19TH FEBRUARY, 2021
COVID-19 RELIEF EFFORTS EMBARKED ON IN 2020 AND PLANS FOR 2021
Madam President, Malawi just like any other country has been hit hard by the COVID-19 Pandemic during both the first and second waves. A total of 29,837 confirmed cases and 984 deaths have been registered as of Thursday, 18th February, 2021.
As First Lady, I have supported His Excellency the State President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera and his Government in raising awareness on the pandemic to members of the community with emphasis on encouraging our people to stay vigilant by observing the 3 Ws: Washing hands with soap: Keeping a 1m distance and Wearing masks.
My work also included mobilization and distribution of Personal Protective Equipment to some hospitals, schools and communities such as medical and cloth face masks, thermometers, hand washing liquid soap and hand sanitizers. I am also Patron of the Masks for All Campaign in Malawi that was set to mobilize resources to produce masks for all upon realization that not everybody can afford a mask, especially school children and the poor.
Closure of schools, coupled with limited household economic resources during the COVID-19 period, contributed to an 11% increase of teenage pregnancies from January to August 2020 compared to the same time in 2019. In this regard, I conducted a GO BACK TO SCHOOL CAMPAIGN in collaboration with the Ministry of Education in which I urged parents to encourage both girls and boys to go back to school and continue with their education in order to realize their dreams as soon as schools re-opened. I also encouraged pregnant girls to go back to school after giving birth and the baby has been weaned from breast-feeding in accordance with the Policy of the Ministry of Education. I am pleased to report that 9 girls from a group of pregnant girls I met in December last year, have been selected to go to secondary school.
As the war against the Covid-19 pandemic continues. A week ago, I made a donation of 300 airway kits valued at $30,000 to the Ministry of Health with support from Gradian Health Systems and Diaspora Africa Forum. The kits included critical supplies such as pulse oximeters, Ambu bags and oxygen masks, which our clinicians and nurses in the treatment emergency units can use to provide breathing support and oxygen therapy for Covid -19 patients.
I plan to continue mobilizing personal protective equipment for our health workers and sensitize our communities on the COVID-19 Vaccine that Malawi is expecting before the end of February 2021.
Let me acknowledge the support of Personal Protective Equipment received from the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation through the OAFLAD Secretariat.
Thank you very much for your attention.