Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MALAWI
A P E A C E C O R P S P U B L I C ATI O N
FOR NEW VOLUNTEERS
September 2006
A WELCOME LETTER
To Prospective Volunteers:
Warmest Regards,
Dale Mosier
Country Director
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Map of Malawi
Welcome Letter 1
Packing List 87
Pre-departure Checklist 93
Programming in Malawi
The AIDS pandemic strikes across all social strata in many Peace
Corps countries. The loss of teachers has crippled education
systems, while illness and disability drains family income and
forces governments and donors to redirect limited resources
from other priorities. The fear and uncertainty AIDS causes
has led to increased domestic violence and stigmatizing of
people living with HIV/AIDS, isolating them from friends and
family and cutting them off from economic opportunities. As
a Peace Corps Volunteer, you will confront these issues on
a very personal level. It is important to be aware of the high
emotional toll that disease, death, and violence can have on
Volunteers. As you strive to integrate into your community,
you will develop relationships with local people who might
die during your service. Because of the AIDS pandemic,
some Volunteers will be regularly meeting with HIV-positive
people and working with training staff, office staff, and host
family members living with AIDS. Volunteers need to prepare
themselves to embrace these relationships in a sensitive and
positive manner. Likewise, malaria and malnutrition, motor
8 PEACE CORPS
vehicle accidents and other unintentional injuries, domestic
violence and corporal punishment are problems a Volunteer
may confront. You will need to anticipate these situations and
utilize supportive resources available throughout your training
and service to maintain your own emotional strength so that
you can continue to be of service to your community.
Government
Economy
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currency, is greatly influenced by the economic conditions
in those countries. Currently, inflation is running at about 15
percent per year, and economic growth is in the 3 percent to
4 percent range.
Environment
14 PEACE CORPS
NOTES
www.countrywatch.com
On this site, you can learn anything from what time it is in
Lilongwe to information about converting currency from dollar
to kwacha. Just click on Malawi and go from there.
www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations
Excellent site for travel books, maps, and general
travel information.
www.psr.keele.ac.uk/official.htm
This site includes links to all the official sites for governments
of countries around the world.
www.geography.about.com/library/maps/blindex.htm
This online World Atlas includes maps and geographical
information about countries around the world. Each country
page contains links to other sites, such as the Library of
Congress, that contain comprehensive historical, social, and
political backgrounds.
www.un.org/Pubs/CyberSchoolBus/infonation/e_glance.htm
This United Nations site allows you to search for statistical
information for member states of the U.N.
www.worldinformation.com
This site provides an additional source of current and
historical information for countries worldwide.
Connect With Returned Volunteers and Other Invitees:
http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/peacecorps
This Yahoo site hosts a bulletin board where prospective
Volunteers and returned Volunteers can come together.
www.rpcv.org
This is the site of the National Peace Corps Association, made
up of returned Volunteers. On this site you can find links to
all the Web pages of the friends of groups for most countries
of service, made up of former Volunteers who served in those
countries. There are also regional groups who frequently get
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together for social events and local Volunteer activities. Or
skip straight to the Friends of Malawi site:
http://home.att.net/~friendsofmalawi
www.peacecorpswriters.org
This site is hosted by a group of returned Volunteer writers.
It is a monthly online publication of essays and Volunteer
accounts from countries around the world.
http://www.nationmalawi.com/
News from Malawis main newspaper.
http://www.zikomo.net/
A local site with information on related to business in Malawi
www.unaids.org/
Website for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
http://www.usaid.gov/locations/sub-saharan_africa/
countries/malawi/index.html
Overview of USAIDs projects in Malawi
www.worldbank.org/
World Bank website. Search on Malawi for several
documents related to developmental aid
www.comminit.com/index.html
Site for the Communication Initiative, which includes
information on development in general
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3. Erdman, Sarah. Nine Hills to Nambonkaha: Two
Years in the Heart of an African Village. New York,
NY: Picador, 2003.
Once you have become a Volunteer, you will have your mail
sent directly to your new address at your site.
Telephones
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Computer, Internet, and E-mail Access
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You will also receive a leave allowance (standard in all Peace
Corps countries) of $24 per month. This allowance is paid in
local currency along with your living allowance.
Transportation
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lasts through April. The rest of the year is quite dry, although
rain showers are possible throughout the year. At certain
times of the year, temperatures can drop to a chilly low.
