Malawi Floods Appeal

  

All We Can and The Methodist Church in Britain have launched an urgent appeal to support the people of Malawi following devastating flooding in March 2019.

On 5-8 March 2019, heavy rains throughout Southern Malawi caused severe flooding. A state of emergency was declared by the President of Malawi on 8 March due to the widespread devastation, loss of life and displacement of tens-of-thousands of people. With more rain and storms expected, it is feared that the flooding in Malawi will worsen affecting more families.

Sam’s village in Nsanje District in Malawi has been badly affected by the flooding. Harvests have been washed away by the rains.

Although these floods have ravaged huge stretches of land in Southern Malawi this news has barely featured in UK media. Startlingly over 31,000 people have been displaced from their homes and families are facing extreme hunger as harvests have been destroyed. There is a need for rapid action as people suffer because of the lack of shelter, sanitation facilities, food and medicine. The number of people affected by the floods has reached 468,650, this number is expected to rise as the true extent of the damage is revealed and as heavy rains continue to fall in Malawi.

While the short-term impact of these floods is alarming, the long term prospects for families affected are equally daunting. The seasonal rains are what many agricultural communities rely on for the annual harvesting of crops. Many crops have been washed away by the floods, therefore a reduced harvest will be anticipated throughout Malawi leaving many without enough food to feed their families.

All We Can supports food insecure communities in Southern Malawi through its work with local organisations. These communities are located in one of the areas most severely affected by these floods. Hardworking rural families rely on the land for their livelihoods, these rains are a demoralising blow when so much effort has gone into securing a good harvest.

Disasters like this one are both a cause and effect of poverty, with the poorest communities in the world being the most at risk, living in the most vulnerable and marginal areas with few assets to draw upon during an emergency. To ensure the communities All We Can works with, like these ones in Malawi, are able to cope with and recover from emergencies as quickly as possible, it builds the capacity of local organisations to prepare their communities for disasters. This work helps to bridge the divide between essential shorter-term humanitarian action and longer-term sustainable development in the community.

All We Can is already working with its local partner organisations to establish the best way to respond to the immediate humanitarian needs – people require urgent access to food supplies as many have lost everything in the flooding. All We Can will also concentrate on supporting the local organisations it works alongside to help the communities affected by these floods to plan for the coming months.

All We Can are responding now to the floods in Malawi.

Please pray for the people of Malawi and give all you can to All We Can and The Methodist Church in Britain’s urgent Malawi Flood Appeal. Your donation could provide vital food supplies for families that have lost everything.

allwecan.org.uk/floods

Learn more about becoming a Partner Church