 Unutilised land at Kaphiridzinja
 Malindi pottery
 Malindi workshops
 Mangochi Plot
 Rectories
 Church buildings


STRATEGIC FRAMEWORKS AND DIRECTION
(Vision, Mission and Core Values)

The vision, mission and Core Values of the Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire shall be as stipulated here below:
VISION

A self-sustaining church that is Christ Centred and strives to serve humankind holistically.

Mission

The Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire is a Christ centred church that is commissioned to discipleship through the proclamation of the gospel, pastoral care and service delivery (both social and economic).

Core Values

 Trust in God
 Love and compassionate in its ministry
 Transparency and Accountability
 Excellence in the way of doing things
 Ecumenical in its ministry
 Trust among its people
 Unity of purpose
 Upholding and defending the teaching of the Church
 Gender sensitive

Strategic Objectives

The following are the objectives of the Anglican Diocese of Upper Shire:

 To ensure nurturing the people of God by offering quality pastoral care.

 To strengthen the proclamation of the Gospel through out the diocese and beyond.

 To develop the capacity of both laity and the clergy for the furtherance of the Gospel in the Diocese.

 To provide essential services to both members and non members in fulfilment of its call.

 To attain economical empowerment for purposes of the fulfilment of the church's' mission and self edification.

 To increase the Dioceses' visibility and impact in the country and beyond.

Guiding Principles

 Draw inspiration from the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 Align itself and its operations to the Cannons of the Church of the Province of Central Africa and the Acts of the Diocese.

 Utilisation of available skills within and among the membership and then develop them further.

 Promotion of human development.

 Work in partnership with other like mind organisation.

 Promotion of self reliance through parish based self help projects.


Objectives and Strategies

Objective 1:

Nurture the people of God in the Diocese through provision of quality pastoral care.

Strategies:

Strengthening and provision of :

 Youth ministry
 Pre- and post marital counselling
 Women's and girls ministries
 Baptismal and confirmation classes.
 Pastoral visitations and administration of sacraments.
 Home cells and small Christian communities
 School chaplaincies

Objective 2:

Strengthening the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Diocese and beyond.

Strategies:-

 Establishment of evangelism committees at all levels of the Diocese.
 Establishment and utilisation of media including a Diocesan Radio (both print and electronic).
 Improvement in production of IEC materials for the Diocese.
 Engage into church planting.
 Increase of trained lay and ordained evangelists in the Diocese.
 Recruitment and training of more new clergy and further training for the old ones.

Objective 3:

Build and increase the capacity of both the laity and clergy for the furtherance of the Gospel in the Diocese.

Strategies:-

 Training and refresher courses for both the clergy and laity.
 Establishment of Matope Rural Training and Development Centre for the development of the Diocese.
 Further studies for both the clergy and laity with institutions of higher learning.
 Establishment of Malosa Anglican University
 Intensification of parish – based trainings for lay leaders.

Objective 4:

Provision of essential services to humankind in the fulfilment of its ministry.

Strategies:-

Strengthening and establishment of:
 Existing and new health facilities and services.
 Existing projects like HIV and AIDS, Netsforlife, Income Generating Activities etc.
 Existing and new Primary and Secondary Schools.

Objective 5:

Attainment of economic empowerment for purposes of fulfilling its mission and self edification.

Strategies:-

 Refurbish and rebuild Kaphiridzinja cottage.
 Construction of office blocks, hostels and accommodation facilities in Mangochi, Zomba, Liwonde, Balaka and Malosa.
 Engage into Income Generating Projects for interest groups; crop and animal husbandry.
 Establishment of a University College at Nkuli/ Malosa.
 Revival of Malindi workshops and pottery.
 Revival of Malosa Filling Station.
 Revival of Malosa farm.

Objective 6:

Increase the Dioceses' visibility and impact in the country and beyond.

Strategies:-

 Affiliation to like minded organisations.
 Improved documentation (newsletter and news articles)
 Participation in international and national fellowships.
 Networking and collaboration/partnership

Need to charge

Christian ministry is facing a lot of challenge due to emerging evolutionary methods of worship and service delivery. There is therefore need for the diocese to gear itself for the inevitable change that these challenges bring on. This can be accomplished effectively if the diocese changes with thereby catching up with new methodology and technology.

The progression of the diocese since inception have been as follows

Sept-Dec 2009
Amount Jan-Dec.2010
Amount Jan-Dec.2011
Amount

income Malawi Kwacha
Millions Malawi Kwacha
Millions Malawi Kwacha
Millions
External Income
Local Income
Total Income

Stakeholders Analysis

The plan encourages working together as Team not only within he Diocese but also outside . In order to effectively and efficiently provide prompt quality services and responses , which is the intended mission of the Diocese, it is imperative to involve the stakeholders. The chart shows some of the stakeholders.
























MONITORING & EVALUATION

ACTIVITY PERSON or OFFICER
RESPONSIBLE TIME SCALE OUT PUT















DIOCESAN OWNED BUILDINGS

No. Parish Rectory church hall hospital H/Centre schools cottage houses others




































FINANCIAL PLAN

ACTIVITY 2009/10 2O10/2011 2011/2012 2012/2013 2013/2014

The Richard Chirombo Poems Collection

THE RICHARD CHIROMBO POEMS COLLECTION

THE WIND

Yester-dark,
The light,
A wind in the forest,
That doesn’t last.

Wood in the soil,
No rust,
Just claws back,
And onto cling, the jaws of life.

Life,
Has a jaw,
A bone,
It was born.

Birth,
Has a berth,
It grows,
It bends.

Father was a bone,
And fresh,
When for us,
He fetched.

Mother was a mat,
Challenges,
Goodies,
Lay on her mat.

Yesterday light,
A spark,
A shark,
That goes down, and back.

The light and the dark,
Are not a shark;
Where go, they come not back;
Afresh, they begin aback.

Yesterday,
Father,
And Mother,
The wind.

Gone with the wind,
Like a shark, they never come back
They shall come back, like a shark.
The place they go, they never come back.

The maggots,
Flies’ young,
Are the mats
The wind; the past.

Where they go,
The shark comes back;
They go,
And never come back.

The shark never comes back,
The past is the wind,
There is no mat,
No, they entertain no shark.

Life; the new-found wind,
The wind; the lost past,
The shark; mortality why come back
All, is the wind.

The wind,
Is a winder:
They should not come back,
Let them come back.

The wind,
A drop in the tin,
Never comes back,
Never calls back.

The empty sphere,
A tube.
The pipe of an empty echo,
An echo: the voice that came back.

Striped,
The poor voice lay back,
No bass,
Where is the man in it.

The vapour in the mouth,
In the voice,
Like the wind,
Why didn’t it come back?

The vapour that came back,
A hip of cold,
The man in it,
Hidden from it.

The man hides in the winds,
The wind pushes man into the wink,
The wink in the eye,
Is `the brink.

The brink and the wind,
They are so blind,
How many times they got,
The skate-chaser amiss.

The winds,
The shark,
The wink,
A past: that comes back.


THE CHANGED SEASONS
The summer in the winter,
May be good in the shade,
To dilute the desolate shape,
A deformed face
Clear the place.

Tear drops,
A great for the worm,
Mingling with the mid-light,
The wondering slash at the back,
My water is my bones.

Water is the bones,
The back-hard of my travels,
Bones are the water,
To walk in the cold,
Shine in the dark.

Everything wrong,
May be right sometime,
When the summer hits the shed,
A winter in the desert,
Stretching.

Darkness in the sun,
A needle in the wind,
A bone in the worm,
Wings on the limbs,
A stitch in time.

Life;
Is a memory,
Walked in the head,
And passed to the future,
When across the generational lane, the soul does go.

Madness is:
Nothing;
A chart with the wind,
A brush with the mighty sun,
A swim in the tasteless ocean.

A walk with the angels,
A quarrel with the gods,
A move towards perfection,
A trip to the polls’ coast,
A quarrel without company.

No, madness:
Nothing.
Something.
An equation,
That means nothing, everything.

Every wrong,
Is a right.
Of the wrong time,
The strange places,
Long faces.

When sadness comes by,
I will kiss it with a smile,
Hug it with the summer tears,
And hope,
This is it.


WHAT JOURNEY IS THIS/WHO HIDES IN THE CLOUDS
Algae
Grew
Where my father stood,
Behind the worn-out stool.

