Several
years ago, I read about Madonna’s nonprofit charity Raising Malawi. The program
aims to help the state of extreme poverty in the country by focusing on
education and health care. The nonprofit has erected several schools and
healthcare facilities, and as far as I could tell from the website, it has made
some impacts. Of course, there have been plenty of criticisms as well. Even though there are some obvious problems with
poverty and lack of adequate healthcare in Malawi, I have a feeling there’s
more to this country than this. So, I can’t wait to find out more.
The
name Malawi may be derived from a word meaning “tongues of fire” possibly in
references to the way the sun reflects off of Lake Malawi. However, the first
president of Malawi, Hastings Banda, said during the time the country was known
as Nyasaland (“Nyasa” means “lake”), that he once saw a “Lac Maravi” on an old
French map, and it got him thinking. He decided “Malawi” would make a better
name.
Malawi
is a landlocked country in southeastern Africa. It’s surrounded by Tanzania to
the northeast, Mozambique covering most of the southern parts, and Zambia on
the northwest side. Lake Malawi runs along its eastern border with Tanzania and
Mozambique. It also includes the island of Likoma that is located in Lake
Malawi and actually closer to Mozambique than Malawi. The southern part tends
to be hotter than the more temperate northern regions.
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| Hastings Banda |
The
original inhabitants were Bantu-speaking people who migrated here from
northwest Africa. There were several tribes here who united and created the
Kingdom of Maravi. During the 1600s, they worked with the Portuguese traders,
but by the 1700s and 1800s, large numbers of people were caught up in the
Swahili-Arab slave trade. In 1859, David Livingstone reached the shores of Lake
Nyasa and decided that was a great place for Europeans to settle. In the
following years, missionaries and trading companies began to settle in the area
and set up their own towns. In the late 1800s, the land known as the Shire
Highlands was placed as a British Protectorate which was later expanded to
include the entire country, renaming it as Nyasaland. The African nationals
created a group to present their own interests to the British government.
During the early 1950s, the British combined Nyasaland with Northern and
Southern Rhodesia (mostly modern day Zimbabwe) and renamed the entire area the Federation
of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. As they gained independence, Hastings Banda was
declared the first prime minister of the country and renamed the country
Malawi. Since its independence, the country had its struggles economically and
politically and is trying to overcome poverty and strengthen their economic
ties.
The
capital city, Lilongwe, is named after the Lilongwe River. It’s located near
the central region of the country, not far from the border with Mozambique and
Zambia. The city itself is divided between the Old City and the New City. There’s
a definite distinction between the modern shops and the old walled sections of
the city. Several smaller local markets are spread throughout the city. And
because of the number of tourists in Lilongwe, you can find a number of diverse
cuisines. As far as transportation goes, there is an international airport,
regular bus service, and there’s also a limited rail service. The city does
have a sports stadium as well. Although the city is the fgovernmental center of the country, the financial and commercial capital is located in
Blantyre.
Malawi
has its struggles. It’s among the least developed countries in the world. The
vast majority of its people live in the rural areas, and its economy is largely
based on agriculture and especially tobacco, tea, and sugar. It also depends on
foreign aid and aid from the World Bank and the IMF. Although the country
battles high unemployment and poverty rates, there are some small strides being
made, but they tend to be few and far between at times.
Because
of Malawi’s history with Britain, it is a majority Christian country. Of the
Christian population, the largest denomination is Roman Catholicism with a
number of other smaller denominations present as well. About a quarter of the
population is Muslim, mostly Sunni. Of course, there are also a significant
number of Baha’is, Hindus, Rastafarians, Jews, atheists, and people who
practice traditional African religions.
While
the official language is English, there are many local languages spoken
throughout Malawi. The majority of Malawians speak Chichewa although Chinyanja,
Chiyao, and Chitumbuka also have large numbers of speakers.
I’m
a fan of the Danish beer Carlsberg and have been for some time. In 1966, the
Danish Foreign Minister took a trip to Malawi, and when he returned he had this
idea that Carlsberg should open a brewery there. It didn’t take terribly long
for the negotiations to manifest itself, and two years later, Carlsberg built
their first brewery outside of Denmark in the city of Blantyre, Malawi. (And
now I’m craving a Carlsberg.) All I know is that there are a lot of interesting
things I’ve already come across in reading about this country. So let’s find
out what Malawi is really all about.
Up
next: art and literature
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