In the course of my writing about Malawi and her people, I happened upon a wonderful organization called the Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance . Their mission statement is:
Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance (GAIA) partners with religious organizations in resource-poor countries for community-based HIV prevention and care.
We assist communities in developing locally initiated, planned, and led workshops that create detailed action plans for projects specific to community needs. These grass roots, village-level projects educate high risk groups about the disease, modify sexual behavior, promote voluntary counseling and testing for HIV, foster the social and economic empowerment of women, care for AIDS orphans, provide home-based care of ill persons, improve nutrition, and reverse the stigmatization of people with AIDS. Where medications and treatment are available, projects provide aggressive referral for treatment of opportunistic infections, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV itself. We assist these projects through small grants and through assisting them with applications to other funding sources when appropriate.
One of the countries that they work in is Malawi. I have had the pleasure of corresponding with a retired physician who has been to Malawi for extended visits on several occasions with GAIA. Our discussions haunt me.
GAIA has a fact sheet on Malawi, with some facts that I did not mention in my earlier post that you may find interesting. I urge you to spend some time on the the GAIA website . And I urge you to look at their video.
CAL FIRE (CDF) S2T Tanker 71 working Sawtooth Complex Fire (2006)
Sawtooth Complex Fire (Sept. 2006), San Bernardino County CA. Photo Credit: U.S. Forest Service
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Thursday, November 09, 2006
More Facts on Malawi
Electricity (lack of), Sanitation, and Source of Drinking Water in Malawi
Source: 2004 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (Chapter 2 of the Main Report)
Prepared by the National Statistical Office of Malawi
URL: http://www.nso.malawi.net/
93% of all households do not have electricity.
Source of household drinking water:
Piped into dwelling 2.9%
Piped into yard or plot 3.4%
Public tap 13.7%
Open well in yard or plot 2.4%
Open public well 22.6%
Protected well in yard or plot 4.9%
Protected public well 38.6%
Spring 2.6%
River or stream 8.0%
Pond or lake 0.4%
Dam 0.2%
Tanker truck 0.1%
58% of all households are at least a 15–minute walk from the closest water source.
Household sanitation facilities
Flush toilet 3.4%
Traditional pit latrine 79.4%
VIP latrine 1.1%
No facility, use bush or field 16.1%
89% of all households cook with firewood.
Source: 2004 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (Chapter 2 of the Main Report)
Prepared by the National Statistical Office of Malawi
URL: http://www.nso.malawi.net/
93% of all households do not have electricity.
Source of household drinking water:
Piped into dwelling 2.9%
Piped into yard or plot 3.4%
Public tap 13.7%
Open well in yard or plot 2.4%
Open public well 22.6%
Protected well in yard or plot 4.9%
Protected public well 38.6%
Spring 2.6%
River or stream 8.0%
Pond or lake 0.4%
Dam 0.2%
Tanker truck 0.1%
58% of all households are at least a 15–minute walk from the closest water source.
Household sanitation facilities
Flush toilet 3.4%
Traditional pit latrine 79.4%
VIP latrine 1.1%
No facility, use bush or field 16.1%
89% of all households cook with firewood.
Facts on Malawi
These facts on Malawi were forwarded to me by someone that I have cooresponded with about Malawi. I will let these facts speak for themselves.
Current Facts about Malawi
"Pocket World in Figures, 2006 Edition"
published by The Economist. (London: Profile Books.)
Highest population per doctor: Malawi ranks 1st in the world at 88,321.
Most road accidents (# people injured per 100m vehicle-km): Malawi ranks 1st in the world at 2,730. (Rwanda is a distant second at 1,764.)
Lowest purchasing power (US = 100): Malawi ranks 2nd in the world at 1.6
Maternal mortality rates: Malawi ranks 3rd in the world with 1,800 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, behind Sierra Leone and Afghanistan
Lowest GDP per head: Malawi ranks 5th in the world at $140
Lowest median age: Malawi ranks 6th in the world at 16.3
Lowest life expectancy: Malawi ranks 7th at 41.1.