He went away,
With the warmth in him,
The smile,
Beyond our mile.

Lonely,
His mattress smells,
And shrinks,
At the passing of a smiling wind.

Deserted;
This darkness is hiding the shame,
Of this room’s face once filled,
And mighty.

The paths he trod,
Nothing,
No birds’ hands on it,
Nothing like his giant prints.

No axes around,
No bass no more,
No tongue-lashes to boot,
Silenced to a halt.

We hear him in the dark,
Saw him walk side by side,
He came with the rain,
And with the lighting, disappear.

He lives in the soul,
He sits in the memories,
He climbs on destiny’s back,
To meet us at the gate.

He hid the rain,
When we the past for sook,
And brought southerly winds,
When the elderly we sanded.

He threw some hail,
Smashed our ground,
Our harvest hopes,
He grinded.

The warmth he left,
Disappears with the day,
A new darkness,
In the wake of his journey.


THE UNKNOWN HERO
They of the old rains say for me his life sacrificed,
And for a future he knew not died.
His battered wife and three siblings he deserted,
For the comfort of the sun.

To his poorly-fed chickens, not even goodbye
His garden, in bushes.
He never took care of the desolate,
That alms-searchers he chased.

Twice or thrice his wife he battered,
It made for a good wife, he used to say.
And then the children; he chopped a finger off the old one,
The younger he slapped.

Didn’t he fight for chieftaincy,
Forth or fifth won,
But the last battle lost,
As the Westerly winds attest?

Didn’t he inherit healthy wells,
Before the pot-hole jackets clinged to the old road,
An obese economy,
All of which he brought to the kneeless knees.

Among the commoners,
The village-folks,
Only the chief and him,
Wore pot-berries.

So why now,
Call the pot-berried glutton,
Our new, crowned hero
This confused nation.

They say the colonialists he chased,
Yes, but from his own garden.
One or two he killed,
And threw them into his neighbour’s garden.

They say for me,
The one he never knew,
And probably would have hated,
He opted for the early grave.

That for me,
My real father doesn’t even know me,
He only could buy for me,
This elusive freedom.

Conventional wisdom has it in full,
He could have whipped his son-in-law,
To crown me ‘Born-Free’,
Our new-crowned hero.

This is a peak,
Whence from the winds blow,
South, North, West, East,
And where hide the lungs, and poach from the open.

I would have disowned him as my father,
And dumped him like the grass behind his home.
I would have avenged for my mother,
And send the confused, old man to his earlier grave anyway.

I would have smashed his lips to crap,
For cheating the world he died for his beloved country,
And with it bought this insufficient freedom,
That fails to blossom.


Let him from his bones sprout,
To see that nothing went his way.
Nothing ever plows along his set myopic wave-length,
His destiny; a nest of warmth that never grows into flames; because this dark hopelessness fails to outdo the spark-less moon

From the peak a mandate:
To erect a stature for your foolish hero,
In your little room- your foolish countrymen and you,
Rock and your hero’s stature choke.

Perhaps with the choking tear rain will come,
Perhaps with the hopeless stature hope may sprout,
To usher a new, failed destiny,
For inheriting failures of fallen-zeros.

Rock the hero away,
Let the hero free himself,
From his long-lived dream,
And in eternal shame, help him swim.

TO LOVE IS TO DIE
Dogging in the lonely street,
Against an ailing soul,
The piety, meandering fell,
A foul against the African scroll,
So hard it lands a blow.

From the Reserve Bank of Malawi

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN SUPERVISION OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

1. Revised minimum capital requirement
The RBM revised minimum paid up capital for banks and other financial institutions (leasing companies and discount houses) to K850.0 million and K250.0 million respectively. Therefore, all existing banks and other financial institutions whose paid up capital was less than K850.0 million and K250.0 million respectively are required to meet this new requirement which took effect on 1 January 2009 and exiting banking institutions were given a moratorium of 18 months from the effective date.

2. Credit Referencing
In a bid to improve credit risk assessment and preparation towards Basle II, banks, Bankers Association of Malawi and RBM have joined hands towards introduction of a credit reference unit. Efforts have been made towards endaging a service provider and drafting the enabling law. The Bill awaits enactment by Parliament.

3. Risk Based Supervision (RBS)
Pursuant to adoption of RBS by the RBM in 2007, the bank reviewed Risk Management Programmes (RMPs) from banks, held walk through presentations on RMPs by banks, conducted bank-wide presentations to give feed back to banks on generic observations on their submissions, conducted pilot risk based examinations, drafted the RBS examination manual and officially launched RBS on 9th January 2009. The RBM also issued guidelines on effective RMPs preparation.


4. Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism (AML/CFT)
There have been several anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) developments in the Reserve Bank of Malawi. The Reserve Bank of Malawi through Bank Supervision Department issued a Customer Due Diligence Directive (CDD Directive) in 2005 under the Banking Act. The Directive requires the banks to, inter-alia, appoint Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officers, put in place Know Your Customer (KYC) policies and report any suspicious transactions to the Reserve Bank of Malawi. With the enactment of the Money Laundering, Proceeds of Serious Crime and Terrorist Financing Act, 2006 (ML & TF Act), the obligations placed on the banks through the Directive have been amplified.


In May this year considering the enormous task of monitoring AML/CFT compliance in the financial sector, the Reserve Bank through Bank Supervision Department created a separate section within the department to monitor compliance with AML/CFT obligations placed on the banks through the CDD Directive and the AML/CFT Act.


NUMBER OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN MALAWI
As at end December 2008, the banking sector comprised eleven banks. These are National Bank of Malawi, Standard Bank Limited, First Merchant Bank Limited, NBS Bank Limited, INDEbank Limited, NEDBANK Malawi Limited, Malawi Savings Bank Limited, Opportunity International Bank of Malawi Limited, ECOBANK (formerly Loita Bank), FDH Bank Limited and International Commercial Bank (ICB). FDH Bank and ICB were licensed in 2008. In addition, First Merchant Bank owns a subsidiary, Leasing and Finance Company.

RULES ON APPOINTMENT OF COMMERCCIAL BANK DIRECTORS
It is not correct that RBM changed the rules on appointment of directors.
In approving appointments for commercial bank directors, the RBM is guided by the Banking Act (1989), Directive on Appointment of New Directors and Senior Management Officials (issued in March 2006) and International Standards pertaining to Fit and Proper Test for Directors embedded in the Core Principles for Effective Supervision.
In May 2009, all banks, discount houses and the leasing company were issued with a circular letter requesting them to regularise positions of any directors, and senior management officials who were already in those positions when the Directive was issued and were not vetted under the said Directive. Financial institutions were given 12 months from May 2009 to fully comply with the requirements of the Directive.

It is normal that after a thorough assessment, the Bank rejects names of persons proposed as directors of commercial banks who fail to pass the fit and proper test. Their side is heard from the information submitted by their banks. We are however not able to provide you will details and number of those rejected

Malawi’s forex blues: What went wrong?

