In Malawi the girl child is faced against a multifaceted challenge. It includes abject poverty and effects of the HIV and AIDS pandemic. Gender issues in the shape of gender based violence and discrimination all add to this heavy load.

Government, answering to the universal Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), has doubled its efforts in the promotion of girl empowerment, educational opportunities, stringent poverty reduction measures, and has called upon different stakeholders to help it fulfill its obligations challenged by the United Nations (UN) by year 2015.

In 5 years time, Malawi must be abreast with the rest of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, the African continent and the global village in whole. This can only be realistic where concerted efforts from other key players are brought on board.

And government is doing just that. For a greater part now, the church has been afforded a part in the struggle for the girl child empowerment and eradication of gender-based orchestrated tip off. Most of Malawi’s religious groups run kindergarten, primary and secondary schools.

Some, like the Church for Central African Presbyterian (CCAP) and the Roman Catholic (RC) church have gone a step further. CCAP now proudly boasts the medieval-styled infrastructure University of Livingstonia in the uplands of Rumphi district in Northern Malawi. The RC has the Catholic University in the South. More churches are trying to power up to the new challenge and making plans in the same direction.

An important case in point is also the Solon Foundation supported Malawi Interdenominational Bursary Programme (MIBP) under which the country’s biggest inter-church body, the Malawi Council of Churches (MCC) has put over 48 children in secondary school and is bound to add that number to make 60 come next school calendar. Shared between the MCC and the implementing partner, the Ecumenical Conference of Malawi (ECM), the two organizations plan to extend the programme to accommodate 4 more less-to-do children in the Community Day Secondary School (CDSS) day scholar system.

Forty-eight children are currently in the boarding school system.

Tamala Mkolongo, Lonjezo Chiseko, Suzan Mkandawire and Linda Swira are all aged between 15 and 16 and are proud beneficiaries of the bursary at Karonga Girls Secondary School. Headmistress Naomi Kayange says the four are part of the brightest group at the school.

“Through a school bursary committee we look through all the student’s personal details. When we find that they have problems at home in terms of school fees and they are hard working, we shortlist them and a final committee with the headquarters at MCC arrive at the names. This helps make the system waterproof and effective.”

A United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) supported report released on December 23 of 2008 on the girl child and the MDGs performance in the landlocked impoverished country indicate significant positive achievement in the Universal Primary Education programme. Owed to factors in education for this development include availability of learning materials and teaching aids in both primary and secondary schools coupled by good infrastructure.

A majority of Malawians are poor who live below a US$ a day and rely on subsistence farming – barely able to send their children to secondary level. Primary education is free and government has introduced the school-feeding programme which has attracted more poor children to school. Before the initiative, most pupils could not concentrate on their lessons as they attended classes on empty stomachs.

“My parents are poor and they find it hard to take care of us. I am glad that the school recognized this problem and offered me a bursary. I promise to work hard and make my parents proud as I want to become a professional in a decision making position in future,” said Lonjezo.

All the four girls, however, site other challenges to their education.

“Sometimes it is hard here. In 2009 there was an earthquake and most of the school blokes were destroyed. This affected most of us as we are still afraid the buildings may fall on us,” explained Suzan. This year in April, Karonga district has experienced flash floods which have seen the school and most part of the main town centre under water. Negative effects of climate change doing there part in upsetting and education setup.

Both Tamala and Linda, however, maintain and optimistic viewpoint. They say now that they are on bursary, they see a bright future where they can some day in future help to care for their siblings back home.

“This is my dream come true and I want to hold it true and see it through,” says Tamala. Shy Linda adds: “We cannot afford to waste such a rare opportunity. I had problems through my primary school as my parents are very poor. Thanks to the church I have a chance to make it big.”

At primary level, the year 2007 realized a net enrollment rate increase from 58% in 1992 to 75% in 2007 while proportions of pupils starting grade five increased from 64% in 1992 to 86% in 2006. This evident rise in the promotion of education opportunities, however, also take into account that other key stakeholders in the education and governance industry are bringing in significant effort to the cause.

Henry Chakana, Education and Administration officer at the MCC, says the programme has seen more pupils benefit.

“The Malawian secondary school calendar starts from Form One to Form Four when students attempt the Malawi Secondary Certificate of Education (MSCE). Those who do better here are selected into college where places are also very competitive. We are glad we have some of the bursary beneficiaries who will attempt MSCE come this September and we hope they will continue to be bright and succeed into university.”

“The bright part is that we also have a university which has provided an alternative intake to government universities. This programme is helping vulnerable children and with more funding we can achieve greater things,” he said.

MCC’s MIBP initiative runs in over twelve church-led sponsored secondary schools such including Ekwendeni Girls, Karonga Girls, Mlanda Girls, Robert Laws, and Our Lady of Wisdom. To generate for the administrative educational arm of the bursary programme under the MCC, there is a deliberate MK10 to MK100 student contribution to the school purse for administrative purposes. This amount helps see annual general meetings, board meetings, and other core activities going.

The bursary students – selected for good behavior and conduct, vulnerability and intelligence - have their bills footed by the MCC and ACM, with parents ensuring transportation to school and uniform. Most of the text books are provided by the school for all students.

Poverty, chief problem to most Malawian girl’s poor showing in education, had its head count reduced from 28% in 1990 to 14% in 2007 and proportion of ultra poor population reduced from 24% in 1990 to 15% in 2007. Youth literacy increased from about 68% in 2000 to about 82% in 2007.

It should be put in mind that Malawi, just like most African countries in the SADC region, continues to dismally perform in the promotion of gender issues that affect the girl child education and leads to high rate of girl drop out in primary school due to long distances. This poses a security problem in the face of sexual abuse and gender based violence – a challenge in education for girl empowerment.

Meeting the African dream, particularly in empowering the girl child in education, will require more effort than only governments can cope. Malawi, through the Malawi Council of Churches, is doing the little it can. Understandably, such efforts would yield more if they were adequately supported by local, continental, regional and international partners.

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