Mission Moments: Malawi
Men at work in Malawi on a new women’s clinic. (Photo by Duncan Nyozani)
New clinic under construction in Malawi
The last we saw the Mothers & Babies Centre that Pastor Duncan Nyozani proposed building in southern Malawi, he was standing, somewhat forlorn, in front of an unfinished building (photo above). He’d been left hanging when funds promised by a North American pastor hadn’t come through.
“There is only one hospital in our district of Phalombe,” Duncan said. “We do not have a district hospital, but we have a Catholic hospital at Holy Family. This is the only district in Malawi that has no district hospital. There are also very few health centers in our district, so thousands of people walk to a distant clinic for help, which is very bad.”
Duncan opened a clinic for women in Msema in 2006. But the distance from other villages proved to be a detriment. “Many women fail to attend clinics because of long distances,” Duncan said. “This is why I had a vision in 2006 to build a small clinic for mothers and babies just for them to come and learn a lot of things, like hygiene, sanitation, how to care for their kids, how to cook foods, etc.
“Many people get diseases in villages because they are not aware of other diseases and how to prevent them. So, the Mothers & Babies Clinic is a place where women from surrounding villages of Msema, Ngoma, Filisa, Singano, and Manyowa can come and learn different things. It is for all women in these villages, but our most important target is those women with babies.”
There is a remarkable group of about 40 women who have been using the old Mothers & Babies Centre. Those ladies do outreach into villages where they serve people devastated by HIV/AIDS – while at the same time raising their own families and starting small businesses to support themselves.
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Michele Annibal of Philadelphia, PA, USA presents the mothers with a basketball the women had requested for their passionate netball games. (Photo by Gary Fallesen, Mission: Malawi 2014)
Our Mission: Malawi team members have met with these women in the past, and will do so again in March. Prayerfully that next meeting will be in the new clinic.
C4C Canada provided US$3,200 in January 2016 to cover the unfulfilled pledge. Duncan had workers on the job immediately.
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“After it gets finished we will ask ministry of health to provide other facilities on this clinic, like pregnant women going for scale weighing, as well as babies being weighed,” Duncan said.
May this gift show the love of God to many women and moms.
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