(Friends in Malawi)

This past month has been fraught with way too many good-byes, including Alisha’s departure from post while I was back in the states. Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks of international work is the transient population of your peers. Two years seems to be the standard amount of time that people are willing to commit to any one job. Considering that I’ve just started my third year, it only makes sense that most of my friends have either left or will be leaving Malawi in the days and weeks ahead.

(Katie and Juliette – the next two scheduled to leave this week)

And tomorrow two more dear friends, Emily and Andrew, will be departing. This whole week has been dedicated to saying good-bye, one farewell party after another. This morning at Emily’s farewell bagel brunch, Emily admitted that she had farewell fatigue. But she is definitely leaving this country knowing that she has not only made long-lasting friendships but also has had a profound impact on Malawi.

(Emily & Andrew)

And Andrew has been working with Baobab, one of the partners that I’ve been working closely with over the years, and has also made major contributions to the agency. In short, they both will be greatly missed.

(Andrew and Sabine – Country Director, Baobab)

I’m trying to stay positive and to view this rapid turnover as an opportunity to make new friends, but in reality, true friendships take time and require a lot of energy. Granted, one never knows what the future holds. And, I still have several fabulous friends who are also in for the long haul, including Kate and Carl who recently became engaged.

(Kate’s pre-wedding festivities)

On another front, work is going exceedingly well. We’ve managed to secure millions of dollars for our informatics projects, hence we’ll begin the national roll-out of electronic data systems for medium to high-burden antiretroviral (ART) sites; and we’re in the process of developing a central repository for health-related data, which will be housed within the Ministry of Health.

(Chris – Head of Central Monitoring and Evaluation Division – MOH)

I definitely hit the ground running after my extended home leave. The week that I returned, I facilitated a two-day workshop with the Ministry of Health and WHO. Seventy-five organizations were represented as we delved into the Health Metrics Network’s National Health Information Systems (HIS) Assessment Tool, which covered topics ranging from HIS resources, to policy & planning, to data sources, to data quality, to dissemination and use.

(George from MOH)

The goal of this exercise is to determine Malawi’s strengths and weaknesses as they pertain to HIS, and to use this information to develop a national HIS strategic plan.

(Weekend w/ Ministry)

Over the weekend, the Ministry of Health invited the technical writing team to the lake in order to focus our attention on writing up the final assessment report. I enjoyed bonding with my Malawian counterparts as we worked away at Livingstonia. And I’m pleased to say that we have a fairly good draft after two days of cranking it out.

(Woodcarving guys in Senga Bay)

On the way home, we stopped by my favorite wood-carving stalls in order to present them with thank-you letters and with photos of Maia’s kindergarten class holding up their personalized keychains. As soon as I stepped out of my car, they asked about MWUMBA AGOGO – which became my mom’s African name (to which she still goes by). My mom certainly made a lasting impression while she was here!

(Holding up a bookmark)

The Malawians were so appreciative as they sat and read every letter – laughing out loud at the text, “ZIKOMO, ZIKOMO, ZIKOMO My African Friends…” in what was obviously the penmanship of a four year old. So cute!

(Photos from Maia’s class)
Lastly, I’m starting to focus my energy towards my dissertation. I think it’s time I finally finished this damn thing! Several committee members will be flying here next month to help push me along. I’m slowly starting to see the light at the end of this long tunnel.

Sending much love,
Amy