The country is in deep foreign exchange crisis. The central bank will be rationing the little foreign currency the country has.
Local manufactures are threatened because they depend on this scarce resource.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) recently announced s projected 7.7 per cent economic growth, a downward spiral from the 7.9 per cent announced by Finance Minister Ken Kandodo when he presented his budget statement mid this year.
The economy seems to be wobbling towards the right direction yet Malawi is in a foreign exchange crisis of sorts. Just what went wrong, where?
Financial pundits agree that Malawi has been a net importer since attaining independence from former colonial master Britain in 1964. This means the country can not generate enough forex revenue and keep it within the country for long.
And Malawians must simply get used to this, says Thomas Munthali, president of the economic think tank- the Economics Association of Malawi.
Munthali says Malawi will never have adequate forex even during the best of economic times when donor inflows trickle down well enough, and the number one forex earner tobacco fetches well on the unpredictable market.
He attributes the country’s ongoing foreign exchange crisis to last year.
“The first mistake was that we bought too much fertilizer at very high prices in 2008, for use in the Farm Inputs Subsidy Programme. Fertilizer prices, which averaged US$650 in 2007/08, more than doubled to US$1600 per tonne in 2008/09 growing season. Despite all this price escalation, government bought an extra 83, 000 metric tonnes above what was required,” says Munthali.
This led to a more than doubled fertilizer import bill. Similarly, the high fuel prices in early 2008, which went as high as US$150 in July 2008, led to a more than doubled fuel bill towards the end of 2008 to early 2009, defining this year’s fate for Malawi.
The extra 83, 000 metric tonnes, feels Munthali, might have been imported due to prevalent fears that the prices would go up again- a good decision gone bad.
“This led to tying up of forex into stocks that could only be locally sold to the private sector under buy-back arrangements but in local currency. This was the one single mistake by government, but one which could not have been foreseen,” adds Munthali.
The economist says although it was a mistake made in the best interest of the nation, government should not have gone ahead because “the reading on the wall was showing signs of tapering off of the prices and we could have bought just what was enough”.
Munthali’s sentiments are shared by RBM’s General Manager Wilson Banda. He acknowledged that the crisis started as a result of a huge importation bill of fuel and fertilizer.
Banda said this, compounded with this year’s low tobacco earnings and the phenomenal economic growth the country has experienced in recent years, has caused forex shortages.
Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) president, Harrison Kalua, says the economy is moving in the right direction and this has resulted in people having staggering amounts of local currency.
This, too, is said to have fueled forex shortage problems.
“Because people have money, the demand for luxurious goods is high. We do not manufacture these goods, we import- therefore, we are using a lot of forex. We also require more forex,” said Kalua.
He added that, with increased agricultural productivity, the country was importing too much fertilizer.
“So, what has drained our forex is fertilizers and fuel,” he said.
Now that Malawi is nursing a forex shortage crisis, what is the way forward?
State President, Bingu wa Mutharika- himself a renowned economist- issued a directive last Wednesday to all ministers, their deputies and senior public and parastatal officials, asking them to cut down on foreign trips.
But Munthali argues that Mutharika should lead by example and reduce his entourage on his foreign trips. He advises the president to include only staff that would add value to such trips.
Former leader of opposition in Parliament, John Tembo, is on record to have slammed Mutharika over frequent foreign trips. Tembo, who got dethroned from the position last week, said Mutharika was proving to be one of the most frequent, exorbitant travelers in Malawi’s history, in the process drowning scanty government resources.
The fact that the country does not generate adequate forex implies that the black market will continue to thrive, even when the official rate is placed at its real value, analysts warn.
“The best way forward is to ensure that the local (Kwacha) currency stays at its true value so that exporters have it in abundance and can tap on it every time they need. There is also need to cramp down on the black market: fiscal police, RBM Intelligence Bureau, Immigration Department need to work closely in this regard, efforts that will help in sniffing off any forms of forex evasion and black market growth,” suggests Munthali.
Renowned economist Priston Msiska suggests that RBM works closely with commercial banks in minimizing importation of luxury goods.
Msiska faults commercial banks for easily facilitating importation of luxury goods. He adds that, at the end of the end, these items add up to million of United States Dollars annually.
“We also need to increase our efforts in generating forex. Currently, there are no incentives for the export business. Unless government comes up with incentives to export-business, people will continue to shun it and we will still have the problem perennial forex shortages,” he said.
One of such incentives could include non-charging of interest on half the money borrowed by people involved in export business, observers say.
The other exit strategy could be by creating companies locally, companies that will specialize in producing much sought after luxury goods.
“That’s the only way we can reduce our import bill,” says Kalua.

John Zenus Ungapake Tembo speaks on his ‘Leader of Opposition’ loss

Main opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president, John Zenus Ungapake Tembo, has blamed the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for his loss in the Leader of Opposition in Parliament tussle.
Tembo has been downed by a little-known political new-comer, 36-year-old Abel Kayembe. Kayembe is MCP Member of Parliament for Dowa West.
This is Tembo’s first reaction to his loss for the position of leader of opposition. Kayembe becomes Malawi’s third leader of opposition after Gwanda Chakuamba and Tembo himself.
The leader of opposition tag has, since the dawn of multiparty democracy in 1994, revolved around MCP leadership.
Tembo said what DPP is doing in Malawi is aimed at confusing and eliminating the opposition, whose first results were his fall as leader of opposition in Parliament.
“Tembo, who has been in politics for over 40 years, said there was no country in the 53-member strong Commonwealth bloc that uses MPs from both the opposition and government backbenchers to vote for leader of opposition.
“They just want to confuse the opposition and eliminate it,” said Tembo.
Kayembe won the leader of opposition post through a secret ballot the house conducted following change of standing orders which Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee drafted following a petition by late MP Ishmael Chafukira.
Chafukira was the defacto leader of an MCP pressure group advocating for leadership change.
“The DPP is abusing its majority in Parliament and this is bad for our democracy,” said Tembo.
The position of leader of opposition attracts an K800, 000 pay check every month, apart from an official Toyota VX government vehicle. It also attracts pay and remuneration as that of a full cabinet minister.
But the ruling DPP has disputed Tembo’s claims.
“They (opposition) are the ones that came up with names, including that of Tembo himself, Kayembe and Alfred Mwechumu of the United Democratic Front (UDF),” said government chief whip in Parliament Khumbo Kachali.
Kachali also serves as DPP’s second vice president, after vice president Joyce Banda and state president Bingu wa Mutharika.
Following the dramatic fall in the House, Tembo- who was powerful and called the shots in the last opposition-dominated Parliament (2004-May 2009)- has been relegated to the back benches as the MCP taskforce for leadership change, the party’s official rebel group, has taken over parliamentary affairs.
It is, however, not known for how long would the veteran politician, who was down in 1994 after the MCP lost power to Bakili Muluzi’s UDF. He was, however, up and running in the 1999 and 2004 elections as he became party presidential candidate. He lost both bids to the State House.
“This is too bad for our democracy; it is not what Malawians voted for in 1994, This is chaos,” said Tembo, for once appearing more angry.
Over the years, he might have let bags of anger bundle up inside him. It is only now that the pain could come to the fall now that the veteran politician has started speaking in negatives about political governance in the Southern African Development Community member-state.

Police force 16 year old into marriage

A 16-year-old girl stunned the Mzuzu Juvenile Court on Tuesday when she claimed that two police officers from the Northern region forced her to marry a man she never loved in exchange for police bail.
The girl, (name withheld for ethical purposes), told First Grade Magistrate Anthony Banda that two police officers from Enukweni Police Unit in Mzuzu, Malawi’s only city in the Northern region, threatened her with pro-longed detention if she rebuffed their idea of marrying the policemen’s preferred man.
The two police officers, identified as Sergeant Meckson Kayange and Constable Ishmael Rashid, forced the school-going girl to marry Kondwani Nyirenda. The officers have since been summoned to appear before the court.
“While in police custody, the two officers told me that I would be released on bail if I paid K6, 500,” said the girl, who was arrested on arson charges.
Her grandmother was forced to borrow K5, 500 to have the girl released, but the two officers received the money and refused to release the girl.
The girl told the court that the two officers only agreed to release her after the grandmother followed up the issue, and on condition that she does not return home but marry Nyirenda.
However, according to information presented in court, the girl went home and did not marry Nyirenda.
After noting this, the officers accompanied by a man from the area’s community police went to the girl’s home and threatened to beat and lock her up if she never honoured the condition.
The girl obliged and has been staying with Nyirenda till the day the matter went to court.
The girl said she was forced to reveal the officers’ conduct because, despite her honouring the ‘bail’ condition, the two officers have not returned the K5, 500 they received- and which the grandmother was failing to repay the lenders.
Police bail is free under Malawi laws, though it remains common practice for police officers to demand money in return for bail across the country.
Magistrate Banda ordered the two officers, Nyirenda and the grandmother to appear before court. However, he failed to hear the matter last Wednesday because the girl failed to come in time due to heavy rains that rocked Mzuzu on the day.
The case resumed Monday this week and will continue throughout the week.
If the allegations are proved true, Nyirenda could be convicted for rape because “submitting to sex because of threats is equivalent to rape”, said prosecutors.
The police officers could also be guilty of selling police bail, which is free. They could also answer charges of aiding a rapist.

