Plan Malawi: what we do

Plan’s work in Malawi covers 5 key areas, all of which are rooted in the rights of the child.  The approach is based on the Human Rights Based Approach to Development (HRBAD) from which Plan’s Child Centred Community Development (CCCD) approach derives its core principles.

The 5 main areas are:

• Sexual Reproduction and Child Health
• Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
• Quality Basic Education
• Child Protection and Participation
• Youth Participation and Empowerment

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Plan Malawi

Plan has been working in Malawi since 1994, helping poor children to access their rights to health, education and food security.

Malawi ranks among the world’s 10 least developed countries and faces several challenges including food insecurity, the AIDS pandemic and rising poverty.

Our programmes directly benefit around 29,000 children in 95 communities within our impact areas and have positive effects on thousands more children, especially where our activities have been scaled up.

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Gender-based Violence in Malawi

Having experienced the violence young women are subjected to first-hand in Malawi, Abikanile, 17, is passionate about speaking up for girls’ rights – and she’s not afraid to let the world know what it’s like to be a young woman in her country.

“I was nearly raped by seven boys after I finished playing netball,” reveals 17-year-old Abikanile from Malawi. “Thankfully, I escaped as I used the self-defense moves I learned from my Girl Guides Club.”

Sexual violence is a major issue in Malawi, particularly for young women. “I am not the only one who was nearly raped,” says Abikanile. “We hear of so many girls being raped by their fathers, cousins, and other men, only to discover that the police didn’t do anything about it when it was reported.”Læs mere her!

Case study: Girls speak out at UN

A delegation of girls from poor rural communities across the world are sharing the harsh reality of their lives at a United Nations meeting in New York.

The 9 Plan-supported teenagers from Cambodia, Cameroon, Malawi, Pakistan and Sierra Leone will tell the Commission on the Status of Women* (CSW), of the daily challenges girls face in their communities – from early and forced marriage to polygamy and domestic violence.

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Girls from Malawi and Pakistan at London child marriage meeting

Four girls from Malawi and Pakistan are talking to Justine Greening, the UK Government’s Secretary of State for International Development, and other high level decision-makers, about the impact of child marriage in their communities.

You can read more about the girls, who are members of Plan’s Global Speakers Network, below. They are participating in a special event today attended by London based High Commissioners from across the Commonwealth of Nations and representatives from the UK’s Department for International Development.

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Hard work, long hours and little pay

This research on tobacco farms in Malawi reveals that child labourers, some as young as 5, are suffering severe physical symptoms from absorbing up to the equivalent of 50 cigarettes a day through their skin.

As the tobacco industry continues to shift its production to developing countries, more vulnerable children are being exposed to these hazardous working conditions.

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Plan Brings Clean Water to Malawian Residents

Every day in the Kamtsizi and Mazaza villages, of Njewa, Malawi, families turn on taps at shared water points and out flows clean, fresh water for drinking, cooking, washing, and bathing. This may seem unremarkable, but not too long ago, this wasn’t the case.

For years, residents of these two villages had been using contaminated water from unprotected sources such as streams and dambos, the Malawian name for wetlands. This water would be used for cooking and drinking.

“We suffered from recurrent bouts of diarrhea due to lack of safe water and proper sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices,” says Henderson Mbendera, secretary for the Kamtsizi-Mazaza Village Health Committee.

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Case study: Making motherhood safer in Malawi

”Today I have a baby,” says 24-year-old Stella, proudly. It’s happy news, but Stella has suffered many losses on her journey to motherhood.

Stella has given birth to 4 babies but, tragically, 3 were stillborn. During her fourth pregnancy she was supported by Plan’s safe motherhood volunteers. She gave birth at the Plan-supported Chitedze Health Centre, which serves the communities of Kango and Sankhani in central Malawi.

It was the first time she had used the health centre. In the past, Stella had relied on the traditional birth attendants, who are still favoured by many people in rural Malawi, despite the fact that they often lack skills and knowledge of modern medicine.

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Because I am a Girl: I'll take it from here

Watch this innovative stop-motion film on the plight and power of girls around the world.

Shot in Malawi with the participation of children and young people in the community, it shows how education can give girls the chance to move from poverty to oppportunity.

75 million girls around the world are out of school. Plan's Because I am a Girl campaign aims to support millions of girls to get the education, skills and support they need to transform their lives and the world around them.

Please Raise Your Hand to support girls' right to quality education at raiseyourhandNOW.com

Malawis piger taler sig til forbedringer

I Malawi går mere end hver 3. pige mellem 10 og 14 år ikke i skole, og tallet fordobles, når det kommer til piger mellem 15 og 19 år.

Uligheden mellem piger og drenge er tydelig.10,5 % af pigerne dropper ud af grundskolen sammenlignet med 6,3 % af drengene. Og dobbelt så mange unge kvinder som mænd er hiv-positive.

Derfor startede Plan et skoleprojekt, der skulle forbedre kvaliteten af uddannelse på 10 grundskoler i Malawi. Projektet foregik i samarbejde med bl.a. Undervisningsministeriet, og målet var at identificere de forskellige behov, som piger og drenge har.

Lokalsamfundene lærte at bakke op om både piger og drenges uddannelse, lærerne lærte at undervise i børnehøjde, og strukturen på skolerne blev tilpasset pigernes behov.

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Piger taler ud hos FN

En delegation af piger fra fattige landdistrikter i hele verden deler den hårde virkelighed der er deres liv hos de Forenede Nationers møde i New York denne uge.

de 9 Plan-supported teenagere fra Cambodja, Cameroun, Malawi, Pakistan og Sierra Leone vil fortælle the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), om de daglige udfordringer piger står overfor i deres samfund - fra tidlig og tvangsægteskaber til polygami og vold i hjemmet.

Teresa, der er 17 år gammel og fra Sierra Leone, hun er en af delegaterne der repræsenterer hendes jævnaldrende, samfund og land.

“I want to be part of the decision of who I marry and when, I will decide how many children I will have... If I have daughters, they will go to school and have an equal place within the family. As adults they will take care of their children so that they too will enjoy their rights,” sagde hun.

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