Machinji, Malawi … The border crossing is almost in sight when one is at the western edge of the nation in the trading center of Machinji. Although the main road is blacktop, it is not so with the tiny dirt roads and paths traversing the district. This is Malawi, and it does not get much poorer anywhere in the world than it is in this tiny African nation in the southeastern part of the continent. Referred to as, “the warm heart of Africa,” most visitors conclude this tag line is a good one for the 14 million people who live here. Perhaps this is one of the problems for this tiny nation lodged in beside a big lake near the lower end of the Rift Valley. Malawi is no a squeaky wheel in world affairs. They do not fight with their neighbors. They are good friends to the western nations. They have a democratic government. In other terms, Malawi is such a nice place they never get on the nightly news. For that reason they cry their tears in near isolation and alone.
Today in Machinji an event is taking place that will not garner any of the world press. Few even in the immediate region will know it has taken place. But for 35 children with serious disabilities it is one of the most important days they will remember. It is the day George Banda and his workers from the Kuthandiza Osayenda Disability Outreach (KODO) have come to Machinji. Located 250 kilometers to the east just outside the Salima Trading Center near Lake Malawi, George and his crew came the night before in order to be on time for the 7:30 in the morning event. Arriving too is the Director of Education for Special Needs children from the capital city of Lilongwe. And the most important arrivals are the 35 brand new, white, all terrain wheelchairs made possible by the joint effort of the Free Wheelchair Mission in California and the Malawi Project in Indiana, USA.
As he handed over a wheelchair to the family of one of the children the Minister for Special Needs spoke, “Primary school Education is free in Malawi now, and it is sad to see that some Malawian children are failing to attend classes because of disabilities and lack on mobility aids such as these wheelchairs Thanks for such a wonderful donation. The ministry of education is trying hard to make inclusive education a success,” he said as he handed over a new wheelchair to one of the children. It is a day not to be forgotten in this tiny spot on the world map known as Machinji.
– George Banda and Richard Stephens