Social Activities
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Rewards and Frustrations
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NOTES
Technical Training
Language Training
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Cross-Cultural Training
Health Training
Safety Training
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The number, length, and design of these trainings will be
adapted to country-specific needs and conditions. The key
to the training system is that training events are integrated
and interrelated, from the pre-departure orientation through
the end of your service, and are planned, implemented, and
evaluated cooperatively by the training staff, Peace Corps
staff, and Volunteers.
The Peace Corps will provide you with all the necessary
inoculations, medications, and information to stay healthy.
Upon your arrival in Malawi, you will receive a medical
handbook. At the end of training, you will receive a first-aid
kit with supplies to take care of mild illnesses and first-aid
needs. The contents of the kit are listed later in this chapter.
42 PEACE CORPS
the Office of Medical Services in Washington, D.C. If it is
determined that your condition cannot be treated in Malawi,
you may be sent out of the country for further evaluation
and care.
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medical attention, but may also have programmatic
ramifications. The Peace Corps is responsible for determining
the medical risk and the availability of appropriate medical
care if the Volunteer remains in country. Given the
circumstances under which Volunteers live and work in Peace
Corps countries, it is rare that the Peace Corps medical and
programmatic standards for continued service can be met. In
Malawi, Volunteers who become pregnant are
medically separated.
If your dental exam was done more than a year ago, or if your
physical exam is more than two years old, contact the Office
of Medical Services to find out whether you need to update
your records.
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If you wish to avoid taking duplicate vaccinations, you
should contact your physicians office, obtain a copy of your
immunization record, and bring it to your pre-departure
orientation. If you have any immunizations prior to Peace
Corps service, the Peace Corps cannot reimburse you for
the cost. The Peace Corps will provide all the immunizations
necessary for your overseas assignment, either at your pre-
departure orientation or shortly after you arrive in Malawi.
You do not need to begin taking malaria medication prior
to departure.
If you wear eyeglasses, bring two pairs with youa pair and
a spare. If a pair breaks, the Peace Corps will replace it, using
the information your doctor in the United States provided on
the eyeglasses form during your examination. To reduce the
risk of developing a serious infection or other eye disease,
we discourage you from using contact lenses during your
Peace Corps service. Most Peace Corps countries do not have
appropriate water and sanitation to support the use of contact
48 PEACE CORPS
The Peace Corps approaches safety and security as a
partnership with you. This Welcome Book contains sections
on: Living Conditions and Volunteer Lifestyle; Peace Corps
Training; and Your Health Care and Safety. All of these
sections include important safety and security information.
50 PEACE CORPS
Travel with someone whenever possible
Avoid known high crime areas
Limit alcohol consumption
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1The average numbers of incidents are in parenthesis and equal the average
per year (V/T years). Since most sexual assaults occur against females, only
female V/Ts are calculated in rapes and minor sexual assaults. Numbers of
incidents are approximate due to rounding.
3Data collection for Malawi began as of 2001
54 PEACE CORPS
If you do become a victim of a violent crime, first, make sure
you are in a safe place and with people you trust and second,
contact the country director or the Peace Corps medical
officer. Immediate reporting is important to the preservation
of evidence and the chances of apprehending the suspect.
Country directors and medical officers are required to report
all violent crimes to the Inspector General and the RSO. This
information is protected from unauthorized further disclosure
by the Privacy Act. Reporting the crime also helps prevent
your further victimization and protects your fellow Volunteers.
56 PEACE CORPS
towns, family, friends, and colleagues will look out for
them. While whistles and exclamations are fairly common
on the street, this behavior can be reduced if you dress
conservatively, avoid eye contact, and do not respond to such
negative and unwanted attention. Other methods have helped
Volunteers avoid becoming targets of unwanted attention and
crime. Keep your money out of sightuse an undergarment
money pouch. Do not keep your money in outside pockets of
backpacks, in coat pockets, or in fanny packs. In urban areas,
you should always take a taxi at night.
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NOTES
62 PEACE CORPS
of their male peers. Although the Peace Corps emphasizes
understanding and sensitivity of other cultures, it will be
necessary to occasionally explain and defend why you believe
something or behave a certain way. Women and men in Malawi
are not considered adults until they marry and have children.
This being the case, female Volunteers should expect curiosity
from host country friends regarding their marital status and
whether or not they have children.