Church fires ‘Gay’ cleric

Nkhoma Synod of the influential Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) has fired a church minister who allegedly tried to demonstrate how gays make love to an inquisitive ‘student’.
Reverend Simeon Banda was ministering at Kakoma CCAP Church located at Kamwendo in the Central Malawi district of Mchinji.
Banda confirmed his firing from the church, but described it as unfair since he was just “doing guidance and counseling with the inquisitive student”.
It all begun when Rev. Banda was invited to lecture at an Anglican institution in Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe. In the process of his lecturing, the cleric referred to same-sex marriages and intercourse as part of “the evil people do”.
His ‘victim’, a member of the audience, wondered how people of the same gender can have sex.
The Rev. then invited the inquisitive trainee to a room for a detailed explanation on how gays manage to have sex with each other. The pastor went all the way, demonstrating on the ’student’ in pure practical fashion- leaving nothing that has to be touched untouched, and all holes that must be filled temporarily rocked.
Said Martin Chalimba Saiwa, a member of the audience: “That is how the Reverend sodomised him. In fact, the boy came out very, very weak; he even had difficulties to walk.”
However, Rev, Banda dismissed these claims.
“It is sad that it was reported this way. I did not do that. In fact, I am still waiting to hear from the Synod on the grounds fro my firing<” said Banda.
Nevertheless, Banda admitted having shared the same, isolated room with the boy.
“I did that to pray for him. He wants to become an Anglican reverend in future. I pray and I am able to visualize if one can make it as a reverend. I was praying for him but he reported it wrongly after I left,” said Banda.
Nkhoma Synod General Secretary, Reverend Davidson Chifungo, wondered why such a story should be published.
“We have our own internal mechanisms when dealing with such issues. It is, therefore, not good for us to comment. By the way, why publish such a story,” queried Chifungo.
The matter also led to the suspension of Kakoma CCAP session clerk Joseph Uledi, who was accused of shielding the cleric.
Uledi was also accused of writing a letter to Chileka CCAP where Rev. Banda is currently praying. The letter cleared the embattled cleric and permitted him to receive Holy Communion.
Uledi denied ever shielding the Reverend.
“This story came to us through the Presbytery office but, before all the processes were finished, we received a letter from the synod copied to Reverend Banda, Kakoma CCAP and Mchinji Presbytery.
“In the letter, I was accused of not telling church members about the synod letter stopping Reverend Banda. How could I do that without being instructed by authorities to tell the church members?” queried Uledi.
Uledi was suspended on October 23 this year.
Other Kakoma Church members said they heard that Rev. Banda attempted to sodomised the boy “but he did not do it”.
Anglican authorities reported that matter to Nkhoma Synod, who investigated the issue and consequently fired Reverend Banda.
But Banda said this week he was not heard before the decision was made.
On two occasions, members of Kakoma CCAP sent back a lorry sent by the synod to transfer Reverend Banda to his home.
Apparently, this was because they were not told of the allegations. This angered synod officials, consequently suspending the session clerk Uledi.
Reverend Banda is now staying as a layman in Blantyre, Malawi’s commercial city.

Zimbabwe fails to settle US$20m bill for Malawi maize

The Malawi government will have to pay K2.8 billion to the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) following failure by the Zimbabwe government to pay back money RBM paid on its behalf to local maize suppliers to export maize to Harare in 2007.
RBM records indicate that the loan should have been repaid by December 21, 2008, a date that was revisited following Harare’s failure to settle the bill. The date was extended to December 3, 2009, after which date Lilongwe will bear the legal responsibilities for repayment of the loan.
RBM General Manager, Wilson Banda, confirmed the development. He said the central bank chalked an agreement with the Malawi government, authorizing the bank to make available a US$100 million (K14 billion) facility to Zimbabwe from which funds were withdrawn to pay Malawian maize suppliers for the export of the staple food to Zimbabwe.
Under the Lilongwe-guaranteed facility, the Zimbabwe government was supposed to repay the money after every US$20 million (K2.8 billion) paid to maize suppliers.
“Things only worked well during the first year because the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe was honouring the agreement. However, we were forced to suspend the facility in 2008 after Zimbabwe lapsed on payments,” said Banda.
Banda said, currently, Zimbabwe still owes Malawi K2.8 billion (US$20 million) and the government of Malawi is under obligation to pay back the money to RBM once the agreed period of payment lapses.
RBM is, meanwhile, exploring other means of forcing the Zimbabwe government pay, according to RBM officials.
RBM’s 2008 Annual Report indicates, however, that the central bank does not have any significant credit risk exposure on the facility with Zimbabwe since, in the event of default, the loss will be transferred to Malawi government by December 31, 2009.
The loan facility attracts interest at the three months rate of the London Interbank Offerage (LIBOR) plus 2 per cent and is repayable within ninety days of each advance.
The report further indicates that the loan was in arrears as at December 31, 2008 because it should have been repaid by December 21, 2008.
Officials at the Zimbabwean embassy in Malawi refused to comment on the issue, saying the central bank of Zimbabwe was best placed to shed more light on the issue.

Vendors return to demolished market

Vendors have defied Blantyre City Assembly (BCA) orders to vacate the premises outside Blantyre Flea Market because they are not a designated market place.
Over 60 vendors have since returned to the place, some four months after city officials burnt the ramshackle structures at the place to ashes in a mid-night raid that took vendors by surprise.
Secretary for the vendors committee, Lukas Salima, told Nyasa Times they have decided to go back because BCA has failed to give them another place.
“Most of us depend on this (vending) for our survival, and had nowhere to go after that operation. Imagine some of us even lost property worth over K300, 000 and had to go and raise new capital. It will be sad if the assembly comes to demolish our structures again,” said Salima.
Some of the vendors have already put up more ramshackle structures, and business seems to have gone back to normal.
But BCA Chief Executive Officer, Lycester Bandawe, said the assembly will continue to up root structures in undesignated market structures, and warned the vendors of more trouble should they stick to their guns.
“The main reason behind their decision, I think, is to run away from paying (city) market rates. These people always refuse to pay their rates, saying they are plying in undesignated places. We will make sure they move out of the place,” said Bandawe.

Little progress on Mibawa bus depot renovations

The Minibus Association of Malawi (MAM) has failed to finish construction of an up to date bus terminal at Mibawa in Blantyre, delaying a multi-million Kwacha project projected to have ended earlier this year.
MAM challenged government to accord it a place, promising to construct a modern bus terminal at Mibawa. But, three years after making the promise, there is little more to show at Mibawa than mounds of dust.
Coxley Kamange, MAM Publicity Secretary, maintained, however, that the association will construct a modern facility at Mibawa.
“Of course, there have been some delays but our offer still stands. That is why we have constructed, at least, four concrete stands that only need sheltering. We plan to finish the project after the rains,” said Kamange.
The delays have irked some MAM members, who accuse the secretariat of playing seek and hide.
“Why has it taken so long to finish construction when our (members) contributions reached K60 million by June this year? We are very worried because of lack of transparency,” said Michael Chunga, a member of the association.
But Kamange promised to provide a comprehensive audit report for the members, hoping this would erase fears of lack of transparency.

