August 10, 2014
The World Race provides a brief explanation of what racers can expect in Malawi. “Known as “the warm heart of Africa,” Malawi is a place you visit to ignite your passion for God’s love. This country has a beautiful landscape and an even more beautiful culture and population. This month, you’ll fall in love with the people of Malawi and bless them with the love of God.”
I got this information from Enchantment of the World: Malawi by Martha S.B Lane, christianaid.com, and worldvision.org.
-Malawi is one of the poorest nations in the world.
– Malawi is largely dependent on agriculture. However, the country is land locked and is badly affected by climate change, which leaves many struggling to provide for themselves and their families. Drought, flood, and the current farming methods in Malawi make it hard for communities to cope.
– Malawi has seen child mortality rates decrease in recent years. However, maternal mortality rates, although reducing, remain unacceptably high at 675 per 100,000 live births.
-Around one in every ten adults in Malawi lives with HIV. This places a significant burden on the many Malawians who care for sick HIV patients, as often they are ill themselves or are looking after children orphaned by the virus.” (christianaid.com)
-Malawi also has to deal with malaria, tuberculosis, gastrointestinal diseases, leprosy, and now the new threat of the ebola virus.
-Only 17% of the adult population is literate, and only 40% of school-age children begin to attend primary school. Education also seems to be a low priority because of the need to be at home and provide for the family.
-There are over eight million people who live in Malawi, making it one of the most densely populated areas in Africa. The growing population and lack of food make this a growing problem.
-There are almost twice as many women as men living in Malawi. The most important reason for this is that almost a quarter of the adult male population of Malawi lives and works in other African countries because jobs are not easy to find in their own country and land resources are becoming more and more scarce. The men can be gone for almost two years before returning, which puts all of the harvesting, labor, and house work responsibilities to the women.
-Around the edges of Malawi’s cities, many live in slum areas. Here there are few real houses and people live in temporary shelters that they have constructed out of scrap materials. Clean water is scarce in these areas and sanitation is poor. Disease is a problem.
-About 65% of the people are nominally Christian and 16% are Muslims. The majority of the people, however, still hold on to their other believes, such as sprit and ancestor worship.
-The hunger problem in Malawi is made worse by the fact, in recent years, more than half a million refugees have fled into the country from Mozambique. Many of these people are still displaced.
Please pray with me for Malawi. That God would heal and protect form illness and comfort those who are dying. That He would provide for and embrace those who are starving, displaced, orphaned, and neglected. That Malawi would experience a revival for Jesus!
God bless you all!
~Tori
