Beginning with our fortunate end, we met some good news Friday morning, namely that the Immigration Office accepted our application for a work visa (Temporary Employment Permit). This is an achievement unequalled for such a short period of time. We only visited the office twice on two mornings, Thursday and Friday to prepare our paperwork for submission. In fact, even though it’s not the actual permit, we now expect we will be able to enter the country after our southern holiday and be able to take up our work the next morning. At some point, we’ll need to go back to the airport (Why the airport?) to get our passports stamped with the work permit. Another day / week / month into the New Year I guess, until this happens.
The other “work” we observed this week was the Ndirande social club. We didn’t work, of course, since we didn’t yet have a receipt saying we submitted our TEP package. The club meets on Tuesdays to do a variety of things with handicapped children and adults. There might have been 100-150 people in all. This week, a bunch of mothers brought their kids to consult with a team of physiotherapists. Some of the kids have trouble walking or even sitting up. I have included a photo of a couple of kids practicing walking, one girl walking with the help of the senior physiotherapist and another child with her mother using a chair as a walker. Some of the kids need speech therapy, but this is for another time. I thought some of the kids were grunting at me because I didn’t know their language, but in fact they couldn’t speak with their friends, either.
There was also a math class in one corner of the hall and a Bible study in another corner. Outside, where it was cooler in the shade (30°C only), groups were planning a couple of dramas for an entertainment next week.
PWS&D and International Ministries supported this club over several years, including some help to rebuild homes after some devastating floods a half-dozen years ago. It’s good to see that the club continues to meet regularly. https://presbyterian.ca/pwsd/2015/02/06/update-malawi-flood-response/
They currently meet in a borrowed church hall. They have some income-generating ideas that will require a dedicated building to store equipment. They plan to build their own structure in the next couple of years for storage, as well as to hold their regular meetings and possibly rent out the facility for community events like weddings. That kind of step might lead to self-sufficiency over time. I might spend some of my non-teaching time with the club, especially when they start their building project. My support might only be taking a few photos, but we’ll see. I’m not a mason, so I won’t be doing any of the construction. Wall builders here in Malawi have erected some dangerous structures without sufficient footings, or poor mortar or sub-standard bricks, so the club leadership will need to make sure any structures are sound.
An additional insight into the culture here: The Ndirande club owns land that they want to build on, but while the land is idle, some squatters have been growing maize. When the club starts their building, the farmers will expect compensation. It reminds me of a local Woodstonian who extended his back yard garden into a plot of land we were using for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. He was a little (only a little) upset when we ploughed through his strawberries to plant corn. I don’t know what he thought when the acreage was developed into housing. No, he didn’t get any compensation. Yes, the Malawi squatters will get compensation.
We’ve had a lot of chance to get our bearings in Blantyre. The traffic doesn’t seem as bad as I remember from 3 years ago. They still drive on the left hand side, though. I am getting a good sense of how to get places, but I’ll be relying on Google Maps and Wayz.
Next week, we head off on holidays (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe). We hope to post some photos, but nothing much about Malawi. Our hosts / mentors / good friends asked what kind of travel we’ll be doing once we return and start work, and that stumped us. We might be holidayed out for a couple of months, perhaps until the end of term, April 4th. We’re hoping some friends come and visit around then and we will be motivated to see some vacation spots in the country.
For the next month, we will be looking for news about the legal case regarding the Malawi presidential election from May 21st. The constitutional court should announce its verdict very soon. They ended the witness testimony this week and will deliberate for as long as it takes. Longer than a Boston Legal episode.
In the Warm Heart of Africa 