Nali eyes Middle East markets

Nali Group of Companies, which once exported trial consignments of chilies products to European markets, says it now plans to start exporting to the Middle East as a key part of its products’ portfolio objective to saturate international markets.
This follows the group’s relative success in saturating some key regional markets. Nali currently exports to Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa, among other Southern African Development Community member states. It now looks forward to the newly launched Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Customs Union.
But Edward Labuwa Khoromana, the group’s Assistant Managing Director and Managing Director for Nali’s Exports Department, respectively, said huge transportations costs had always worked against the company’s market expansionist programmes.
Labuwa Khoromana cited the company’s failure to continue exporting large consignments to Europe, though market feedback indicated many customers had fallen for the Malawi chilies products, saying huge costs, mainly related to transport, were giving other market players some unfair advantage.
Malawi is a land-rocked country that depends on Mozambique, Tanzania or South Africa, among other port nations, for long distance transportation needs. This has often meant an extra transportation bill for exporters and importers, the cost of which is fractioned in consumer products and thus making shelf prices more expensive for the local consumer.
“We are a land rocked country and this has tended to disadvantage Malawian companies wishing export local products and leave a mark on the international market. You will find that most of our international competitors sell their products at much cheaper prices than us,” said Labuwa Khoromana.
According to Labuwa Khoromana, another crucial factor for Malawian companies wishing to explore European, Asian and Middle Eastern markets hinged on consistent production and output. Unpredictable weather, which is crucial in the production of chilies, misfiring energy sources and persistent water problems had conspired against local companies and, when pitted against foreign manufacturers, left them wanting.
This has one major implication, he added. Since most international companies and consumers who place orders for Malawian products are strict on deadlines, Malawian players find themselves in a precarious situation- challenges that can, otherwise, be overcome by improving the water, electricity and transport infrastructure system.
“Otherwise, we have the potential to make it big.. We tried it when we sent trial consignments to Europe, and, from the look of things, consumers loved our products. You can see this potential in the way Nali has managed to saturate the regions market,” said Labuwa Khoromana.
The group- which has three subsidiaries in Nali Export, Nali Motel and Nali Farms- currently exports chilies and pigeon peas to Zambia, Mozambique. Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Nali Export, which is responsible for the manufacturing and exports of chilies products and pigeon peas, needs 250 tonnes of pepper annually.
Labuwa Khoromana said, through farmers associations and other chilies’ products suppliers, the company was able to meet both local and international demand. Unpredictable weather patterns still remained a challenge, however, since satisfactory production of crop products depended largely on rainfall patterns.
“Production has been encouraging. Some consumers may remember that we once ventured into tinned-fruit (products) manufacturing but stopped that line of business due to poor supply of fruits. Now things have changed, production has picked up, and arrangements are in place to re-venture into that line of business gain,” said Labuwa Khoromana.
He said Nali planned some heavy investments as it repositions itself and focus on exploring new markets in the Middle East, United States of America and European Union. It has since started outsourcing chilies produce and now counts Mangochi, Nkhotakota and Nkhatabay districts as part of its catchment area- in addition to the traditional source districts of Mulanje and Thyolo.
From humble beginnings, when it got incorporated in 1974, Nali Group of Companies has seen itself grow from an institution that once produced its own chilies products through a family farm, to one that can out source, export and build on its wide range of flavour- now at eight.
Labuwa Khoromana said his company wanted to compliment government’s efforts in turning Malawi from a predominantly consuming and importing nation to a dominant exporter, a goal that depended very much on infrastructural development in the core areas of water, transport and electricity.

Malawi cotton insecticides oroject

Malawi IPM project 03: Evaluation of two insecticides Polytrin C (profenofos + cypermethrin pre-mix) and Fantom C (profenofos + lambda-cyhalothrin pre-mix) for the control of sucking, leaf-eating and bollworm pests of cotton in Malawi
Duration: 1 year (2002 to 2003)
Purpose: To evaluate the performance of two pesticides, namely, Polytrin C 440EC consisting of profenofos and cypermethrin and Fantom C (= Polytrin Ka 315 EC) consisting of a pre-mix of and profenofos and lambda-cyhalothrin for the control of sucking, leaf-eating and bollworm pests in Malawi. Comparisons were also to be made on the performance of Polytrin C and Fantom C in relation to other recent cotton production technologies, such as how the two complement seed treatment.
Background/description: Although cotton represents a major source of employment, income, raw material for the local and international textile industry and a key option for poverty reduction in Malawi, its production has recently dwindled. Many constraints have caused the shrinkage in the industry largely due to unfavourable prices that have previously been offered to growers. The current two or three major buyers present in the country who have also been facilitating farmers in increasing the productivity of their crop are providing an assured market and thus addressing the price aspect. The realities of cotton production in Malawi are that while addressing the price issue, it would complementarily increase productivity if the hosts of other constraints that militate against increasing cotton productivity were addressed concurrently. Among these constraints are arthropod pest attacks that start quite early in the season with seedling and leaf-feeders, and sucking pests. The attacks go on throughout the season with flower feeders and bollworms coming on later in the crop phenology till the fruiting bodies split. Major pests of cotton in Malawi include those that attack seedlings such as elegant grasshopper Zonocerus elegans and termites, sucking pests such as Aphis gossypii, red spider mites Tetranychus spp., and jassids Jacobiella fascialis, bollworms Helicoverpa armigera and Earias spp., and in some areas of Malawi pink bollworm Pectinophora gossypiella. Pest damage in cotton continues till boll-splitting and harvest when the lint gets stained by Dysdercus and A. gossypii, while the former also feeds on seeds. Arthropod pests on cotton in Malawi can account for a yield gap of over 40% and is substantial. Due to the extreme attractiveness of cotton to arthropod infestations and damage, pest management remains one of the most dominant components of the cotton production enterprise in Malawi. For efficiency to achieved in pest management, it is essential for growers to be availed with improved pesticide application approaches that also employs improved pesticides that are convenient to use, user and environmentally friendly, and cost effective, and products able to circumvent the induction of pesticide resistance. Consideration of these issues creates an enabling environment for the availability of improved pesticides that form a key component of an integrated pest management strategy. While recognizing that the standard pesticide recommendation in Malawi involves the use of dimethoate, carbaryl and cypermethrin, in this order, use of effective pre-mixed products would be an improvement to this recommendation. Such pre-mixes may actually avail potentiation opportunities, which would address the considerations earlier mentioned of convenience, efficiency and prevention of pesticide resistance development.
Agro-ecological zone(s) and location(s): Lakeshore and Lower Shire in Malawi
Expected outputs: Improved technology for integrated pest management of major sucking, leaf-eating and bollworm pests of cotton in Malawi. The technology incorporates a pesticide pre-mix with high potentiation that reduces the number of sprays per season while effectively suppressing pest damage and increasing seed cotton yield enhancing natural enemy activity including Chrysopids, Coccinelids and Syrphids. The pre-mix further reduces frequency of operator’s exposure to two different pesticides in a growing season and this is a health bonus.
Potential impact and beneficiaries: There was a yield increase of high quality seed cotton (especially Grade A) by using either of the two pre-mix pesticides (profenofos plus cypermethrin and profenofos plus lambda-cyhalothrin respectively) that were tested, especially when the seed had been pre-treated. Both products were more effective in controlling major cotton pests that would otherwise have depressed yields and also had a greater economic advantage than the current standard pest management regime in cotton in Malawi. As the country has at least 100,000 cotton growers, the benefits of adopting the improved technology can be expected to have a huge socio-economic impact, especially if current support to the marketing of the crop is sustained.
Partners: George Phiri, Foster Kazionetsa, Hastings Wakudyanaye, Stanley Meke & Francis Mutetwa
Development investor(s): Syngenta (Zimbabwe)
Project contact person(s)/principal investigator(s): George Phiri, george.phiri@iucn.org, Makoka Reserach Station

MALAWI: GSCE MATHEMATICS SOFT WARE DEVELOPED

It is an innovation that Malawian secondary school going students and their teachers will greatly value, that is perhaps how one can describe the Computer Package for Secondary School Mathematics (CPSSM) a computer software that has been developed by Alinune Musopole formerly a student of the polytechnic one of the constituent colleges of the University of Malawi.
While many Malawian secondary school students have been, shunning mathematics because of the difficulties they find in solving mathematical problems due to shortage of reference books Musopole said his invention would motivate many students to have passion for the subject.
“Having experienced what it takes to master the science of solving mathematical problems as a secondary school student, I felt there could still be a simpler way to train students so that they understand the subject,” said Musopole.
He said the windows based CPSSM which is currently under developmental stages can solve almost all GCE O level mathematical problems and he was currently improving it.

