The Malawi Government has committed to protect children from all forms of child labour including hazardous work through reviewing of the prohibition of hazardous work for children order of 2012.
Speaking as he was commissioning a two-day stakeholder review meeting on Thursday in Salima, Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Wezi Kaira said that current order has helped the country in fighting child labour.
Kaira said that the review has come at a right time when Malawi is a pathfinder country in the fight against child labour and therefore all players must move fast in addressing child labour issues.
The Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Wezi Kaira
The International Labour Organisation has since advised that the country must quickly move out from developing good policies and laws without action.
Technical Officer at the Malawi ILO, Mr. Gracious Ndalama said that it is his belief that the country will benefit from the outcome of this review meeting.
The prohibition of hazardous work for children order of 2012 became part of the Employment Act chapter 55 section 2.
As one way of creating opportunities to budding media professionals, Radio Alinafe is conducting a 3-month long internship program which will help these individuals to familiarize with media production.
The director of Radio Alinafe, Fr. Louis Chikanya has told the new interns that they should expect to get to know more about the radio in as far as radio production is concerned.
Fr. Louis Chikanya at the internship training
Radio Alinafe gives room for individuals to have full knowledge and experience which they long for.
The radio is capable of training individuals in news anchoring, continuity presentation and editing programs using relevant software among others.
In addition to radio broadcast, the interns are also expected to know how to use camera thereby becoming more knowledgeable about videography and photography, and also but not limited to know more about software used when editing footages which includes Adobe Lightroom/Premier Pro.
Country Director for Basic Education, Grace Milner has encouraged Complementary Basic Education graduates to work hard in their studies as they transit to Primary Education.
The Director made the call on Thursday 27 July 2023 at Kalulu Primary School ground in Mchinji district during the graduation ceremony of 57 Complementary Basic Education learners who have been transitioned to primary education through Transformational Empowerment for Adolescent Girls, TEAM Girl Malawi Project, which was being implemented in the district by Link Community Development Malawi.
Speaking in an interview, the Director pointed out notable achievements the project has offered since it started, saying that many learners have accessed primary education and are still furthering their studies in different primary schools, since the project started.
“Through CBE project, we have reached about 18000 leaners since we started the program in 2006 both boys and girls. And this is encouraging to us as ministry of Education,” said Grace Milner.
In his remarks Country Director for Link Malawi, Harold Kuombola expressed his satisfaction that there was a good turnout of learners during TEAM Malawi project who were coming to learn from the CBE.
He further acknowledged that the graduating learners would do better in primary education and those who have trained in vocation skills, will excel in their business, for them to be financially independent.
One of the graduating learners Agness Layson, thanked Link Malawi for the TEAM Girl Malawi Project, saying the project has helped her to be able to read and write, and she promised to do well in her Primary Education.
Complementary Basic Education is delivered by Ministry of Education, and Link Community Development Malawi is one of the development partners that has been implementing the program for 5 years since 2018 through Transformational Empowerment for Adolescent Girls Malawi project (TEAM Girls Malawi).
The project is now being implemented in 3 districts of Dedza, Mchinji and Lilongwe and has managed to enroll 6300 learners, 5250 girls and 1050 Boys since it started in 2022 and is expected to end in October this year.
About 1500 learners were enrolled in 25 centres across Mchinji district during the project.
The Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority MACRA has emphasized the need for faith-based leaders to play a crucial role in ensuring that their followers are making the good use of social media.
The sentiments have been made in Mangochi during a meeting which centred at discussing issues surrounding cyber space and electronic communication.
A communication expert Baldwin Chiyamwaka has urged faith leaders to be on the forefront of helping people to use social media positively for the betterment of the country.
Chiyamwaka expressed his disappointment especially on how some of the citizenries are using the social media.
“People have been defamed, People have been harmed in different ways because of disinformation, misinformation, fake news, fabrication and sheer evil intent to harm someone,” said chiyamwaka.
He is of the view that social media is an important tool in developing the country if well accorded.
“Let’s use social media positively to develop and to benefit our lives positively but also to benefit the lives of others and to benefit our country” he concluded.
Secretary General for Quadria Muslim Association of Malawi, Sheikh Osman Karim has described the meeting as fruitful as it will enable them to reach people on how best they can use social media.
“It is important for faith leaders to understand how they can communicate with their people especially the young people,” Karim acclaimed.
The tendency of sharing some nudity content on social media has been on rise in the country a situation which is worrying authorities.
The Director of Radio Alinafe, Rev. Fr. Louis Chikanya says audience engagement at community level strengthens the bond between radio personalities and their audiences, a recipe for continued trust that is required in communication.
He said this at Mpondamwala in Lilongwe on 14 July 2023 where Radio Alinafe team met some of its listeners from that area.
The Director of Radio Alinafe, Father Louis Chikanya
Father Chikanya made a clear presentation on what the radio is made up of and that people can have access to it as it is there for them.
He also called upon the people to listen to the programs which are running on the radio rather than focusing on phone in programs that give them chance to greet others only.
The audience also gave their views on what they feel should be done on air.
They proposed for the repetition of an exclusive program which runs on Sunday at 02:00 am among others.
The Director thanked the listeners who were present at the meeting for their unity which they had shown.
He said that the spirit gives a true reflection of the Radio Alinafe’s slogan “deepening love in our society.”
Under the theme We are members of one another” (Eph 4:25) From social network communities to the human community, this year’s National Communications commemorations in Malawi took place on July 28, 2019 at Mlare Parish in the Diocese of Chikwawa.
But the theme, Pope Francis has emphasized the importance of giving back to communication a broader perspective based on the person, stressing the value of interaction and dialogue and as an opportunity to meet with others.
On the occasion, Radio Alinafe of the Archdiocese of Lilongwe interacted with its listeners. Over 50 radio callers/listeners from various denominations including non-Catholic pastors and traditional leaders attended the event that was publicized for over two weeks on the same radio.
Speaking on behalf of the listeners, Mr. Totomoyo thanked the management of Radio Alinafe for inviting them to interact with its radio personalities face to face.
“This is an interesting occasion. We can see those people that speak to us, take our calls but we never met physically. We are happy to see you physically and we hope you are also happy to interact with us,” said Totomoyo.
The radio callers presented their views on how best to improve some of the programs at the radio station.
On his part, Fr. Louis Chikanya, the Communications Director for the Archdiocese and Director of the Radio Alinafe, thanked the listeners for taking their time to interact with them. He assured them that what they have requested through their feedback will definitely be considered.
In his homily during Mass, Fr. Louis Chikanya asked the Christians to refrain from falsehood that is manifested in the social media as called upon by the Holy See in his message on the commemoration of the 2019 World Social Communications Day (WSCD).
Fr. Louis argued that it is easier to lie on social media but very difficult to lie in a physical encounter.
“The Pope’s message calls upon all of us to reflect on the metaphor of the net, which was the basis of the term ‘Internet’; to rediscover its positive potential. The Pope’s message further asserts that a community as a network of solidarity requires mutual listening and dialogue, based on the responsible use of language,” he said.
In the afternoon, the radio station had a special phone-in program in which the participants to the 2019 World Social Communications Day interacted with the radio presenters. They expressed gratitude for being at the event and wished it could be an annual event for them.
Communications Sunday started in 1967, following the 1962 to 1965 Church Fathers’ Council II commonly known as Vatican Council II during which the decree Inter Mirifica about the use of the mans of social communications in the modern world, was issued.
