From the brink of hunger, Malawi can now aid those in need

By Raising Malawi on 01.28.10

Despite disaster and despair of their own, Malawi has joined the community of nations lending a helping hand to Haiti.

President Bingu wa Mutharika (pictured left) announced that Malawi will send 150 tons of rice to the Caribbean nation, which suffered an enormous earthquake on January 12. Said Mutharika in a statement in Lilongwe: "Malawi therefore understands the suffering the people of Haiti are enduring."

This is a remarkable event for two reasons.

First, Malawi is extending this generosity weeks after experiencing its own series of earthquakes -- the largest of which reached 6.2 on the Richter scale -- and the government is still in the midst of working with relief organizations to help Malawians whose homes were destroyed.

Second, not long ago Malawi lacked enough food to sustain itself. From 2002 until 2005, a fierce drought brought on a widespread famine that affected nearly five million people. During that time, the government had to import almost all of its food from other countries, draining the treasury of nearly $100 million.

Those times have passed. Thanks in part to the government's "green belt" irrigation program -- public and foreign investment in irrigation systems along Lake Malawi -- as well as several consecutive seasons of high rainfall, the tiny nation has gotten back on its feet; last season, Malawi produced 3.5 million tons of maize, a 46 percent increase from the annual average.

The green belt program is just one of many efforts from the Malawian people to secure their future that is beginning to bear fruit.

Malawi has a long way to go. Many still go hungry and thousands are now homeless as a result of the recent earthquakes. But it is a testament to the Malawian people that they still give when others are suffering regardless of their own situation. We must continue to help the people of Malawi.