Anthu okana kusamuka mphepete mwamiseu akulepheretsa ntchito zachitukuko

Akuluakulu amzinda waBlantyre adati akukambiranabe ndianthu okhala m’taunishipi yaMbayani ndimadera ena zaubwino osamuka mphepete mwanjira zomwe akufuna zikhale miseu yaphula, chinthu chomwe chidzapangitse kuti malo ambiri akhale ndimiseu yaphula.
Mbayani ndiimodzi mwamataunishipi amumzinda waBlantyre womwe akhala ndimwayi wokhala ndimseu waphula, koma mkulu wamzinda waBlantyre Dr. Lester Bandawe adadandaula polankhula ndimtolankhani wathu kuti anthu ena sakufuna kusamuka mphepete mwaseu.
A Bandawe adati zimenezi zapangitsa kuti ntchito zachitukuko zichedwe m’madera ambiri, mwinanso kulephereka kumene.
“Chitukuko monga chamiseu yaphula chikamabwera, sipamalephera kukhala nyumba zingapo zoti zigwetsedwe. Chomvetsa chisoni m’chakuti anthu ambiri amavuta zikafika pankhani imeneyi, ndipo izi zikubwezeretsa m’mbuyo ntchito yoika miseu m’boma laBlantyre,” adatero aBandawe.
Iwo adapereka chitsanzo chataunishipi yaMbayani, koma kwaikidwa phula chaka chino patatenga nthawi yaitali anthu akudandaula ndifumbi nthawi yachilimwe komanso matope amnanu nthawi yadzinja. A Bandawe adati pali anthu ena omwe akukanabe kusamuka kuti mseu ukafike kutali.
“Mpaka pano tikukambiranaber ndianthu amenewa,” adatero mkuluyu.
Mzinda waBlantyre udalembera m’gwilizano wamizinda yolemera kwambiri padziko lonse lapansi, omwe umadziwika ndidzina lokuti Cities’ Alliance, ndipo imodzi mwantchito zomwe mzindawu ukufuna kuchita ukalandira thandizo ndikumanga miseu yaphula.
Mzindawu, Malingana ndiaBandawe, ukugwiranso ntchito ndinthambi yamgwirizano wamaiko onse apadziko lapansi pazachitukuko, UNDP, pofuna kuthetsa vuto lakuchuluka kwanyumba yazisakasa mumzindawu.
“Tikufuna kuti chitukuko chifike m’madera onse. Miseu yaphula komanso nyumba zabwino zimapangitsa kuti chitukuko chitsekuke m’madera omwe ndikale onse adalibe danga lotelo,” adatero aBandawe.

Malawi's country profile

http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/malawi.htm

Remembering Malawi's elections

Showers disturb voters’ roll verification clerks
By Richard Chirombo
Rain showers on Wednesday morning affected clerks currently engaged in
the voter verification exercise ahead of the May19, 2009 parliamentary
and presidential elections.
A visit to the Electoral Commission’s (EC) offices by AEP-Malawi
established that the clerks are working on an open ground within EC’s
premises, a development some of the clerks said was rendering their
job difficult.
This became evident when, from around 11:00am to 12:20pm, light
showers forced the workers to seek the shelter of a building just
nearby, but even that was not enough for cover since the clerks are
many in number.
Already, concerns are growing that the electoral body could miss the
May19,2009 elections deadline, assertions EC’s chairperson, Justice
Anastasia Msosa, parried aside at a press briefing last Friday.
One of the clerks complained that they were being subjected to an
environment that could effectively impair their output and fan fears
the elections date may be shifted to another date.
Msosa has, however, assured voters that, come what may, the elections
are on. She said Malawians could as well start preparing for that task
of standing in a queue ready to effect decisions (one of parliamentary
candidate, the other for president) that could as well define the
destiny of the Southern African Development Community member state for
the next five years.

Comesa observer mission in Thursday
By Richard Chirombo
The sight of people in Southern African Development Community (SADC)
observer mission attire is fast becoming a part of city wear in
Malawi’s commercial city of Blantyre. That is typical of Africa, a
continent that believes in the communal mythology of ‘a friend in need
is a friend in deed’.
Yet, Malawi has so many such friends. The Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa (COMESA) being one. Where are COMESA officials,
who are supposed to be here in good time and observe events as they
unfold in the run up to the elections Tuesday next week?
Time to hold the mouth as AEP-Malawi can reveal that COMESA’s observer
team jets in tomorrow, on Thursday, through Kamuzu International
Airport in Lilongwe, the Capital city.
The development acts as an assurance to voters that, after all, the
polls are here on May19, 2009- and that any told of postponement hold
no more water. There have been growing worries voting may be postponed
due to uncertainties over completion of the voters’ roll verification
process.
But the Electoral Commission has assured voters that the reality of
holding the elections on May19 were as stuck in the deep waters of
certainty as the Titanic once was. There simply is no cause for
concern or postponement, both EC’s chairperson Justice Anastasia Msosa
and the electoral body’s spokesperson Fegus Lipenga have said time
without number.
The European Union observer mission arrived sometime back. All the
observer teams will, alongside local NGOs and electoral monitors,
ensure the elections are held under the curtain of transparency.
This helps losers accept defeat with dignity and reduces incidences of
violence, says Life line Malawi’s Executive Director, Kenwilliams
Mhango.
Mhango, a man of many huts- former Malawi Congress of Trade Unions
president, African Network for the Protection of Child Abuse and
Neglect Malawi Chapter Country Director, Life line Malawi’s Executive
Director, Human Rights Consultative Committee’s board member, and
human rights activist, among other huts- wants Malawians to forget
their many huts on May19, and wear one hut- the single-minded
convicted that the elections were free and fair.
“This leads into some dignified acknowledgement of defeat by losers
and considerate acceptance of victory by the side with many votes- our
system being based of ‘First-past-the-post’. In the end, peace
prevails and democracy wins. This is the sort of democracy we want in
Malawi, and the monitors help us a lot in this regard,” said Mhango.

News on Malawi Tourism plans

http://allafrica.com/stories/200904210856.html

Malawi portal

http://malawi.ahibo.com/

The big test that was May, 19 2009

Electoral body urges no panic over electoral calendar
By Richard Chirombo
The Electoral Commission (EC) has dispelled fears Malawi could miss
out on the May 19, 2009 Parliamentary and Presidential elections date
in the wake of delays to finish the Voters’ Roll verification process
in good time.
With work on the roll barely half-way done, the verification process
is far from being completed- a development that has prompted the EC to
cast its net wide in search of personnel, culminating into
advertisement messages for prospective workers to come forth. It is
intimated that the process could take five days, with prospects for
extension.
EC Spokesperson, Fegus Lipenga, said the development should not scare
voters, as everything was still under control.
“Nothing has changed, in terms of the dates for the elections. In
fact, that is what we are working towards in all our efforts and
preparation. We strongly believe that we will finish the verification
process in good time,” said Lipenga.
Lipenga said everything was going according to plan, though
developments enveloping the issue of voters’ verification could not
have been foreseen. All the same, there was no need to press the panic
baton, he said.
Some political parties have expressed concern over delays to finish
off with the verification process, saying that could affect timing of
the elections.

50-50 gender campaign monitoring, evaluation starts in two weeks’ time
By Richard Chirombo
The Ministry of Women and Child Development, in collaboration with
Civil Society Organizations that were taking part in a project aimed
at ensuring that, at least, half of parliamentary sits after the May
19, 2009 elections are amassed by women (50-50 campaign), have
announced that monitoring and evaluation (M and e) of the campaign
process commences in two weeks’ time.
The campaign was initiated following perceived continued suppression
on Malawian women, especially leadership positions that could
influence over-all national development programmes. The Malawian woman
is said to be disadvantaged by traditional, cultural stereotyping,
poverty and high levels of illiteracy, challenges that have cast women
to the far end of most national processes despite their constituting
over half of the country’s population (52 per cent).
Linley Kamtengeni, the Ministry’s expert on Women, Girls, HIV and
AIDS, said in an exclusive interview in Blantyre M and E was crucial
to successful implementation of future women empowerment projects- a
requisite process if Malawi was to meet Southern African Development
Community and other international protocols on gender and female
empowerment.
She defended the idea to sponsor only women when gender encompassed
both the sexes (male and female), saying while both men and women
faced a fair share of challenges, it were the women who were more
disadvantaged hence the campaign to help them attain positions of
influence in society.
“We can say so far, so good. We have seen most women coming out of
their cocoons to challenge men for political positions, but we can not
fairly say how deep we have gone in up-rooting misconceptions about
women without monitoring and evaluation. That is why we are starting
the process in two weeks’ time,” said Kamtengeni.
The Non-Governmental Organizations Gender Support Network (NGO-GCN), a
network of Malawian civil society organizations that was coordinating
the campaign, confirmed the development. NGO-GCN’s Coordinator, Eunice
Chamgomo, said the process, to start in two weeks time, would help
implementers of the 50-50 campaign to plan forward because campaigning
for women empowerment was an on-going process.
Chamgomo said, while the process could not be of immediate benefits to
women contesting in the May 19, 2009 parliamentary and presidential
elections (due to the time factor to the polls), it could help
Malawians gauge where they could have done better and where they did
better.
“This is a very importance process for us. We are committed to women
empowerment, especially in electoral processes, that we are leaving no
stone unturned. We want to help our women to stand up for their rights
and be counted,” said Chamgomo.

