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About Malawi

Introduction:

The widespread human tragedy of children becoming orphaned in increasing numbers due to health related issues such as malaria and the AIDS epidemic is particularly serious in Malawi, which is one of the world's poorest countries and therefore not in the best position to alleviate the crisis which is gripping the nation's children.

Over half a million children have been orphaned by AIDS in Malawi (www.avert.org/aids-malawi.htm ). These children start each day with no parental love, provision or security. In effect they have very little hope and a bleak future prospect. (There is but One True Hope). Some have nobody at all, others are dependant on extended relatives or friends to survive. How can they ever break free of the resulting hopelessness and the cycle of poverty that has engulfed them?

About Malawi:

Malawi's political and economic development has been impeded by its landlocked and narrow economic base, limited foreign and domestic investment, high population growth, as well as by the pressure from health issues such as malaria and AIDS.

Life expectancy at birth is approximately 38.5 years (http://www.avert.org/aids-malawi.htm). The infant mortality rate (134 per 1,000) and malnutrition are among the highest in Africa. Only half the population has access to safe drinking water and there is an extremely high prevalence of HIV/AIDS (14% of the adult population).

The World Bank estimated that Malawi's per capita gross national product in 1997 was $220. External debt in 1998 was $2.3 billion, with debt servicing absorbing about a quarter of the Government of Malawi's (GOM's) budget revenue. The forgiveness or rescheduling of this debt, however, is difficult as more than 80% is owed to multilateral financial institutions (primarily the World Bank and IMF). Malawi has not completed the application process to qualify for the World Bank's Heavily Indebted Poor Country initiative and is not indebted to the United States (www.usaid.gov/pubs/bj2001/afr/mw).

A helpful site is the CIA's World Factbook: Malawi

History of the AIDS crisis in Malawi:

The first reported case of AIDS occurred in Malawi in 1985. In response, the Government implemented a short-term AIDS strategy (including blood screening and HIV education programmes), and created the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) in 1988 to co-ordinate the country's AIDS education and HIV prevention efforts. In 1989 a five-year AIDS plan was announced. Between 1985 and 1993, HIV prevalence amongst women tested at urban antenatal clinics increased from 2% to 30%.

In 1994 Malawi became a multi-party democracy. By this point AIDS had already damaged Malawi's social and economic infrastructure. Farmers could not provide food, children could not attend school and workers could not support their families, either because they were infected with HIV or because they were caring for someone who was.

In 2002, Malawi suffered its worst food crisis for over fifty years, with HIV recognised as one of the factors that contributed most significantly to the famine. A report suggested that 70% of hospital deaths at the time were AIDS related.

AIDS in Malawi in recent years:

In recent years the problems of poverty, famine and AIDS have continued to exacerbate one another in Malawi. But intensive efforts have been made to increase awareness about HIV and to prevent its spread, and these efforts appear to have had a positive effect.

In 1999 plans were made for a five-year National Strategic Framework to combat AIDS, which began to be implemented the following year. This strategy was slow to take effect, as financial and organisational difficulties within the NACP persisted. It was soon realised that a more structured body was needed to co-ordinate Malawi's response to AIDS, and as a result of this the National AIDS Commission (NAC) was set up in 2001. The NAC has since overseen a number of AIDS prevention and care initiatives, including programmes to provide treatment, increase testing and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

The Government's response to AIDS was further intensified in 2004 with the election of new President Bingu Wa Mutharika, who launched Malawi's first National AIDS Policy. This policy set the goal of improving the provision of prevention, treatment, care and support services, and called for a multi-sectoral response to the epidemic. A Principal Secretary for HIV and AIDS was appointed within the Government, and treatment and prevention programmes were scaled up.

The national HIV prevalence has stabilised between 12% and 17% since the mid-90s, and prevalence amongst women attending antenatal clinics has fallen slightly. Several urban areas, such as the capital Lilongwe, have witnessed a decline in HIV prevalence, although some rural areas have seen prevalence increase.

Who is affected by AIDS in Malawi?

The AIDS crisis has affected all sectors of society in Malawi, but certain patterns have emerged as the epidemic has progressed:

The majority of HIV infections in Malawi occur through heterosexual sex.

There is a higher rate of HIV prevalence amongst women than amongst men: around 60% of adults living with HIV in Malawi are female.

The majority of HIV infections occur amongst young people, particularly those between the ages of 13 and 24.

HIV prevalence is almost twice as high in urban areas as it is in rural areas. However, studies suggest that prevalence is declining in many urban areas and rising in many rural ones.

There is a high prevalence of HIV amongst certain labour groups in Malawi, including sex workers, truck drivers, fishermen and other ‘mobile' groups whose movement between areas can assist the spread of HIV infection.

The epidemic has also heavily affected children. At the end of 2005, an estimated 91,000 children in Malawi were living with HIV, and over half a million children had been orphaned by AIDS (www.avert.org/aids-malawi.htm).

Some further links:

http://globalchildren.3cdn.net/e94234d1882227a8f5_ujm6i6wvj.pdf pages 3 and 4.

http://www.usaid.gov/locations/sub-saharan_africa/countries/malawi/

http://www.openarmsmalawi.org/content/Aids_-_The_facts

 

 

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