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Ministry calls for commitment to promote breastfeeding
By Lekereni Chinkhota
Salima, August 2, Mana: Deputy Minister of Health, Halima Daudi, has called on stakeholders to promote exclusive and optimal breastfeeding to babies until they are six months old before they start being given any supplementary food and water.
Daudi made the call on Thursday at Mwalala Community Ground in Salima, during the official launch of the 2024 World Breastfeeding Week commemoration, which takes place from 1st to 7th August each year.
Daudi said it every person’s role to take part in promoting optimal breastfeeding for children to grow healthier citing that breast milk provides all the required nutrients to children for their growth and survival.
“When a child is born, it is supposed to be given breast milk within the first 30 minutes. The first yellow milk is important for growth of the child until the child is six months old without being given any food or water,” she said.
Daudi applauded the commitment men are showing in assisting breastfeeding women to practice optimal breastfeeding by assisting them with various tasks that would distract their schedule to breastfeeding.
“It is very exciting to see men taking part in these interventions; something we did not have before. We used to see women going to hospitals alone to receive guidance and training on breastfeeding, but men are also taking part now,” she said.
Chief of Nutrition for United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Malawi, Dr Charity Zvandaziva, pointed out that different reasons are contributing to failure to achieve exclusive breastfeeding in both rural and urban areas.
She said breastfeeding should be supported and women facing challenges to breastfeed their babies should be given a conducive environment so that they can comfortably breastfeed their babies.
"Some parts of the country were hit by drought and these areas will be food insecure. Therefore, households with breastfeeding mothers should be supported with relief food," she said.
Member of Parliament for Salima Central, Gerald Kapiseni Phiri, underscored the important role that breastfeeding plays in the lives of babies, citing that development of the country relies on healthy citizens which starts with healthy babies.
Phiri has called upon duty bearers in the country to champion in policy making regarding breastfeeding and participation in order to uplift the welfare of babies on issues of breastfeeding.
The theme of this year’s breastfeeding week is “Closing the gap: breastfeeding support for all”
Gwengwe launches K57 million-market shade
By Mwai Kumanda
Lilongwe, August 2, Mana: Minister of Trade and Industry, who is also Member of Parliament for Lilongwe Msinja North, Sosten Gwengwe, has launched a K57 million market shade at Nathenje.
Speaking at Mwatibu Village, Traditional Authority (TA) Chadza on Thursday, Gwengwe said it is crucial to bring different developments and projects to people as it allows them appreciate what government is doing.
“We all know that President Chakwera has been advocating for rural development, so we decided to build this market shade to allow the community feel and appreciate such development.
“We thought that using Constituency Development Fund we can come up with a magnificent market in the constituency,” he said.
Gwengwe noted that the market shade is a huge upgrade from the old one, which is going to accommodate 56 business people and has a life span of 50 years bringing history to the people of Nathenje.
“This market is patronized by so many vendors but most of them stay outside and during rainy season it becomes difficult for them to do their business. So, replacing this shade with the old one will make it easier even during the rainy seasons,” he said.
Council chairperson for Lilongwe District, Dan Mtayamanja, said the new infrastructure emphasizes the importance of having people who are passionate about developing the country saying Malawi can only do better if people work together.
“I am happy to see that some of the legislators in our district are now doing big things in the communities, a market shade is a need in every community,” he said.
Chairperson for Nathenje Market, Idrissa Kalembo, thanked Gwengwe for the development saying the new infrastructure will accord businesspersons in the area to have a conducive environment.
“The opening of this new market shade is a welcome development as it represents not only a business space but also symbolizing growth and prosperity for our community,” he said.
Communities in environmental conservation drive
By Memory Kutengule Chatonda
Blantyre, August 2, Mana: Community members in Traditional Authority (TA) Kapeni in Blantyre have vowed to continue with environmental conservation works to restore degraded landscapes in the area.
The communities participate in various environmental conservation activities such as tree planting, construction of the swales, check dams and gully reclamation under the Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme (CS-EPWP).
