In Malawi, rural women and children are disproportionately affected by inadequate access to healthcare. Reports conducted by the World Health Organization in 2006 revealed a physician/patient ratio of only one physician to every 100,000 patients. Besides grossly limited supplies of healthcare professionals, under-5 mortality rates continue to escalate due to HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and malnutrition.

UNICEF statistics show 22% of Malawi's children as malnourished, 5% as wasted or severely malnourished, and an alarming 48% as stunted. The majority of these affected children are among Malawi's 950,000 orphans.

Ranked by the United Nations as one of the poorest developing countries in the world, Malawi's government and people remain heavily reliant on foreign aid to meet their basic needs. With seasons of drought affecting agricultural resources, a lack of education and healthcare hindering development, and an adult HIV/AIDS prevalence rate of 14.1% killing off family breadwinners and robbing children of their mothers, fathers, and caretakers, Malawi is in a perpetual cycle of poverty. In addition, most of the scarce healthcare facilities are located within the cities, but 85% of the population resides in rural areas, forcing the majority of the people to walk great distances for basic medical assistance. This situation can cause a minor injury or illness to become a major threat to survival.

CLI has been working in Malawi since March of 2008 with the top priority of building a healthcare facility for a grossly underserved rural area outside of the capital city.

What began as untamed acreage is taking shape and changing thousands of lives in the process.

Standing 15 ft. high with over 7,800 square feet of treatment space, our two ward facility will soon bring primary healthcare services to a catchment area of over 30,000 people.

We began construction after extensive infrastructure development in February of 2009, and now with the roofs securely in place, we can continue to make progress inside of the clinic as the rains have already begun.

With the majority of structural building complete, our largest challenge now is finishing the clinic's insides - plastering, painting, sealing, and equipping the facility.

As of today, the basic treatment center contains the following:

• Two treatment rooms
• Two examination rooms
• Two offices
• Lab
• Hazardous waste disposal room
• Bathroom
• Dispensary and supply room

The maternity ward contains areas tailored specifically for expectant mothers and labor and delivery

• Prenatal room
• Antenatal room
• Two delivery rooms
• Two bathrooms
• Dispensary and supply room
• Office
• Three private waiting rooms for women going into labor

In order to properly staff this facility, we are building 4 houses on the property specifically for nurses and lab technicians employed at the clinic.

The first staff house is nearly completed and the remaining three staff houses will be built over the next year. We believe the constant presence of our staff will greatly benefit the clinic and the community at large.

In addition to the staff housing, we have also constructed three guesthouses for traveling medical professionals, evangelists, and service professionals who want to stay on the property and serve the people of Malawi, furthering our mission of empowerment.

Our CLI family of donors has been a tremendous blessing to all we have accomplished so far for the Malawi Wellness Center... and this is just the beginning.

View the complete site plan of our project!

Partner with us today and BE THE DIFFERENCE!