Traveling the World and Learning In Malawi, Africa
Posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
I am very fortunate to have been able to granted a one year leave from my job as a high school counselor Honeoye Falls-Lima in N.Y. to work in Malawi Africa on a research grant. I try and motivate my students to get outside their comfort zone and experience the world. I have had a great opportunity to just that.
I worked this year in Malawi for a non-profit organization on a research grant that examined the effects of schooling and income on sexual behavior and HIV risk for young women. Studies have shown a link between increased school attendance and lowered HIV risk. In Malawi, close to one million people are infected with HIV, which equals 14 percent of the population and is the eighth largest infection rate in the world (UNAIDS, 2006).
HIV infection is four times higher in females than males. I traveled to villages throughout Malawi to pay the school fees and living stipends for over 1,000 young women ages 13-22 years and conducted questionnaires and school attendance checks.
I am excited to have had the opportunity to work with this project because made an impact on the lives of the girls in the program. I hope to decrease HIV/AIDS rates and I helped people achieve an education, which I believe is one of the most important things in the world. Education levels in Malawi are extremely low.
According to the World Bank Poverty and Vulnerability Assessment (2006), almost 30% of poor children in Malawi do not even start primary school and only 39% of students who entered Grade One reach Grade Eight. Many people are unable to attend school in Malawi because they do not have the money to pay for school uniforms or secondary school fees.
Additionally, many young children, especially girls, have to work during the week to bring in money for the family to survive so they are unable to attend school. I live on a road that leads down from the Zomba Plateau and daily I encounter young girls carrying away heavy bundles of wood on their heads. By paying school fees and a monthly living stipend the girls have the opportunity to attend school and not have to carry wood on their heads. Educating girls also has an additional benefit in Malawian society.
Often when the young men become educated they leave their villages for the cities where they can make more money. When the young women earn an education they tend to stay in their villages and with they knowledge they gain in school they increase the quality of life for the whole village. For example, learning in school about sanitation and how to access clean drinking water keeps people safe from illness like cholera that lead to deaths every year. I have learned that here knowledge really is a matter of life or death. Many people are looking for opportunities to learn and make healthy decisions. I have met many people who are very hard workers and when they are provided with an opportunity they make the best of it. I am thankful to have been able to meet many people and share in their lives. As one of my mentors says, “It’s all about the love,” and I have found this to be true wisdom.
Along with my research position, I also participated in volunteer work. I believe in playing an active role in the community I live in. I volunteered with Africycle, a charity that provides high quality affordable bicycles to empower Malawians. I volunteered at Grace Orphan Care and I donated books to their reading program. I also helped plant 250 trees on Zomba Plateau with Chawe Primary School students.
I am currently in Malawi and I return to the U.S. of A. on May 7th.
In my travels I have learned that health care in one of the best ways to assist others and I will be taking an Emergency Medical Technician certification course that begins this May.
Andy Fleming is a member of Cloudveil’s new ambassador program. More information on that coming soon. Find more information from Andy on Malawi.
Statistics on Malawi:
Malawi’s United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) Statistics:
* an average Malawian has a life expectancy of 39.5 years
* 64.1% of adult are literate
* 64.3% of children are enrolled in school
* the average Malawian makes $646 per year
Literacy rate 62.7%
Literacy rates for men 76.1%
Literacy rates for women 49.8%
HIV/AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate: 14%
8th largest infection rate in the world, almost 1 million people (UNAIDS, 2006).
U.S.A. HIV/AIDS Prevalence Rate: 0.06% (2003 est.)
Malawi is a small beautiful country of 12 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2006, the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) ranked Malawi 166th out of 177 countries. The HDI is a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and enrollment at the primary, secondary and tertiary level) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity, PPP, income).
Good job Andy!!!
Looking forward to going for a ride with you soon… Missed you skiing this winter. Just saw this yesterday and had to write and say hello. Give a call soon, would love to hear from ya!
Bill H. (Bristol Telemark)
We’re proud of what you accomplished and what new awareness you bring back to us.
Hi Bill,
Great to hear from you. I hope you had a great tele season. I’m looking forward to getting out with you this coming season. Also, on the bike, let’s ride.
Andy
Andy – Tried calling but haven’t been able to get through. I assume you’ve changed (dropped) your number since leaving for Africa. Look me up in the phone book (Canandaigua) and call soon to ride. Looking forward to it!
Bill