Speaking in an interview during a media tour, Chairperson for Chilambalare Catchment Conservation Committee, Harrison Tsonga, said before they started implementing the activities especially swales under the programme, communities realized low crop yields, which resulted in food insecurity at house hold level.
“We are usually hit by dry spells which result in low crop yields. To mitigate this, the CS-EPWP has taught us how to conserve our environment through re-afforestation, construction of swales, gully reclamation and check dams.
“In the past, there was also heavy run off during the rainy seasons, our fields were washed away which resulted in low crop yields. Now we use swales to control and collect rain water in our fields and this ensures that our fields have enough ground water and now we can harvest more,” he said.
One of the farmers, Dolla Morris, said communities understand effects that come with climate change, adding that this prompted them to put more efforts in environmentally friendly agricultural practices.
Blantyre District Land Resource Conservation Officer, Charles Mthyoka, said that farmers in Blantyre are seeing the benefit of environmental conservation in their respective catchments.
He said: “In this area, effects of climate change have been very large in the sense that farmers were not harvesting enough because most of the land was degraded with little soil fertility. Since the implementation of this activity farmers now harvest at least enough of their farm produce.”
CS-EPWP is a component under Social Support Resilience Livelihood Programme and is funded by World Bank and other social protection multi donor trust fund.
In Blantyre, the project is being implemented in 15 catchment areas with about 17,200 communities participating in the programme.
Retired civil servants cry for their dues
By Petro Mkandawire
Blantyre, August 2, Mana: Concerned Retired Civil Servants (CRCS) have given government a 60-day ultimatum to pay their dues or face nonstop vigils.
CRCS Publicity Secretary, Ben Mitochi, said at a press briefing in Blantyre on Friday that they will name and shame officers that solicit bribes from the retirees in exchange for service.
The briefing was meant to raise concerns over long overdue issues on pension and other benefits.
Mitochi said retired civil servants are currently suffering saying “this is not how government should treat us after working for so long.”
He said most of retirees are languishing in towns and villages, lacking basic necessities of life due to lack of financial pension benefits which the Malawi government is still holding.
Mitochi described the situation as disheartening that few retired civil servants are being paid after paying bribes to some officials in various forms.
“As a result of government gross negligence, we cannot afford basic medical care considering that most of us are sick and old. We are falling to feed ourselves and our families and majority of our children have dropped out of schools due to nonpayment of school fees and cases of family disintegrated have also risen.
“We tried to contact the Budget Director, the Account General, Parliamentary Committee on Social Warfare and all departments responsible for pensions but have borne no fruits. As such, within two months we will involve international human rights organizations and the media to amplify our struggles and bad treatment we are getting,” he said.
He added that K193.17 billion which was allocated for pensioners in the 2024-2025 budget is not enough to be paid to retirees considering that pensioners are many totaling to 6,857 as majority of them are expected to receive the sum of K20 to K100 million each.
In a separate interview, one of the 2021 retirees, Daniel Machine, said government should clear out all outstanding gratuities since they are exacerbating the suffering of many retirees.
He added that the delay is leading to misunderstanding in most families as some family members believe that the retiree had already received pension benefits and used it at the expense of the family.
“I was supposed to receive my pension benefits within three months from the day I retired but now almost three years has gone which is contrary to Pension Act,” said Machine.
He added that investing and empowering pensioners can contribute to economic development of the country through business which can creation jobs.
VP tours Nasolo Bridge in Ndirande Township
By Pempho Nkhoma
Blantyre, August 2, Mana: Vice President, Dr Michael Usi has assured Ndirande residents in Blantyre that construction of Nasolo Bridge, which is in bad shape, will commence in less than two months.
Usi made the assurance on Friday after touring the bridge whose state has been a concern for Ndirande residents for quite some time.
Ndirande Market Chairperson, Chancy Widoni, raised the issue about Nasolo Bridge when Usi toured the market recently.
“I came here for the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF) programme but the chairperson of the market told me about the bridge and I came to see the situation. The bridge is very dangerous to cross.
