ICS Malawi

After having spent the evening with Ernest and Ethyl playing cards, and speaking at length about the wonder that is the sandwich, I sat them both down to further understand their experience so far on the ICS programme. The two of them had been with ICS for the previous placement also and I was eager to find out more. From our conversation it was clear that certain instances in the placement had made a particular impression on them, exposing the harsher realities set in their communities.

Only an hour and a half away from the bustling Malawian capital Lilongwe, is the regional district of Salima. If you search through its streets full of traders, craftsmen and haphazard bicycle taxis you’ll find the Salima branch of Environment Africa...our home for the next seven and a half weeks! Our team of ICS volunteers consists of five UK members (Elle, John, Holly, Mike, Mungo) and three local members (Brian, Sam, Mphatso).

The moment we stepped off the plane we had a warm welcome from our Malawi team leaders Kirstie, John and Hiliwona. What followed was a week of getting to know not just our fellow team mates but also the environment we were to live, learn and work in for the next couple of months. Needless to say it was a lengthy 7 days which culminated in bittersweet goodbyes between the volunteers as we divided into our 3 groups and left for our assigned placements.

It’s not enough! We don’t want it to end!

Since my last blog update, we have been so busy with many more exciting projects working with Environment Africa. Time has flown by so quickly, that it’s hard to engulf the fact that we’re leaving Salima in a few days! I feel so proud of the small differences we have made and of all the unique experiences we have gained; I just don’t want it to end! The many different projects in which we have been involved in are as followed…

We have been very busy in Mzuzu! Nothing we can’t handle though!

An umbrella is not much to ask

We organised a talk with volunteers from the child-based care centres (CBCCs) at which we used questionnaires and activities to enquire about the needs of these centres. With a better turnout than expected, we managed to extract a lot of information, which we have analysed and used to make a plan of action.

(UK volunteer Emily playing bulldog with children in Lilongwe)