Worryingly, the World Health Organisation reports that the maternal mortality rate in Malawi is among the highest in the world.
Lack of access to healthcare facilities is a huge challenge with expectant mothers having to walk long distances to a maternity hospital. Many ladies are unable to make such a journey and, if there are complications during the birth, sadly don’t survive. When a mother passes away delivering her baby, it’s her immediate family who are expected to take care of the infant….often a grandmother or, sometimes, an aunt. This puts a huge pressure on the family who simply cannot afford to buy the vitally important baby formula milk.
One very old lady heard about Support Malawi and the infant rescue program and walked miles with her newly-born grand-daughter strapped to her back to ask for our help. She had been feeding the baby for 2 days with warm water to try to keep the baby alive. Happily she is now enrolled on our program and the baby girl is now thriving.
At Support Malawi we hold baby clinics every month when we monitor the infant’s weight, encourage vaccinations and undertake health checks. We also supply formula milk, baby clothes and soap to the guardian.
Once the beautiful babies have gained sufficient weight and are onto the next phase of feeding, they are discharged by the clinic making way for the next baby needing our support.