Assistance through the World Food Programme (WFP) to HIV/AIDS Affected and Infected People in Malawi

December 12, 2007

On December 7 (Fri), the Government of Japan, in response to a request from the UN World Food Programme (WFP), decided to contribute US 647,000 dollars (about 75,050,000 yen) to the WFP for its sustainable livelihood project for HIV/AIDS affected and infected people, a part of its protracted relief and recovery operation to assist food-insecure people suffering from the effects of natural disasters and HIV/AIDS in Malawi.
With this contribution, JICA and WFP will jointly extend assistance to 33,000 people ---
those affected by HIV/AIDS and their families --- by offering vocational training and income-generating opportunities. The training aims to improve their agricultural, small-scale business, and vocational skills. A Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer (JOCV), who is stationed at WFP’s country office in Malawi as a programme officer, will be responsible for reporting and assisting the implementation.

Malawi ranks as low as 166th among 177 countries in the Human Development Index (HDI) and about a half of the population of 12,900,000 live on an income under one dollar a day. HIV/AIDS infection rate is so high in Malawi (14.1% for age 15 and over) that a growing number of orphans and a decreasing labor force are making living conditions worse. We believe that this project should ameliorate the situation, help HIV/AIDS-affected people to support themselves, and enable families with HIV/AIDS-afflicted members to earn their living.

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