Memories of Malawi

This reflection, written by Sr. Placida, first appeared in the Flourish.

Recently, I was blessed to have the opportunity to travel to Malawi to see SCIAF's life-changing work and talk to people about the impact it has.

I was joined by their CEO Lorraine Currie, Bishop President Brian McGee, Liaison Officer Dr. Blessings Kachele and Michael Hamilton, the Public Engagement Officer.

We arrived in Lilongwe where we were warmly welcomed by Caritas Malawi officials and the local auxiliary bishop.  They all expressed their sincere gratitude for the wonderful support they receive from the people of Scotland through SCIAF.

While we were there, we visited the ‘Hope for Youth’ project in Zomba.  The young people involved in the project welcomed us with singing and dancing. This project is a vocational school for young people who have no other chance to gain employment.  The students showed us samples of their work and explained what they were doing. 

The main areas were carpentry/joinery, masonry and iron work. The students were mostly boys, but there were a few girls there, too.  The thing I loved most about this project was that, after completing their course and getting experience of starting and running a business, the staff at the school followed up with them to check if they were doing well. 

If they weren’t doing so well, they were invited to return to the school to sharpen their business skills.  The staff were very committed and passionate about the success of their students.

The next project was an agricultural project in Mangochi and, again, we were greeted by a large group of enthusiastic women singing and dancing and smiling.  This project uses irrigation to grow crops during the dry season. Due to climate change, the dry season is becoming more intense and much longer year by year. This project helps the people to produce food both for sustenance and also to sell to earn money to pay for school fees, medical bills, etc.

The next project was also in Mangochi where we visited a livelihoods project where the women were taught to make local stoves, soap, honey from bee-keeping and the young people were taught carpentry/joinery and tailoring/dressmaking. All these projects were really impressive, but the one that blew me away was the project designed to help people living with Albinism. These people had previously been subjected to what I can only describe as a living nightmare of terror and despair. In the not so distant past, people with Albinism had been hunted down and killed and their body parts used to make “medicine” for curing diseases like HIV. So, the impact of this project was literally life-changing for these people. 

Not only were they allowed to live in peace and safety, but they were trained in vocational skills to earn their living. This gave them dignity and a sense of self-worth. A group of about twelve of them expressed their heartfelt gratitude to SCIAF and the people of Scotland, not just for their skills but for their very lives.

Another significant aspect of our visit was seeing the amazing commitment and passion of the local partners who are helping to implement these projects.  I always knew SCIAF was doing a great job, but to see just how much impact it is having on the lives of these lovely people was so heart-warming.  So, to SCIAF, I say, “Keep up the excellent work!” and to the wonderful people of Scotland, “Keep on donating to help our sisters and brothers in need.” Thanks.