Lowest female life expectancy: Malawi ranks 7th at 40.6 (women live shorter lives than men in this country.)
Highest foreign debt, as % of goods and services: Malawi ranks 8th at 660%
HIV/AIDS prevalence among 15 - 49 year olds: Malawi ranks 8th at 14.2% of population in this age range
AIDS deaths per 100,000 of population: Malawi ranks 8th at 694.
Highest death rates: Malawi ranks 12th at 19.9 per 1,000 population
Crude birth rates, number of live births per 1000 people: Malawi ranks 14th at 44.6
Highest fertility rates in the world: Malawi ranks 16th at 6.1.
Highest infant mortality: Malawi ranks 16th at 102.6 per 1000 live births
Current Facts about Malawi
"Pocket World in Figures, 2006 Edition"
published by The Economist. (London: Profile Books.)
Highest population per doctor: Malawi ranks 1st in the world at 88,321.
Most road accidents (# people injured per 100m vehicle-km): Malawi ranks 1st in the world at 2,730. (Rwanda is a distant second at 1,764.)
Lowest purchasing power (US = 100): Malawi ranks 2nd in the world at 1.6
Maternal mortality rates: Malawi ranks 3rd in the world with 1,800 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, behind Sierra Leone and Afghanistan
Lowest GDP per head: Malawi ranks 5th in the world at $140
Lowest median age: Malawi ranks 6th in the world at 16.3
Lowest life expectancy: Malawi ranks 7th at 41.1.
Lowest female life expectancy: Malawi ranks 7th at 40.6 (women live shorter lives than men in this country.)
Highest foreign debt, as % of goods and services: Malawi ranks 8th at 660%
HIV/AIDS prevalence among 15 - 49 year olds: Malawi ranks 8th at 14.2% of population in this age range
AIDS deaths per 100,000 of population: Malawi ranks 8th at 694.
Highest death rates: Malawi ranks 12th at 19.9 per 1,000 population
Crude birth rates, number of live births per 1000 people: Malawi ranks 14th at 44.6
Highest fertility rates in the world: Malawi ranks 16th at 6.1.
Highest infant mortality: Malawi ranks 16th at 102.6 per 1000 live births
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Malawi geography
Malawi is a landlocked country in what is often referred to as the sub-saharan region of Africa. That is, the region below the Saharan desert. Located not far from the east coast of Africa, it borders Mozambique, Zambia, and Tanzania. If you are looking at this map of Africa, Malawi is small enough that you may not find it unless you know where to look.. So, I will offer a couple of hints that I hope will be helpful. First, find the equator, running through the middle of Africa. Look below (south) of the equator. Go to the east coast and look for Tanzania. If I have the correct compass points in mind, Tanzania lies northeast of Malawi. Translation, Malawi lies to the left and underneath Tanzania. In terms of its total area, Malawi is slightly smaller in size than the State of Pennsylvania in the U.S.
Natural resources include: limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite.
Current environmental issues include deforestation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, and industrial wastes; and silt buildup in spawning grounds that endanger fish populations.
The climate is subtropical. There are two seasons in Malawi, rainy and dry with the rainy seasons running from November to May. During the rainy season, roads serving the more remote villages may be impassable. Above ground water sources may dry up during the dry season.
A good summary of information on Malawi may be found in the World Factbook entry on Malawi. Most of the information included here including the map reproduced above is from the World Factbook.
Natural resources include: limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite.
Current environmental issues include deforestation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, and industrial wastes; and silt buildup in spawning grounds that endanger fish populations.
The climate is subtropical. There are two seasons in Malawi, rainy and dry with the rainy seasons running from November to May. During the rainy season, roads serving the more remote villages may be impassable. Above ground water sources may dry up during the dry season.
A good summary of information on Malawi may be found in the World Factbook entry on Malawi. Most of the information included here including the map reproduced above is from the World Factbook.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)