“I tried to find out why the bridge was not constructed and it was disclosed that this is due to some government officials whose conduct scare away donors,” he said.
The Vice President confirmed that he has managed to bring back the donors who will fund construction of the bridge and a contractor will start the work soon.
“Engineers have been instructed to come up with sketches right away. The plan is that the bridge should be fit for that purpose and should finish before the rains start,” Usi said.
Blantyre City Deputy Mayor, Isaac Jomo Osman, commended the Vice President for touring the bridge and for government’s commitment to construct it.
He said the bridge has claimed many lives and business people have lost their property.
Osman, therefore, appealed to government to consider other infrastructural projects in the area like maintenance of Ndirande Market stating that the market accommodates a large number of business people contrary to its present capacity.
“Contractors should give us durable roads. Most roads in Ndirande are in bad condition. When doing other development projects, government should also include Ndirande market,” he said.
Ndirande Market Chairperson, Chancy Widoni, thanked Usi for visiting Nasolo Bridge and expressed optimism that the Vice President will push things to ensure that construction of the bridge starts soon and to finish in good time.
“I should thank the Vice President for showing interest to solve this problem after a short notice,” he said.
Water crisis hits Dedza Boma
By Steve Chirombo
Dedza, August 2, Mana: Residents around Dedza Boma have asked Central Region Water Board (CRWB) to quickly resolve the water crisis that has hit them for some days now, saying the situation is forcing them to drink from unprotected sources while others have resorted to buying water from the shops.
In random checks, some areas around Dedza Boma such as Airfield, Katsekaminga, Mabush, Nsambiro and Kachere, among others, have stayed for days, weeks and others over a month without water.
A resident of Katsekaminga, Harrison Misoya, said in an interview Thursday that the situation is bad as it is now five weeks without water and communities have now resorted to accessing the precious commodity from unprotected sources.
Misoya said, like others, they have been presenting their grievances through Dedza CRWB office but it has all been promises without any tangible action.
“There is now pressure especially in dambo areas where irrigation is taking place as communities have resorted to draw water from there and other unprotected sources. We are afraid of our lives,” he stated.
According to Misoya, they are surprised to receive exorbitant water bills when in actual sense their taps are running dry each passing day.
Another resident, Virginia Chimbaya, said as much as they understand the situation CRWB is in, they plead with the Board to seriously fulfill the rationing supply of water.
“We are not safe. For a big family, they are spending around K3,500 daily to buy 10 litres of drinking water from the shops. And now it is over a month since we had water,” she said.
Diana Dzinkambani, another resident within Airfield said they have now resorted to buying water from the shops but feels it’s temporal.
“Days back we could draw water around 9pm or wake up early in the morning but that is not the case now. Unfortunately, you cannot bath or wash kitchen utensils using water from the shops because it is costly,” she lamented.
Consumers Association of Malawi (CAMA) President, John Kapito, said in an interview Thursday that scarcity of water is always a challenge which poses health risks to people.
“The only way to deal with this challenge is for the residents of Dedza to mobilize themselves and meet CRWB officials to discuss the matter and also find other alternatives of supplying water either using water bowsers for the period that there is no water,” Kapito said.
A recent press release from CRWB dated July 24, 2024, acknowledged the problem but attributed it to a drought experienced in the previous rainy season which, it said, affected most water sources.
“This has caused a stress in water supply regime due to reduced production. Currently, the board estimates that it is able to provide nonstop water supply to 64 percent of its customers while 27 percent are receiving water by rationing and the remaining nine percent have serious challenges in getting water supply mainly due to high location (low pressure areas) and disconnected meters,” stated the release.
Chilobwe United to go on awareness and fundraising campaign
By Pempho Nkhoma
Blantyre, Aug 1, Mana: Blantyre based Chilobwe United Football Club (CUFC), will on Sunday go on an awareness and fundraising campaign to mobilize financial resources for the team at an event to be held at Naotcha Primary School ground.