Gaming still viewed negatively despite clean sheet

The Malawi Gaming Board (MGB) has bemoaned continued negative public perceptions about gaming in the country, saying contrary to such perceptions Malawi has been one of the few Gaming Regulators Africa Forum (Graf) members to maintain a clean sheet since 1996.

MGB’s Gaming Inspector, Duncan Gondwa, attributed the zero-crime record in response to a questionnaire to the enactment of the Malawi Gaming Act in 1996 to regulate and control all forms of gaming in the country, and leading to the MGB’s establishment.

Gondwa said perceptions of gaming as “evil and a source of crime” could have been true prior to 1996, when gaming activities in form of slot machines and were not regulated. It took the efforts of the Department of Tourism, Parks and Wildlife to ensure standard regulations for the sector were put in place.

“Generally, the public has negative perceptions of gaming, as they consider it as evil and a source of crime, which is not correct. That is why the Gaming Board was established to regulate and sensitize the public on these issues so that it should be conducted in a free manner. No one has been prosecuted for crime-gaming in Malawi since it does not exist (in the country),” said Gondwa.

He defended the assertions that crime-gaming did not exist in the country, saying he was so sure because of the measures put in place such as effective monitoring mechanisms through periodic and surprise visits, sensitization campaigns, and strict regulation

He said gaming could be one way of providing entertainment and thus generating business opportunities, as well as promoting tourism in a number of ways and, therefore, acting as a foreign exchange earner.

On prospects for the sector, the Gaming Instructor said the market was growing as compared to the years 1996 and 2002, as there were very few gaming sites. But due to increased public awareness, opening of more gaming establishments and increased regulation, which has instilled discipline to operators, the sector was growing steadily.

The Board, however, acknowledged that gaming could be addictive. He added that such cases have so far been prevented through civic education, promotion of responsible gaming to stakeholders and enforcement of internal controls.

“Cases of gaming addiction have not been registered in Malawi (either), and that is because of the three reasons. The Board has responsibility to promote responsible gaming while marketing of the game was the responsibility of the operators,” he said.

Gondwa hoped that establishment of modern gaming establishments could make the game even more attractive to Malawian patrons. The country has less than ten gaming enterprises.

Lest we forget, Barack Obama came to Africa in 2008

http://www.america.gov/obama_ghana.html?gclid=CMiG5-G-vJ4CFcx25QodNG2_ow

Malawi government and tourism agencies

http://www.worldtourismdirectory.com/directory/africa/malawi/category/government_tourism_agencies/t4/ministry_of_tourism/index.html

Malawi Tourism Association

http://www.malawi-tourism-association.org.mw/

You are not in Malawi without Sunbird hotels and resorts

http://www.sunbirdmalawi.com/

Ministry of Information Malawi

http://www.malawi.gov.mw/information1/index.info.htm

One Sight reaches out to Fresh Air Fund

This past summer, OneSight reached out to The Fresh Air Fund and helped over 3,000 NYC children with a traveling optical clinic. OneSight was able to screen all Fresh Air campers and if necessary, provide free glasses to anyone who needed them. I thought that this would be an issue you and the readers of Zachimalawi would care about. I was hoping you could post a mention to help this worthy cause. I've created a social media microsite which explains everything:

http://freshairvision.org

By supporting The Fresh Air Fund we are able to partner with organizations like OneSight to provide free eye exams and eyewear to the children who need them each year.

Blantyre HIV prevalence at 12%

The rate of HIV infections in Blantyre have stalled for the past two years, stagnating at 12 per cent, down from 15 per cent six years ago.
This was confirmed by Blantyre City Assembly HIV and AIDS Co-ordinator Lithiar Ngulube on December 1, as Malawi joined the rest of the world in commemorating World AIDS Day.

Mentors Feedback on abstract writing

1. Yes, the tack chosen to this specific abstract is correctly?

2. Yes, the title does reflect on the content of the abstract, but I would work further on the abstract so that it can eliminate acronyms, such as JLHIV and instead add the full sentence as “Journalists Living with HIV/AIDS” (JLHIV)

3. Somewhat. I recommend that further exploration be made on the gaps and success of the project. At the same time the next steps need a lot of revision. I would look at the analysis and assessment of the project and how these recommendation from the qualitative work will be used to increase to end HIV/AIDS based stigma and discrimination.

4. The abstract has wonderful ideas but further work needs to be looked at allowing for the ideas and methodology of the abstract can have coherence. I’d start out by looking at the further policy formulation and impact findings that came out of the project.

5. No, each section does not provide relevant information. Specifically section “NEXT STEPS”. There’s know indication of how the project will be used, how finding from the project will be used to strengthen advocacy and project barriers.

Language, Grammar:

1. Yes, correct terminology is used within the abstract. I would really be careful using acronyms. Acronyms are wonderful but should not be used as a stand still.

2. Further work and attention should be used to assist in spelling. My recommendation is to go over spelling with a colleague, which may assist in catching any spelling errors which exist.

3. Yes, the language is concise and clear.

4. The abstract is well-written and easy to follow. I would only recommend that further work be made on section next steps.

Scientific Design: Background:

1. I find there the abstract show weak objectives, which leaves the me wondering what the objective of the project was, its impact and how the finding will be used.

2. Yes, the research design is sound but needs further work. The only thing shown with the abstract are the questions from submitter.

Materials and Methods:

1. Yes, the methodology used within the study is appropriate.

2. I don’t believe that explanation was provided on the reason as to why the author used the method and its purpose. The abstract does indicate the type of methods used and how, but not as to why this specific method was selected.

3. Yes, the data analysis and interpretation is appropriate. I’d clarify further on findings from the data analysis as case examples.

Results/Conclusions:

1. There is failure to provide an appropriate conclusion and explanation to the conclusion.

2. The study touch on a issues and dimensions which allow of reduction of stigma and lessons learnt. The project lack policy innovation. If changes were made and further information was provided as indicated above in many of the recommendations I believe that new innovation findings could be identified.

3. Yes, the abstract does provide new insights.

4. No, the results are not analyzed in a broader context. Further work needs to be made which provide results in the abstract derived from the findings made.

5. Yes, the future implications of the study are discussed. However, there is a lack on the type of policy changes and/or interventions need to be assessed and implemented to look at those future implications.

What's up in the United Kingdom?

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills - 02 Dec 2009 06:00
Great British Institution to Expand Financial Services Offer
------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Business Secretary Lord Mandelson today opened a public
consultation on new financial products and services that could be
offered by the Post Office.


http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-news-1.nsf/lfi/409151

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Maritime and Coastguard Agency - 02 Dec 2009 03:02
FALMOUTH COASTGUARD CO-ORDINATE RESCUE OF FIVE FROM YACHT OFF CAPE VERDE ISLANDS
------------------------------------------------------------------------

383-09
Falmouth Coastguard co-ordinated the rescue of five
British crew from a sailing yacht 325 nautical miles west of the Cape
Verde Islands overnight.






http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-news-1.nsf/lfi/409183

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Process Automation for SharePoint without ‘Consultant Overhead’ Costs
------------------------------------------------------------------------

In a recent IDG survey, 62% of CIOs said that Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (SharePoint) was a critical component of their technology portfolio, especially for business process management (BPM). However, they did have issues with SharePoint ranging from: insufficient workflow processes, disorganised content, to lack of an over-arching site creation strategy.

Serena’s Lean BPM makes managing your business processes underlying SharePoint fast & simple. Using the drag-and-drop visual online interface you can have new processes up, running & producing returns in hours rather than months. Based on solutions currently deployed within Education, Local Government, Defence, Central Government and Criminal Justice, Serena are currently offering FREE public sector workshops, during which they will design & build a business process of your choice on your site. At the end of the session this automated process will be yours to keep!

See how you can integrate all your service delivery systems rather than having a disparate set of unlinked workflows. Best of all see how you can develop them in-house!

