Learning about Life in Malawi

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We split part of today between the build site and visiting other places near the village, which provided us a deeper understanding about life for the community and the challenges the people of Malawi face. Our hosts and the leaders of the villages never seem to grow weary of all the questions we ask of them about their culture. I am humbled by their honesty and vulnerability as they share the challenges the people face and the stigmas that they have to battle.

We stopped first thing at the local primary school. Children receive free primary education from kindergarten through 8th grade. The curriculum covers 9 subjects, including learning English. Our arrival created a a bit of a frenzy as the kids rushed to see us. The crowd grew as they started singing a song to us in English. We then met with the principal who talked about his school, which has over a 1,000 students, with 950 of them attending regularly. Some of the kids do not come due to hunger. Their parents would rather have the kids suffer hunger privately at home instead of publicly at school.

We visited two classrooms. The first, the 3rd grade class, had 175 students crammed into this tiny room with a dirt floor and only a few small windows for circulation. The kids set in rows with little room to move once they sat on the floor. The children sang a song where they shared their names and asked us what our names were. Some of the kids had notebooks and pencils that they would use to copy sentences. The kids sat in groups because when it got time to use textbooks, 15 of them would need to share one. The teacher had great control of the kids. However, I wonder how much individual time the students receive as they are so many of them. While I did not ask for clarification, I doubt there was any type of programs or resources for kids with special needs or the highly gifted. We shared a short question and answer time before moving to the next class.

As the school is desperately in need of additional classrooms, we found the fifth grade class in what used to be the kitchen. Some of the students shared with us what they hoped to be when they grow up. After primary school, only a small portion will go to secondary school, which is no free. Out of that group, an even smaller group will attend college. While student loans are available for the most capable of students, cost and limited locations make it harder for kids from the villages to attend. Students in the cities have greater access to higher education.

Many of the kids from the village where we are building ran up to us and showed us their stickers we had distributed the day before to them. While on the first day the kids looked the same to me, we found we could now identify many of the individual children. It took a bit for all us to get back onto our bus as the kids loved having their pictures taken and exchanging high fives and fist bumps.

On our way from the school to the build site, we stopped at a bakery run by women. Our team leader purchased delicious, warm rolls for the entire team. I am sure we entertained the ladies with our sighs of contentment and delight as we ate the fresh-baked goods. For less than $1.50 we got 20 rolls.

Toward the end of the day, we learned more about the local CBO, Nakondwa Community Based Organization. While each village is presided over by a chief and several leaders, a larger group called a CBO serves as the liaison between the villages and the local district government. The CBO that the village we built in was comprised of 16 elected members presenting 37 villages. The CBO elects its chair. This group keeps all the records of the people in village, including how many orphans and widows are in each village. Some of the CBO representatives deal with specific topics like agriculture, education and health.

The government provides free medication for people with HIV and AIDS. However, in order to receive the treatment, individuals must disclose their status to the CBO, which is almost like letting the entire village know. Unfortunately due to the stigma around HIV and AIDS, not as many of the males report their status. As a result, there is a higher mortality rate among men with HIV and AIDS.

Domestic violence is an issue in Malawi, much like it is in the United States. When the CBO learns of the possibility or occurrence of domestic abuse, they step in to help the family and protect the innocent victims. For the smaller things, several of the leaders will meet with the man to condemn the behavior and try to get the abuse to stop. Others check on the safety and health of the wife and children. For more severe instances of domestic violence, the CBO has the police arrest the abuser. While the leaders are ashamed by the amount of domestic violence in their country, it was heartening to know that men and women are united in eradicating the violence.

The CBO oversees education for children ages 3-5, which is provided by CBCCs. Due to a two-year drought in Malawi that has created a shortage of flour, the schools have not received any flour. As a result, the CBCCs cannot provide porridge for the children, which means that many of them have stopped attending the classes. They also have limited items for the kids to play with during the day to help with instruction and limited transportation options for when children get sick or for visiting the seven CBCC (community based childcare centers).

In terms of marriage, the legal age to marry is 18 years old. Parents can provide consent for children to marry at a younger age, but the state government will not recognize those marriages. There are no arranged marriages as the two people get to choose to get married. Most weddings are simple. Like in the United States, the bride selects a color that the bridal party tries to wear. The bride wears white.

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