CUFC is a community football team from Chilobwe Township, currently playing in the Southern Region Betika Division One League and is on position one with 25 points after playing 9 games.
In an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana) on Thursday, CUFC Public Relations and Event Manager, Julio Chimbuzi said the team has organized the event to notify Chilobwe residents about the team’s vision and agenda.
“We noticed that many people in our community do not know that we have a football club that is representing us, hence organized this event to tell them how they can participate in the affairs of the team,” he said.
He added that during the awareness campaign they will conduct membership registration plus sell merchandise to raise funds for the club.
“On this day people will have a chance to subscribe to our membership by registering with K5,000 and above and we will sell other promotion items like t-shirts, caps and golf-shirts which are already on the market,” he added.
The team’s publicist also disclosed that they have invited special guests to grace the occasion.
“We have invited aspiring and current political leaders, business people and have extended our invitation to Football Association of Malawi and Southern Region Football Association,” he said.
Chimbuzi therefore called upon residents of Chilobwe and surrounding areas to attend the event and take part in supporting the team.
“The event will start at 10:00 AM with a parade and stop tour from Naotcha Primary School going around Chilobwe community.
“Then there will be a mass rally from 2:00 PM at Naotcha Primary School ground where there will be different activities like selling of club`s merchandize, music performances, talent show and raffle draws” he said.
One of the artists that will perform at the place, Jetu has urged people to patronize the ceremony and support CUFC while having fun.
“People should come in large numbers, as the queen is ready to entertain them and they should prepare to dance to my new song titled Simunatchene,” she said.
Other artists that will perform on the day include Zeze Kingston, Stich Fray, Pon G, among others.
MACRA contributes five million towards the Umthetho Cultural Festival
By Tiyanjane Mambucha
August 1, Mana: The Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has officially handed over the five Million Kwacha cheque it donated towards this year’s Umthetho Cultural Festival.
Speaking at the handover ceremony at MACRAs office in Lilongwe, Area 13, MACRA’s Board Chairperson, Bridget Chibwana, said the Umthetho annual festival is a vital platform for preserving and promoting the rich culture and traditions of Malawi.
Chibwana said the festival will not only celebrate the Ngoni’s heritage but also explore how, as a nation can leverage this heritage to build a strong digital content industry and contribute to the development of the economy.
“This gesture and our involvement reflect our commitment to fostering a digital future that respects and celebrates our cultural diversity. As we aspire to build a digital nation and economy, we recognise the importance of cultural festivals like this one as a valuable opportunity for creating local digital content,” said Chibwana.
Chibwana also disclosed that apart from the five-million-kwacha donation, MACRA will also provide free internet services throughout the three-day event to create a digital ecosystem that accommodates the cultural landscape.
Umthetho Organising committee member, Harold Jere said the donation and support will help preserve the Ngoni culture, even long after the festival.
“The contribution that MACRA has given towards this year's Umthetho Festival will definitely go a long way, and will assist to the success of this festival,” Jere said.
He said the Umthetho Festival will be held at the Hora Heritage Centre in Mzimba, starting Thursday, with the main event taking place on Saturday.
MACRA made the donation on Saturday, July 28, during the Umthetho fundraising golf tournament that was held at Lilongwe Golf Club, an event that was graced by His royal majesty Inkosi ya Makhosi M’Mbelwa V and Inkosi ya Makhosi Gomani V.
Council hail communities for participating in CS-WPWP
By Beatrice Babgula
Blantyre, Aug 1, Mana: Blantyre District Council has expressed satisfaction over communities’ active participation in activities under Climate Smart Enhanced Public Works Programmes (CS EPWP) which are meant to restore land and other environmentally degraded features.
Land Resource Conservation Officer for Blantyre District Council, Charles Mthyoka expressed the satisfaction on Wednesday at Traditional Authority Kapeni during an assessment exercise to see how communities implemented various activities to restore degraded land in the district.
Mthyoka observed that dedication among CSEPWP participants also contributed to improved food production in most rural areas in Blantyre.