Click the link below to find out more about the workshops and to receive your free copy of the latest paper, ‘Living with Microsoft SharePoint: The Facts’


http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-directory-1.nsf/slh?Open&dc=DNWA-7X2BZF&usr=DNWA-7XXKGX


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wired-GOV Plus Newsletter

Our weekly round-ups of key government announcements, analysis and researched links to additional documents, consultations, white papers, reports and more

http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-content-1.nsf/wfWGPlusLanding?ReadForm

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Industry News

UK government and public sector case studies, white papers, success stories and contract awards

http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-content-1.nsf/wfIndustryNewsView?ReadForm

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Special Reports

An in-depth look at current topics that goes beneath the headlines to provide a detailed review of public sector issues & solutions

http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-content-1.nsf/wfSpecialReports?ReadForm=1

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Events

Forthcoming public sector events, conferences and seminars

http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-events-1.nsf/wfCalendar?ReadForm


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If you wish to end your subscription to Wired-GOV, please use the following link:

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Malawi to cough more to avert fuel crisis

http://www.africanews.com/site/Malawi_Six_million_Euro_to_save_fuel_crisis/list_messages/28304

Malawi and AIDS drugs

http://www.africanews.com/site/Malawi_to_manufacture_local_AIDS_drugs/list_messages/28302

Children and the Malawi government

Children need various types of support ranging from those things necessary for survival, such as food and health care, to those interventions that will provide a better quality of life in the future such as education, psychosocial support and economic self-sufficiency. In an ideal world all children would have access to all types of high quality services. In the real world many children, orphaned and not, are malnourished, sick and without shelter. Some argue that a comprehensive programme to support children should include all essential elements including food, health care, education, clothes, shoes, bedding, psychosocial support, economic self-sufficiency, etc. Others hold that some of these elements are not ‘essential’ or far exceed the situation of most children living in poor households with both their parents.
Each country will make its own decisions about what types of support to provide in light of the availability of funding, level of need and socio-economic situation. In this analysis we provide estimates of resources needed for six categories of support:
• Food: Food and clean water are the most basic need for all children. Food supplied from external sources could actually reduce food security in the long run if it disrupts the local market, but food procured locally or produced through community gardens can contribute to local food security. Food may be provided as either bulk grain needing preparation or as cooked meals.
• Health care: The need for health care includes childhood immunizations and vitamin supplements for children under five, routine health care for all and reproductive health services for older children aged 10–17. In some countries health care is free for all children or for the youngest children. However, patients often have to pay for drugs and supplies. Some have argued that orphan-related programmes should advocate for free health care for all children rather than focus on providing funding to pay for care for children. However, in that case additional resources would need to be made available to governments to provide free care to families.
• Education: This includes school fees where they exist, funds required for uniforms, books and other supplies, and special fees. Many countries have eliminated school fees and additional advocacy efforts could help to eliminate them in other countries as well, but the extra costs of uniforms, supplies and special assessments can still be substantial.
• Family/home support: This category includes clothes, shoes, bednets and economic self-sufficiency. The need for bednets will vary depending on local climate and other conditions. In many cases donated clothes and shoes are available at no cost, but reliance on donated goods may not be sustainable as programmes scale up considerably. Economic self-sufficiency refers to programmes to provide older children and/or their families with economic support such as microfinance loans, skills training, grants or seeds.
• Community support: This includes identification of vulnerable children and funding for community workers who can assess needs, organize support and provide some counselling and individual support. Many community workers will be volunteers but significant funds may still be required for training and transportation.
• Other services: We have not explicitly included costs for national-level advocacy and legislative reform. These may be needed in many countries to address specific issues such as school fees, the cost of health care or child protection. Also many important activities such as memory books, camps etc. are assumed to be covered under community support but these may require additional resources beyond the community worker training and support included here. We have included an estimate of the costs of administering support programmes including fund raising, planning, research etc. This category applies to the organizational costs of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) providing support or central administration costs for government-run programmes.

‘BUILDING A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE FREE COMMUNITY PROJECT

ORGANISATION
Name: Youth Guide Concern
Year of established: 2004
Contact person: Ephraim Chimwaza [Executive Director]
Address: P.O BOX 218 ,Lunzu ,Malawi.
Telephone: [265] 999 458 907
Email: youthguideconcern@yahoo.com

BACK GROUND
Youth Guide Concern is a registered non profitable making community based organization committed to empowering women, youth and children to prevent HIV/AIDS and promoting women’s and children rights.

ORGANISATION GOAL
To reduce the death and sufferings caused by HIV/AIDS and promoting the rights of women, youth and children in the community.

ORGANISATION STRUCTURE
Board of trustees – Executive Director-Project Director- Secretary- Finance Officer-Project Officers - Field Officers- Volunteers –Community.

ORGANISATION ACTIVITIES
1.Conducting community advocacy meetings on women and children rights promotions.
2.Establishing community women and child rights clubs.
3.Train community based women and child rights protecting officers.
4.Conducting community meetings on HIV/AIDS and domestic violence prevention.
5.Providing vital emotional support and guidance to victimized women and children.
6.Assisting victims of domestic violence to get police and court assistance.

ORGANISATION STAFF
The Organisation has ten employed staff and twenty community based volunteers.
Members from the community can become a member of the Organisation only qualified person can be elected as a president.

CURRENT STAFF
1.Ephraim Chimwaza - Executive Director
2.Olivia Bulla - Project Director
3.Chrissy Chiwaya - Secretary
4.Mwai Chaima - Finance officer
5.Ester Kapenda - Project officer
6.Christina Evansi -project officer
7.Benson Chikoja -project officer
8.Love amin - field officer
9.Pelera Botoman - field officer
10.George Banda - field officer

INTERNATIONAL REFERENCE ORGANISATIONS
1. Zelda D.T Soriano
Women Global Net work for Reproductive Rights [WGNRR]
Vroliks traat 453, 1092 TJ
Amsterdam,
The Netherlands.
Email :Zelda@wgnrr.nl
Tel: 31 [0] 20629672

2.Todd Lawrence
Global Health Council
11 11 19th street NW, Suite 1120
Washington, DC 20036 ,USA
Email:tlawrence@globalhealth.org
Tel:[202] 833-5900

LOCAL NETWORK ORGANISATIONS
We have networking with the following organization.

1. Malawi Network of AIDS Society Organisation [
P.O BOX 2916,
Blantyre.
Tel:[265] 018 350 46
Email:info@manaso.org

2. Blantyre District Assembly
P.O BOX 97,
Blantyre
Tel: [265] 0888554437

THE FORMER DONORS
The following are the donors who supported our projects in the past.

1. Stephanie Weems
112 club house lane
Madison, ALBAMA 35757
USA.
Tel: 265-837-1275
Email:sweems@knology.net

2.Gloria Nolan
APT 15B
7905 Horance Harding
EXPWY Corona
New York 11368-4105
USA.
Email:glnolan@verizon.net

BANKING INFORMATION
Account Name: Youth Guide Concern Organisation
Account Number: 172906863710001
Bank Name: Malawi Savings Bank
Address: P.O BOX 521 ,Blantyre ,Malawi.

CORRESPONDENT BANK DETAILS FOR MALAWI SAVINGS BANK.
United States Of America [Dollars]
CITI BANK N.A.
399 Park avenue, New York,
NY 10043 USA
Account Number: 36250546
Swift Code :CITIUS33

Information, Communication and Technology Association of Malawi (ICTAM) appeals for publicity from Richard Chirombo

All i want my friend is that you write something for ICATM as for now it seems as if we have gone back to our grave yard; we are totally silent.
Kind regards,
Tobias Kumwenda,

ICTAM Publicity Secretary.

IT Dept
Mzuzu
Cell: +265 9 999 132 877
Blospot: http://manyanichitumbuka.blogspot.com/

Malawi: Lesbians Worry over their rights.

By Madalitso Kateta
Lesbians in Malawi have expressed worry over the country’s laws that prohibit same sex marriages.
The concern was made in Blantyre recently at the Malawi Gay Rights Movement meting that also elected new office bearers for the net work following the death of its leader early this year.
One of the lesbians who asked only to be mentioned by her first name, Ruth, said that the Malawi government has to recognize the rights of gays as sexual orientation was an inborn thing.
“One does not learn to be lesbian or homo sexual he or she is born with it and the government needs to soften up laws so that people that are having same sex affairs can open up,” she said.
The same sex marriage activist said while at the moment their movement was working under ground, they were trying to use all the best means possible to influence government change its position on same sex marriages policies.
“Gays are just like any member of the society they are productive and can be made into good use. By denying them regal protection the society is being very unfair as these people are not accessing services that they reqire,”she said.
The meeting elected Moses Blackthorn at its new leader and it has since revealed that they are fundraising for a familiasation tour to some of the countries where homosexuality is legal.