Scotland’s £9 million support for Malawi
29 Jan 2015 12:07 PM
Funding has made a real difference to people’s lives for 10 years.
The Scottish Government has invested more than £37 million over the last decade in more than 100 projects to improve the lives of people in Malawi, International Development Minister Humza Yousaf said recently.
Building on this investment, the Minister announced an additional package of over £9 million to fund 20 life-changing projects through the Malawi Development Programme over the next three years.
The 2015-2018 funding will support 17 Scottish organisations to deliver projects to benefit Malawian people and their families, many directly aimed at children and young people.
£9,245,384 will be shared between organisations including Yorkhill Children’s Charity, the Meningitis Research Foundation, NHS Lothian, Christian Aid Scotland, Oxfam Scotland and the University of Strathclyde. Supported projects include vital work to improve breast cancer treatment and maternity and child health services, reduce unnecessary blindness, provide school meals, improve numeracy and literacy, address youth unemployment, stimulate food production and provide access to energy.
It follows the Scottish Government’s announcement earlier this month of more than £150,000 in immediate aid for the Malawi Scotland Partnership and UNICEF to help Malawi deal with the effects of severe floods which have blighted the country in recent weeks. Some of the projects announced recently will help those in flood affected areas.
During a visit to the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh recently Mr Yousaf met Consultant Oncologist Dr Ewan Brown, project lead for the Edinburgh Malawi Cancer Partnership. The project aims to improve cancer services at Malawi’s first cancer unit through a programme of education and cross specialty working. The project will receive £185,340 in the three years to 2018, taking the total sum awarded through the Malawi Development Programme to more than £340,000 since 2013.
Mr Yousaf said recently:
“Over the last ten years through the Malawi Development Programme, Scotland has made a real and lasting difference to the lives of many of our friends in Malawi. Our contribution has helped to deliver more than 100 projects that have among other things supported midwives to safely deliver babies, improved children’s access to vital education, increased sustainable energy and helped people to find work to support their families out of poverty.
“Our continuing support for Malawi reflects the special and enduring relationship our two nations have enjoyed for many decades. The projects we are funding over the three years to 2018 will continue to improve the lives of some of the most poor and most vulnerable people in Malawi. The people of Scotland can be proud of their role in making this happen.
“Funding new projects is especially important given the recent devastating floods that the people of Malawi are dealing with. We must not the forget the hundreds of thousands who are still at risk, while we are building for their long term future.
“Scotland is good global citizen, committed to contributing to the international community, opening up horizons and having a positive influence across the globe. From the start of our international development programme, Malawi has been by our side. Both countries have benefited and I have no doubt our friendship will go from strength to strength.”
David Hope-Jones, Principal Officer for the Scotland Malawi Partnership, the independent umbrella network coordinating Scotland’s civic links with Malawi, said:
“These grants will support a diverse range of Scottish organisations to deliver projects that will strengthen education, healthcare, civic governance, renewable energy and sustainable economic development to transform lives in Malawi.
“With more than 94,000 Scots now involved in our 156 year old friendship with Malawi, this is one of the world’s strongest people-to-people bilateral relationships. It is something Scotland and Malawi can rightly be proud of: a relationship defined and underpinned by mutual respect and mutual understanding.
“The funding announced today demonstrates the Scottish Government’s continued commitment to its formal partnership with Malawi.”
Dr Ewan Brown from NHS Lothian said recently:
“We are extremely grateful to have further funding support which will allow us to develop our partnership with the oncology team at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantrye, Malawi. This investment will help us to continue to make a real difference to cancer services for patients in Malawi.”
Notes To Editors
Through the Malawi Development Programme (2005-15), the Scottish Government has awarded £32,510,029 to support more than 100 projects in Malawi. The £9,245,384 announced recently builds on this support.
From 2011-2015 the Scottish Government has also awarded £4,730,846 to projects in Malawi through the Climate Justice Fund and Malawi Renewable Energy Action Project (MREAP).
Funding is routed through Scottish-based organisations to directly support projects in Malawi. The Scottish Government works closely with the Government of Malawi to ensure that the projects receiving funding comply with the Partnership Agreement signed by both governments in November 2005.
Projects funded by the Scottish Government are also focused on poverty alleviation, the Millennium Development Goals and must adhere to the principles of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness.
For more information and the full list of organisations and programmes funded through the Malawi Development Programme visit:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/International/int-dev/Maps/Malawi
Scottish Government Malawi Development Programme 2015-2018: The Malawi Development Programme was launched 05 August 2014 for projects to run between April 2015 until March 2018. 52 applications to the fund were received. Following assessment by independent assessors, 20 projects were selected by the Scottish Government for funding.
The undernoted projects are to be funded from the Malawi Development Programme 2015-2018.
Malawi Funding Round 2015-18: Total amount of funding
|
Project Focus
|
Total Recommendation
|
|
Health
|
£2,261,708
|
|
Education
|
£2,651,737
|
|
Civic Governance
|
£987,827
|
|
Sustainable Economic Development
|
£2,146,710
|
|
Renewable Energy
|
£1,197,402
|
|
TOTAL
|
£9,245,384
|
Notes to Editor
A photo of Mr Yousaf with Dr Ewan Brown at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh, will be made available later recently on the Scottish Government’s Flickr page at https://www.flickr.com/photos/scottishgovernment