Volunteer Comments
Volunteer Comments
64 PEACE CORPS
I feel really frustrated and disappointed at being asked
by Malawians, What are you? When I answer, African
American or Black American, Malawians are genuinely
shocked or amazed. Often times, Malawians will regard
this with disbelief or they will ask me, But where are your
parents from? or You are not a real American, are you?
Volunteer Comment
Volunteer Comments
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Volunteer Comments
68 PEACE CORPS
NOTES
72 PEACE CORPS
What should I bring as gifts for Malawian friends and my
host family?
This is not a requirement. A token of friendship is sufficient.
Some gift suggestions include: knickknacks for the house;
pictures, books, or calendars of American scenes; souvenirs
from your area; hard candies that will not melt or spoil; or
photos to give away.
74 PEACE CORPS
NOTES
Getting StartedTraining
Working in Malawi
78 PEACE CORPS
reassess your own. This type of understanding will allow you
to easily adapt to some things, compromise on others, and
stand your ground when needed. If you can open your mind
to a new way of thinking, learning, and living, then you will
undoubtedly gain more in your two years than you will ever
be able to give back.
Kristof Nordin
Life Issues
Think about the images that you have of Africa and where
they come from. The media often gives us a very skewed
and negative perspective of African life with its portrayal of
wars, pestilence, disease, famine, or starvation. What we dont
often see is what you will experience by living in Malawi. It
is a peaceful and wonderful place to call home. The larger
cities have the things that you would find in America...grocery
stores, Internet services, restaurants, etc. Day-to-day living
comes with its own unique circumstances, and like every
other country in the world, Malawi is working to address the
problems it faces.
Your skills as a Peace Corps Volunteer can be a valuable
contribution to the countrys progress. If you are willing to
avoid making opinions of life in Malawi based on Western
concepts such as material resources or money, and instead
focus on the things that really matter in life, you will quickly
realize that you are living in one of the richest countries
in the world.
Kristof Nordin
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Your life will be very different here; face it. But thats part
of the reason youre joining the Peace Corps. And youre
going to go through some changes. But be yourself, read a lot
of good books, write your daily thoughts frequently, take a
walk, a bike ride, chat, or play cards, have a few beers when
needed, and dont forget why youre here or who you are.
Angie Sanders
Malawi may be the Warm Heart but it sure isnt for the
Faint of Heart!
Patricia Wundrow
Daily Life
I remember hearing this and not believing it, but its true:
You dont need to pack a lot of clothes. You can always get
things here (especially if you love the adventure of open-air
thrift shopping). Also pack tons of underwear, a swimsuit, and
that one outfit that makes you feel 100 percent cozy and 100
percent you.
Patricia Wundrow
82 PEACE CORPS
The intensity that I experience here on a daily basis is
much stronger than anything I could have imagined nine
months ago, when I too held a Peace Corps manual in
my hands and tried, somehow, to prepare. But there is a
lighthearted side to all of this, also.
Malawians, as a whole, are very friendly, happy people.
We are always laughingat and with each other. Everything
that I say is listened to and everything that I do is observed.
Everything. This is part of being a Volunteer in Malawi. Just as
I laugh out loud when I pass a muscular young man wearing a
frilly pink T-shirt that says Mom to be, I hear people laughing
at me. What am I wearing or doing that seems so humorous to
these people? Have I become such an odd creature overnight?
No. Im just a person from another country that is very, very
foreign to my new friends and neighbors. When we discuss
America they shake their heads and say: Ah, it is a very
strange place, madam!
Debbie Gordon
You will get sick, but you will also get over it. If you take
care of yourself, Malawi is not an unsafe place for your
health. However, youll be surrounded by students getting
malaria, friends with tuberculosis, and many neighbors and
counterparts with HIV or AIDS. After living in Malawi, Ill
never again take good health for granted.
Laura Lanwermeyer
In General
84 PEACE CORPS
eagerness to learn, which surpasses American students by
far. Though statistically Malawi is a very poor country, I have
found it a land full of people with spirits richer than
most Americans.
Rob Martin
The three key qualities for clothing in Malawi are dark colors,
many pockets, and easy to wash and care for. Overall, dress
conservatively. Remember that it does get cold so bring warm
clothes. Rainy season means just thatyou will get wet and
splattered with mud. We recommend quick-drying,
breathable clothes.
