Livingston’s Malawi or Madona’s?

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13-20% Muslim

Dr. Livingston changed its destiny. Can Christians do a repeat?

In southern Africa, east of Zambia, one of the poorest countries in the world swings between an almost endless cycle of hunger and disease. The country is Malawi, which caught the worlds attention when pop star Madonna began the “Raising Malawi” orphan programme. Malawi also came into the limelight as video and reports flashed horrific scenes from overcrowded hospitals ill equipped to handle the overwhelming HIV / AIDS crisis.

Malawi’s fame

Malawi is actually a very pretty land and tourists enjoy the friendliness of its people. Nature lovers adore the parks and game reserves, mountain hiking and plateau trekking. Others are fascinated by the various people groups and their colorful history; the Jumbes, local rulers who represented the Sultan of Zanzibar and the famous Yao who were displaced from their original homeland in Mozambique causing many to migrate to Malawi.

The great toll

Still, life in Malawi is hard. The average life expectancy is around 40 years and there is little hope for most Malawians for a better future. The people are very family oriented and there are various customs for how a person treats members of his own family. Many families are farmers who eke out a meager existence from growing food or tobacco, tea or sugar. Even the children will be involved heavily in this work.

Dr. Livingston I presume

The first Muslim to set foot in Malawi probably did so some five hundred years ago. By the time Christian missionaries arrived, not the least of which was Dr. David Livingston, Islam had already gained a head start. Despite the influence of both Christianity and Islam, spiritism, worship of ancestors, belief in “black magic” and secret societies are a major part of any Malawian’s daily life.

Muslim Missions

Muslim organisations, with oil money to spend, have found it easy to buy land and win converts in Malawi. Mosques and Islamic centres are being erected all over the country. Malawi is a strategic target for Muslim missionaries who see it as a base from which they can bring Islam to the whole of southern Africa.

Let’s pray for Malawi:

* Radio is the chief source of information for many Malawians. State-run MBC is the main national broadcaster. Television was introduced in 1999. Pray for Christian programming.

* Many public schools offer a course entitled “Bible Knowledge,” which is Christian oriented, and another entitled “Moral and Religious Education,” which is more Muslim oriented. Pray for Christian-based education.

* Pray for practical projects to open doors. Some medical missions work to bring clean, piped water to people who normally could not afford it. These projects speak volumes.

* “If anyone doubts the presence of demons and their power let that person live in Africa.” Pray for those in Malawi so bound by black magic.

* Pray for the predominately Muslim Yao people - that Yao churches of faith and love will open.

Background on Malawi (World Factbook)

More than in most countries of Africa, the nation of Malawi has been greatly influenced by the missionaries from Europe. The most famous of these was undoubtedly David Livingstone who came to Malawi in the mid-1800’s from Scotland. Much of his work centered near Lake Malawi, and a mission can still be seen today at the Livingstonia Mission. Dr. Livingston met with the Jumbe and other Chewa chiefs to sign the treaty the ended slavery in 1861. This ushered in the beginning of what would become modern day Malawi.

Economy of Malawi

Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world’s least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 85% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for about one-third of GDP and four-fifths of export revenues. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In 2006, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program.

About Malawi

Population: 13,931,831 (July 2008 est.)
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected.

Life expectancy at birth: 43.45 years

Ethnic groups: Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European

Religions: Christian 79.9%, Muslim 12.8%, other 3%, none 4.3% (from an old census in 1998)

Languages: Chichewa 57.2% (official), Chinyanja 12.8%, Chiyao 10.1%, Chitumbuka 9.5%, Chisena 2.7%, Chilomwe 2.4%, Chitonga 1.7%, other 3.6%

Literacy: 62.7%

More background information is available from, “Beliefs and Practices of Muslims: The Religion of our Neighbours, Kachere Series:” by Steven Pass: Zomba/Malawi, 2006

www.raisingmalawi.org - Madonna’s website to ‘help 1 million orphans in Malawi’.