Mbawa Village, Malawi … They patiently waited, sitting under the shade of nearby trees. Children, elderly and the physically challenged all waiting with hope. These are hunger stricken families from Sinjani, Kaphatenga and Mbawa villages in the lakeshore district of Central Eastern Malawi. They are orphans, widows, elderly and physically challenged. Some were brought in wheelchairs, others with visual problems led by relatiives. It constituted a big gathering of needy people who, because of the famine, require urgent attention. As I arrived in the village, I saw weak and helpless groups of people. Children below the age of ten dominated the group.
They are children who lost one or both the parents. About 80% of these orphans I talk with have lost both parents. They are staying in child-headed family, or with relations. In an effort to cushion their suffering due to food insecurity, the Malawi Project is working on both long and short-term initiatives aimed at reducing the suffering. Provision and support for winter cropping for small-scale farmers is given along with immediate food support to critically affected families who cannot wait until the next harvest.
As time passes there are an increased number of children that fal into the trap of malnutrition. UNICEF survey / report shows malnutrition has increased from 1.1% in 2015 to 2.5% in May, 2016. Malawi is experiencing the worst food security crisis in the recent past. According to Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC), it is expected that more than 50% of the population are currently affected by the food shortage. This adds up to over 3.5 million children. They need urgent attention if their lives are to be saved.
Kingsley Bintoni is a 10-year-old boy. He hails from Mbawa Village in the Salima Malawi near the lake. The young boy stays with his mother and six brothers and sisters in a small village in the district. Kingsley’s mother struggles to make ends meet. As I talked with her, she confessed she hardly harvested any food last year because of the poor weather.
“As a single parent it’s hard to feed seven children,” she noted. Kingsley and the other children have food for a week, thanks to joint support of World Emergency Relief, Malawi Project and Namikango Mission.
In his remarks, Edwin Gibson Chinkango, speaking on behalf of all beneficiaries, extended his appreciation for the timely provision of the food to the people in this area. “On behalf of all these people, I want to say thank you for you have fed these people. There are thousands more children and widows who are food insecure and today you have fed them. Thanks, thanks”. He said.
By Wilson Tembo