Hunger and irrigation

Three course Christmas menu. I can hear you thinking: a diner like this does not sound unfamiliar to us and I would like to join!

 

This is what we experienced around Christmas in Malawi last year, not knowing that two weeks later, a flood would follow with enormous consequences, which still impacts today.

Around this time we ask the people who live around the Stéphanos area: “Please visit us this week on a time we agreed on because we have 20 kilos of corn for you and your family”. People look at me with disbelief on their faces, because where should this food come from? But after a while, a smile of trust appears on their faces, because the barn is still full of food and this message goes from mouth to mouth, so to say.

 

People receive food and they walk home gratefully, carrying the corn on their head. Christmas is the celebration of Christ, because Jesus is born and we together remember this with wonder. Expansivity is part of this celebration.

 

This is just a daily moment. As workers, we experience special moments like this, because it is a miracle that you are allowed to feed a hungry crowd.

 

Standing in line

Patience and long waiting queues are part of the current famine.

I can see them coming from the hills – little children and grownups, and mostly women and girls who are traditionally responsible for the daily meals. They are coming silently, and careful not to step barefoot into the thorns. The empty baskets are ready to receive the corn. The people can come to register per 10 families, so that the distribution of corn is fair.

 

This is the moment at which the people receive the rich food and people start to talk, and, when they are too weak to talk because of hunger, they smile. We can hear their stories and see their faces. Some of the stories they were telling:

·         Did you see there are cars with the letters United Nations written on them? That means we are going to face difficult times and there are going to be strict inspections at the quality of the food and the distribution of it.

·         Our neighbours kept their children home from school, because, just like 14 years ago, the children must look for food, and this is done when it is getting dark. Of course, this is not good for the rest at night and for the lessons at school.

·         The children are teasing each other: ‘Your hair starts to discolour and your sunken face is not that pretty. You can have a piece of a goatskin to chew to stop the feeling of hunger and to hide your sunken face.

·         Last Sunday we received some corn after church, but it runs down quickly.  

 

The balance we use is not that modern, but it’s fair, because we prefer to work with fair weights and we dislike rounding off in disadvantage of the people. With aprons, baskets, and plastic buckets the corn is carried to the corn mill. Now people have to pay a little bit of money for the use of the mill. Because of this, the customers are known by the Stéphanos foundation and we can control where and when the people may come back.

 

We remind the people that the day and time for a next distribution of food will be announced in church. The people are able to share the food to handle the shortage of food.

 

Mothers with children are going home with a package of food. They are very happy, and when they are heading home, they stop at the pump to take a jerry can filled with fresh water home.

At home, the charcoal is annealing and the mothers have to feel empty stomachs before the evening comes.

 

What is Stéphanos doing in times of famine?

In the first place, Stéphanos tells the people about the coming famine and tells them to prepare for food shortage, the raising of costs, and the need to sow.

 

The sowing period is around Christmas, when the first rains start to fall. The crops are ready around Eastern, when the 8-months during dry period arrives.

 

We knew about the bad crop around Eastern this year, and we also knew a famine would come. We could prepare ourselves by buying food for the orphanage and all the 460 children that are in our daycare centre in Southern Malawi. We could do this because of the financial reserves of the Dutch part of the Stéphanos Foundation, trustworthy dealers in Malawi and safe storage facilities which we can protect in crisis situations.

 

We could think of schema’s to distribute the food and we could tell the government about the way the distribution should take place. There are always policemen present in case the hunger would lead to riots or lootings. Until now, this has not happened, although it is understandable that people are going to steal when they are hungry.

 

Finally, we could encourage people to focus on a next crop, which means that you have to go working on the land with an empty stomach to raise new corns and potatoes.

 

What is learned to fight the famine?

Saying ‘Never going through this again’ is too easy. We also cannot make a list and cross the most important items. We can learn a lot from a disaster like this, but preferably, this was the last time to go through this. However, this is not the case because rivers are still flowing and the rainwater has to stay somewhere.

·         The government tries to tell the farmers how to be a good farmer. This is taking place via the radio. For example, farmers are strongly advised to wait sowing until the first rain has fallen.

·         The storage of food is watched closely and farmers are recommended to turn the sacks with food three times per half year to avoid rotting and to avoid that the precious food is eaten by mice and insects.

·         People are advised to try to raise alternative crops like the sweet potato and wheat. The highlands of Malawi are perfect for raising wheat. But the people still have to learn how to learn to bake and to eat efficiently. People do not like the bread, it’s not filling the stomach and you need some sandwich spread, but butter, marmalade and cheese is unknown in Malawi. A funny fact: Malawians prefer old bread above the newly baked bread, because then you really need to chew, which gives you the feeling that you receive what you have paid for.

·         People can profit from the tropical temperatures during the whole year. People can harvest tomato’s five times a year, corn can be harvested three times year, and this can be alternated with raising vegetables. However, the seed is expensive and people need water, which is the important factor that is missing often. The river is mostly seen as an enemy, because of the floods, the crocodiles and the hippos. It is also possible that there is no water in the river at all. The government does not know how to handle this problem.