Overpopulation.Com » Malawi

Food Shortages Abate — Except In Zimbabwe

briancarnell — Thu, 20 Feb 2003 06:00:00 +0000

The World Food Program reports that food shortages are coming to an end in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia, but such problems continue to worsen in Zimbabwe.

James Morris, head of the World Food Program, told The New York Times,

A serious humanitarian disaster has been averted. Food has been put in place over the last several months in such a way that mass starvation and death has not occurred. We’re seeing significant progress in Malawi and Zambia. We don’t have that same optimism in Zimbabwe.

In Zimbabwe, the WFP’s estimate of the numbers of people facing food shortages jumped to 7.2 million in December, up from 6.7 million in August.

Source:

African food shortages ending everywhere except in Zimbabwe. Rachel L. Swarns, The New York Times, January 31, 2003.

Food Shortages Abate — Except In Zimbabwe is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Malawi Not Serious About Stemming Corruption

briancarnell — Wed, 30 Oct 2002 06:00:00 +0000

Malawi is one of a number of African countries facing a food crisis. Like other African nations, Malawi has taken to blaming all of its problem on international actors such as the International Monetary Fund. But its behavior suggests that most, if not all of its problems, are internal.

Malawi, for example, has been promising for months that it is finally prepared to seriously tackle official corruption — corruption that was behind the government’s sale of almost 70,000 metric tons of grain at the same time that the government knew it was likely facing shortages.

So Malawi had appointed former accountant-general Gilton Chiwaula to its Anti-Corruption Bureau. But that just created new problems as Chiwaula began to get a handle on corruption and his investigation began to threaten some high-placed officials.

So in October, Chiwaula was quickly fired on the grounds that the former chairman of the regional Southern African Forum Against Corruption was too incompetent and did not adequately understand Malawi’s anti-corruption laws to carry out his duties. This came the same week that the leader of the main opposition party in Malawi was arrested for defaming the president.

Yeah, that Malawi government is certainly serious about tackling corruption.

Source:

Malawi sacks top corruption fighter. Reuters, October 23, 2002.

Malawi Not Serious About Stemming Corruption is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Famine in Malawi

briancarnell — Mon, 20 May 2002 05:00:00 +0000

The African nation of Malawi is headed toward a famine disaster created almost entirely by corruption and mismanagement at the highest level of its government. Malawi, sadly, presents a paradigmatic case of how governments in the developing world all too frequently condemn their citizens to hunger and starvation.

The government of Malawi had warnings and indications as early as August 2001 that there would be enormous shortages of food. Back then the country of 11 million people knew it was short at least 400,000 tons of maize that it would need to feed everyone.

But due to internal politics and corruption, the government refused to declare any sort of aid emergency. In fact, even though it knew of the shortfall it actually sold part of its maize reserves to Kenya.

With its failure to declare an emergency and with it openly selling food to other countries, international aid agencies did not have much of a chance at convincing potential donor nations to give money and food to feed people in Malawi.

In February 2002, with most of the country on the verge of starvation and hunger deaths increasing, Malawi President Bakili Muluzi finally declared a state of national disaster.

But by then it was too late. Although it needs an estimate $21.6 million to avoid widespread deaths from famine, as of May 2002 it had only managed to raise $5 million. The government had apparently been counting on the International Monetary Fund to release $47 million in aid, but the IMF late last week denied the funds, saying that corruption and mismanagement in Malawi would make any aid at this time pointless.

Unfortunately, it appears that Malawi’s extremely poor men, women and children will likely pay the price for their government’s corruption and mismanagement.

Sources:

Malawi declares famine emergency. Raphael Tenthani, The BBC, February 27, 2002.

Hope fades for Malawi aid. The BBC, May 16, 2002.

Malawi bishops deplore famine chaos. Raphael Tenthani, The BBC, March 31, 2002.

Malawi famine set to continue. Raphael Tenthani, The BBC, May 14, 2002.

Famine in Malawi is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Measles Vaccination Works in the Developing World

briancarnell — Wed, 15 May 2002 05:00:00 +0000

A study published this month in The Lancet should settle once and for all whether or not vaccination of disease is a worthwhile goal to achieve in the developing world. There has been some skepticism over whether or not poor nations possessed the infrastructure to carry out large scale vaccination programs.

The study looked at World Health Organization efforts to vaccinate for measles in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, South AFrica, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.

Over four years, WHO and national health agencies vaccinated almost 24 million children in those seven countries. The study found that as a result of the vaccination programs, total cases of measles in those countries fell from 60,000 in 1996 to less than 200 in the year 2000. Total deaths dropped from 160 in 1996 to zero in 2000.

Vaccination can work even in extremely poor countries.

Source:

Measles vaccine’s African success story. Corrine Podger, The BBC, May 3, 2002.

Measles Vaccination Works in the Developing World is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

FAO Warns of Famine Risk in Southern Africa

briancarnell — Thu, 21 Mar 2002 06:00:00 +0000

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization warned in February that parts of southern Africa are at serious risk of famine over the next few months that could threaten as many as four million people.

The famine threat is greatest in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe, of course, has seen its crop production cut in half thanks to the confiscatory and anti-democratic policies of Robert Mugabe.

Malawi has suffered from flooding the past couple years which has waterlogged crops and reduced yields. Food is available in Malawi, but the poverty levels there often make it impossible for people to obtain food.

In Zambia, too, flooding caused a 24 percent decrease in harvests in 2001 as compared to 2000.

Source:

Famine stalks Southern Africa. The BBC, February 19, 2002.

FAO Warns of Famine Risk in Southern Africa is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Life Expectancy in Africa Continues Decline

briancarnell — Tue, 12 Feb 2002 06:00:00 +0000

Africa is the only region, to my knowledge, in which the life expectancy has been declining over the past two decades, and it looks like the life expectancy there will continue to decline for the forseeable future.

According to a recent conference on African population issues held in Ethiopia, average life expectancy in Africa has declined by almost 15 years over the past two decades. The biggest culprit is infectious disease. AIDS and other infectious diseases are pushing life expectancy to extremely low rates in several African countries.

In both Botswana and Malawi, for example, life expectancy is below 40 years according to UNAIDS. By 2005, according to the recent conference, life expectancy for Africa as a whole be only 48 years, compared to 74.9 and 81.2 years for European men and women respectively.

Source:

Life expectancy still falling in Africa. The BB, February 11, 2002.

Life Expectancy in Africa Continues Decline is a post from: Overpopulation.Com

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.