By Mary Makhiringa

Balak, December 5, Mana: Balaka District Gender Officer, Scolastica Datchi on Thursday called for concerted efforts from all sectors in the fight against gender based violence as the district joined the world and other districts in Malawi in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign.

Datchi said her office alone is working day in and day out to eliminate the vice but was quick to plead with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as other government sectors to always support as the cases keep on increasing every day.

She added that the cases were increasing because of the belief that men are always superior to women and called women to avoid looking down upon themselves as inferiors.

 “Let me thank all our partners who are always there for us, without them this noble task could have been a night mare, we are currently facing serious challenges as an office, so having partners has always been relieving.

“Let me call upon to other stakeholders to come forward as well to assist as the cases of GBV keep rising especially with the fact that our district is facing serious food shortages which fuel various forms of abuse,” she added.

The District Gender Officer also mentioned that the government is collaborating with various stakeholders to raise awareness about how communities can report GBV issues to the relevant authorities.

Balaka District Hospital Senior Medical Officer Dr. Tiya Malungo, who was the guest of honor during the event emphasized that addressing GBV requires collective efforts and called upon all community members to be vigilant in reporting GBV cases when they occur.

“This is not a one-person effort; we need to collaborate with different stakeholders to find better ways to end this malpractice,” she said.

Phalula Police Unit Officer-in-Charge, Patrick Khuoge, revealed that the number of reported GBV cases has increased compared to previous years. He attributed this rise to greater community awareness and knowledge about where to report such incidents.

“As police, we have been collaborating with schools, churches, mosques, and other community leaders to raise awareness about gender-based violence and how to report it. So far, we have seen an improvement in the number of GBV cases being reported,” he said.

On November 25, the First Lady of the Republic of Malawi Monica Chakwera launched the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence in Phalombe District under the theme; Unite to End Violence Against Women and Girls: Towards Beijing +30.   

By Charles Nkhoma

Lilongwe, December 5, Mana: The Malawi National Examinations Board has announced the 2025 examination timetables for the Primary Teacher Certificate of Education, Malawi School Certificate of Education, and Junior Certificate of Education. 

The 2025 Primary Teacher Certificate of Education examinations are scheduled to take place from 8th to 11th April 2025. 

According to the timetable, the Malawi School Certificate of Education examinations will start on Thursday, 1st July 2025, and will end on Friday, 25th July 2025. 

The Junior Certificate of Education examinations for 2025 will be conducted from 3rd to 12th June 2025. 

By Ruth Kumwenda

Blantyre, December 5, Mana: Doing it for Christ (D.4.C) and Blantyre Christian Hip-Hop (BT-CHH) has organized a Gospel concert with the theme “Is CHH dead,” at Jacaranda Cultural Centre (Mandala) with an aim of bringing together the Christian community for an evening of joy, fun and fellowship. The event will take place on Saturday, December 7.

D.4.C is a Christian based movement established in 2014 to empower the youth through psycho-social support, economic and academics whilst CHH is a community of Christian hip-hop artists and all urban gospel lovers.

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (MANA) on Thursday, one of the organizers of the concert, Michael Chinere said people think that CHH is not relevant and they have organized the event to let people know that they are still active.

“The panel discussion topic is inspired by the ever-growing debate on whether Christian hip-hop is still relevant as it used to be in the early 2000s with people and movements like David Kalirani, Nyali Music and Aubrey Mvula, who carried the gospel hip-hop flag and the role of CHH is to evangelize through hip-hop genre that are not reached by local music genres,” said Chinere.

Chinere added that they are well prepared as there will be a lot of activities such as music, poetry, games and a panel discussion.

In a separate interview, Kasai Kumsinda, one of the hosts encouraged people to patronize the event in a bid to network and encounter Christ. 

“Blantyre Gospel Concert is an opportunity for people not only to network and build meaningful relationships with others, but also to have an encounter with Christ, it is more than just a musical event, it is a place where people can come together, unite and celebrate their faith,” Kumsinda said.  

Dr. Phil, Regenerate, Micco, Pete Banda, Hagios and Em Carlos, among other artists, will perform at the concert.  D.4.C organized a similar event in July this year and it is expected to organize similar events yearly.

By Christina Mkutumula

Salima, December 5, Mana: National Coordinator for the Global Program on Skills and ProAgro Youth Project in Malawi, Patrick Makondetsa, says Malawi has the potential to grow its economy through agriculture but need to organize the system within the farming management.

He was speaking in an interview on Thursday after a team from the International Labour Organization (ILO) under his project visited selected farms in Salima District.

He said there is need to support smallholder farmers to transition from informal to formal sector and also for them to have required skills within the farm management in order to have standard produce to sale.

