MALAWI

Climbing For Christ

TAKING THE GOSPEL TO MOUNTAINOUS AREAS OF THE WORLD WHERE OTHER MISSIONARIES CANNOT OR WILL NOT GO
Gary Fallesen

Malawi

Population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, corruption, and the spread of HIV/AIDS pose major problems for Malawi. This is an underdeveloped and impoverished country, one of the poorest in the world.

Malawi has the sixth-lowest gross domestic product per person on the planet — US$260. The UN Development Programme ranks Malawi as the 18th worst country in its “Human development index.” No country has fewer doctors per person; there is one doctor for every 50,752 people.

A lack of doctors is a major problem in a place where HIV/AIDS is prevalent among about 12 percent of the population aged 15-49. That ranks Malawi ninth in the world. An estimated 504 per 1,000 people died from AIDS-related illnesses in 2007 (sixth worst in the world). There are up to 400,000 AIDS orphans.

Malawi orphans being fed and clothed by Climbing For Christ.

As if all of these physical needs aren't bad enough: Islam is on the rise in a country where 4 out of 5 people profess to be Christian.

More than 90 percent of the Yao people in the southern part of Malawi are Muslim. The Qur'an has been translated into Chewa, the country's official language. And, although there is freedom of religion, Operation World suggests that “some suspect there is a favoring of the Muslim minority.”

There is an ongoing need for relationships to be developed between Christ followers and Muslims.

Fast facts

Location: Central Africa. Leader: Vice president Joyce Banda succeeded Bingu wa Mutharika, who died in office on April 5, 2012, as Malawi's president on April 7, 2012. The next election is scheduled for May 2014. Population: More than 16.7 million in a country slightly smaller than the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Primary Religion: Christian (about 82 percent). Nearly 13 percent of the population is Muslim.

Where in the world?

Malawi is located in south-central Africa, east of Zambia. It is also bordered by Mozambique and Tanzania. (The World Factbook)

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Expeditions

Mission: Malawi 2024

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Climbing For Christ’s ninth expedition to Malawi will focus on teaching members of the Mulanje Massif Chapter about “Communicating the Bible,” walking in the Spirit, and delivering the Good News to those who have not heard. Training will take place on Mulanje mountain in June.

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“Those who were homeless, now they have a house to call home,” Kingdom worker Damson Samson said when asked about Climbing For Christ’s impact on his home country. “Those walking naked were dressed up.”

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Latest News

Mission Moments: Malawi

Facing a food crisis

Gary Fallesen 0 120

Approximately 4.2 million people (20 percent of the population in Malawi) were expected to experience “high levels of acute food insecurity” between June and September 2024, including 56,000 people facing an “emergency” and 4.1 million in “crisis,” according to an IPC report. Most of these people are in southern Malawi. Worse news: The situation is expected to deteriorate during the projection period (October-March), which coincides with the “lean season.”

Mission Moments: Malawi

Giving youth adult-size opportunities

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A vocational skills center for youth opens in southern Malawi hoping to help young people and help elders who care for them. This could counter the high dropout rate from schools and help end the cultural practice of child marriages.

Mission: Malawi 2024

Guiding disciple-making movements

Gary Fallesen 0 867

Climbing For Christ’s ninth expedition to Malawi will focus on teaching members of the Mulanje Massif Chapter about “Communicating the Bible,” walking in the Spirit, and delivering the Good News to those who have not heard. Training will take place on Mulanje mountain in June.

Mission Moments: Malawi

Tropical Cyclone Freddy’s updates

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Tropical Cyclone Freddy devastated an already reeling – constantly hurting – southern Malawi, where Kingdom worker Damson Samson and ministry partner Pastor Duncan Nyozani live. This is one of the poorest parts of one of the world’s poorest nations. Hunger is an almost constant companion. Now thousands are homeless, and hundreds are dead and missing after days of rain and floods.

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