Malawi

HIV/AIDS: Learning from our partners

“HIV/AIDS in Africa: A Time of Hope and Challenge” was the theme of a two-week
travel-study seminar in Malawi and South Africa in February. A group of 11 participants and three seminar leaders worked to strengthen links between African church partners and Presbyterian congregations, and learn ways to make HIV/AIDS a focus of productive engagement .

Janet Guyer, PC(USA) Regional AIDS consultant, Amanda Craft , Associate
for Education and Advocacy in the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program and Bob Schminkey, Co-Moderator of the Presbyterian AIDS Network served as the seminar leaders.

Janet Guyer describes her work as being threefold:

• To represent the solidarity of the PC(USA) to our African partner churches as they struggle with responding to the HIV/AIDS crisis in their communities.
• To give technical support to our partner churches in their HIV/AIDS ministries and projects.
• To interpret for Presbyterian churches in the United States how the AIDS pandemic affects people and churches in Africa and how Americans can join with our African brothers and sisters in responding to this crisis.

Read mission updates by Janet Guyer in Malawi.

Home-based care wrap project launched

A man displays the first wrap designed as part of the home-based care “wrap” project. Photo by Janet Guyer.

International Health Ministries' AIDS office launched the new home-based care wrap project at the Presbyterian Women's Gathering in July, 2006. The wrap project is based on the long colorful skirts women wear in sub-Saharan Africa. For the women a skirt is more than an article of clothing. It identifies them as a volunteer, an identification of which they are proud.

This wrap is the first one to be designed by home-based care volunteers in Malawi. The colorful blue wrap (two meters of fabric) depicts six different home-based care situations surrounding a map of Africa. On the border is a series of huts from South, East and Central Africa, Bible verses used by volunteers and a red, white, blue and yellow border that was taken from the pattern of the wall of a South Africa homestead. [Read more]

Download a brochure about the wrap project .

Report: Models of Orphan Care in Malawi

by Betty and John Beard, Frank Dimmoc and Larry Sthreshley

The purpose of this study was to review orphan programs in Malawi and identify appropriate models of care. Sixteen organizations were visited during a two-week period (April 30 – May 10, 2001). Several of the organizations had multiple approaches to address the orphan problem. The team identified four major models of orphan care and several sub-components to these models. [Read the report.]

Home-based care kit a success

The home-based care kit program began in response to the needs of our African church partners to provide basic home care supplies and training of volunteers. The Malawian government has recently instituted a national program of providing supply kits. This means we can discontinue making the kits in the United States. [Read more.]