“Initiatives under CSEPWP have shown that there is a lot of dedication among participants. We have seen various activities such as construction of swales beside marker ridges, gully reclamation, afforestation and natural regeneration by participating communities.” he said.
Mthyoka further observed that some climate smart related agricultural activities have helped farmers to realize good crop harvest after adopting best agricultural practices that are also environmental friendly,
“We tried our best to empower communities, traditional leaders and catchment members so that they should continue with climate smart activities even when this project ends,” he said.
A farmer, John Chide from Cedrick Village Traditional Authority Kapeni in Blantyre said farmers in his catchment were harvesting much than before the CSEPWP was introduced in the area.
“The initiative has completely changed the lives of farmers for the better in terms of harvests, when we compare the present and the past, it is very clear that CSEPWP has positive impact on the communities” he said.
Chilambalale Catchment Conservation Committee member, Alinete James said CS-EPWP has improved livelihood of the communities after adopting best climate smart agricultural activities in the gardens.
“We construct swales beside marker ridges, we gather stones and place them in several lines inside the gully to prevent the speed of running water and this assists in addressing issues of land degradation,” she said.
James recalled that communities planted trees along rivers in the catchment and other forest related activities.
“We get paid at the end of the day to improve household income,” she said, adding that activities in the CSEPWP have proven to be the best environmental practices that every community should adopt for sustainable livelihood.
Chairperson for Chilambalale Catchment, Harrison Tsonga said members of the community embraced CSEPWP.
“We no longer worry about runoff water which was causing destruction to our gardens. We are able to control the water and we also harvest the water in one way or another,” he said.
In Blantyre CSEPWP has about 17,000 participants in 15 catchments including Chilambalale, which has 1,010.
CSEPWP is funded by the World Bank, facilitated by the National Local Government Finance Committee and being implemented by local councils across Malawi.
HR3D US government program succeed in mapping Malawi
By Elia Chibwe
Lilongwe, July 31, Mana: Army Geospatial Center (AGC) High Resolution Three Dimensional (HR3D) program also known as BuckEye in Malawi which deployed a Beech King Air B350 to Lilongwe, Malawi in May this year has successfully mapped the country with 90 percent.
U.S government Lead for the HR3D program Jason Steers disclosed this on Wednesday in Lilongwe during a press briefing where Steers said the program has successfully mapped the country by providing detailed information instrumental for disaster risk management, infrastructure modernization and Agricultural development among other strategic initiatives.
“This advanced aircraft, equipped with state of the art geospatial surveying technology, marks a significant step forward in our collaborative efforts to enhance disaster management capabilities in Malawi.
“The high level of detail provided by the mapping significantly enhances shared understanding of the terrain through digital imaging which enables improved decision making for time sensitive response and large scale projects,” Steers said.
He said this collective approach underscores their dedication in supporting sustainable development and improving well-being of communities throughout Africa.
United States (U.S) Embassy in Malawi Charge D’Affairs, Amy Diaz said advanced geospatial mapping has a transformative role in enhancing disaster preparedness and supporting Malawi’s Vision 2063 development goals.
“The imagery, the BuckEye program compiles during their time in Malawi will be passed on in its entirety to the Department of Disaster Management Affairs for use in areas such as hazard assessment, improving early warning systems, optimizing resource management and informing recovery planning,” Diaz said.
She also said the data for disaster preparedness management will be a lifeline that will enable Government, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and communities to anticipate, mitigate and respond effectively to disasters.
In his comment, Department of Disaster Management Affairs Commissioner, Charles Kalemba said the department was previously lacking data to assist them in mapping the country’s topography and this prompted them to request this initiative from US government.
“We operationalised the new law and it requires that we do hazard map which helps in mapping the country in terms of risk areas, so we know how to locate places of high risk or not, regarding people living there.
“Now you cannot make these decisions without data. So we had requested the U.S Embassy to assist us and be able to map the country so that we are able to know the topography and geophysical setup of the country,” Kalemba said.
He said U.S government donated US$1 million to implement the initiative.