“With better skills we can be able to practically provide the necessary support to farms in anticipation of the agriculture mechanization so that our farming institutions have people with necessary skills that will increase productivity with the farms and be able to produce for local buyers and even export some produce,” he said.

He further explained that they will strengthen the partnership that ILO has with TEVETA and that they have already started the work integrated learning to support farming institutions to have capacity of having well and capable farm managers.

In an interview with one of the farmers in the district, owner of Za Fresh Farms, Lucius Nkhoma says since he started farming in 2018 for both crops and animals, he has achieved a lot and his life has changed after gaining knowledge from the integrated learning trainings that ILO had with them years back.

“Our cooperation with the International Labour Organization is good as we started working with them when this farm started operational. So together with other farmers who were growing different crops but lacked skills and knowledge, we learnt on how best to embrace modern farming.

“We were taught that buyers especially those who buy in bulk like hotels and resort require standard and quality farm produce and the training assisted us to change our way of farming. Thus, the project assisted us to be recognized by others and not just the community,” said Nkhoma.

Nkhoma said previously he and other farmers targeted the surrounding communities to sale their produce and they did not have enough after selling as supply was more compared to demand. he said they ended up losing, but thanks to the skills and knowledge gained under the Global Program on Skills and Lifelong learning as they know what and when to produce.

“Our market used to only target the nearby community but after the skills gained we discovered that we can spread our market base, so currently we sale our produce to Livingstonia Hotel, Sigelege Beach resort, Boabab Lodge just to mention a few,” said Nkhoma.

Za Fresh farm boasts of more than 20 acres of land and according to Nkhoma the crops that he plants include maize, rice, watermelon, tomatoes, onions, all types of peppers and he rear goats, pigs, local breed and chicken.

The team also visited Corporate Institute of Horticulture where small scale farmers are learning modern farming techniques. Co- founder and owner of the institute Dickson Banda says they have taught more farmers in the districts and outside. He said many of the farmers have formed cooperatives where people are working in groups to produce more.

“Our institution is doing a lot to ensure that small scale farmers are well equipped and that they have the necessary skills. We have started greenhouse farming and we are hoping to have more so that we teach farmers how to use this and the benefits,” he said.

The Global Program on Skills and lifelong Learning promotes lifelong learning as a way to help people and societies adapt to a changing world.

By Bishop Witmos

Mangochi, December 5, Mana: National Initiative for Civic Education (NICE) Public Trust has urged eligible citizens in Mangochi that are yet to register as voters for the 2025 general election, to come out in large numbers in order for them to exercise their right to vote come next year.

Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) is currently conducting voter registration exercise in Mangochi, Mangochi Municipality, Lilongwe rural, Lilongwe urban, Mzimba, Mwanza, Chikwawa, as well as Nsanje councils, from November 28 to December 11.

Speaking during a football bonanza at Lungwena ground, in the area of Traditional Authority (T/A) Namavi, District Coordinator for NICE in Mangochi, Joseph Chamambala said that from the spot check which they conducted around registration centers across the district, men are not coming out in large numbers, as compared to women.

“Our assessment from some centers in Mangochi so far shows that men are not coming out in large numbers as compared to women, a development which is worrisome to us because the right to vote is for everyone, regardless of our gender.

“As NICE, we have stepped up awareness campaign, and we are also calling on other stakeholders to follow suit in order to ensure that we have more citizens in Mangochi who will exercise their right to vote come September, 2025,” said Chamambala.  

He however said that from the general overview, daily figures from the registration centers since November 28 are promising that Mangochi would have more registered citizens.

Speaking in a separate interview, one of the community members at Lungwena, Mustapher Rajab, said that most men are engaged in economic activities during day hours, hence the need for stakeholders to intensify civic education.

“There is need to provide more civic education in order to have an equal participation by both men and women in this electoral process,” said Rajab.

By Alinafe kapatamoyo 

Lilongwe, December 5, Mana: In a bid to curb the rising number of road accidents, the Malawi Police Service has procured 10 speed trap machines from South Africa. These machines will be deployed across the country to reduce accidents caused by over speeding.

National Police Deputy Spokesperson, Harry Namwaza confirmed the acquisition, stating that the speed trap machines will significantly enhance traffic operations.

"These machines will help reduce road accidents, especially during the festive season when many people travel extensively.

“The festive season is a peak travel period in Malawi, and the police service is keen to ensure road safety. With the new speed trap machines, we aim at deterring drivers from speeding and promote responsible driving practices,” said Namwaza.

This move is part of the Malawi Police Service's efforts to address the growing concern of road accidents. Previously, the service had acquired breathalyzers and speed cameras to combat drunk driving and speeding.

The deployment of speed trap machines is a positive step forward, given the country’s history of road accidents. By utilizing this technology, the Malawi Police Service aims to enhance road safety and reduce accident rates, creating safer conditions for all road users.