Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south and southwest. Malawi spans over 118,484 km2 (45,747 sq mi) and has an estimated population of 19,431,566. Malawi's capital is Lilongwe. Its second-largest is Blantyre, its third-largest is Mzuzu and its fourth-largest is its former capital, Zomba. The name Malawi comes from the Maravi, an old name for the Chewa people who inhabit the area. The country is nicknamed "The Warm Heart of Africa" because of the friendliness of its people.
An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusive. There may be substance abuse or mental illness in the biological home, or the parent may simply be unwilling to care for the child. The legal responsibility for the support of abandoned children differs from country to country, and within countries. Government-run orphanages have been phased out in most developed countries during the latter half of the 20th century but continue to operate in many other regions internationally. It is now generally accepted that orphanages are detrimental to the emotional wellbeing of children, and government support goes instead towards supporting the family unit.
Mchinji is a town and the capital of the Mchinji District in the Central Region of Malawi. Mchinji Boma, located 12 kilometres from the Zambian border and 109 km (68 mi) from the national capital, Lilongwe, is the major hub of government and general business. It has a major railroad junction, being the railhead nearest to Zambia. The area's economy is sustained by rain-fed agriculture.
Joyce Hilda Banda is a Malawian politician who was the President of Malawi from 7 April 2012 to 31 May 2014. Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She is the founder and leader of the People's Party, created in 2011. An educator and grassroots women's rights activist, she was the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and the Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012. She had served in various roles as a member of Parliament and as Minister of Gender and Child Welfare before she became the President of the Republic of Malawi.
Raising Malawi is a charity non-profit organization that was founded by Madonna and Michael Berg in 2006. It is dedicated to helping with the extreme poverty and hardship endured by Malawi's one million orphans, primarily through health and education programming. Initially, the "Raising Malawi Academy for Girls" was to be constructed but following an audit by the Global Philanthropy Group, which questioned expenditure on salaries and benefits as well as the management capacity and culture, the charity's school headmistress resigned in October 2010 and the project was scrapped.
I Am Because We Are is a 2008 British-American-Malawian documentary film about AIDS orphans in Malawi. It was directed by Nathan Rissman and written, narrated, and produced by Madonna through her production company Semtex Films.
The transition from a one-party state to a multi-party democracy significantly strengthened the already cordial U.S. relationship with Malawi. Significant numbers of Malawians study in the United States. The United States has an active Peace Corps program, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Servicess, and an Agency for International Development (USAID) mission in Malawi. Both countries have a common history and English language, as they were part of the British Empire.
Education in Malawi stresses academic preparation leading to access to secondary school and universities. However, few students go on to high school or university. The dropout rate is also very high particularly among primary school pupils.
An orphan is a child whose parents have died.
As of 2012, approximately 1,100,000 people in Malawi are HIV-positive, which represents 10.8% of the country's population. Because the Malawian government was initially slow to respond to the epidemic under the leadership of Hastings Banda (1966–1994), the prevalence of HIV/AIDS increased drastically between 1985, when the disease was first identified in Malawi, and 1993, when HIV prevalence rates were estimated to be as high as 30% among pregnant women. The Malawian food crisis in 2002 resulted, at least in part, from a loss of agricultural productivity due to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS. Various degrees of government involvement under the leadership of Bakili Muluzi (1994–2004) and Bingu wa Mutharika (2004–2012) resulted in a gradual decline in HIV prevalence, and, in 2003, many people living in Malawi gained access to antiretroviral therapy. Condoms have become more widely available to the public through non-governmental organizations, and more Malawians are taking advantage of HIV testing services.
The Jacaranda Foundation is an American/Malawian grassroots organisation founded in 2002 by Malawian Marie da Silva. With the foundation itself based in New York City, it maintains the Jacaranda School. Since Primary education is currently free for all students, it is Malawi's only entirely free school for both primary and secondary students. The vast majority of students of the Jacaranda School are orphaned by the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
Rory Alec Stephen, better known as Rory Alec, is a South African Christian broadcaster and media executive. He co-founded the GOD TV network in 1995, and was Chief Executive Officer from 1994 to 2014. Alec is now pursuing other projects in film, television, staging and music through a new company called The Internationals.
Catherine Mary Ajizinga Chipembere is a Malawian gender activist and politician. She was born in 1935 in Malawi. She was the wife of Malawian nationalist Henry Masauko Chipembere and is the mother of the internationally known jazz artist Masauko Chipembere Jr. She was exiled to the US from Malawi together with her husband, and later returned to Malawi and was the first woman elected to Malawi Parliament. She currently works with AIDS orphans and runs twelve pre-schools, serving more than 1,000 AIDS orphans. She also runs a women's knitting cooperative in Mangochi.
Rose Lomathinda Chibambo was a prominent politician in the British Protectorate of Nyasaland in the years leading up to independence as the state of Malawi in 1964, and immediately after.
Iris Global, previously Iris Ministries, is a Christian interdenominational, missionary organization that provides humanitarian aid in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Members of Iris seek to spread the gospel while performing humanitarian activities.
Grace Chiumia, is a Malawian politician who has served as Minister of Civic education in the Malawian cabinet, since 24 October 2017. Before her current appointment, she was the Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security, in the Malawian Cabinet, from 6 September 2016 until 24 October 2017.
The Mercy James Centre for Paediatric Surgery and Intensive Care (MJC), also Mercy James Centre, or Mercy James Hospital, is a specialized children's hospital in Malawi.
Marie da Silva is a Malawian AIDS activist and founder of the Jacaranda Foundation from Chembomba, Malawi.
Edda Ella Chitalo is a Malawian politician.
Isabel Apawo Phiri is a Malawian theologian known for her work in gender justice, HIV/AIDS, and African theology. She has been a Deputy Secretary for the World Council of Churches since 2012.
