As we finish up our first month here in Lilongwe, I have been reflecting on both the challenges and amazing moments. I am thankful for the generosity of the MacMillan Center and other donors that enabled this amazing opportunity!
With our work at CCPF (‘Chipata cha pa Foni’, translates to ‘Hospital by Phone’), we have been finishing up the transition of the hotline to the Ministry of Health (MoH). The transition was supposed to finish on July 1st, but government trainings and management staff has not been finalized, so it has been delayed. CCPF was able to secure funding from donors and MoH, and the hotline will operate for maximum three months before it must be taken over by the MoH.
Last week, we attended a meeting between officials in the MoH, our coworkers, and some aid representatives regarding the transition. Although we had driven around the Malawian Capitol Hill, it was exciting to go into a Ministry and directly participate in a government meeting! The officials were very kind: they had us introduce ourselves and asked for our input during the meeting. The meeting focused on creating a timeline for transition in the next three months, appointing various managers in the MoH, and ensuring employment for the current hotline workers in the government. Here’s a photo of the conference room during a meeting break.
This week, we have begun to do more research on expansion of CCPF services internationally, specifically focusing on Uganda. We were able to participate in a call with representatives from the Ugandan Ministry of Health, which runs a government hotline service. CCPF hopes to help this service expand in its capacity and sustainability.
Besides from work, we have been able to explore Malawi, leaving the capital city these past few weekends!
Two weekends ago, we went to Dedza, near the central border of Mozambique. Yale professor Jessica Thompson is here for an archeological dig, and had just arrived with her team. Before she left for the dig, she invited us to visit a rock art site. We saw rural Malawi for the first time, which is how most of the population lives. The rock art itself was amazing! We climbed to various sites since both the Pygmy people (about 2 millennia ago) and more recent Chewa people (came 200 years ago and are a main ethnic group) painted there. The pygmy drawings (in red) have not been interpreted whereas the Chewa drawings (in white) have a lot of animal symbolism which is still used. The scenery was beautiful, since it was in the middle of the Southern Rift Valley. It was so inspiring to imagine the first humans once existing here. Here’s some of the Chewa art.
This past week, we decided to travel to Mount Mulanje! It’s ‘massif’ rising above the ground with many peaks, and served as inspiration for JRR Tolkien for the Lord of the Rings. It’s surrounded by picturesque tea plantations. We spent the trip hiking/climbing and our main hike was to the Chambe basin.
The first half of the path was steep red clay hills lined with trees and rock ledges. We could see the valley below, which was beautiful, with tea plantations and pale blue mountain ranges faraway (they were in Mozambique!) It was cool to see peaks above us recede below us as we went higher and higher. In the second half, we scrambled rock slopes with vivid green and red moss. Here’s a view of the valley bellow us.
Four hours later, we finally reached the Chambe basin! There was a dark peak in the back with its water steams glittering in the sun, fields of rolling yellow grass, a gentle river, and hills packed with trees. We stood in awe. We made our way down by traveling through one of the many jungles. It was like an enchanted forest from a movie: sunlight streaming though trees and vines, slippery clay paths, patches of moss, and haunted fallen logs. There were other beautiful sights, including this waterfall that had a perfect backdrop of peaks and rainforest. Here’s the jungle and waterfall.
There are days where it is challenging to be away, and in such a different place. But those days are eclipsed by the work opportunities or beautiful nature we are able to experience.