General Clothing
One set long underwear
Lightweight, all-weather jacket
Hooded sweatshirt or fleece
Knit hat and gloves
Sleeveless dresses and shirts (note that Volunteer
teachers cannot wear these in the classroom)
Swimsuit (one piece); very sturdy
Bandannas or handkerchiefs
Sun hat (baseball cap or straw hat)
Good-quality raincoat
Shoes
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House shoes (slippers); you can get flip-flops in Malawi
Dress shoes
Kitchen
Heavy-duty non-stick frying pan
Good knives
Vegetable peeler
Thermos
French press (if you appreciate good coffee)
Kitchen towels
Ziploc bags (surplus)
Plastic containers (e.g., Tupperware)
Mess kit cooking set
Set of silverware
Miscellaneous
Sturdy water bottle (e.g., Nalgene)
Lightweight, travel, waterproof tent w/ground cloth
Leatherman/Swiss Army knife
Compact sleeping bag for cold weather
Indiglo watch
Bungee cords or backpack straps
Chair that folds out into sleeping mat (e.g., Crazy Creek
or LL Bean)
Flashlight or headlamp with extra bulbs
Shortwave radio
Solar-powered rechargeable batteries with recharger
Duct tape
Scissors
Good envelopes
Elmers glue
Good dictionary
U.S. stamps (so you can send letters home
with travelers)
Lonely Planet Guide to Malawi
Camera (35mm point-and-shoot)
Field guide for flora and fauna of sub-Saharan Africa
Seeds for herbs and vegetables
Battery-powered alarm clock
Double size, flat sheets and a couple of towels
Sewing kit
Sunglasses
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Personal money (you can keep it in the safe at the
Peace Corps office)
Games (Scrabble, cards, chess, Frisbee, etc.)
Walkman and variety of tapes (Discman uses much
more battery power)
Musical instrument (harmonica, guitar, etc.)
A few novels (to swap after reading)
Hobby materials like sketching pads and pencils
Day pack
Luggage (should be tough, lightweight, lockable, and
easy to carry)
Hiking backpacks without frames are practical
Family
Notify family that they can call the Peace Corps Office
of Special Services at any time if there is a critical
illness or death of a family member (telephone number:
800.424.8580, extension 1470; 24-hour duty officer:
202.638.2574).
Give the Peace Corps On the Home Front handbook to
family and friends.
Passport/Travel
Forward to the Peace Corps travel office all paperwork
for the Peace Corps passport and visas.
Verify that luggage meets the size and weight limits for
international travel.
Obtain a personal passport if you plan to travel after
your service ends. (Your Peace Corps passport will
expire three months after you finish your service, so
if you plan to travel longer, you will need a regular
passport.)
Medical/Health
Complete any needed dental and medical work.
If you wear glasses, bring two pairs.
Insurance
Make arrangements to maintain life insurance coverage.
Arrange to maintain supplemental health coverage
while away. (Even though the Peace Corps is
responsible for your health care during Peace Corps
service overseas, it is advisable for people who have
preexisting conditions to arrange for the continuation
of their supplemental health coverage. If there is a
lapse in supplemental health coverage, it is often
difficult and expensive to be reinstated for insurance.
This is especially true when insurance companies know
you have predictable expenses and are in an upper age
bracket.)
Arrange to continue Medicare coverage if applicable.
Personal Papers
Bring a copy of your certificate of marriage or divorce.
Voting
Register to vote in the state of your home of record.
(Many state universities consider voting and payment
of state taxes as evidence of residence in that state.)
Obtain a voter registration card and take it with you
overseas.
Arrange to have an absentee ballot forwarded to you
overseas.
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Personal Effects
Purchase personal property insurance to extend from
the time you leave your home for service overseas until
the time you complete your service and return to the
United States.
Financial Management
Obtain student loan deferment forms from the lender or
loan service.
Execute a power of attorney for the management of
your property and business.
Bring necessary banking/routing information for
deductions from readjustment allowance to pay
alimony, child support, student loans and other debts.
These deductions may be set up after swearing-in as a
Peace Corps Volunteer.
Place all important papersmortgages, deeds, stocks,
and bondsin a safe deposit box or with an attorney or
other caretaker.
For Direct/
Questions Toll-free Local
About: Staff Extension Number
Responding to Office of
an Invitation Placement
Africa
Region Ext. 1850 202.692.1850
Medical Handled by a
Reimbursements Subcontractor 800.818.8772
98 PEACE CORPS
P EAC E C O R P S
Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps Headquarters
1111 20th Street NW Washington, DC 20526 www.peacecorps.gov 1-800-424-8580